1 Samuel 5:10-12 Hot Potato!

 ”Therefore they sent the ark of God to Ekron. So it was, as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying, “They have brought the ark of the God of Israel to us, to kill us and our people!” So they sent and gathered together all the Lords of the Philistines, and said, “Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go back to its own place, so that it does not kill us and our people.” For there was a deadly destruction throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there. And the men who did not die were stricken with the tumors, and the cry of the city went up to heaven.“ ‭‭I Samuel‬ ‭5‬:‭10‬-‭12‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

a. Therefore they sent the ark of God to Ekron: The ark of the covenant was now among the Philistines like a “hot potato,” in the children’s game, burning every city where it stayed. The Ekronites were not happy to see the ark but they still wouldn’t submit to the LORD God of Israel.

b. Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go back to its own place: The Philistines, if they had repented and turned towards the LORD, could have benefited from the ark. Instead it became a curse and a judgment to them. The same is true of the presence of God among men today, which can be as a fragrance of life to some and the aroma of death to others (2 Corinthians 2:15-16). (Guzik)

Hot Potato!

Have you noticed if you sometimes try to spread the gospel to an unbelieving family member or biblically correct a Christian’s behavior, that it too in a sense can be like, you just handed them a hot potato? The thought about discussing salvation or biblical correction opens a floodgate of emotions!

It “can be as a fragrance of life to some and the aroma of death to others” (Guzik)

“You're gonna have to serve somebody 

Well, it may be the Devil or it may be the Lord 

But you're gonna have to serve somebody” (Bob Dylan’s song, Gotta Serve Somebody)

May I ask, Whom are you serving?

Blessings