Thursday, April 24: 1Samuel 5- God protects His Name.

If you are ever looking for an excellent book on Bible study, I recommend Fee & Stuart’s How to Read the Bible for all its Worth. An excellent volume.

I have been reading it again and the authors have been reminding me to read the Bible in context, asking, ‘what did it mean?’ Even though this blog is more of a devotional read, I find their wisdom affecting what I am seeing and the questions I am asking as I read.

This chapter is all about God defending His honor. God doesn’t require us to defend Him. Oh, for sure, God wants us to stand united with Him, to profess belief in Him and as we are able, to proclaim His grace and message. But God is very capable of defending His name and honor all by Himself. And that is what God does in this chapter.

God defends His honor before Dagon and in all the other towns of the Philistines where they park the Ark!

A second key to the narrative is that the Philistines get it. They understand that it is God defending Himself! (see verse 10 in particular).

Devotionally I am thinking God can and will defend Himself. If not in our lifetime, certainly Jesus’ return and the defeat of Satan will make God’s ultimate defense of Self. My role as a Christ follower is proclamation… share, living, displaying God’s Good News in word and deed!

Today is a Thursday, a regular middle of the week day… Lord, how can I best proclaim You to my world and acquaintances this very day? This I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

 

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