Message from Israel: Freedom from Bondage
Ryan Van Deusen delivers today’s message from Kirjath-jearim, Israel. He is there with His ministry team from “Ambassadors an Embassies” to show Israel the love of Christ and to present gifts to Israeli soldiers to thank them for their service to their country.
Ryan is standing in an ancient synagogue. Even though it’s illegal for Christians to own land, the property upon which he is standing was owned by Christians before World War II when the modern state of Israel was formed. The synagogue was uncovered after the Christians acquired it. The property has a watchtower similar to the watchtower in the bible where the master warned the watchmen to be vigilant to oversee the vineyard. When the owner returned he asked the watchman, “have you been manning your post?”
I Samuel 7 gives an Old Testament account of significant events that happened in this place. This is a story about a freedom for God’s people from the bondage of the Philistines, representing the world’s systems.
1. “AND the men of Kirjath-jearim came, and fetched up the ark of the LORD, and brought it into the house of Abinadab in the hill, and sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the LORD.
2. And it came to pass, while the ark abode in Kirjath-jearim, that the time was long; for it was twenty years: and all the house of Israel lamented after the LORD.
3. And Samuel spake unto all the house of Israel, saying, If ye do return unto the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the LORD, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.”
God had told Israel that because of the priest Eli’s failure to lead his own sons and the people of Israel, God would need to wipe out Eli’s priestly line. When God allowed the Philistines to defeat the armies of Israel, they took the Ark of the Covenant as a trophy. The Philistines thought that their gods were more powerful than the Lord God Jehovah. They put the Ark into their temple of their god Dagon. That night, Dagon fell from his pedestal and “bowed down” before the Ark. The Philistines took the Ark from town to town. Each city experienced a plague when the Ark entered the city. Even though Israel and the priests had turned away from God, and were defeated by the Philistines, the Lord God of Israel will still get the glory. The Philistines decided to test whether the Ark of the Covenant was the reason for the plagues. They hitched a cart carrying the Ark to a team of cows. If God was punishing them, they determined that if the cows took the Ark into the camp of the Israelite, then then the Ark represented the power of the God of Israel. The oxen proceeded down the path straight into the Israelite’s camp at Kirjath-jaerem. When the cows arrived, Israel rejoiced for the return of the Ark of the Covenant. They sacrificed the cows to the Lord with a heart of gratitude and praise.
Are we waiting for God to act or is He waiting for us to act? Usually, God is waiting for his believers to act upon their believing faith. According to Isaiah 30:13 God is waiting for his people to “turn from their wicked ways.” He is waiting to be gracious and merciful to his people. The freedom we have in Christ is to walk according to the spirit of life in Christ. Our freedom in Christ will free us from the bondage of the “law of sin and death.” When God’s people succumb to the doctrines of the world and its cultural norms, God’s people are no longer “sanctified.” Sanctified means to “separate according to the purpose for which God designed us.”
Even today Israel teaches “traditions of men” and the cultures of the world. Jesus’ reproof is valid today, “why do you violate the commandments of God by your tradition?” Samuel’s words to Israel in 1 Samuel 7 are still applicable: “If ye do return unto the LORD with all your hearts, then put away the strange gods and Ashtaroth from among you, and prepare your hearts unto the LORD, and serve him only: and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.”
We’re not of this world, for our citizenship is in heaven. We are subject to to our Sovreign Lord. As watchmen in the Lord’s watch tower, God’s people must be vigilant to “humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God.” When we subject our will to His will, we will be free to serve our Lord from a heart of love. When we delight ourselves in the Lord, serving him will be the joy and rejoicing of our heart. As Jesus said, “if you continue in my word, then shall you be my disciples indeed. And ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.”
In Israel, it’s dangerous to convert from orthodox Judaism to Christianity. To live as a Christian is to live contrary to the doctrines of this world. One of the most powerful statements Christians can make is to love their enemies. For ye are lights in a world of darkness. Our lives are an example of the Love of God. Therefore, be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. As Paul said, “only use not freedom as an occasion to sin, but in love serve one another.”
May God richly bless you,
Your brother in Christ,
Michael