Time To Raise Your Ebenezer!

Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far has the LORD helped us.” So the Philistines were subdued and did not invade Israelite territory again. (1 Samuel 7:12-13)

Here I raise mine Ebenezer; Hither by Thy help I’m come;And I hope, by Thy good pleasure, safely to arrive at home. Jesus sought me when a stranger, wandering from the fold of God;He, to rescue me from danger, interposed His precious blood.

All right I acknowledge that unless you have more than a couple of grey hairs on your head you probably haven’t got a clue what “Raising your Ebenezer” is all about. And even then you might not understand what it means. The lines above are the second verse of one of my favorite hymns, “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing.” Well actually, I should say it used to be the second verse of the hymn. Most modern renditions of the hymn have altered the wording of the hymn because so many people had no idea what they were raising when they sang about Ebenezer. For the most part, the only mental connection people were able to establish was with Ebenezer Scrooge from Charles Dickens’, “A Christmas Carol.” (Why would we want to raise that cranky old guy?) So most modern renditions of the hymn have been updated to avoid the confusion. And to some degree I think it’s rather sad, because the term is so rich with biblical meaning.

This rather obscure term actually comes from 1 Samuel Chapter 7. As you read in 1 Samuel you discover that Israel had been experiencing a long period of sadness and trouble. Chapters four through seven describe a series of battles between the Israelites and the Philistines. In an attempt to defeat the Philistines, the Israelites took the ark of the covenant into battle as kind of a good luck charm. Unfortunately however, the Philistines captured the ark and took it back to their pagan temple. God then sent plagues upon the Philistines and caused their idol god, Dagon to fall forward and break into pieces. Fearing God, the Philistines sent the ark from one of their cities to the next – each time resulting in disease and sickness falling upon that city. Frustrated and frightened the Philistines finally sent the ark back to the Israelites, but nonetheless continued to fight against them.

Upon return of the ark we are told that “all the people of Israel mourned and sought after the Lord.” They were sorrowful over the conditions that lead them into a place of weakness and defeat. – But now they were in a perfect place for God to begin a new work in their lives. - The prophet Samuel then leads Israel though a time of repentance. Their repentance involved separation from the idolatry in their lives, “rid yourselves of the foreign gods and Ashtaroths” and dedication, “commit yourselves to the Lord and serve him only .” (7:3) The nation then assembled for a national day of prayer at Mizpah. The Philistines, hearing that all of Israel was gathered in one place, thought this was the ideal opportunity for them to strike a death blow. So they came to attack. But just as they were advancing against the Israelites the Bible says “God thundered with a loud thunder and threw them into such a panic that they were routed before the Israelites.” In other words, the Lord raised His voice just a little and it scared them silly.

As a reminder of the great victory God gave to Israel, Samuel took a large stone and raised it as a memorial. Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far has the LORD helped us.” So the Philistines were subdued and did not invade Israelite territory again. (7: 12-13) The Hebrew word “Ebenezer” means “Stone of Help.” Whenever the Israelites looked at the stone, they would remember how God had helped them. The stone represented the place where restoration began. It represented a fresh beginning, a reversal of course for God's people.

Samuel was a wise and godly man with a good idea. He recognized something that's true about human nature - we're forgetful. At Ebenezer, Israel could stand next to that big old rock and remind themselves, “Yes, we serve a living and faithful God, whose mercies are everlasting. He brought us joy and victory in the midst of hopelessness and defeat. Because of His faithfulness to us we must remain dedicated and true to Him.”

In our time, God has given us a new Ebenezer so that we too might not forget the wonders of His mercy. We remember the Rock of Ages every time we look at the Cross of Christ. He is “the stone the builders rejected and the cornerstone” of our faith. For every Christian the cross stands between a place of sin and a place of victory and delivers salvation and new hope for all who embrace it.

If God has helped you from the slavery of sin and delivered you from the bondage of Satan, you can say in grateful remembrance, “Here I raise my Ebenezer.” Let your heart be filled with gratitude every time you see it. Let it remind you of the call of total commitment to your King. But if you have not yet humbled yourself at the Cross of Christ - be warned - you are still living in a place of weakness and defeat. Without Jesus we are all subject to the never-ending attacks of two relentless enemies – sin and death. Only in the Cross is victory found. Come to the Cross. Surrender to His grace. Receive His forgiveness and experience a new beginning in your life. Jesus sought me when a stranger, wandering from the fold of God; He, to rescue me from danger, interposed His precious blood.

Time to raise your Ebenezer.

Live the Victorious Life,
PT