Quick Fix Faith: When We Want God’s Help Without Holiness

One of mankind’s greatest inventions is duct tape. Nothing breaks that can’t be fixed with good old duct tape. I’ve seen water bottles sealed, shoes fixed, cell phone screens repaired, and even side-view mirrors held onto cars by duct tape. Don’t knock that last one until you try it — I know from experience. Deep down, though, we know that duct tape is only a quick fix. We need a real solution, like a new water bottle or car mirror.

One day, the people of Israel had a situation they tried to handle with a quick fix. They thought a little golden box would solve all their problems, and they learned an important lesson as their actions brought serious consequences.

A nation known as the Philistines became a serious threat to Israel during the time of the judges, and, once again, they were on the attack. Their army established its lines at the village of Aphek, and Israel’s army camped nearby at Ebenezer. The Philistines attacked, and in that first skirmish around 4000 Israelites were killed. 

Devastated by their defeat, the Israelites questioned what could have happened. Why did God allow this? They figured that it must have been his judgment. 

So they seized upon an idea. A quick fix.

“Let us bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord here from Shiloh, that it may come among us and save us from the power of our enemies.” (1 Samuel 4:3)

Since the ark of the covenant symbolized God’s presence with Israel, they’d bring it to the battle. Because the ark was a good luck charm, that ought to do the trick. 

What was the ark of the covenant? It was a wooden box covered in gold, and on its top were two cherubs facing each other, bowing down. These cherubs weren’t cute, chubby little angels but powerful angelic beings, and even they bowed down in the presence of God. 

Inside the ark was a bowl of manna, a reminder that God provides; Aaron’s rod that budded in Numbers 17, a reminder of how God had chosen Aaron’s descendants as priests and that he calls his people to worship him; and the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments, a reminder of the importance of obedience to God. “Trust, worship, and obey” was the message of the ark.

The ark was the symbol of God’s presence with Israel and was known as his throne on earth. It was the holiest object in all of Israel, and several rules were attached to its use. The ark was kept inside the Most Holy Place in the temple, and only the High Priest could enter this room on one day each year, the Day of Atonement. He was never permitted to look inside the box. All of these rules surrounding the ark were to be reminders to the people of the holiness of God.

God is our Father and loves us deeply. He longs for a relationship with each of us and gave his Son so we could have that. But he never lets us forget that he is holy.

Everyone in Israel knew the rules and meaning attached to the ark, but they had just lost a battle. Their solution was to bring the ark to the fight so it could lead them to victory. Their hope was in a box, not in their God. They were far from God spiritually, but they thought the box could be their salvation. They wanted help — but not holiness. 

Are you seeking God himself? Or just his blessing and maybe his help from time to time? Do you treat him like the holy, almighty, all-loving Heavenly Father he is, or have you reduced him to someone you can use when you need him?

The army sent people to the Tabernacle at Shiloh to get the ark. Eli’s sons, Hophni and Phinehas, who were completely wicked and already under God’s judgment (see 1 Samuel 2:12-17, 22-25), broke every rule by going into the Most Holy Place, grabbing the ark, and hauling it to the battlefield.

Not once did anyone in Israel, from the military leaders to Hophni and Phinehas the priests, stop and ask God for guidance. No one prayed. 

How often do you get so caught up in the demands of life that you act in ways that seem practical and right — without taking the time to come before God and seek his guidance? First surrender to him and his plans, ask him to lead you, commit yourself to follow him, and then proceed.

When the ark reached the camp, the Israelite soldiers gave a cheer that the Philistines could hear some two miles away. Fear gripped the Philistines because they had heard how the Israelite God had helped them conquer the Promised Land. They knew that he brought them out of Egyptian slavery through plagues on the Egyptian people. They even knew that the ark was the throne of Israel’s God. Of course, they also thought Israel had several gods. Who can blame them? Idol worship was so rampant in Israel that anyone looking at them would see that the God of the ark was just one god among many. What a failure Israel had become. 

Israel had strayed far from God but trusted in a box. How about you? Are you worshipping the Lord or some object like a church, a ritual, or a person? Are you going through the motions but neglecting your relationship with your Father? Anything we put our trust in other than God is an idol, and worshipping idols is a recipe for disaster.

The Philistines, though fearful, were energized by the cheers of the Israelites and pressed the attack. They routed the Israelites. The Bible says that “thirty thousand foot soldiers of Israel fell” that day (1 Samuel 4:10). The two wicked sons of Eli were killed, fulfilling the prophecy in 1 Samuel 2:34. But worst of all, the ark of God was captured.

Some twenty miles away back at Shiloh, a soldier ran into the city with the horrible news. Eli had been waiting to hear the latest from the battle. He was concerned about his sons, but they weren’t his main worry. 1 Samuel 4:13 says, “his heart trembled for the ark of God.” His mind was on the ark. Eli didn’t try to control his evil sons, but he still loved the Lord. 

The soldier revealed one piece of information at a time, each statement worse than the previous. Israel was defeated and fled the battleground, there were heavy losses, Eli’s two sons were killed, and the ark of God had been captured. Eli kept his composure right up through the news of his sons, but when he heard the news about the ark, he fell backward off his chair, broke his neck, and died. 

That’s a bad day. In my first job out of college, I was a shift supervisor on an off-shift at a textile plant. One night, everything that could go wrong did go wrong. I was so frustrated that after the shift I sat at my desk and wrote the events of that night on a legal pad. I knew there would be days when I’d need to look at it and say, “Well, at least today wasn’t as bad as that day.” I still have that legal pad. It was an awful day, but not as bad as Eli’s.

In one day, 30,000 people were killed in battle, Eli’s sons died, God’s ark was stolen, and Eli died. Samuel was now God’s undisputed spokesman for all of Israel.

1 Samuel 4 invites us to reflect on our relationship with God. It reminds us that God is holy and he calls us to holiness. Without repentance and holiness, we’re in danger of defeat and despair. Our relationship with God is sure because he holds onto us. But our fellowship with him will suffer as we turn away from our Father. 

The story also reminds us to seek God’s guidance and follow him as he leads. So often, we make decisions and then ask God to bless them, instead of seeking his blessing and direction first. 

This story should also lead us to ask ourselves whether we’re doing things like going to church, performing acts of kindness, or reading the Bible, and calling that a relationship.  

Are you working on your relationship with God, growing in your trust in him, advancing in your knowledge of him, and increasing in your love for him? Your Heavenly Father wants a relationship with you that isn’t just about rituals or going through the motions, that isn’t just something that happens on Sundays, that isn’t just casual — but intimate. 

God loves you! He’s calling you into deeper fellowship with him. How will you respond?

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