Israel’s history of cyclical disobedience is well-reported. We read in 1 Samuel 4 that the Israelites went to meet the Philistines at Aphek, but Yahweh abandoned them because they had quit worshipping Him. They assumed their first defeat was because the ark was left behind at Shiloh. They brought the ark to the next battle thinking they would be triumphant. It didn’t work; they trusted in the ark like a talisman without understanding its true importance. Their disobedience had caused God to remove His power; they were clueless.
Ironically, God proved His power to the Philistines. When
they captured the ark and put it in their temple of the demon-god, Dagon, God
smashed the idol and brought a plague on the Philistines. When they were tired
of being abused by the God of the Israelites, they sent the ark back to a man
called Abinadab. God taught Israel a further lesson at the house of Abinadab;
he prospered him greatly. In spite of this display of God’s power, in their
ignorance, Israel still begged for a king, “So
we can be like other nations.” God was displeased, but He
promised not to abandon them if they followed Him. We know the sad result
of that situation.
Scripture records that God gave His Spirit to Saul when he
was anointed as King. Sadly, we also learn that God removed Saul’s special
anointing when he repeatedly failed to obey God. David was anointed in Saul’s
place, and he too was given a special measure of the Spirit. Although he too
failed to be obedient to the law of God, his dynasty remained all the way down to
the One King who was prophesied: Jesus. What is the difference between Saul and
David? Saul made excuses for his disobedience; David repented in tears and
returned to His Heavenly Father.
I can’t help thinking
that God must be disappointed in His people, the Church. In some ways, we’re
just like Israel; we want to be like the world; popularity is more important to
some than piety. I would hate to say God has abandoned the Church, but the
power evident in the first century church is sadly lacking. We cling to forms
of religion like Israel did with the Ark of the Covenant, but we fail to notice
that God is missing from the forms. We don’t notice that “Ichabod”
is being written on the church wall.
The only “Christian” thing in many believers’ lives is
Sunday church attendance, as if that is what God requires. That is so far from
the truth. The only thing God required of Israel was that they love Him with
all their heart, soul, and strength. The pages of the Old Testament reveal
God’s stern but loving response to His requirements. Jesus repeated the formula
that Moses delivered, but He revealed a different type of reaction from God. Jesus
said we can now call God Abba, Daddy, because He is not just near to us; He
lives in us.
Scripture says to be a friend of the world is to be an enemy
of God. Israel learned at Aphek and many other places what it means to have God
as your enemy. It’s not pretty. Since we don’t have to battle Philistine armies
the way Israel did, we may be lulled into thinking that God is still in our
corner. We may be blind to the reality that Satan roams through our lives like
a lion devouring what we have left unprotected. We won’t be resisting the devil
if we are cozying up to his worldly attractions. If you feel like you are
missing the blessing of God, check your friendships.
Paul
told the Romans that Jesus, “condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the
requirement of the law would be fulfilled in us, who do not live according to
the flesh but according to the Spirit.” He went on to explain, “the mindset of
the flesh is enmity toward God, for it is not
subjected to the law of God, for it is not able to do
so, and those who are in the flesh are not able to please God.” Living
according to the flesh is another way of saying living as a friend of the
world. Living according to the Spirit means we look away from the world and its
attractions look
toward Jesus where He sits at the right hand of the Father.
Except for a few unique individuals, the Old Testament Jews
had to meet God at His special place – first the tabernacle, then the temple.
We have the incredible privilege to be the temple of our God. Jesus
shows us what it means to have a loving, Abba relationship with our Heavenly
Father. A. W. Tozer reminds us: “When we come to Christ we enter a different
world. The New Testament introduces us to a spiritual philosophy infinitely
higher than and altogether contrary to that which motivates the world.”[1]
Why would anyone want to be like the
world – like wayward Israel – when we can be like Jesus?
Our Lord was in constant, loving fellowship with His
Heavenly Father – His Abba. God is love; He is forgiving, but He is just. How
do you see God? Can you imagine sitting at His feet and looking up with affection
at your Abba? Or do you fear He may be frowning with displeasure at the nature
of your friendship? In His love, God grants His children the right to choose
where they place their affections. So, I ask, “Who’s your Daddy?”
Related Posts: Friendship
With the World; Merely Christian;
What
are Friends For?
[1]
A. W. Tozer and Gerald B. Smith, Evenings with
Tozer: Daily Devotional Readings (Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers,
2015), 85.
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