I invite you to turn in your Bibles tonight to the book of 1 Samuel. If you're a visitor tonight, we're working through this book. And tonight we come to 1 Samuel chapter 6. 1 Samuel chapter 6. If you're a visitor unsure where that page is, you'll find that in those Bibles in front of you on page 292. This is the Word of the Lord. Let's give our attention to it tonight. The Ark of the Lord was in the country of the Philistines seven months. And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners and said, What shall we do with the Ark of the Lord? Tell us, with what shall we send it to its place? They said, If you send away the Ark of the God of Israel, do not send it empty, but by all means return him a guilt offering then you will be healed and it will be made known to you why his hand does not turn away from you and they said what is the guilt offering that we shall return to him they answered five golden tumors and five golden mice according to the number of the lords of the philistines for the same plague was on all of you and on your lords so you must make images of your tumors and images of your mice that ravage the land and give glory to the God of Israel. Perhaps he will lighten his hand from off you and your gods and your land. Why should you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? After he had dealt severely with them, they did not send the people away and they departed. Now then take and prepare a new cart and two milk cows on which there has never come a yoke and yoke the cows to the cart but take their calves home away from them and take the ark of the lord and place it on the cart and put it in a box at its side the figures of gold which you are returning to him as a guilt offering then send it off and let it go its way and watch if it goes up on the way to its own land to bet Shemesh, then it is he who has done us this great harm. But if not, then we shall know that it is not his hand that has struck us. It happened to us by coincidence. The men did so and took two milk cows and yoked them to the cart and shut up their calves at home. And they put the ark of the Lord on the cart and the box with the golden mice and the images of their tumors. And the cows went straight in the direction of Beth Shemesh along one highway lowing as they went. They returned neither to the right nor to the left and the lords of the Philistines went after them as far as the border of Beth Shemesh. Now the people of Beth Shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley and when they lifted up their eyes and saw the ark they rejoiced to see it. The cart came into the field of Joshua of Beth Shemesh and stopped there. A great stone was there and they split up the wood of the cart and offered the cows as a burnt offering to the Lord. And the Levites took down the ark of the Lord and the box that was beside it in which were the golden figures and set them upon the great stone. And the men of Beth Shemesh offered burnt offerings and sacrificed sacrifices on that day to the Lord. And when the five lords of the Philistines saw it, they returned that day to Ekron. These are the golden tumors that the Philistines returned as a guilt offering to the Lord. One for Ashdod, one for Gaza, one for Ashkelon, one for Gath, and one for Ekron. And the golden mice, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, both fortified cities and unwalled villages. The great stone beside which they set down the ark of the lord is a witness to this day in the field of joshua of bet shemesh and he struck some of the men of bet shemesh because they looked upon the ark of the lord he struck 70 men of them and the people mourned because the lord had struck the people with a great blow then the men of bet shemesh said who is able to stand before the lord this holy god and to whom shall he go up away from us so they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath-Jerim saying the Philistines have returned the ark of the Lord come down and take it upon you take it up to you and there ends the reading of God's word obviously we're stepping into a section tonight as we've been working through the book of 1st Samuel of a continuing narrative and a continuing story and it's such a fascinating story there's so much to learn that tonight I want to begin with this question that is highlighted in the text that we say together and confess together that I referenced earlier in Lord's Day 5 that is one of the most important questions that we could ever ask and I want you to think of it for a moment in light of what we just read if we deserve God's punishment according to God's righteous judgment both now and in eternity, how then can we escape this punishment and return to God's favor? That really is the question, isn't it? How is anyone going to escape and come into the favor of the Lord? Because you'll notice here in this particular text, there's not a lot of favor that's being shown, is there? Something's gone terribly wrong. And this is, of course, boys and Girls, the question and the thing that separates Christianity from every other world religion, isn't it? It's the most important question that we ask, for no other world religion has the answer that we do. In other words, no creature, nobody can propitiate and satisfy the holy God of Israel. Nobody can do it. So the answer is so important that we need a perfect mediator, don't we? We need a perfect mediator, one who is true God, who is like us in every way, who is also true God. And we confess the wonderful truth of Christianity that it is Jesus who meets this need for us. It is Jesus who is the go-between. It is Jesus who is the mediator, who has satisfied the wrath of God so that we can enjoy His love and we can enjoy His blessing. and not what we've been discussing and looking at of what fell upon Israel and the Philistines. But here's the dilemma tonight. Here's the challenge tonight I want you to think about. It is how do we come to a place? We understand that unbelievers don't get the gospel. We understand that unbelievers don't appreciate or understand how they're right with God. So they're doing all kinds of crazy acts to try to satisfy someone they know is bothered with something. but how is it that Israel didn't know this? How is it that Israel had become completely themselves blinded to the gospel? How is it that Israel had lost the gospel? And that's the thing I want to pursue with you for isn't it something that we have in verse 20, the question of the text, the question that's repeated over and over and over again throughout the Scriptures, Asked by Israel, don't they know the answer to this? Who is able to stand before this holy God of Israel? Who? That's the question of all questions, isn't it? That's the question everyone has to answer. That the God of Israel is supremely holy and full of majesty, supremely. Think of God dwells in unapproachable light. He's pictured for us in scripture as being on fire and nothing impure can be in his presence. Israel had forgotten themselves how one stands in the presence of the holy God of Israel. And that's what I want to look at tonight with you in light of this particular text. It's the most wonderful message that comes out of this. As we see, the Bible is one grand story showing us Jesus, showing us the gospel, showing us forgiveness, showing us how this happens. And it is the great truth that's announced to us in 1 Corinthians and 2 Corinthians. He made him who knew no sin to be sin for us. That we might become the righteousness of God in him. Well, that's what this is about tonight. We have here the Lord in this text for future generations to study so plainly reteaching Israel the gospel. This is after a long period of darkness and apostasy. This is a reformation, if you will, that's happening in Israel. And we see the Lord so carefully again teaching them this. And every generation has to learn this. Like I showed you this morning, witnessing out on the street the other day. We assume people understand this. They don't. We have to always teach ourselves every day we get up the gospel, the good news of God's love. But we also have to remember that every generation coming, even our own children and the ones all in front of us, need to learn it, need to know it. Well, that's where we are. So let's look at this again. You remember the context that two nations are vying for being the superpower in the region, the Philistines and Israel, and they've lined up for battle. It didn't go well. Israel's plan was, listen, all we really need to do after losing 4,000 men to the Philistines, all we really need to do is take the ark of God and just put it out in the middle of the battlefield, and it will win. It will win. If we take God, who's confined to the box, this is how they viewed God, if we use Him that way, as a magic wand, it's an automatic victory. Like a rabbit's foot. We're putting Him out there. and it may not seem like such a devastating sin at first, but you'll notice here it was awful, for they went back and grabbed the ark with total disrespect, and they shoved the ark. Symbolically, remember, where God had dwelt between the cherubim. They dragged it out and used it as this magic tool to manipulate God, and the outcome was just a tragedy. The Philistines captured the ark. The Philistines captured it. this story would be one that was told for centuries we've looked at the terrible thing that happened in israel it was the darkest moment in israel's history last time the glory remember ichabod the glory had departed phineas's wife gives birth she can't even look at the child and and they she names the child ichabod the glory has departed from israel it was such a dark scene From their perspective, who's in exile right now? God. God is in exile. From their perspective, God has now come under another superpower who now has God in bondage. It's a remarkable thought. The glory has departed, and now their hands are on the ark. Well, we see why God preserved what follows. This would be a huge teaching tool for Israel about deliverance. And if you see it tonight, it's the most remarkable story in the Old Testament. The ark goes into, remember, the temple of Dagon. And it was somewhat hilarious last time, as every time the Philistines walked back in, there was Dagon bowing before the ark. The head had come off at one point. The hands and the palms are off on the floor, bowing down before the Ark of Israel. Well, this is where we are. This is where we pick up. Verse 1. You'll notice here in verse 6. So the Ark of the Lord was in the country of the Philistines seven months. The Lord's in control of how long this goes, by the way. And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners and said, What shall we do with the Ark of the Lord? Tell us with what shall we send it to its place. This has not gone well for them. The Lord has plagued their land. And what we have here now is this great council. It's been there seven months, and we really don't know how bad this was, but what comes across is we have got to get the ark out of here as soon as possible. Plagues are hitting our land. We're being plagued. People are suffering. It's got to go. Now we're going to see that one of the plagues was rats. Mice. I remember years ago when I was in seminary here and one night we heard something in the kitchen and every morning we were coming out in our food, the apples were all eaten. And I remember I set a glue trap and Darcy said, you go out. Something was banging around in it. You go out and deal with that. And I didn't want to deal with that. There it was. A massive fat rat. Right on the counter. Stuck. And I'm beating it with a golf club. It was the worst moment I remember. It was awful in there. The screeching, the yelling. Imagine your land filled with these things everywhere. Rats. We hate rats, don't we? Somebody said yeah. This is an awful thing, an awful plague. Here, rats have come upon the land. We read at the end of verse 5 that the cry went up to heaven. It's a lot of rats, a lot of mice, and a lot of tumors as we looked at last time. There were great and severe plagues. The men of the city, both small and great, were being struck again. I'm sitting here and thinking to myself, if I was one of the Lord of these cities on that day and I got hit with plagues like that, I think it's time to send away the ark, don't you? I don't want this. I don't want it. But it sits here seven months. And finally in verse one, they say, we can't take it anymore. And you ask the question, why so long? Well, verse six tells us, What is the question in verse 6? You'll notice it there. Why should you harden your hearts as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? You know that word to make heavy is the same word used in the Exodus narrative? So we're now picking up on something here, and this is how you read the Bible, that we have a grand story being retold. You hear it? Let the ark go! Let it go! and the lords are saying, no, it's got to go. Why are you hardening your heart, Pharaoh? Why are you hardening your heart, lords? Let the ark go. The only real difference now, the big difference is, who needs to be let go? It's a chilling thought, isn't it? Who's in the hands of who? God in the hands of sinners? God in bondage? That makes me very uncomfortable to say. The ark of the presence of the Lord who dwells between the cherubim in the hands of uncircumcised Philistines. Think of the tragedy from Israel's perspective. Our God is captured. Our God is in their hands. Our God is in bondage now. Who's going to get him out? The shame of the whole event because Israel had no reverence for God all because in complete disregard of His holiness, they had thrust His throne out on the battlefield and the whole thing was taken right into the hands of Israel's enemies. Well, back in Philistia, this council meeting happens and the plagues have come so the diviners and all the wise men are consulted just like they were in Egypt. What do we do? And we begin to take from Exodus and apply this and learn this. They devise a way. In verse 8, they say, well, let's send it away. So the ark is in exile. Plagues have come on the Philistines. They've hardened their hearts. They won't let it go. At the appointed time, seven months, number of perfection. Now, let it go, let it go. They are saying, send it away, and it finally happens. Look at verse 3. But if you send away the ark, if you send it away, what do you do? Don't send it empty. But return it to him with a trespass offering. A trespass offering? The Philistines are thinking about a trespass offering. Has Israel thought about the trespass offering? It's a remarkable moment. then you will be healed. If you give a trespass offering, then you will be healed from all of this. So they seem to know the Exodus event. Remember, all the nations knew the Exodus event. And they knew that when Israel came out, that they plundered Egypt and somehow this God must have been satisfied because Egypt gave all its riches to Israel. This God can be satisfied. Look at verse 4. What do we return to Him? What is the guilt offering that we shall return? Ready? Five golden tumors and five golden mice according to the number of the lords of the Philistines for the same plague was on all of you and your lords. What? What? You think God can be propitiated with images of your tumors and your growing? And you think making mice gold will appease Him? This is where you stand back and you say, this is something, isn't it? Because everyone recognizes somebody needs to be satisfied. And they realize that Israel's God needs to be satisfied. There must be a trespass offering. And so they do this. They give this according to the plagues and according to the lords, and you'll make images of your rats and your mice and images of these things. And the whole thing, you'll notice tonight, is set in the narrative of the Exodus. But isn't it something to reflect upon for a moment? The single great issue of the text tonight is the question that comes, how can this God be propitiated? How can this God, how can you stand before the holy God of Israel? How can His wrath be satisfied? Israel should have known that. Remember what happened on the night they came out? Passover. A lamb had to be sacrificed. Blood had to be shed. The Philistines have no knowledge of this. the Philistines have no knowledge of this. They can't do it. Doesn't this just tie to my discussion about witnessing to the young man on the street? Have you ever heard the Gospel? No. No. They don't know. This is the best they come up with. To make images of their tumors. In some sense, it's heartbreaking, isn't it? For all you know and all you've been taught, that the world has no knowledge of this tonight. The Philistines fully understood. The pagans fully understood. The holy God of Israel needs to be propitiated. His wrath needs to be turned away from us. But we don't know how. pagan nations have always tried this you know the Aztecs every year would take a young person and they would take an obsidian knife and they would take that young person up the top of those step pyramids and they'd take that obsidian knife and they would cut out a heart beating and offer it to the sun god raw this is what goes on look at the history of sacrifice everyone knows it but do they know the answer now i come back to our heidelberg tonight do you see the importance of the question god is holy god demands this because we've sinned uh if there's nothing that we can do to satisfy god if it's not gold how then can we escape this judgment and come back into a right standing with him which is the question of the text here's the most moving thing when israel read this it must have hit them like a ton of bricks in the future i'm hoping the trespass offering is because of sin and we need a perfect ram without blemish god won't accept anything else that's how he's propitiated but i wonder if it dawned on them what happened you know what the first chapters show us do you Remember the first chapters? They had kicked the sacrifices over. Eli's house, this is why the Lord was taking it all down. Eli's sons had taken the sacrifices. Remember the word that was used? They kicked them right on out of Israel. They weren't even doing them. They were stealing them for themselves to eat. The glory was gone. The gospel was absent from Israel. Here's my point. Israel had thrown out the lamb. The Philistines knew no better when Israel should have known better. And both are presented now with a terrible dilemma without having a mediator. And the issue the text is raising is what can satisfy the wrath of God? The Philistines are desperately trying to figure this out. The Philistines are trying to make a way to have access. So they offer up these images. They come up with this plan. So they send it back. Now notice verse seven on this new cart. Don't put it on that one. And we know the history with the cart. And we'll get there in a little while. That this might offend this God. So make a new cart and take two milk cows that have never been yoked and hitch the cows to the cart and take their calves home away from this. I don't know much about farming, but I'm guessing it's not a good thing to do that. Is that right? Okay, Pete said that's right. You don't take calves away. right you just don't do this so this was a test you put it on a new cart these cows that have never been yoked from their calves and you let it go if the cows go crazy which is what should happen the ark will fall over and we know this whole thing was just by chance but if it goes straight as they've separated them. Well, then we know this is of the Lord. See, they're still fighting to hold on to the ark. They're still fighting to not let it go. They're still coming. And that's exactly what happens. This Pharaoh had hardened his heart and remember he got into his chariots with one last ditch effort to go get Israel as they got to the Red Sea. And that's what we read. Against all odds, they set the ark and the chest with the golden rats and the images and the tuners and the cows went straight for Beth Shemesh to the border of the land of Israel. And they went lowing as they go. They didn't go to the right or to the left. Notice this. They went lowing. They went straight where they were supposed to go. And here it is. And the lords of the Philistines went after them to the border of Beth Shemesh. You see the whole story? Repeated. Here's Pharaoh and the army's coming. One last ditch effort. Woven into the narrative, the ark has been in exile. The Lord has afflicted them with plagues. They have hardened their hearts. After much struggle, they let the ark go. And the ark has had a great exodus now. And in one last ditch effort, the Philistines come after it right to the border of Israel. It tells us that the ark came into the field of Joshua, of Beth Shemesh, where a stone was. Exile, plagues, plunder, exodus, entrance, land, Joshua, stones. Hello, Israel! See it? The Lord was reteaching the whole story to them. Did they know what God required? Did they know what God had done for them? Answer, no. The men of Beth Shemesh look in the ark. The Levites come and take it down. They disrespect the ark. They seem to have completely forgotten who the God of Israel is. And the whole narrative leaves us with this question in verse 20 that the men of Beth Shemesh ask who's able to stand before this holy God. Do you see why the Lord intertwined the Exodus story tonight then? Do you understand that? How can God go with us was the question of Exodus. The Exodus here of the ark is telling us something much further about the original Exodus that Israel needed to know. A greater story was being told. A greater plan was being revealed. A reformation was happening again. Israel needed to be reminded of it over and over. It wasn't that they were more special than any other people that God had done this in bringing them out of Egypt. It was His love, His sovereign grace, His prerogative, and it was only by the blood of the Lamb that they were set free. The ark narrative is telling us this story. But here's the marvel of it tonight. The one in exile, the one going through it all is God Himself. And that's where Israel must have stopped and thought, that's a marvelous story. And then you come to the New Testament, and the first announcement is, out of Egypt I have called who? My Son. Jesus. For you. You know what He did for you? He went down to Egypt. In other words, the whole story of Jesus is rooted in the Exodus story to tell you that everything that needed to be done, God Himself put Himself under it for you. He went in bondage. He who knew no sin became what? Sin. For you to do what? Set you free. So that you might become the righteousness of God in Him. And He walks through the land and he goes through the Red Sea of vent and he dies on a cross and he's raised in victory and he goes to the land for you preparing a place for you. There's a story. That's the basis. You see, you're not redeemed with corruptible things like gold and silver. You're not redeemed by rat making. Right? But you're redeemed by the precious blood of Jesus. as of a lamb without blemish or spot. He indeed was foreordained from the foundation of the world, but in these last times was shown and manifest to you. He's our Joshua. He saved us. He went through it for us. And you need to know the Gospel tonight. We've got to hold on to the Gospel. It's the exile, the exodus, the entrance is Jesus' story for us. And the application then is worship the Lord in the beauty of His holiness. Come to Him with believing hearts. He wants faith from you. He wants you to trust Him. He wants you to reverence Him and believe Him. And receive His Son by faith. I love what the New Testament says to us over and over, and I'll close with this. Therefore, since we've been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, listen to this, through whom we have access, gained access by faith, into this grace in which we now stand who's able to stand before the holy god of israel jesus has made that so you stand you stand to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and present you faultless before the throne of his presence without fault and with great joy that's what jesus has done for you It's His great sacrifice. We have a mediator who is worthy of all praise, worthy of all honor, for apart from that message, for apart from Him, we have no basis of ever standing before the Holy God of Israel. But you stand. Take that message out into your weeks. God loves you. Nothing can separate you from that love. And you'll know peace. You'll know strength in this wilderness journey heading to the land that he secured already for you amen let's pray gracious heavenly father thank you for your wonderful gospel that's put on display everywhere for us thank you for teaching us the story as the bible shrinks and we see the great story of our savior unfold in such marvelous wisdom by the inspiration of your spirit make us a humble people let the gospel will never ever be lost among your people. But now we also pray that the gospel would go out to the ends of the earth and that every people, tribe, tongue, nation, every people would know the gospel. Thank you for doing that and showing us that you care to do that. And that on that day, there will be a great multitude standing, Revelation says, with palm branches before the presence of God with great joy because of Jesus in whose name we pray these things tonight. Amen.