1 Samuel 4, Bible Reading and Daily Devotionals

Max Lucado Daily: Time in His Workshop

The highlight of my Cub Scout career was the Soap Box Derby. My plan was to construct a genuine red roadster like the one in the Scout manual. Armed with a saw and hammer, lumber and high ambition, I set out to be the Henry Ford of Troop 169. My efforts weren't a pretty sight. At some point dad mercifully intervened, and told me to follow him into his workshop.
I kept my bike in there but I never noticed the tools.  But then again, I'd never tried to build anything before. Over the next couple of hours he introduced me to the magical world of sawhorses, squares, tape measures, and drills. I was amazed. Within an afternoon, we had constructed a pretty decent vehicle. I didn't leave the race with a trophy, but I did leave with a greater admiration for my father. Why? Because I'd spent time in his workshop!
From Dad Time

1 Samuel 4

The Chest of God Is Taken

Whatever Samuel said was broadcast all through Israel. Israel went to war against the Philistines. Israel set up camp at Ebenezer, the Philistines at Aphek. The Philistines marched out to meet Israel, the fighting spread, and Israel was badly beaten—about four thousand soldiers left dead on the field. When the troops returned to camp, Israel’s elders said, “Why has God given us such a beating today by the Philistines? Let’s go to Shiloh and get the Chest of God’s Covenant. It will accompany us and save us from the grip of our enemies.”

4 So the army sent orders to Shiloh. They brought the Chest of the Covenant of God, the God-of-the-Angel-Armies, the Cherubim-Enthroned-God. Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, accompanied the Chest of the Covenant of God.

5-6 When the Chest of the Covenant of God was brought into camp, everyone gave a huge cheer. The shouts were like thunderclaps shaking the very ground. The Philistines heard the shouting and wondered what on earth was going on: “What’s all this shouting among the Hebrews?”

6-9 Then they learned that the Chest of God had entered the Hebrew camp. The Philistines panicked: “Their gods have come to their camp! Nothing like this has ever happened before. We’re done for! Who can save us from the clutches of these supergods? These are the same gods who hit the Egyptians with all kinds of plagues out in the wilderness. On your feet, Philistines! Courage! We’re about to become slaves to the Hebrews, just as they have been slaves to us. Show what you’re made of! Fight for your lives!”

10-11 And did they ever fight! It turned into a rout. They thrashed Israel so mercilessly that the Israelite soldiers ran for their lives, leaving behind an incredible thirty thousand dead. As if that wasn’t bad enough, the Chest of God was taken and the two sons of Eli—Hophni and Phinehas—were killed.
Glory Is Exiled from Israel

12-16 Immediately, a Benjaminite raced from the front lines back to Shiloh. Shirt torn and face smeared with dirt, he entered the town. Eli was sitting on his stool beside the road keeping vigil, for he was extremely worried about the Chest of God. When the man ran straight into town to tell the bad news, everyone wept. They were appalled. Eli heard the loud wailing and asked, “Why this uproar?” The messenger hurried over and reported. Eli was ninety-eight years old then, and blind. The man said to Eli, “I’ve just come from the front, barely escaping with my life.”

“And so, my son,” said Eli, “what happened?”

17 The messenger answered, “Israel scattered before the Philistines. The defeat was catastrophic, with enormous losses. Your sons Hophni and Phinehas died, and the Chest of God was taken.”

18 At the words, “Chest of God,” Eli fell backward off his stool where he sat next to the gate. Eli was an old man, and very fat. When he fell, he broke his neck and died. He had led Israel forty years.

19-20 His daughter-in-law, the wife of Phinehas, was pregnant and ready to deliver. When she heard that the Chest of God had been taken and that both her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she dropped to her knees to give birth, going into hard labor. As she was about to die, her midwife said, “Don’t be afraid. You’ve given birth to a son!” But she gave no sign that she had heard.

21-22 The Chest of God gone, father-in-law dead, husband dead, she named the boy Ichabod (Glory’s-Gone), saying, “Glory is exiled from Israel since the Chest of God was taken.”

Our Daily Bread reading and devotion    
Saturday, June 11, 2022

Today's Scripture
Mark 5:11–20

A large herd of pigs was browsing and rooting on a nearby hill. The demons begged him, “Send us to the pigs so we can live in them.” Jesus gave the order. But it was even worse for the pigs than for the man. Crazed, they stampeded over a cliff into the sea and drowned.

14–15     Those tending the pigs, scared to death, bolted and told their story in town and country. Everyone wanted to see what had happened. They came up to Jesus and saw the madman sitting there wearing decent clothes and making sense, no longer a walking madhouse of a man.

16–17     Those who had seen it told the others what had happened to the demon-possessed man and the pigs. At first they were in awe—and then they were upset, upset over the drowned pigs. They demanded that Jesus leave and not come back.

18–20     As Jesus was getting into the boat, the demon-delivered man begged to go along, but he wouldn’t let him. Jesus said, “Go home to your own people. Tell them your story—what the Master did, how he had mercy on you.” The man went back and began to preach in the Ten Towns area about what Jesus had done for him. He was the talk of the town.

Insight

Today’s story in Mark 5:11–20 is an example of how the gospel writers used storytelling. This account of the demon-possessed man is full of surprises and unexpected twists, all of which not only move the reader forward but help to underline the power and impact of Jesus’ actions. Consider the reactions of the crowd to His miracle of driving the legion of demons from the man living in the tombs. It isn’t the drowning of the thousands of pigs to which the people react; their focus is on the once-wild man now sitting clothed and in his right mind. Yet instead of being wowed by his recovery, they’re afraid of the man with the power to do what their chains couldn’t. Instead of rejoicing with the one who was set free, they’re afraid of the One with the power to heal him and can only ask for Him to leave. By: J.R. Hudberg

Faith Conversations at Home

Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you.
Mark 5:19

“There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home.” Those unforgettable lines spoken by Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz reveal a story-telling device found in an overwhelming number of our most enduring stories from the likes of Star Wars to The Lion King. It’s known as “the hero’s journey.” In brief: an ordinary person is living an ordinary life when an extraordinary adventure is presented. The character leaves home and travels to a different world where tests and trials await, as well as mentors and villains. If she or he passes the tests and proves heroic, then the final stage is returning home with stories to tell and wisdom gained. The last piece is crucial.

The story of the demon-possessed man closely parallels the hero’s journey. It’s interesting that in last scene the man begged Jesus to let him “go with him” (Mark 5:18). Yet Jesus told him: “Go home to your own people” (v. 19). It was important in this man’s journey to return home to the people who knew him best and to tell them his amazing story.

God calls each of us in different ways and to different scenarios. But for some of us, it can be crucial for our faith journey to go home and tell our story to those who know us best. For some of us, the call is “there’s no place like home.”   

Reflect & Pray

Who comes to mind that needs to hear what God has done for you? What does the first step in that journey look like?

Jesus, give me the courage to tell of Your wonderful works. Not just to strangers, but also to those who know me best—those at home.

Read Pray First! The Power of Prayer in Sharing the Gospel.

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers
Saturday, June 11, 2022

Getting There (1)

Come to Me… —Matthew 11:28

Where sin and sorrow stops, and the song of the saint starts. Do I really want to get there? I can right now. The questions that truly matter in life are remarkably few, and they are all answered by these words— “Come to Me.” Our Lord’s words are not, “Do this, or don’t do that,” but— “Come to me.” If I will simply come to Jesus, my real life will be brought into harmony with my real desires. I will actually cease from sin, and will find the song of the Lord beginning in my life.

Have you ever come to Jesus? Look at the stubbornness of your heart. You would rather do anything than this one simple childlike thing— “Come to Me.” If you really want to experience ceasing from sin, you must come to Jesus.

Jesus Christ makes Himself the test to determine your genuineness. Look how He used the word come. At the most unexpected moments in your life there is this whisper of the Lord— “Come to Me,” and you are immediately drawn to Him. Personal contact with Jesus changes everything. Be “foolish” enough to come and commit yourself to what He says. The attitude necessary for you to come to Him is one where your will has made the determination to let go of everything and deliberately commit it all to Him.

“…and I will give you rest”— that is, “I will sustain you, causing you to stand firm.” He is not saying, “I will put you to bed, hold your hand, and sing you to sleep.” But, in essence, He is saying, “I will get you out of bed— out of your listlessness and exhaustion, and out of your condition of being half dead while you are still alive. I will penetrate you with the spirit of life, and you will be sustained by the perfection of vital activity.” Yet we become so weak and pitiful and talk about “suffering” the will of the Lord! Where is the majestic vitality and the power of the Son of God in that?

Wisdom From Oswald Chambers

The great word of Jesus to His disciples is Abandon. When God has brought us into the relationship of disciples, we have to venture on His word; trust entirely to Him and watch that when He brings us to the venture, we take it.  Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, 1459 R

Bible in a Year: Ezra 1-2; John 19:23-42