Observation: The captured ark brings nothing but hardship upon the Philistines. This begins immediately with the overnight destruction of the idol of their god Dagon, then turns upon the people of Ashdod through disease.
There is an amazing revelation of the Philistines regarding their relationship with their gods and Yahweh. They adamantly establish here - and are even fearful of - the fact that Yahweh is all-powerful and totally capable of killing them and completely defeating their god. They have seen just the presence of the ark bring destruction of a large idol, and now see their people killed by plague. They fear the Lord, acknowledge how real and great he is, and openly state that their god is powerless against him.
And yet ... they ultimately will remain faithful worshippers of Dagon, continuing to sacrifice to him and worship his idol in their temple. Meanwhile, they will actively rid themselves of the Lord, and continue to attack the nation who is under the Lord's protection.
Application: There has never been good logic about why people reject the Lord. Sometimes that rejection is based on science, sometimes it is based on perceptions about rules. However, to me it seems that most of the time people reject God because he just doesn't fit into their lives.
The Philistines had a way of life. They liked the order they had worshiping something called Dagon, and they liked fighting wars in order to bring riches into their land. Therefore, it didn't matter to them of the fact that Dagon was meaningless ... and Yahweh was so powerful that he could wipe out entire cities and then prove his power through tests devised by Dagon's own priests. They weren't going to adjust their lives to align to these discovered truths.
And today, people have a way of life. That way likely involves an adherence to self-determination, which ultimately takes the form of any manner of self-fulfillment in daily life, like promiscuity, greed, laziness, or any other type of personal gratification. Facts about God and Jesus ... proof about hope and joy found through faith ... even when heard, they don't matter, because incorporating belief into their may require a change in their lives.
The alignment in this? It is when Palestine attacks Israel today, and people view Israel as the "bad guys" for reasons they likely can't explain, or at best are just ambivalent to a war occurring thousands of miles away.
People reject the truth - even a truth that is right in their face and obvious to any logical observer - because they simply don't want to impact their life and worldview.
Prayer: Lord, this is the task before us, which is to tell people more stubborn than the Philistines about Jesus. I often pray for revival and a great awakening. That may not be your will. However, I know it is your will to make Jesus known to any and all who will accept him. If we will not overturn the momentum of this nation, may we still reach the individuals with hearts prepared for you. Amen.
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