So They Sent
- Dr. Teresa Allissa Citro
- Mar 7, 2019
- 5 min read
“So they sent men to Shiloh to bring the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD of Heaven's Armies, who is enthroned between the cherubim. Hophni and Phinehas, the sons of Eli, were also there with the Ark of the Covenant of God.” -1 Samuel 4:4NLT
Let me summarize this story.
The Israelites went to fight against the Philistines. They lost the battle and about four thousand Israelites were killed. They decided to bring the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord and go out to battle again. When the Philistines heard the Ark of God was brought in they were frightened. They knew the power of God. “They decided,” God was not with Israel. The Philistines won the second battle, too. Israel lost an additional, 30 thousand foot soldiers, they were totally defeated, the Ark of the Covenant was captured and taken by the Philistines. What a huge tragedy.
So, then, what went wrong? How could this have happened? The Ark of the Covenant was the very glory and power of the Living God. It was the very presence of God. The battle should have been God’s. God remained quiet. Imagine the shock from both parties. Israel was defeated, and the Philistines had won. God was supposed to be with Israel.
As I started to read this chapter, this verse jumped out at me, and I said to myself, “Oh Oh, this story isn’t going to end well."
“So they sent.” Who authorized that to begin with? Who is they? They had a prophet in their land, Eli. Why wasn’t Eli given the respect to have been asked? It was his calling to lead Israel. Here’s the problem, he allowed sin in the camp. Eli was warned by God and didn’t listen. In this single verse you see the total foolishness that led to total destruction of an entire nation.
Evil leaders destroy not just themselves but its people, too. This applies to any organization or company. Leadership in any church, unfortunately, isn’t exempt. I’m not going to pretend that every leader leads in godly ways.
In addition, look on whose shoulders the Ark of the Covenant was carried on -Hophni and Phinehas, Eli’s two wicked sons. Can you even imagine the audacity? Two wicked men carrying the Ark of the Covenant, making a mockery of the holiness of God. Let me stop right here and remind all of us today God cannot and will not be mocked. We cannot do evil and think that a symbol or status of making believe will bring us protection, blessings, and success. I don’t care how much money you give to the poor, that you go to church every time the doors are opened, how many messages and teaching you have heard or taught, or whatever else you're doing. God is never with those who conceal, excuse, or condone sin. God was not with Israel, and what’s sadder is that they didn’t know it. Sin blinds us and always ends in destruction.
“So they sent.” Did they even stop to pray and fast to find out what God had to say? Mistake #2: Impulsiveness... doing things one’s way never ends in winning. Watch this very carefully. The fastest way to disaster and causing permanent damage is by quickly acting from self. In this passage, there’s no evidence of them going to get counsel from the man of God called Eli or God Himself. How foolish and arrogant of them. God did not lead them to this war. How many times do we engage in wars we shouldn’t be in?
“So they sent” over 30 thousand people to their deaths and the very presence of God, the Ark of the Covenant, was now captured and sent to the Philistines camp. Hophni and Phinehas, Eli’s wicked sons, were killed in this battle too. Double shame. They were the priests, and had they lived the life of godly men, they wouldn’t have died prematurely and in sin. As if all this wasn’t bad enough, Eli hears the battle cry and doesn’t know what’s happened. He had looked the other way from the sins his two sons were committing and disaster took him by surprise. He didn’t even know they went to war. How could this be? His sons were dead. Israel lost in a bloody war, and the Ark of the Covenant stolen, captured, and taken away from Israel. He falls off his chair, breaks his neck, and dies. His daughter in law, upon hearing this news goes into premature labor and dies. All this disaster was caused because “they sent.”
Today, before you make decisions and "So you send," be very careful and make sure it is God leading you. Have you prayed? Have you fasted? Have you gone to get godly counsel? Speaking of counsel. Please be very careful from whom you get counsel. Not everyone is godly, wise, and knowledgeable. I believe in real counseling, godly counseling from trained professionals. Perhaps the Israelites, though Eli’s two sons were there supporting this attack with the philistines, believed it was a sure win. They forgot they had complained about their wickedness. You see what happens when we don’t separate from wicked people? We get blinded too.
I would like to change these words, “So they sent” to “So they sought the Lord” for all of us today.
Let’s learn from those who made horrible mistakes causing irrevocable damages. “So we seek” God in all we do to ensure success and blessings in our lives, in our children, and in all those who we are around with.
God never looks the other way to our sins. We are forgiven when we repent and shun evil. Finally, it sure is possible for the very presence of God to leave our camp too. His presence is shown in our lives in what we do. The blessings we experience is the very hand of God. It’s because He is with us that we are blessed and protected. Listen please: no matter what never allow the very presence and glory of God to depart from you. Never do what they did, “So they went.”
Let’s practice “So they sought God,” doing this ensures God’s presence in our lives. It’s here you clearly see His presence, power, and might in the lives of His children.
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, You are the God who loves His children, and You are the One who protects Your own. Blessings are found in obedience to You and Your Word, and I ask, Father, that You always bring to my mind that You see all that I do and hear all that I say. Help me to not grieve Your Holy Spirit. Father, I do not want to be out from under Your protection. For all the days of my life, I will meditate on Your laws and take delight in them, hiding them in my heart that I might not sin against You. Go before me and I will follow You and take joy in Your presence for, from You, all blessings flow. I give myself into Your hands and commit to You all of my ways. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Linda A. Knowles
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