Sermon Outline:
1. God’s glory departed when His proud people tried to wield it for their benefit.
2. God gets glory for Himself by defeating His enemies.
3. God gets glory for Himself by delivering His people when they repent and cry out.
Family Discussion Questions:
1. What ideas from the nations around them did God’s people inject into their understanding of God and the ark at the beginning of this story?
2. Did either the actions of God's people or the Philistines thwart God's plans?
3. What are some of the things God accomplishes through these events?
4. How did the Philistines respond to God’s hand working against them? How is this different than the way the Israelites responded to God’s discipline?
5. What has cahnged in the haerts of God’s people when they go out to battle at the end of this story? How is that different than their hearts at the beginning of this story?
6. What is God’s primary purpose for His plan in history? In what ways is this better for us than God’s plan primarily being about us?
7. What ideas from the secular world around us might the church today be in danger of injecting into our understanding of God?
8. What are some particular areas in your life where you might be in danger of seeing God as a means of your own self exaltation?
9. To whom does the gospel ascribe glory? What about the gospel demonstrates the worthiness of God? What does it say about us?
10. Whose glory did Jesus pursue? What did this say about Jesus role as Messiah?
