Preparing to Carry His Presence

Fear in His Presence

Many in different ways and over the years have made a claims to have seen Jesus face to face. As we had examined the historical accounts of those in scripture who had seen the resurrected king each one was left marked and forever changed. Yet few today who have “seen” Him seem to have had such a drastic change.

It brings me to space of considering how it is that we are to make ourselves ready, and the posture we should hold in carrying His presence.

The presence of the Lord has the power to heal, to bring deliverance, the power to judge. His presence also has the ability to bring fear, anxiety, and judgement.

Understanding how powerful His presence is tells us just how important it is know how to carry His presence.

We are a people called to be porters of His presence.

2 Samuel 6:1–4 ESV

David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from Baale-judah to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the name of the Lord of hosts who sits enthroned on the cherubim. And they carried the ark of God on a new cart and brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. And Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were driving the new cart, with the ark of God, and Ahio went before the ark.

David gathers the people and checks in with the leaders.

Book of Chronicles we are told they saw it good to go and get the ark of the covenant

It was good in the sight of the Lord

Do they check in with the Lord not just if they should but how they should

when we first accept our salvation

They go before the cart celebrating

when we first encounter His presence

Its a good thing but did they carry it properly

Are we carrying His presence properly, have we been taught how to carry it or are we ignorant in how our conduct should be in His presence?

vv.6-7 we note the deaths of two priests who had the right to carry the ark but are struck dead.

will engage this portion next week

Suffice to note they are at the threshing floor

Fear in the Presence of the Lord

2 Samuel 6:8–11 ESV

And David was angry because the Lord had broken out against Uzzah. And that place is called Perez-uzzah to this day. And David was afraid of the Lord that day, and he said, “How can the ark of the Lord come to me?” So David was not willing to take the ark of the Lord into the city of David. But David took it aside to the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. And the ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite three months, and the Lord blessed Obed-edom and all his household.

Two things occur to David in the middle of the confusion

Anger with the Lord

Fear of the Lord

This is our posture when things break and we do not have an answer for them

His question how could the presence come to me…

we question, we wrestle, we bargain and yet fail to realize why we are faced with the circumstances…

is it the Lord who is afflicting or is it satan who is afflicting.

How is it the people of God did not know how to carry the ark… how is it that we do not know how to carry it?

His Presence a Foreign Concept

Throughout the OT we see moments when Israel wanted to be the people of God but love as if they were just like the nations around them… pragmatism at its finest

They had forgotten the cost with carrying the presence but wanted the benefits

1 Samuel 7:1–2 ESV

And the men of Kiriath-jearim came and took up the ark of the Lord and brought it to the house of Abinadab on the hill. And they consecrated his son Eleazar to have charge of the ark of the Lord. From the day that the ark was lodged at Kiriath-jearim, a long time passed, some twenty years, and all the house of Israel lamented after the Lord.

22 years the people of Israel had walked with out the Lord’s presence

They had a bad encounter for their negligence, for their hardened hearts, and for their love of this world… instead of turning to the Lord and repenting they chose it better to live for the world

ch. 4 abuse of the presence they only call upon it for winning battles this results in them losing the privilege to carry it as it is taken from them

ch. 5 grow fearful of the presence they hear what it does in the land of the philistines… it literally decapitated their gods… they are afraid to lose. They love their possessions more than God.

ch.6 seventy men are slayed as they tried to peek into the ark… these were priests that were supposed to be able to carry it. their posture remained as before…

What remains is that the Israelites had forgotten how to carry the presence… How long has it been for this generation

The Porters Are Set Apart

1 Samuel 7:3–4 ESV

And Samuel said to all the house of Israel, “If you are returning to the Lord with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you and direct your heart to the Lord and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.” So the people of Israel put away the Baals and the Ashtaroth, and they served the Lord only.

The call is to return to the Lord with all we are.

No longer can we hold onto our idols or things we replace God with…

Return with all of our heart and serve HIm only

in this we are delivered

this is how we are delivered.