Friday Devo
Scripture:
1 Samuel 6:7-12
7 “Now build a new cart, and find two cows that have just given birth to calves. Make sure the cows have never been yoked to a cart. Hitch the cows to the cart, but shut their calves away from them in a pen. 8 Put the Ark of the Lord on the cart, and beside it place a chest containing the gold rats and gold tumors you are sending as a guilt offering. Then let the cows go wherever they want. 9 If they cross the border of our land and go to Beth-shemesh, we will know it was the Lord who brought this great disaster upon us. If they don’t, we will know it was not his hand that caused the plague. It came simply by chance.”
10 So these instructions were carried out. Two cows were hitched to the cart, and their newborn calves were shut up in a pen. 11 Then the Ark of the Lord and the chest containing the gold rats and gold tumors were placed on the cart. 12 And sure enough, without veering off in other directions, the cows went straight along the road toward Beth-shemesh, lowing as they went. The Philistine rulers followed them as far as the border of Beth-shemesh.
Romans 5:8
8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.
7 “Now build a new cart, and find two cows that have just given birth to calves. Make sure the cows have never been yoked to a cart. Hitch the cows to the cart, but shut their calves away from them in a pen. 8 Put the Ark of the Lord on the cart, and beside it place a chest containing the gold rats and gold tumors you are sending as a guilt offering. Then let the cows go wherever they want. 9 If they cross the border of our land and go to Beth-shemesh, we will know it was the Lord who brought this great disaster upon us. If they don’t, we will know it was not his hand that caused the plague. It came simply by chance.”
10 So these instructions were carried out. Two cows were hitched to the cart, and their newborn calves were shut up in a pen. 11 Then the Ark of the Lord and the chest containing the gold rats and gold tumors were placed on the cart. 12 And sure enough, without veering off in other directions, the cows went straight along the road toward Beth-shemesh, lowing as they went. The Philistine rulers followed them as far as the border of Beth-shemesh.
Romans 5:8
8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.
Commentary:
6:7–9 This is an experiment to discover whether the cause of the Philistines’ troubles was a natural event (coincidence, v. 9) or a supernatural one (it is he who has done us this great harm, v. 9). Untrained milk cows could not pull a cart together well, and if they went anywhere, it would be home to their calves. Therefore, if they pulled the cart uphill toward Israel, it must be the work of the Lord (v. 9).
6:11 The golden mice and the images of their tumors refers either to 10 items or to five (see note on v. 4). If the latter, then the images would be “mouse-shaped” gold items made to symbolize their tumors.
6:12 Beth-shemesh was partway up the Sorek Valley, a valley connecting Israel and Philistia, the scene of many of Samson’s exploits. Zorah, Eshtaol, Timnah, and Delilah’s home were all in that valley (Judg. 13:25; 14:1; 16:4). Ekron was near the place where the valley opens up into the plain.
6:12 By miraculous power God delivers the ark, the symbol of his name, prefiguring the miraculous deliverance of Christ from death.
Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 501.
6:11 The golden mice and the images of their tumors refers either to 10 items or to five (see note on v. 4). If the latter, then the images would be “mouse-shaped” gold items made to symbolize their tumors.
6:12 Beth-shemesh was partway up the Sorek Valley, a valley connecting Israel and Philistia, the scene of many of Samson’s exploits. Zorah, Eshtaol, Timnah, and Delilah’s home were all in that valley (Judg. 13:25; 14:1; 16:4). Ekron was near the place where the valley opens up into the plain.
6:12 By miraculous power God delivers the ark, the symbol of his name, prefiguring the miraculous deliverance of Christ from death.
Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 501.
Questions:
After months of conflict, two cows were hitched to a wooden cart carrying the Ark. Their newborn calves were penned up behind them, yet the cows walked straight down the road toward Israel without turning aside. God was bringing His presence back to His people before they had done anything to make their way back to Him.
In their fear, the people of Beth-shemesh asked, “Who is able to stand in the presence of the Lord, this holy God?” The answer is no one. We cannot make ourselves worthy of God's presence. We cannot undo our sin, clean ourselves up, or build a bridge between our brokenness and His holiness. But the beauty of the gospel begins with God moving toward us. Romans 5:8 tells us that “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Jesus didn't wait for us to become worthy. He didn't wait until we had overcome our sin or gotten our lives together. He came toward us in the middle of our rebellion and gave Himself for us.
Shame tells us to hide until we've done enough to feel worthy of coming back. Pride tells us to fix ourselves before we approach God. But the gospel tells us that Christ has already done what we could never do. He took the judgment our sin deserved so that we could draw near to God through Him. God has made a way for sinners to come home to Him through Jesus.
In their fear, the people of Beth-shemesh asked, “Who is able to stand in the presence of the Lord, this holy God?” The answer is no one. We cannot make ourselves worthy of God's presence. We cannot undo our sin, clean ourselves up, or build a bridge between our brokenness and His holiness. But the beauty of the gospel begins with God moving toward us. Romans 5:8 tells us that “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Jesus didn't wait for us to become worthy. He didn't wait until we had overcome our sin or gotten our lives together. He came toward us in the middle of our rebellion and gave Himself for us.
Shame tells us to hide until we've done enough to feel worthy of coming back. Pride tells us to fix ourselves before we approach God. But the gospel tells us that Christ has already done what we could never do. He took the judgment our sin deserved so that we could draw near to God through Him. God has made a way for sinners to come home to Him through Jesus.
- Is there any part of you that resists being loved by God before you have anything to offer Him? When you fail, do you instinctively measure your standing with God by what Christ has accomplished or by how well you've been doing up until that point?
- Where are you still carrying the burden of trying to make yourself acceptable to God? What standards, spiritual disciplines, or personal achievements are you tempted to use as evidence that you deserve His nearness?
- God's initiative in 1 Samuel 6 points forward to the greater initiative of Christ in Romans 5:8. What would change in your relationship with God if you stopped viewing repentance as your way of earning your way back and started seeing it as a response to the God who has already come looking for you? What makes that difficult to believe or live out?
Prayer Topics:
- Confess the ways you have tried to earn God's acceptance or rely on your own goodness instead of trusting Christ.
- Thank God that He moved toward you before you could make your way back to Him.
- Ask God for the grace to run toward Him when you fail rather than hiding, performing, or trying to make yourself worthy.
- Praise Jesus for being the Mediator who brings sinners into the presence of a holy God.
This Week's City 7:
Try to commit to memory!
1. Who is Jesus? I believe Jesus is God because Jesus said He is God and proved it by rising from the dead and appearing to His disciples, His brother James, 500 others at one time, and Paul.
(Mark 3:21; John 8:58, 10:30-33, 14:9-11; Acts 9:1-6; 1 Corinthians 15:3-8; Colossians 1:15-20; Hebrews 1:2-3; James 1:1)
(Mark 3:21; John 8:58, 10:30-33, 14:9-11; Acts 9:1-6; 1 Corinthians 15:3-8; Colossians 1:15-20; Hebrews 1:2-3; James 1:1)
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