1 Samuel – Chapter 5

1 Samuel 5 Daily DEVO And when the people of Ashdod rose early the next day, behold, Dagon had fallen face downward on the ground before the ark of the Lord. So they took Dagon and put him back in his place. But when they rose early on the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen face downward on the ground before the ark of the Lord, and the head of Dagon and both his hands were lying cut off on the threshold. Only the trunk of Dagon was left to him. 1 Samuel 5:3-4 – Our enemy will always fall to the power of our God. This Dagon was a false god to the philistines and while they may have placed the ark in its temple for God to worship this Dagon, God chose to show them who really has the power and who deserves to be worshiped. For in Romans 14:11, “for it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.” How does all this play into our life today. Know that every problem in your life is subject to the power of God. Know that every enemy you have is outmatched by the power of God. Know that at the end of it all, all who persecute you because of your faith will be bowing next to you as you bow before our God. Resize the way you see God today. Remind yourself that He is the God who spoke the universe into existence and holds all life together. While our enemies may seem to gain victories in our story, don’t let it discourage your view on God’s power. One day the whole entirety of creation will acknowledge His power. Let’s make sure we are acknowledging it today in our lives. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 405

And when the men of Ashdod saw how things were, they said, “The ark of the God of Israel must not remain with us, for his hand is hard against us and against Dagon our god.” 1 Samuel 5:7 – The ark wasn’t meant to be with them and they saw how devastating it was to their life that something that shouldn’t be in their story was in their story. We see the panic that comes later on as other cities begin to have the ark brought to them. What’s our attitude then towards the sinfulness in our story. We know it shouldn’t be there. We know it’s causing devastation, even if we don’t want to admit we know it. Yet are we treating it like the Philistines were with the ark? Are we doing everything we can to remove it from our story? Let’s think deeply on this today, how active are you in removing the sin in your story? If there is anything you know shouldn’t be in your story, you must begin the process of removing it so it can stop causing havoc in your story. I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 1630

But when they rose early on the next morning, behold, Dagon had fallen face downward on the ground before the ark of the Lord, and the head of Dagon and both his hands were lying cut off on the threshold. Only the trunk of Dagon was left to him. 1 Samuel 5:4 – After acquiring the Ark after the battle with the Israelites in chapter 4, the Philistines chose to place the ark in the temple of their idol Dagon. Yet God was not pleased to be placed in the temple of an idol and chose to demonstrate His glory over that of some idol. God knocked the idol to the ground, breaking off its head and hands. Yet did the Philistines accept the truth that God was greater than Dagon and begin worshipping Him instead? No, they choose to send the Ark away. They saw fastening the broken idol back together as easier than a complete life change of following God. And they were right, it is easier to just keep going down our sinful path than to lay our life down at Jesus’ feet, carry our cross, and follow Him. It’s far easier to just keep putting back together our broken pieces to remain in our sinful life, but the end destination of that easier path is where no one wants to go. Following God does mean changing things in our life, it does mean turning from sinful habits, and it does mean submitting to God’s lead in our life. Following God leads us to a path of life and peace, not death like sin leads us to. Jesus said it Himself, the pathway to death is wide and easy, but the narrow gate to life is hard. Will we though choose ease in this life and eternal pain after this life, or will we choose to carry our cross daily, following the Lord with our life, and experiencing the beauty of Heaven when this life is over? I love you, but Jesus loves you more – Mac – Daily DEVO 2882