God and the Ark

Day two hundred fifty-eight

There was a song on the radio with the lyrics "I wanna know you like that".  The artist was being interviewed and shared his inspiration for the song.  He had read an article in the paper about a pastor who had watched his church get washed away during one of the recent floods.  When the pastor was asked what he was going to do, he responded with, "Well the Lord has a reason for all He does.  So I suppose we will start rebuilding and see who comes to help."  The musician was touched by the pastor's understanding of God's ways and thought to himself, "I wanna know you (God) like that!"  

I wanna know God like that too!  That is what I prayed about this morning.  What do I need to do to know God like that? I'm not sure that I am prepared for what it takes, but I am willing to listen and give it my best shot!

2 Samuel 6

There are some chapters in the scriptures that are set up perfectly for the question:  What do these verses tell us about God?  This is one of those chapters. 

The Ark (vv 3-10)
During the days of Saul, Israel had lost sight of their relationship with the Lord.  David wanted to make that situation right.  He wanted to bring his people back to God.  To do this, David decided to lead an army to retrieve the Ark of the Covenant from the house of a man named Abinadab. David knew that Israel would never be where they needed to be with the Lord until the Ark was restored as the centerpiece of Israelite worship and everyday life.

Why was the Ark so important?  The Ark of the Covenant was built at the command of the Lord (Ex. 25:10-22).  Inside the Ark were a golden pot of manna; Aaron’s rod that budded and the two tables of the Law that were given to Moses at Mount Sinai. It was here that God promised to meet with His people.  It was here that the blood of the atonement was place on the Day of Atonement.  It was here that the glory of God rested as the children of Israel journeyed through the wilderness.

This Ark was vital to worship in Israel.  It was symbolic of God’s presence among His people.  It was often carried into battle in front of the soldiers.  It was central to their lives; their worship and their relationship with God.  But, the Ark had not been kept in the central position that it deserved; and, as a result, neither had God.

David’s motives in bringing the Ark to Jerusalem were proper; but his methods were faulty.  Instead of being successful; David’s methods for transporting the Ark resulted in the death of a man named Uzzah. 

The scriptures say that they “set the Ark of God upon a new cart…”  David’s first problem was rooted in the fact that he either forgot or ignored the clear command of God as to how the Ark was to be transported.  The Ark was to be lifted by means of two golden staves which were to be passed through golden rings fashioned on the corners of the Ark (Ex. 25:14-15).  The Ark was then to be lifted up and carried upon the shoulders of a family of Levites known as the Kohathites (Num. 3:30; 4:15). 

The journey started out fine, but then the oxen shook the cart and threatened to dump the Ark off the cart.  At this point, Uzzah reached out his hand in an effort to steady the Ark and prevent it from falling.  This seems like a logical thing to do, but apparently God did not agree.  He killed Uzzah on the spot!  You see, the Ark was supposed to be carried only on the shoulders of the Kohathites; it was never to be touched by human hands (Num. 4:15).  The penalty for touching the Ark was death, as Uzzah and David quickly found out. David made good plans and good preparations, but he neglected to do it God’s way. He paid a high price for this decision.
 

If these verses teach us anything, they teach us that God is very interested in the details.  We may think that God does not care about the little things in life; but He does!  When God gives a command, He expects it to be followed to the letter. 

The Return of the Ark (vv 11-19)

The death of Uzzah angered David and made him afraid to bring the Ark up (vv 8-9), but a man named Obed-edom was glad to have it in his house.  When David closed the door to God, Obed-edom opened his door and God blessed him as a result. When David hears about this, he experiences a change in attitude.  He returns to the house of Obed-edom with a desire to carry out God’s will God’s way.

Apparently, during the three months that passed between the death of Uzzah and David’s decision to go get the Ark, he had been doing his homework.  Either someone told David how the Ark was supposed to be moved, or he read the Law for himself (1 Chron. 15:13-15). Either way, he went and got it and brought it home the right way.  This time there would be no shortcuts and no disobedience; David would do it the right way. He would do it the Lord’s way!  Just to be sure, the Levites stopped after they had gone six steps and they sacrificed to the Lord.  When the Lord did not destroy anyone, they were assured of His blessings and they carried the Ark on.

What is the lesson for us here? It is simple!  When we do things God's way we will be blessed! 

Joy (vv 14-15)

One of the blessings the Israelites receive from returning the Ark is joy.  I think this is one of my favorite blessings to read about.  You can picture in your head thousands of people shouting, music playing, and people dancing in the streets because they are filled with so much joy that the Lord is with them (vv 14-15).  It must have been an awesome sight!  Wouldn't it be great to feel so much joy in your life because you know that the Lord is with you and you want to shout it out loud and dance around? 

 

I think that is what the Lord wants for us; so much joy in our lives that we can't stand it and need to share it with others!  He wants us to find joy in Him.  It says a lot about how much He loves us, wanting us to overflow with joy.  After all, the Lord has told us that "men are, that they might have joy" (2 Ne 2:25). The scene described in this chapter is a great tribute to the joy that we can feel if we choose to keep the Lord at the center of our lives.  That's the lesson we get from these verses: The key to a joyful life is putting God at the center of it!

 

This chapter has inspired and motivated me to seek more joy in my life.  There are a few areas I need to work on to be in a place where I am overflowing with joy, but I am ready to tackle them today in hopes of feeling a joy that makes me want to shout and dance. My motto today will be: Go after God with all I have and be sure to do it His way!