Decisions and Seeking God

"Israel went out to meet the Philistines in battle and camped at Ebenezer while the Philistines camped at Aphek. The Philistines lined up in battle formation against Israel, and as the battle intensified, Israel was defeated by the Philistines, who struck down about four thousand men on the battlefield."

"When the troops returned to the camp, the elders of Israel asked, “Why did the Lord defeat us today before the Philistines? Let’s bring the ark of the Lord’s covenant from Shiloh. Then it will go with us and save us from our enemies.” So the people sent men to Shiloh to bring back the ark of the covenant of the Lord of Armies, who is enthroned between the cherubim. Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God."  (1 Sam. 4:1-4)

Have you ever made a decision that did not turn out so well? Whom did you consult to help you with the decision? Did you take time to prepare and pray to God?

Israel decided to go into battle against the Philistines and both times they get slaughtered. When we see why it makes sense. Even more, when we follow the same pattern as them, we can see why we sometimes face "defeat" in decisions we make. Two reasons come up that show me why Israel was defeated.

Israel did not seek God's will to fight

Whether the prophet/priest Samuel gave a word or not or the elders just decided, it is clear Israel made a decision to fight without the proper consultation with God. God established rules for the people to follow before engaging in war. (1) He must go before them as their sovereign king and (2) they are to purify themselves through the proper rituals as a part of the preparation for God be amongst them and to fight. Neither of these is done. Even more, they eventually have the corrupt sons of Eli to "lead" them. Nothing they have done has indicated they want to honor God or truly desire Him to lead them.

What are the decisions we make without first talking to God about? Prayer and preparation have always been key components to major decisions of one's life or within the church. Often, disciples or Jesus Himself could be found fasting, praying, and seeking solitude in order to prepare for what is to come. The same is said of the godly leaders found throughout the Old Testament. It is about honoring God as the sovereign king of our lives and trusting that He knows what is best for us above what we even think is best. When we are hasty in decisions and do not properly seek God, the impact and consequences could be great.  

They try to use God as a commodity

After the first defeat, the elders get the idea to bring out the Ark of the Covenant because God's presence is with it. While God did use it to symbolize His presence among the people, it was not the only resting place of His presence. So, the people bring it out and hope that it (the Ark) will save them. It is possible the "it" in Scripture could be translated as he, but it is ambiguous. This tells us that somewhere along the way what was a symbol of God's presence became a god to them. Andrew Blackwood states, "First, men said that God was in the Ark. Then they insisted that God was the Ark. Later they assumed that the Ark was God. Hence they relied on the Ark as a substitute for the God of their fathers." Once the symbol became God, God became something controllable and manipulated by them to their will. Instead of asking and waiting for God to approve what is happening, they now try to bring God into their plans. They basically said, "Okay God, we got us here and now we need you to come into this mess and go ahead and bless it." An attitude like this happens when we can "mold God to what we want".

When we do not properly seek God and understand who He is, we make grave mistakes like this. Even more, we make even good things like music, buildings, or people our "chosen god". We turn possessions or experiences of this world into idols. In addition, when we desire these other things over God it can lead us to find leaders who are willing to compromise. The elders allowed spiritually corrupt men to lead them in Eli's sons. They are not proper leaders and have compromised their relationship with God and are leading the people to do the same. We must be careful to remember who God is and who we are to Him. Misplaced perspective such as 1 Sam. 4 teaches can lead to great very serious consequences.