The decision makers of the lands, I don't mean big shots in a negative way at all, in this case. But to automate ministry. To escape the labor. Under the guidelines of the scripture, to get away from bearing the weight is wrong. And we have to watch out for it.
It's so easy to do because sometimes it makes sense. Yeah, that's just the better way, and there's nothing in the scripture that prohibits that, but there's other times you can't do that. Regardless of how difficult it is, it's for you to do it this way. This is Cross Reference Radio with our pastor and teacher, Rick Gaston. Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel, Mechanicsville.
Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the book of 2 Samuel. Please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about cross-reference radio. specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching. But for now, let's join Pastor Rick in the book of 2 Samuel 6 as he begins his message: the weight of ministry. 2 Samuel chapter 6, the weight of ministry.
The easy title would have been David Brings the Ark. or the ark comes to Jerusalem. Those are obvious. Alternatives But I think they missed the deeper lessons in this chapter, which is really, I think, loaded with. Information for all those who don't want to serve God in their lives.
Lessons of In ministry, lessons in ministry for believers on negligence. There's a lesson about incorporating the world's way into God's way. which is standard practice, unfortunately, for so many. There are lessons on recovery from such a mistake. And then there are lessons on bitterness.
The influence of the ark, God's. visible presence among his people. had an impact on everyone in this chapter. A positive Influence except one. There's always one.
It is a fact of life. Take four bolts out of something, one of them's going to give you a hard time.
So we're going to read about Israel. assembling to bring the ark to Jerusalem, Uzzah, the man who loves the Lord, a righteous man, struck dead by God. Obed Edom. prospers while David delays. Then we read of David dancing before the ark with all of his might, and Michele despises him for it.
Well, that's the coming attraction. Let's look at verse one. Again, David gathered all the choice men of Israel, thirty thousand. He had previously gathered the men to take Jabos, which was where Mount Moriah was located, the temple would go, in Jerusalem. Then he gathered the men to defeat the Philistines.
This is a huge gathering of his military forces. Not all of the men. It's equivalent to a modern-day corps, two divisions of men, 30,000, almost a full stadium for a baseball game. And these are the elite men though. as I mentioned not all of them.
First Chronicles chapter thirteen, in the parallel account of these events, says So David gathered all Israel together from Shihor, which is a river in Egypt, To as far as the entrance of Hamath, which is in Syria, to bring the ark of God from Kirijath Jeram. And so, this almost a hundred-mile spread of all the Jews, of certainly the tribal leaders, coming to bring the ark into Jerusalem because it is that big of a deal. It was that important to all of them, and it should be therefore. beneficial for us to learn lessons that God has preserved in the story. This is spiritual war as we know it, as Christians looking at this.
We say, of course. It's obvious God's going to bring 30,000 troops to bring the Ark in Jerusalem because it's all about fighting evil in our lives. We don't come to the Bible just for casual reading ever. The Christian picks up the Bible, we say, Lord, help me understand. Or in my case, which is still I want to understand.
But one of the dominant requests that I have is, Lord, keep it fresh. that it's not so common to me That I'm not benefiting from it.
Well, anyway, thirty thousand come, verse two. And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from Baal Judah, To bring up from there the Ark of God, whose name is called by the name. Yahweh of hosts Who dwells between the cherubim?
Well, the historian is pouring it on, and he should be. Again, it's this big of an event. That Ark of the Covenant represented not only the presence of God, but the character of God, which was characterized by mercy, and so the top. of the chest is known as the mercy seat. You'd have to be out of your mind not to appreciate.
The importance of this. They had gone forty years with Saul. They were spiritually. They had been They were paupers now, as a kingdom goes, and David is rebuilding them. And I don't even know how much uh how aware of it they are.
But where it says here about Al-Judah, it transfers to the lords of Judah. Also known as Kirijath Jeram. This goes back to First Samuel 7. And David, he's got strength that Saul. never used.
And the Philistines will rule the day because of it. And here he is using these strengths that were available to Saul. Saul could have done this. He did not. David could not stand the idea Of the Jebusites In possession and control of Mount Moriah.
That meant everything, where Melchizedek blessed Abraham, where Abraham offered Isaac. This was where God's people. should worship from. Psalm 46, which is not said to be a psalm of David, but many of the psalms that went to the sons of Korah, for example, they were handed at some point. The influence of David.
came to them. And in Psalm 46, verse 4: There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God, the holy place. of the tabernacle of the Most High. My point is A righteous Jew loved Jerusalem because of what it means, and David was that sort of man. We, we love New Jerusalem.
We can't wait for New Jerusalem to descend and we be in it. David also sought to purge from the land God's enemies. And Saul sought to purge God's anointed from the land. This is backwards, evil. David could not live without the ark of God in the city of God.
It wasn't a complete picture just to build a church. He had to fill it with God's presence. Psalm eighty seven. Again, glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God, Selah. Saul found nothing in this for himself.
He was a Benjamite, and Judah wasn't Mart Moriah, wasn't there, but David was all over it.
So when it says David arose and went with all the people who were with him from Baal Judah to bring up from there the Ark of God, you can imagine David that morning waking up. Lacing up his sandals, saying, This is the day. I've been waiting for this day forever. It's never happened before. He says, whose name?
The historian writes, whose name is called by the name Yahweh of hosts Now that means he is This is the covenant name of God, Yahweh, that is direct with the Jews, linked to Moses, all the way, it is deep into their hearts. He is the Lord of the armies of heaven and earth. angels and Men alike. The heaviness of God's presence is indicated. In this chapter, it is all over the chapter.
For example, Yahweh, his name, that covenant name, is evoked 21 times in this 23 verse chapter. God is mentioned eight times. Of course, Yahweh is the mention of God, and as an alternate reference to Yahweh, you say God. Eight times in 29 verses. Pardon me, in 23 verses.
That brings a total of 29 references to God in 23 verses. He's all over this chapter. Because of the hearts of the people he could work with. He could not do this in other parts of the Bible with other people in the Bible, but he could do it with this generation. And he did.
Who dwells between the cherubim? As I mentioned, the presence and the characters. 1 Chronicles 13, verse 6. In the same account Says, who dwells between the cherubim where his name is proclaimed? Because the identity and the presence of God was viewed to be.
When the Shekinah went with them, the Ark of the Covenant was in front of everyone. David He comes to the throne of a kingdom spiritually broken. That's the kingdom he takes over. And he has a threefold solution. Whether he sits down and writes it down or not is irrelevant.
I don't think he did, but he wants to unite the land. He did that. He was very careful about that. He tried to work it out with Abner. Joab interfered, but he still united the kingdom.
Then he wanted to establish The capital of the city of the kingdom, which was Jerusalem. And establish worship on a national level, which he is doing now, and that's why he's calling everybody from the river in Egypt to Syria. He's bringing them a big city, Hamath in Syria, he's bringing them here for this. and then he wants to maintain the gains. to keep it up.
It's not enough just to achieve something. He also wants to maintain what he has achieved. Verse 3.
So they set the Ark of God on a new cart. and brought it out. Of the house of Abenadab? which is on the hill and Uzzah and Ahia the sons of Abenadab drove the new cart. How do you say Ohio without referencing the state of Ohio?
And it's a little tricky, but anyway. This is outside of God's commandment. Again, verse three, the first clause.
So they set the Ark of God on a new cart, Where on earth did the Jews get this idea from?
Well, the Philistines, their inveterate enemies. This is what I mentioned, that this mingling of God's People with the world's ways and in fact an enemy. The Philistines, when they captured the Ark of the Covenant and they take it back to their cities and the cities are plagued, and they finally want to get the Ark back to the Jews, they put it on a cart. They mixed bright ideas of unbelievers with God's word. and it is habit forming, evidently, in some circles.
We have to be very careful about that as individuals. That we are able to separate the spiritual from the physical. That we, I mean, the world has good ideas about a lot of things, and we can learn a lot of things from people that are not saved as people go. But when it comes to worshiping God, We have the word of God for that. And God does not appreciate Our mingling in these bad ideas is called leaven.
And a little leaven. Leavens the whole lump. Paul says it this way: Don't you know? No, you're not. A little leaven, just a pinch.
I mess up the whole thing. The ratio is irrelevant. Because in the end that little bit Return It to one hundred percent corruption. Romans 12, he says it this way: and do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Well, the Jews knew what the perfect will of God when it came to this. And so, in introducing this chapter, I mentioned that. We're coming across this Blunder. This bad idea, this disobedient act. And these people love the Lord.
We're not taking any of that from them. These are solid believers as far as we know. Every indication is that way. We can want God's presence so much. That we Set about achieving it with things that are forbidden.
You get in the flesh, that's what we would say. You're in the flesh now. You're not trusting God, you're not following God, you're trying to serve God, and it happens very quickly for all of us. All of us are susceptible to this. Anointed men, not angels, not animals, are to convey the presence of God.
to men. I didn't say the word, I said the presence of God. Exodus 25:14. You shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark. That the ark may be carried by them.
The them are God's. Servants the Levites in this case, and not just any Levite. Not just anyone could just do whatever they wanted. And say, well, I'm a believer. Christians have to, many of us are afraid of this discipline that belongs to our faith.
There are just some things you cannot do. Just because you're a Christian. There is weight to ministry. There are things that we must bear on our shoulders. There is labor, and this is the picture.
of bearing the ark on the poles carrying it. And what a picture that would be. If you were in the wilderness with the Jews and they were. marching along tribe by tribe. And as the tribe bend and would bend and turn, if you were in the rear, you could get a look from a distance of the ark leading everybody.
Even though it was from a distance, you could you knew What this meant. If you were a righteous Jew, some of them were just as carnal as could be and really couldn't care. Says here in verse three. and brought it out. of the house of Abinadab.
which was on the hill, It is probably a little over 80 years that ark had been sitting there since the Philistines captured it and it was returned. That's where they sat the ark, and that's where it stayed until David goes and gets it. But it doesn't make a direct trip to Jerusalem because there's always a fly in the ointment. Uzza and Ohio. The sons of Abinadab, they are all Levites, drove the new cart.
Well, just because they were authorized by God to transport the ark does not mean they were authorized to do it any good way they wanted to. No matter what their good intentions were. Another lesson coming out for us. They drove the new cart. This is ministry man's way.
It may seem easier. but catastrophe is lurking. And we, as with David, want to bring the presence of God to where we worship. And so he brings again his armies, his armies to do this. He gets all Israel, as verse 15 will tell us, as many, you know, all the big shots.
The decision makers of the lands, I don't mean big shots in a negative way at all, in this case. But to automate ministry to escape the labor. Under the guidelines of the scripture. To get away from bearing the weight. is wrong.
And we have to watch out for it. It's so easy to do because sometimes it makes sense. Yeah, that's just a better way, and there's nothing in the scripture that prohibits that, but there are other times you can't do that. Regardless of how difficult it is, it's for you to do it this way. The law kept a distance between God and man, which is.
spoken to us by the fact they had to use poles and they couldn't just touch the ark. And if they touched the ark and they were not a priest, They'd be struck dead. The law kept that distance. Serving God as commanded by God versus serving God in negligence, and they're they're being negligent right now.
Now this is not again to say that we are to You know, self-flogging. We have to do it the hard way. No, we have to do it the biblical way, even if that is the hard way. But if the Bible allows it to be the easy way, then I'm going to do it the easy way in that case. But to put the arc on a cart, so I don't have to carry it, so it can get to the destination.
Is What we're talking about.
Now, modifications to these things. Must come from God, and sometimes they do. They come from God to men, and there's going to be a modification to this particular commandment. 2 Chronicles chapter 35. This is after Solomon.
Or in the building of the temple, what happens to the ark?
Well, the ark is going into going to go to the most holy of holy places in the temple. And the poles will remain in it. but it will not be carried any more. Because there's been a modification. There's other duties that they will have to maintain.
They won't be like, woof, we don't have to carry that anymore.
Well, they had ten carts and ten this and lampstands. They had a lot of work to do any still. Anyway, 2 Chronicles 35:3. Then he, that is King Josiah. This is so is after Solomon said to the Levites who taught all Israel who were Who were holy to Yahweh put the holy ark in the house of Solomon, the son of David, king of Israel.
that he built. It shall no longer be a burden on your shoulders.
Now serve Yahweh your God and his people Israel.
Now, of course, that's in Solomon's story 2, but years later, Josiah, the last righteous king of Judah, comes along and he's restoring worship to Judah. And I wanted to take that particular segment because the words are most fitting for our discussion. It shall no longer be a burden on your shoulders.
Now serve Yahweh your God and his people, Israel. But they were not burden-free. They still had other things to do, and that was uphold righteousness and maintain the temple. Verse 4: And they brought it out of the house of Abinadab. which was on the hill accompanying the ark of God, and Ahio went before the ark ark, This is zeal.
Without knowledge. Remember Paul to the Romans talked about his beloved people. He said they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. Yeah, they want they want, oh, I love God, I love, but not according to God's word. And you that if you're going to pay the price, For that kind of false worship.
And this is not as intense, remembering that these people love the Lord, but they're negligent nonetheless, and the lessons for us because we love the Lord. And can be negligent. In our service, if not careful. Verse 5. Then David and all the house of Israel played music before Yahweh.
on all kinds of instruments. Of firwood, on harps, on stringed instruments, on tambourines, on sistrums, and cymbals. They did uh This devotion, this playing of music and worshiping and song. does not make right the wrong that they are doing, and it's not going to stop the judgment that is about to strike. No matter how devoted they were and how into their worship, you know, you see people sometimes in church, you know, they can be so worshiping, so disobedient in their life and not even receptive to correction.
It's false worship. And you can be worse sincere and struggling with things, but The struggle is on to obey God. Sincerity of feelings do not justify disobedience ever. God's not touched by It doesn't move him the way we might think it does. That doesn't mean he's brutal against us when we fail, but it does mean that we cannot expect God to condone.
the sin or disobedience or the breaking of his word. The uh Sistrums were not female drums. They were sorta like Maracas But they were open as you can look it up. Verse 6, not an impressive instrument.
Somebody just had no musical skill, and they wanted to get them in the band, so they gave them this one. Anyway, I can't tell him he can't sing. We've got to give him something. Verse 6: And when they came to Nakon's. Threshing floor Uzza put out his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled.
It was the natural thing to do. It just wasn't the spiritual thing to do. And it cost everyone.
So the ark is on the cot where it doesn't belong. The oxen stumble. It shifts, the load shifts, like maybe it's going to slide off. God did not need Uzzah to do this. He needed Uzzah to be part of not putting the ark where it did not belong.
Verse seven Then the anger of Yahweh was aroused against Uzzah, and God struck him there for his error, and he died by the ark of God.
Well, this is horrific. It's a tragedy. You know, it's sort of, it's worse than just a job site death. This is spiritual. The anointed king The anointed prophets, the anointed priests and Levites, and the people of God, all of them had good intentions, but still.
Look what happened. Their intentions were wrong. I mean, you can have, you can be obedient and good intentions, and things still go the wrong way. but to be wrong at the same time So, good intentions. One of the lessons from this, the weight in ministry is that intentions outside of God's word can be fatal.
There are people that have gone to the mission field that should not have gone to the mission field, and they either have died there or caused others to die there, or just. It ends in disaster. The word reverence comes to mind. When we do things in God's name, is there that reverence? or are we self willed?
Just doing it because it's a good idea and it feels good to us, which is a hard sermon or a hard study if you're an emotionally driven Christian. And you just do everything by your feelings. You're probably a pain in the neck to other people too, incidentally, if you're doing that. You know, the feelings are all over this chapter, but they need to be in line. They need to be under the authority.
of God And the host, Paul said, the prophet is not made subject to the gift. You can't just say, well, I've got the gift and I lost control.
Well, the fruit of the Spirit is self-control.
So maybe it's another spirit. That you're under in that case. They don't hold churches, that's how they run. They have people dressed like nurses, so if you can pass out safely and.
Well, anyway.
Some don't allow their results to be examined because they hide behind good intentions. But I meant well, so you can't say anything. I'm a sacred cow now. You can't touch what I, the mess I just created. You know, maybe if somebody's having marital problems and you want to stick your nose where it doesn't belong, and God is certainly not in your help, and you just make things worse.
And what I meant well.
Well You better have a little bit more care in that. I hope this scares all of us together enough to maintain reverence. We don't handle the presence of God. The presence of God is supposed to handle us. Uh Yeah.
This has been the latest edition of Cross Reference Radio. Pastor Rick Gaston is teaching through the book of 2 Samuel, which details the reign of David as king of Israel. There are so many life lessons to be learned during these years of David's life. We're glad you've tuned in to hear more from God's Word. This radio ministry comes to you from Calvary Chapel, Mechanicsville, in Mechanicsville, Virginia.
If you're interested in accessing more messages just like this one, you can listen online or download these messages at crossreferenceradio.com. You can also subscribe to our podcast by going to your favorite podcast app. We can't wait for you to step into the next teaching that Pastor Rick has for us.
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