Without holiness and obedience to the Lord and His ways, God won’t consider anything. If we cross the point of no return, then there won’t be any atonement at all. Where is our trust? Is it in God or anything He has given us? Is it in His person, or any thing? The Israelites misplaced their trust. They trusted in the ark, an object and disregarded its giver, God Himself and His ways. This can happen to us also. We may trust in our establishment, or infrastructure, experience, financial strength, charismatic leadership, etc. Always remember that nothing replaces absolute obedience and holy living before the Lord, and keeping God as the centre of one’s life.