1 Samuel 5 "Be Gone Dagon"

1. KEEP Yourself from IDOLS (verses 1-5) In verses 1-5, the __________ have captured the ____. They assumed it was just an _____ and placed it beside their god, __________. The next morning the statue of __________ was fallen face down—showing submission before the ____ of the Lord! __________ cannot protect himself or his people from the hand of the Lord. No _____ can stand against ____! John Piper: “It is not the form of the _____ but the function of the _____ that is crucial. It is anything that begins to capture our hearts and minds more than ____.” A.W. Tozer: “An _____ of the mind is as offensive to ____ as an _____ of the hand.”

SPIRITUAL TESTS: 1. What do I love, desire, or treasure most? (Love test) 2. What do I rely on for comfort or control? (Trust test) 3. What would I sin to get or lie to protect? (Obedience test) 4. What triggers my strongest emotions? (Emotion test)

Only ______ satisfies—He is our joy and treasure! (1 John 5:20–21)

2. Submit to ____’s HEAVY hand (vv. 6–9) Verse 6: “The hand of the LORD was ______ against the people of Ashdod.” The Hebrew word for “______” (kabed) connects to kabod—the “______” of ____. V. Philips Long: “____ can neither be manipulated by those who confess him nor managed by those who defy him.” The __________ moved the ark from city to city trying to get rid of the problem—but they couldn’t escape His hand. ____’s hand can be ______ either against you or for you. The same ______ that crushes _____s also comforts His people.

3. SEE the Victory (vv. 10–12) By the time the ark reaches Ekron, the __________ are terrified. Their cry mirrors the panic of Egypt during the plagues—because Yahweh is doing in Philistia what He once did in Egypt. The ark’s travels from city to city become a ________ march for Israel. What seemed like _______ is actually ____’s ________!

______’s death and resurrection constituted the greatest reversal of all time, as seeming _______ was turned to resounding ________. 

1 Corinthians 15:57 “But thanks be to ____, who gives us the ________ through our Lord Jesus ______.”

John 20:12: “And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet.” The empty tomb became the mercy seat—Jesus’ ________ shows our redemption!