God Shall Not Be Used
11/22/16
God does not mind it at all that you bring Him into every battle that you face. In fact, that is what we are supposed to do. However, when we use God sporadically or just on occasion it is this usage that God despises. God is not an instrument for situational standards nor is He a sugar daddy when we decide to want something. Yet, throughout history humans have used God in such a manner as these and then take the natural course of blame when things go wrong. We need to concentrate on having God first in our lives with every breath we take and not when we need oxygen. For it may come to pass that we may really be in need of God and He just sits in silence, watching our lives unfold according to our choices.
All of us at one time or another has had friends, family, or acquaintances from our past show up or call at unexpected times. When this situation occurs, it is difficult not to immediately think that they want something or are in desperate need to fixing a wrong they feel is necessary before they die. Whatever the case may be they have come to you at an unusual time after years or even decades of silence and ignorance. After they have said their peace and feel better about things, they once again disappear into the night and are never heard from again. Every human has experienced this type of “friendly” activity and serves nothing but confusion and sometimes hurt.
To be honest, I have placed myself into this category by doing exactly what I discussed above. My past has not been squeaky clean and I have acted foolishly on many occasions. I have not hunted down people and demanded their time and attention but through modern technology, I have been able to communicate my past selfish stupidities that dominated my feelings a long time ago. I recognize I hurt some people in my past and I now realized that my actions only used them for a short moment in time which complicates matters for everyone even further. I wish I could go back and redo some moments in my life but God has all of us on a single directional path of life and once things are completed, they remain that way. If at all possible, do your best when you are young, mature and old for then you do not have to worry about eating crow at some point down the road. This type of human belief does not need to be a reconciliatory action, it can be any type of activity in which a friend, family member or person can use another to gain an advantage to almost any situation.
In Genesis, we see that Adam and Eve had a daily and personal relationship with God. Their talks were continuous and were completed on a routine basis. As a human, I can understand how they must have felt after a while with all of the communication factors that were discussed between them and God. After a while the newness of their discussions must have become a tad cumbersome, maybe wanting to skip a day or two in order to have a break. Whatever the case, Adam and Eve came to the point that their activities when God was not around seemed more important to them instead of their intimate time with God. It was at this point that they began to lose control of their dominion and their enemy saw this opportunity to seek his revenge of death on their existence and eventually your and mine as well.
It is evident that God became second in Adam and Eve’s lives for the conversations turned from God and them to the serpent and them. A lying and an unequal relationship was established through equality and it was this time that they began to use God’s presence as a service instead of a relationship. Eve’s comment about the tree of good and evil is a testimony to the previous sentence for Eve knew exactly what she was saying and it was through her words that prove she was using God’s law for her benefit instead of having God’s law in her heart. Her words would have been very clear on that issue if she still believed God was her Creator and provider, not as a go-to piece when in need. Ever wonder if Eve ever wished she could take back those words and begin again?
From the beginning of our existence, God has always wanted Him to be number one in our lives and to have Him walk with us and to converse with us on a continual basis. God has also placed it inside our being that He would never force Himself on us in any way and that if we chose to ignore His voice that He would honor that choice for as long as possible. At the same time, God sees what is in front of us and around us so when we stray away He conveniently nudges us to pay attention and seek Him once again for His counsel. Again, it is strictly up to us to either heed this advice or to ignore it and continue using God when we need Him. In many cases, this provisional needing will lead to complete silence and ignorance on our parts concerning God and His Ways, which is becoming more evident each day that passes in our societies.
In 1 Samuel Chapter 4, we have an excellent example of this type of using God, and it occurs with God’s own nation Israel. The first few chapters of 1 Samuel give us a picture of how Israel looks at God stemming from the High Priest and the judges that are supposed to be leading Israel in godly ways. However, it is clear that even the High Priest and his house are corrupt and have even chosen to include their wickedness in their judgments over the people. As of this moment, the people of Israel see their wickedness yet do not wish to change themselves enough to challenge the evil deeds that the High Priest and his sons are committing, and it is this attitude that a short while later dooms Israel with human equality that they wish to have.
Israel is in such bad shape morally that God delivers a prophecy upon the house of Eli that includes himself (Eli) and his sons. I find it intriguing that God delivers this message to Eli through Samuel and while Samuel is at first reluctant to say the contents of his prophecy, Eli receives it but does not understand the entire magnitude of what will occur in order that this prophecy will be fulfilled. It is easy for us to sit and ponder our lives on a singular term but how often or how deep do we consider our actions to be on others around us? It is this point that God was saying to Eli and it is this point that He wants us to know about having Him as our leader, protector, and Creator first and not in any other position.
God had proven Himself to always being with Israel through the Ark of the Covenant, which was the dwelling place of God. The Ark was a great symbol to Israel and it was a constant reminder that God was never going to leave Israel. We can see this type of presence replaying itself over again as it did in the Garden of Eden where the presence of God was taken granted of and became just that – a symbol – instead of a personal relationship. 1 Samuel 4:1-3 enforces this belief of Israel for they had come into contact with their enemy the Philistines and had basically been creamed on the battlefield. There is no mention of the Ark of the Covenant being with these soldiers during this initial battle and from the looks of the results the Israelites believed that their military status and might were not going to be challenged; a great defeat occurred that day, one that was obviously not expected due to the overconfidence of Israel.
In truth, the Israelites kept the Ark in reserve back in its hometown if you wish to wait for its presence to be needed. What an abomination this must have been to God for it completely demonstrated that even though it was through God that Israel had received their status and might, they had forgotten exactly who gave it to them in the first place. Yes, they knew God and that is evident but it is also evident that God was no longer the center of their hearts for their status had overtaken their creation. Four thousand men were slaughtered in the first battle and it was imminent that the Philistines were ready to finish the job, so Israel decided to call in a “favor” and bring out their ace in the hole. Boy, were they in for an even greater shock.
In all of Israel’s existence, they had eyewitness account after eyewitness account that God was not just a figurehead but a complete God that wanted a relationship with them. Yet, being human Israel continued to lose this concept and went along their journey with them in the lead and not God. 1 Samuel 4:4-5, it gives us a description of the order that was followed according to God’s commands but there is a detail that is noticeable that provides further evidence that Israel had come to believe that God was not first in their lives and that He was to be used as a backup plan instead. The sons of Eli were with the Ark and they were some of the ones who God had spoken about to Samuel and then to Eli. Godly sense would have removed them first and replaced them with holy men to ensure the Ark’s placement and Covenant status but no, Israel chose the present situation to imminent to make such a change, a decision that would result in devastation on Israel within the next few hours.
As the cheers and shouts of joy filled the valley that held the Israelites, the Philistine spies and army heard this noise and immediately knew what had occurred. The scouts and men reported that the Ark had joined the Israelites in battle and that things might not look good any longer for their army. The philistine leaders then make a startling statement in 1 Samuel 4:6-8 when they quoted Israeli history that included going all the way back to the captivity of Israel in Egypt and how their God delivered them in such a mighty way. The Philistines even acknowledged the supreme authority of God by asking themselves how they could stand against such a deity.
Yet, the Israelites themselves failed to recognize this fact about God and the position that He was supposed to hold in their hearts. The immediate response of the Philistine leaders was amazing and gave their army the confidence that they needed to defeat their enemy that was before them. What? How could this be? God was in the midst of the battle now! This is a correct statement, but God was not in the center of the Israelite’s hearts and the spiritual forces of the Philistines understood this and were able to wage an effective battle against the Israelites as a result.
Israel’s impending defeat was basically an annihilation of the entire Israeli army with a total of 30,000 men and according to 1 Samuel 4:11, the victory of the Philistines was so comprehensive that the Ark was captured and the sons of Eli were both killed during this battle. It was through this battle that half of the prophecy told for Eli came to pass. Even though the Ark was now where it was supposed to be, the carriers and tenders were not in right standing with God and along with the nation of Israel itself, it is for this reason alone that they lost a great battle and fulfilled a holy prophecy at the same time. It is this truth that we need to really concentrate on for it is through our choices that God either lives or is pushed away from the center of our hearts. All of the pomp and circumstances that occurred with the presence of the Ark meant nothing to an ungrateful and non-God filled nation and even an enemy who did not believe in God won the victory in such a grave manner.
God was silent in His dwelling place that day and for a good reason too. God cannot play favoritism through works, He operates through Covenant and His Ways alone. 1 Samuel 4:12-14 gives us a detailed picture of exactly what occurs to an individual, group or nation that uses God for their own benefit instead of lovingly and willingly having God live in our hearts. A messenger from the battlefield came back after the battle was over and when he entered into the city a great cry went up in the air and it was loud enough that Eli heard it from where he was sitting. The messenger’s clothes were torn and bloodied, his skin was scraped and bleeding, he looked a mess and gave the verbal praise to actually be alive. In verses 16-18 of the same chapter, the messenger was then summoned to Eli to give a formal account of the battle and when the horrific news was delivered to Eli concerning the defeat and more specifically the capture of the Ark, Eli fell out of his chair backwards, broke his neck and died; therefore, completely fulfilling the prophecy told to him by God.
It is clear from this passage of Scripture that Israel used God in a way that God did not see fit. As soon as Eli had heard the news from the battlefield he must have understood that his time on earth was up and that God was about to completely fulfill His prophecy. Eli also knew that God did nothing to stop the victory for the Philistines even though He was present on the battlefield in the presence inside the Ark. Eli also understood that through the ways of the people God would not deliver them from this battle and when the news concerning the Ark hit Eli’s ears, his time ended for the shock was devastating. But what else could God do but accept the will of the people?
From the time that God created mankind, it was His intentions to be with us and it was also His intentions that we would have the true desire for Him to be the center of our lives. Not for a control issue but one for true and holy communion that would provide every protection that we needed. But instead, Adam and Eve along with Israel in 1 Samuel chapter 4 decided to fight the enemy their way and it cost them their lives and status. In both examples the people of God knew that the enemy did not have God on its side, but that God was on their side but because God’s people chose to exclude Him from their hearts God had no choice but to allow His people to witness those consequences. In both cases, the enemy knew about God but through the recognition of spirit, the enemy was not swayed or deterred in attacking and completing his mission, it only made him more resound in his efforts.
Just as in the Garden of Eden when Adam and Eve used the tree of good and evil as a symbolic toy, so did the Israelites when they brought the Ark into the battle. A little note in the Bible that my dad used for many years says when he wrote: “they used it as a good luck charm”. God is not a good luck charm, nor is His presence to be treated as such. In both instances, God saw what was going on and in both cases, He stayed put and allowed the humans to dictate their consequences of their actions. Also, in both cases,the future generations of both settings were dramatically affected and are still in turmoil today. I know that God’s heart was breaking while He watched His prized creations lose their lives to an enemy that should have been easily defeated, but God is a complete God and He cannot turn away from His ways no matter what occurs in human terms.
We must never forget that because we have the gift of choice, God will allow the unthinkable to occur in our lives. Adam and Eve knew no pain or death and we live with it every day now. Israel should have won that battle from the beginning, yet God saw fit to oversee their destruction because of the same type of disobedience and pride. While the destruction of the Israeli army was ongoing, God’s prophecy against His wicked High Priest and his house was unfolding, a match that we should immediately consider for our own hearts and nation.
The consequences for the nation of Israel were dire and they were placed in a predicament that had severe repercussions on both sides of the battle. Our nation is in the same hardship as the Israelites were in after the battle, for we have recognized God in our presence yet have placed Him at the back of our lives and have single handed took the reigns of our nation. Choosing to play this game with God places us in a very dangerous position and for some reason, God has allowed our nation to withstand a couple of warnings without major damage occurring. But as we have as a witness, God cannot be contained in the back seat for very much longer and when the time comes, He shall allow the same destructive and devastating force to be applied to this nation and through this force He shall change the setting of the world and set into motion His Ways according to His Word.
What kind of example are we portraying concerning God today? We do not have the Ark of the Covenant to carry around but we do have a symbol that is just as powerful and means the exact same thing as the Ark did in the Old Testament. It is called the Cross and almost everywhere one goes it can be seen but while our visual attributes can be entertained the meaning of the Cross is being ripped apart by the enemy who once again recognizes through spiritual means what the truth about God really means to our lives. When society has convinced a Christian to wear the cross around their neck and then curse freely without conviction, the presence of God in their lives is null and void. When a porn star can proudly wear a cross around their neck and then immediately continue filming immediately after their interview with the press, the world’s leader has won. When athletes, movie stars and other high-profile people believe that they can symbolize God and be protected by God by wearing a cross around their neck or use any other Christian symbol for this purpose, Satan has already won the battle but as the Philistines had when their leaders made their speech to the troops.
God does not wish to sit by again and watch His people destroy themselves through our finite and foolish ways. Over and over God has called us out because of our sins and our response is to “pat” Him on the head, acknowledge His presence and then turn and walk away thus leaving Him where we have placed Him. God will allow battle and what kind of battle He shall allow only He truly understands and knows, but there have been warnings as to what He is going to allow. Repent Church, NOW! Get your heart right with God and allow Him to begin the restoration process that we desperately need. God loves you and He wants to see us change our hearts towards Him. God is not a toy or even a symbol and shall not be sued for anything else but true life, for He, is alive and breathing and He wants to live and breathe in your heart forever!
DLB
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