Jun 22 2019 1 Samuel 4: 1-11

So the Philistines fought; Israel was defeated, and they fled, everyone to his home.

We continue to hear about Samuel and the Israelites. They have a battle with the Philistines, and are defeated, with 4,000 killed on the battle field. So the Israelite leaders decide to get the ark (not the Noah-big-boat kind, but the box-containing-the-10-commandments kind), so that the Lord would be among the Israelites and save them from their enemies.

Interesting. At that time, the Israelites believed that the mere presence of the tablets that Moses received with the 10 commandments contained God, the famous ark of the covenant. God was somehow contained in the box, and God would be more present and attentive if only the ark was with the Israelites. So the Israelites get the ark and raise a loud shout, in anticipatory victory. The Philistines hear this, are afraid because they too believe the ark gives the Israelites an added edge. Nevertheless, the Philistines again attack, and this time they defeat the Israelites, killing 30,000 and capturing the ark.

So much for the power of the ark, or the god contained therein. It’s easy now to look back at this story and wonder what they were thinking, that God could be contained in the ark, or that the presence of the ark would give them an advantage. But don’t we do the same thing both with a box-contained God and God’s on my side?

We go to church, as if church is a place where God is. Sunday morning, or Saturday for some, we go to be near God in church. The rest of the week, we go about our business, as if God remains in that church building. Maybe the size of our box is bigger than the ark, but we frequently still think of God as contained in our church-box. But when Jesus was walking the earth, church wasn’t a building. When he left the earth, he left behind a group of people, a group of Jesus-followers. Those people were church. Church isn’t somewhere we go to be in the presence of God. Church is something we are, because God is with us right where we are.

And just because I’m a Jesus followers, doesn’t mean I’ll prevail in every battle, or even any battle. There are plenty of modern-day instances of good God following people struck down. Gun violence in churches and synagogues, natural disasters, illness. Even the mundane losses like a losing ball game, missed parking spot, failures at home or work. Having God on my side doesn’t immunize me from defeat. What it does, however, is assure that however things turn out, God’s with me. In the victory, in the defeat. During the battle. Preparing for battle. Even anticipating the battle that lies ahead.

This morning, I’m thinking about a God who’s ever-present, everywhere. At the store, at home, even at church. I’m thinking about all the instances where it feels like I’m in a battle, either with someone else, or against some force bigger than me, like my loved one’s illness. Just because I pray and try to be a Jesus-follower, does not mean I will prevail. It does mean God will be with me during every moment. And through Jesus’ human experience, God has had the same human experience. More important, God is in the whole situation – with me, with my loved one, with the victor and the oppressed. Let me remember God’s in and through it all.