Introduction:
Earlier this year, several kind individuals here at our church filled my office with 102 miniature plastic ducks. The intention was for me to periodically find one or two ducks during my usual work week to remind me that I was loved. It was an incredibly thoughtful gesture that resulted in my spending several hours finding all 102 ducks in my office (some of which were inside paper clip boxes, inside pencil holders, and even inside blocks of ice in the ice tray in my fridge). Needless to say, I did not wait to find the ducks periodically. Instead, I found them all at once. I put them in a jar that sits on my desk so when I see it, I remember that I am loved so much that someone would hide 102 plastic ducks in random locations throughout my office.
The Bible encourages us to set up reminders like my jar of ducks. In fact, we just sang an amazing hymn (Come Thou Fount) that references a passage of scripture and in the final verse, we sang, “Here I raise my Ebenezer”. This references a passage of scripture that comes from the book of 1 Samuel 7, in which an “Ebenezer” is mentioned as a reminder of God’s love, power, and provision. Like my jar of ducks, the Bible encourages us to set up reminders in our lives about the great things God has done. So, we’re going to be looking at 1 Samuel 7 to see the circumstances surrounding this reminder. The title of our sermon today is Repentance and Recollection, and we will be looking at 1 Samuel 7.
Before we read through this passage, we need to establish some context first. A key figure in our passage today is the prophet, Samuel, who entered the biblical narrative at a time when God’s people did “…whatever was right in their own eyes”. They had fallen into idolatry, they worshiped other gods, and were in constant conflict with their enemies, the Philistines. Their unfaithfulness to God led them into some very unfortunate circumstances, the most recent of which was a resounding defeat in battle at a place called Ebenezer.
Whenever God’s people went into battle, they would take an artifact called the Ark of the Covenant, which represented the power and presence of God through a covenant God made with His people. Simply carrying the Ark into battle had brought them victory in the past. However, because of their current state of unfaithfulness to God, the battle at Ebenezer ended miserably for the Israelites. 30,000 men were slaughtered, and the Ark was taken by the Philistines back to their country.
Seven months after this took place, the Ark was inexplicably returned to Israel (see 1 Samuel 5-6 for details). This is where our passage picks up. So, let’s read through the passage.
(read passage & pray)
This chapter describes a crucial turning point in Israel’s history. God’s people finally turned from their sins and experienced God’s supernatural work to bring about forgiveness and restoration in their lives. So, let’s take a deeper look at a few main ideas we see in this chapter, beginning with this: Israel’s Repentance.
Point 1: Israel’s Repentance (v. 1-6)
Our passage opens with a beautiful picture of God’s character. The Ark of the Covenant was reestablished among God’s people (under the care of a man named Eleazar). Remember, the Ark represented God’s presence among His people. The actions of Israel’s unfaithfulness resulted in loss (of life, freedom, and even the reminder of God’s presence). However, by His mercy, God took the first step in restoring that loss by having the Ark returned. God took the first step toward reconciling a relationship He did not break. This is God’s character, and it’s not isolated to this passage. This is a truth we see throughout the Bible. In Romans 5:8, Paul says,
“But God proves His love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
And later, in 1 John 4:19, John says,
“We love (Him) because he first loved us.”
Because of God’s great love, He makes the first move toward reconciliation. Why? The only explanation we have is that God loves us. It’s important to note that broken relationships don’t miraculously mend themselves. Even with God making the first move, it still requires a response on our part. If we look back at verse 2 in our passage, we see that God’s people (after a period of 20 years) finally, “…longed for the Lord.” And when Samuel gave them instructions on what to do, we see a beautiful description of what repentance truly looks like. Let’s read verse 3-4. It says,
3Samuel told them, “If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, get rid of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths that are among you, set your hearts on the Lord, and worship only him. Then he will rescue you from the Philistines.” 4So the Israelites removed the Baals and the Ashtoreths and only worshiped the Lord.
Samuel called God’s people to take their repentance seriously, calling them to return to the Lord “…with all (their) heart”. And the beautiful thing is, they did just that! They removed everything that turned them away from God (the foreign gods, their idols) and chose to worship the Lord only. This is what true repentance looks like; a complete turnaround from unfaithfulness to complete faithfulness.
As we read further, we see the entire nation gathered together to pray, fast, and confess their sins. Then, in verse 6, we Israel “…drew out water and poured it out in the Lord’s presence”. Water was a precious resource; pouring it out was an act of sacrifice and humility.
God’s people displayed a truly complete, whole-hearted repentance before the Lord, and as we mentioned earlier, mending a relationship requires that action of both parties. So, let’s take a look at the next main idea of this passage: God’s Response.
Point 2: God’s Response (v. 7-11)
As God’s people fasted, prayed, and sacrificed, they attracted some unwanted attention. In verse 7, the Philistines heard about Israel’s gathering and went to go fight them. Fasting is a unique experience that intentionally puts the faster in a position of physical need before God. Israel was in a position of intense need, and nobody was in a position to resist the Philistines (not on their own strength anyways). Naturally, the Israelites were scared.
If we look in verse 8, we see them plead with Samuel, “Don’t stop crying out to the Lord our God for us, so that he will save us from the Philistines.” The Israelites maintained their posture of repentance by continuing to acknowledge their need for God, which at that moment had increased dramatically. They went from confessing sin to crying for immediate help.
In verse 9, Samuel offered a sacrifice to the Lord and called out to God on Israel’s behalf. This is referred to as “intercession”: a method of intervening on behalf of someone else to settle a dispute or grievance. We see an example of this in the book of Romans 8:26, the apostle Paul speaks about the Holy Spirit as our intercessor when we pray. It says:
“In the same way the Spirit also helps us in our weakness, because we do not know what to pray for as we should, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings.”
We find another, more powerful example of intercession in the book of Hebrews 7:25 This passage tells us that Jesus Himself intercedes for us in our need for salvation. It says:
“Therefore, he (Jesus) is able to save completely those who come to God through him, since he always lives to intercede for them.”
Intercession is a recurring action that we see throughout the Bible because we have a definitive need for God. Samuel intercedes for Israel in their need, and in verse 9, we see that “…the Lord answered”. The ensuing encounter plays out similar to a movie. So, let’s read it together, beginning in verse 10.
“10Samuel was offering the burnt offering as the Philistines approached to fight against Israel. The Lord thundered loudly against the Philistines that day and threw them into such confusion that they were defeated by Israel. 11Then the men of Israel charged out of Mizpah and pursued the Philistines, striking them down all the way to a place below Beth-car.”
Bible scholars are not completely sure where Beth-car was located. What we do know is that it marked a turning point for God’s people. They were estranged from God, repented, and then experienced the fullness of God’s restoration. God’s response led them to ultimate victory. This leads us to the final idea in this passage: Samuel’s Reminder.
Point 3: Samuel’s Reminder (v. 12-17)
God’s restoration of Israel was not partial; if we look at verse 13-14, we see that the Philistines “…were subdued and did not invade Israel’s territory again” because God’s hand was against them. Major cities and territories taken by the Philistines were restored, even among the surrounding territories that weren’t part of Israel. God’s restoration was expansive, and it brought peace to God’s people and their surrounding neighbors.
The role of Samuel in this passage is unique in that he is commonly given two titles: prophet and judge. As a prophet, Samuel would be the intercessor between God and His people (something we witnessed back in verse 8). His second role as “judge” took a more administrative approach, being responsible for providing leadership, guiding, and decision making for God’s people to help them remain faithful to God.
Immediately following Israel’s victory, Samuel took initiative as judge to raise up a monument. In verse 12, he set up a stone, calling it “…Ebenezer, explaining ‘The Lord has helped us to this point.’” The name of this stone is significant in two ways, the first being the most obvious. The name “Ebenezer” means “stone of help”. However, the name also refers back to 1 Samuel 4 (referenced at the beginning of this sermon), when Israel faced the Philistines, were resoundingly defeated, and the Ark was taken from them. Samuel wanted God’s people to remember all these details because they all point to one truth: God, in His power, brought about the complete restoration of Israel.
Later, in verse 16 Samuel made a yearly practice of traveling between several key locations in Israel’s territory, specifically to act as judge. And then, when he would return home in verse 17, he built an altar in his hometown to serve as a reminder of God’s miraculous power. Samuel made a concerted effort to maintain repentance and remember God’s restoration. We see something similar to this in Matthew 3:8. John the Baptist calls out to a people who struggled to follow God in faithfulness. He says to them,
“Produce fruit in keeping with repentance.”
God is loving, merciful, and forgiving. God is capable and willing to restore those who return to Him no matter their state, but more than this, He wants His people to remain faithful to Him. This entire chapter serves as a reminder that God calls us repentance, he calls us to restoration, and He calls us to faithfulness.
So, how do these monuments apply to our lives? Simply put, we should prioritize faithfulness to God above all else. God’s people experienced suffering, loss, and even oppression as a result of not following Him. However 1 Samuel 7 stands as a reminder that you are never too far gone to repent, and God is never too far away to respond and restore. Let this bottom line summarize this passage for us: God completely restores those who completely repent.
Bottom Line: God completely restores those who completely repent.
Repentance is a complex action by definition, and even more so in application. It takes a mind to recognize wrongdoing on your part, a heart to admit said wrongdoing, and conviction strong enough to turn away from wrongdoing. This takes wisdom, humility, and strength. Fortunately, this is all something we don’t have to do on our strength alone. In James 1:5, we’re told,
“Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God—who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly—and it will be given to him.”
We should also remember that, when God’s people were fasting, confessing their sins, and then experienced a life-or-death situation, they called out to God, knowing their own strength wasn’t enough. And God responded, and not faintly either; He responded with thunder that routed the enemies who surrounded Israel. We do not serve a God who is distant, petty, and malicious; God is always present, loving, and forgiving, wanting nothing more than to restore every individual to a faithful relationship with Him. Let this passage challenge us this week in the following ways:
Weekly Challenge(s):
- Examine your faithfulness to God.
- If you have sin in your life, identify it, confess it, and consider 1 John 1:9.
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
- Even when we are unfaithful, God not only remains faithful, but righteous and forgiving as well.
- Remember: it is not out of duty or obligation that God remains faithful, but His unwavering love for us (ref. Rom 5:8).
- Remember God’s faithfulness to you.
- Life is full of distractions, and distractions, regardless of how trivial, can always pull our attention away from God.
- Set up reminders of God’s faithfulness for you, and consider 1 Thessalonians 5:16-17.
“16Rejoice always, 17pray constantly, 18give thanks in everything,”
Closing:
(Gospel presentation & closing prayer)
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