Pas Ralph Douglas West - "Don't Park the Ark" | 2 Samuel 6: 1-15

0:22 today we want to dedicate the Busendorf, the piano, in honoring the musical contribution to the Michael McKay here at the church with our walls thank you Mike We started out and we were in a little hotel room with a couple of 10 people to our 10 building and to the multipurpose center to here. In one way or another, on staff, on the team, he's been part of it. So thank you. We honor you today. Don, is that you? Good to see you, man.

1:21 You and me, we glad to see each other, aren't we? Amen. you got a chance to meet Dr. Weaver. This is the second time some of you, he worshiped with us right at the end of reopening. But I'll say more about he and these outstanding scholars who are here on this morning. We're glad to have you. Let me give you a word of advice. If you're given an assignment to carry the ark, don't park the ark. 2 Samuel chapter 6. The whole chapter is condensed in 1 Chronicle 13 This rendering gives us a couple of characters So let me read beginning at verse 1 Just enough for you to get the idea of what's taking place Over in Jerusalem David again brought together all the able young men of Israel 30,000 he and all his men went to Bella and Judith Kirith Jerem some of your translations might read to bring up from there the ark of God which is called by the name the name of the Lord Almighty who is enthroned between the cherubim of the ark they set the ark of God on a new cart and brought it from the house of Abinadad which was on the

3:30 hill Uzzah and Ahio sons of Abinadad they were guiding the new cart with the ark of God on it and Ahio was walking in front of it David and all Israel were celebrating with all of their might before the Lord with castanets, harps, lyres, trembles, sistrums, cymbals.

3:55 When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the Ark of God because the oxen stumbled. The Lord's anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act. Therefore God struck him down And he died there beside the ark of God

4:19 Then David was angry because the Lord's wrath had broken out against Uzzah, and to this day the place is called Perez Uzzah. David was afraid of the Lord that day and said, How can the ark of the Lord ever come to me? He was not willing to take the ark of the Lord to be with him in the city of David. Instead, he took it to the house of Obed-Edon, the Gittite. The ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-Edon, the Gittite, for three months, and the Lord blessed him and his entire household.

5:03 Now, King David was told the Lord has blessed the household of Obed-Edon and everything he has because of the ark of God. So David went out to bring the ark of God from the house of Obed-Eden to the city of David with rejoicing. Those who were carrying the ark of the Lord had taken six steps. He sacrificed a bull, a fattened calf, wearing a linen ephod. David was dancing before the Lord with all his might, while he and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouts and sounds of trumpets.

5:43 That's a bad situation turned good. This is the word of God. You may be seated. In 1981, Steven Spielberg hit a blockbuster run with Indiana Jones. Raiders of the Lost Ark.

6:13 I know Spielberg had been reading around the Old Testament to come up with this. This wouldn't be new language to somebody like him. Indiana is an archaeologist and he's given one big job go find the Ark of the Covenant rescue it from the hands of the Nazis whoever possesses it has the power whose military will be strong enough to be undefeated now I saw some of you check out I'm not preaching about Indiana Jones and I'm sure that the writer of this historical narrative didn't have Indiana Jones in mind when he wrote it.

7:04 But there is a line in that story that says that we spent all of our life looking for this treasure for there's something overwhelming inside of it. The Ark of the Covenant is a big deal to do with these people that we're reading about. A couple of things have happened. The setting is in Jerusalem. David is the new king. One of the first things that he's going to do is to confederate the nations. Saul is off the scene. His parsimonious political leadership has been nothing short of a disaster. But the echoes of his politics can be felt even in the reign of the new king David.

8:00 Saul's end is sometimes summed up because he has neglected the things of God. The big things, the important things. David has come now to reset establish things the way they ought to be besides he's a man after God's own heart the New Testament writer would give this tag to his life one of the things that he wants to do then is to get the ark of the covenant back home get it. the symbol of God's presence so if I miss everything else this is not a sermon about the travelogue of an ark it's the revelation of God but we got to get it home first this might be a good time to do some archology this is not another's Noah's ark a floating barge no not that it's an ark of the covenant it's actually the word means a box a chest it's not a big box the dimensions are given in Exodus 25. The specifications of how it's to be built. It's rectangular. It's small. It's laden with gold. It has a gold grate that you can look into the contents of this golden box. Inside of it is a jar that holds the manna. For those of you that are new to church in that kind of language.

9:59 It was a kind of angel's food, wonder bread, that God had fed Israel in the wilderness with. It had Aaron, that's a priest's budding rod, but also it had the tablets of the law, everything that they would need for provision and sustenance is all there as a reminder of God. it had some rings at the very bottom of it gold rings that you're supposed to put gold rods or acacia wood that's been inladen with gold to go through these rings and the priest they're supposed to raise it up and they're going to carry it wherever it's supposed to go in numbers 10 you see this beautiful scene of the ark being carried and when it rests in a camp Moses would say something like this arise arise you know then other times after it was time to get up going he would say return return arise God is arising return you see all this language Thank you.

11:19 but God's not in a box because somebody I know in my church will write me an email and say pass and put God in a box it's a metaphor it's an image it's pointing to that when this box is with us God is with us but for the last 20 years God's been on the side derailed and that's why the big deal is made about David wanting to go get this box.

12:08 I would have told you like I told them at 8 o'clock they wanted to go get God but they checked out. It was too much for them to think of it in those terms. To go get God. That's what they were doing in a sense going to get God. To get God back in the middle of things. And they did. They called the people together and it's a big celebration we read that you see it you don't have to stretch your imagination for that you see it you hear it all the instruments are playing the people are dancing and we want to get it home to Zion in a hurry so put the thing on a cart from a Ben-Ada's house and let's go and everything that I said is where stuff went wrong. if you're looking for things like what do i take away with that and write down on a note you could write something like this down don't do god's work your way that could be one thing that you put down don't do god's work your way too many times that's what we actually want to do we want to do god's work our way that's some other specifications that's attached to this I did tell you didn't it for the second time those rings on the box for the polls it's supposed to be carried, but David's an administrator.

14:01 He's military. He's a poet and singer and all of that, but he's a pragmatist. He wants to do things the way he wants to do things. It sounds like America, doesn't it? we're very much like that we we plaster big god talk on everything in god we trust we like putting that on our money We like saying I pledge allegiance to the flags One nation under God We like doing that We like singing God bless America And after a while you start wondering What America are they talking about But more than what God are they talking about and that's why things go wrong I'll just shed this light on it and move on precept principle doing God's thing your way precept principle I have to drive regularly to Waco and there's a stretch of highway that says 75 miles or 70 miles per hour But then just in a break of a curve, it's 50.

15:45 I've gotten stopped in that curve a couple of times. Fortunately, I've been warned, say, hey, you got to watch your speed here because in this turn, it drops from 70 to 50. That's a precept. It drops from 70 to 50 at 10 in the morning or 10 at night. that's a precept you you have to follow that now down the road is going to change back to 70 now that's principle depending on the traffic that's the average speed that you have to go that is if the weather is clear and no inclemency and no traffic, no threats. You can stretch out from seven to 80. You use your best guess at that.

16:51 But in this curve, between 77 is 50. Between 70 and 70, in the middle is 50. That's precept. That is, you don't go over it. Try not to go under, just stay right there at 50. That's what God was saying to them about his work. I got a specific way that I want my work done. and it's not to be negotiated with. Sounds kind of harsh. that is what he said well it doesn't take long before David or you or me to get our hands on it something happens the box on the cart is being carried there's a lot of merriment and excitement Amen.

17:58 the wheel of the cart hits a pothole imbalances the cart and what is a good priest supposed to do with God's work? I would have done it too I guess. You would have probably done it. You see something holy of God and instinctively you just reach out to try to grab it so that it won't fall in the dirt. And that's why things go bad. If you're looking for one of those lines That you write down Because you like to take notes Then you might want to say something like Oh God can God is responsible for the balancing of his own work yeah you get it I put my hands on the cart I know none of you sinners have where I felt like I need to rescue God's work.

19:18 I mean because that's what my job is as the pastor. I'm supposed to rescue God's work. I'm supposed to hold it up. I can't let it fall. And God reminds us, look boy, that's my work. I can handle my work by myself. I appreciate it, but keep your hands off of it. And so... Uzzah is dead. Now everybody's up in arms. David's mad at God because Uzzah's dead because Uzzah was doing a good thing and he's angry with God.

20:13 But here's another side of this whole business that we don't like. And God was angry with David. You see, we feel justified when we don't understand the mysterious ways of God that we can point our finger and thumb our nose up to God. But we don't like the notion that God may say, take it back then. Nobody wants to believe that God can do something like that, especially when we know what the descriptions in Scripture is about God's character. He's compassionate and he's long-suffering and he's forgiving and abounding with love. I need that. The last thing I want Is for God to act a particular way Toward me He's dead Call 911 cart him off and david's angry There was an Old Testament scholar in the religion department, Dr. Dogish had a way of describing when he talked about holiness he always referred it in terms of radioactivity.

21:38 He would say that God's holiness was alive and active. It was real. It could bless on one hand or it could blast on the other hand. God is active in the world, in your life, but he's active in the world. It doesn't seem like that sometimes, particularly during this season of elections. It seems like... God has forgotten us at the border. feel like God has forgotten us in Uvalde and Aurora and in our synagogues and in our mosques feel like God has forgotten us but let me tell you something God is very much active very much alive very much involved not just supernaturally but supernaturally through you.

22:49 God is calling you now. time doesn't permit me to do all of that so let me keep going and so what happens here is is that others dead david's angry and and where what happened where's the where's the cart with the box it's just rolled off the side of the road down to obed eden's house And you know what that cart Carrying the box is doing You got it right Blessing Obed even and what did Obed Eden do to get blessed by the box? Not a thing.

23:44 It's just an image that the God that is everywhere has a way of showing up somewhere. That may be one of those things that you want to write down for those who that like keeping notes that the God who is everywhere is also the God that can show up somewhere. Put a pin there. I'm talking to my officers now. Yeah. Check it. Give me a second. False alone.

24:55 for those that don't know we got about a hundred police officers work our building every sunday and with that said let me tell you that's why i need at the end of the service for you to give more money and you know I wouldn't tell you it was a false alarm if it wasn't a false alarm yeah okay yeah yeah they telling them who coming back in it was a false alarm now let me get back to this I'm gonna go charismatic now the devil trying to steal my service Thank you. Because I was on my way somewhere. And so down at Obed Eden's house, the ark is just parked there.

25:57 That's all. Nothing else is going on. And Obed Eden is being blessed by the ark. Because the God who is everywhere is a God that can be somewhere. We use these big words about God. You might know some of them like omnipresent. You know that word. For those of you that don't know it, it's a big pretty word, omnipresent. But then some of us don't want to be that religious about it so we say the ubiquity of God.

26:40 We like talking about these big things. but I like just saying it that way. God who is everywhere is a God that can be somewhere. I want God to be everywhere. I want him to be in America, in Africa. I want him to be in South America but I also want God to be on Queenston in the pulpit when the alarms go off. I want God to be there too and I really mean that. I want him to be everywhere at that very moment. It reminds me of that little girl, and she was right. She said, Mama, where is God? And she said, well, God is everywhere. And she said, well, Mama, I don't want God to be everywhere. I want God to be somewhere. When you're sick, I need God to be at the hospital. When I'm in trouble, I need God to be in the courtroom.

27:35 When my child is hurting, I need you to be there as a heart fixer and a mind revelator. I need you to be somewhere, not just everywhere. Can I give you one last thing? One last thing. And that is just simply this.

27:58 Do God's work, God's way. That's all. Just do God's work, God's way. Isn't it amazing how often we want to do God's work our way or without God? Because God's way just doesn't seem to add up at times. We've seen that multiple occasions, how all of that works. Now, with that said, let me close. We want to do God's work God's way. Let me show you what happened. I don't know who came to David while David was sulking and angry about what happened to Uzzah. He says, D, you didn't do your homework. Do you not know that there are some specific instructions, not just about the box, but there are instructions on how the box is to be carried and who is to carry the box.

29:12 Maybe what we need to do is to follow these specific instructions to get the best results. and he rehearsed what was to take place get it off the cart put it on poles put it on your shoulders and let's move about because human hands are not to touch it you're not even supposed to look at it. That is, you're not to mishandle holy things. And so he says, don't mishandle it, let's go do it. And David does what's, he does what's right. He goes and he decides to do it exactly the way God tells him to do it. They put the box on the shoulders, they carry it out. But this time is they take five or six steps, they pause, and then they put it down, and they shout.

30:18 Let me see if I can be more suspicious. they they they they the priest from the kothite plan clan who specifically know the instructions on how the box is to be carried follows exactly the blueprint of carrying the cart of god's presence. And they said like Moses, arise and they put it down. And then when it's time to go, awake. And that is God's going to go before us and God's going to be with us and God's going to be around us. Listen to the language. God is going to be for us and with us and around us. And when we can't be there for ourself, God's going to be there. Pay attention to the language of what's going on now because that box I kept two or three things out it reminds us of a few words.

31:20 One is rulership and that is that the king would always rest his feet upon a footstool which was symbolic that he was the king. Stay with me. And then his reconciliation that is that the atoning work of God was to bring man and God back together the way he'd originally had planned to do. Keep on going now. And then there's revelation. That is God's gonna reveal himself to us. Now I have left 2 Samuel and I'm way over in the New Testament now because God did those things in another way. And the word became flesh. And so I haven't really been talking about no box. I've been talking what the box is pointing to. And what the box is going to point to is God revealing himself in his son, Jesus Christ.

32:22 That is the word's going to become flesh. The box is going to move from the box and take on human form and walk around us. And camp around us. And be around us. This is God in our midst. This is God with us and God for us. But not just that, God is reconciling us. That is, he's doing his work, that he is hugging himself. That God is taking your hand and my hand and bringing us together into his heart. But it's also his rulership. That is, that which was invisible has been made visible in the person of Jesus Christ. So this morning, we don't have to carry God because God is able to carry us. We don't have to haul God around.

33:18 God has come to lift us up. When we're not able to carry the weight on ourselves, he's able to lift us up. Now, boy, if you need something to carry, let me give you an emblem here. Carry the cross. Hold it up. lifted high. There is a scene over in Chicago. There's a church, Christ Temple. They say it's the highest cross in the world. And one day, and the people are always looking at it and just passing by and paying no attention to it. But one particular afternoon, a gaggle of people in Chicago started gathering around the base of the temple and cars stopped and they were looking up and cleaning their necks up and folk wanted to know what you're looking at and they pointed at the cross. Well that cross had been there forever but the difference this time there was a man on the cross and there's something different when there's a man on the cross. They had seen the cross, but this time it was a man over the top.