Heart Prep:
Instead of seeking God in prayer, the Israelites pursued worldly wisdom by taking the ark of the covenant into battle, believing it would help them defeat the Philistines. In response to their sin, God allowed the ark to be captured. While the capture of the ark may have looked outwardly like a defeat, God used this opportunity to bring glory to His name by demonstrating His power over the enemy and His judgment of sin. This foreshadowed when God claimed glory through what looked like defeat – when Jesus allowed Himself to be captured and crucified to fulfill God’s judgment on sin. In the same way, in His unmistakable power, returning the ark to his people foreshadowed Christ’s resurrection to be with his people. Our source of hope is not through our wishes of good fortune to the Lord, but through the salvation secured in Christ through faith in His name.
Message:
God’s people, the Israelites, did not get along with the Philistines. One day, the Israelites fought the Philistines, and the Philistines won the battle. The Israelites were confused. Why did God let them lose? The Israelites made a plan. They would take the ark of God to the battle. The ark of God was a beautiful box from the tabernacle that reminded the people God was with them. They thought the ark might help them win the battle. Eli’s sons, wicked men who sinned against God, carried the ark of God to the Israelites’ camp. When the Israelite army saw the ark, they shouted with joy. Surely they would win the battle now! But when the Israelites fought the Philistines, the Philistines won again! Many Israelites died—including Eli’s two sons—and the Philistines stole the ark of God. The Philistines took the ark of God to their temple. They put the ark next to a statue of Dagon (DAY gahn), a false god. The next morning, the Philistines found Dagon’s statue face down in front of the ark. They set the statue back up. The next day, the statue was face down again. This time, its head and hands were broken off. God punished the Philistines living in the city where the ark of God was. God made them really sick, so the people wanted to get rid of the ark. They moved the ark to another city, but everyone in that city also got sick. So the Philistines moved the ark to a third city. But everyone in that city got sick as well. The Philistines were afraid. They didn’t want God to punish them anymore, so they decided to give the ark back to the Israelites. The people hooked two cows up to a cart and put the ark on the cart. They also sent gifts to show they were sorry for taking the ark. The cows moved the ark down the road until the ark of God was back with the Israelites, where it belonged.
Main Point:
The ark of God reminded the Israelites that God was with them. Many years later God gave His people something even better to remind them that He was with them. God sent His Son, Jesus. One of Jesus’ names is Immanuel, which means “God with us.”
Discussion:
How did God’s people misuse the ark?
Discuss that God’s people treated the ark like a “good-luck charm.” The people were
only using God to get what they wanted. The ark did not have any special powers. It was a reminder of God’s presence with His people. God alone had the power to give the Israelites victory. (Read 1 Chron. 29:12-13.)
How does this story show us that God takes sin seriously?
Remind how God allowed the Philistines to capture the ark because His people sinned against Him when they misused the ark. Discuss how God punished the Philistines for their sin. Remind kids that God is holy, and He will not leave sin unpunished. Tell kids that Jesus took the punishment of sin in our place. (Read Rom. 2:6-8.)
How did God show the Philistines that He is the one true God?
Discuss how even though the Philistines had captured the ark of the Lord, they had no power over God. Remind kids of how God destroyed the statue of Dagon, afflicted the people with tumors, and caused the cows to know the right way to go. (Read Isa. 44:6.)
