The Difference Between Superstition and Revelation

Synopsis     1Sam 5:8-6:3     8/21/2018

The Ark of God dwelled with the Philistines. But as it did, the people in the various cities where they placed the Ark became ill with different kinds of diseases. In the end, no city was willing to keep possession of the Ark.

As a result, the Philistines decided to return the Ark. So they assembled diviners. These men instructed them to make amends to the God of the Israelites through a reparation offering.

Not Easily Tamed

It’s hard not to read this story and wonder about the Philistines. They recognized the power of God working in their midst. But that did not draw them into a relationship with God.

But for the Philistines, like for most ancient cultures, the God of Israel was one God among many. The plague was one plague among many. So, they had no special reason to seek relationship with the one, true, God. The Philistines didn’t desire to have a relationship with Him. Instead, they perceived God as a powerful entity that should be avoided.

The Difference Between Superstition and Revelation

If a basketball player wears the same socks to every game because they are her “lucky socks” – that’s clearly superstition. But it’s something that we’re all subject to.

The human tendency is to reflect back on those times when things went really well. Or, sometimes we reflect on when things went really poorly. Either way, the tendency is to look for a “common denominator” that we associate with success or failure. And then, we build the associated behavior into our routine.

But revelation is different. It is given. And, it is given as a gift. The received gift becomes the power to live a changed life.

There is a world full of people. And almost all of us claim to want success – we claim to not want failure. And there is a revelation that makes the way of success absolutely obvious.  Like the apostle said, “Love never fails”.

The Philistines knew God as powerful but did not appropriate the power. Instead they created a superstition. God became “the god of unusual tumors”. And so, they learned to avoid the power of God.

I do the same when I describe God as the “god of hellfire”. I’ve created a superstition. Not that He isn’t powerful. And not that there isn’t hellfire. But Jesus didn’t build a hell-avoidance club. He’s looking for an outcome from me.

So, success requires a revealing from God – and ears to hear.

“Thus faith comes from what is heard, and what is heard comes through the word of Christ” Rom 10:17