King David - Leader of the Parade

In God We Trust

Whenever we make the place of God our highest priority, whether it be in our own hearts or in the heart of a nation, we make a decision that pleases God.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. - Thomas Jefferson

You do well to wish to learn our arts and ways of life, and above all, the religion of Jesus Christ. These will make you a greater and happier people than you are…While we are zealously performing the duties of good citizens and soldiers, we certainly ought not to be inattentive to the higher duties of religion. To the distinguished character of Patriot, it should be our highest glory to add the more distinguished character of Christian. - George Washington

The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity. I will avow that I then believed, and now believe, that those general principles of Christianity are as eternal and immutable as the existence and attributes of God…Without religion, this world would be something not fit to be mentioned in polite company: I mean hell.

The Christian religion is, above all the religions that ever prevailed or existed in ancient or modern times, the religion of wisdom, virtue, equity, and humanity.

Suppose a nation in some distant region should take the bible for their only law book and every member should regulate his conduct by the precepts there exhibited…What a Eutopia – what a Paradise would this region be!

I have examined all religions, and the result is that the Bible is the best book in the world. - John Adams

I’m grateful for the men and women who sacrificed so much to establish a nation that was and still should be founded on Christian truth. Those men and women had no problem bringing God into the halls in Philadelphia.

David Celebrates God in the Capitol

Our recognition of the Christian founders of the United States transitions very easily into a story of the next king of Israel. Today I would like to turn to 2 Samuel 6 as we look at how important it was that the Ark of the Covenant, the emblem of God’s blessing and God’s presence to the nation of Israel, was brought to the city of Jerusalem by Israel’s 2ndking, King David.

2 Samuel 6:12–19 NIV

Now King David was told, “The Lord has blessed the household of Obed-Edom and everything he has, because of the ark of God.” So David went to bring up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing. When those who were carrying the ark of the Lord had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull and 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 the sound of trumpets. As the ark of the Lord was entering the City of David, Michal daughter of Saul watched from a window. And when she saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, she despised him in her heart. They brought the ark of the Lord and set it in its place inside the tent that David had pitched for it, and David sacrificed burnt offerings and fellowship offerings before the Lord. After he had finished sacrificing the burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord Almighty. Then he gave a loaf of bread, a cake of dates and a cake of raisins to each person in the whole crowd of Israelites, both men and women. And all the people went to their homes.

I think that if we could hear David singing at the lead of the parade today, he would be singing Israel Houghton’s song “Jesus at the Center”.

Jesus at the center of it all (3x)

From beginning to the end/ It will always be, it’s always been you/ Jesus, Jesus

Nothing else matters,/ Nothing in this world will do/

‘Cause Jesus You’re the center,/ Everything revolves around you/ Jesus You

At the center of it all (2x)

Jesus be the center of my life (2x)/ From beginning to the end/

It will always be, it’s always been You/ Jesus, Jesus.

From my heart to the Heavens,/ Jesus be the center

It’s all about You,/ Yes it’s all about You (5x)

David wanted the ‘I Am’ of Israel at the center of Israel and he put together an unusual parade to get it there.

A Different Kind of Parade

This is actually the 2nd parade that David put together to transport the Ark of the Covenant. In the 1st parade, David had 30,000 warriors assembled along with the worshippers, but he neglected to have the Levites carrying the Ark.

But this method of transport, which was the same that had been used by the Philistines when they returned the Ark to Israel (1 Sam 6), was a violation of the instructions the Lord had given to Moses requiring that the Ark be carried by Kohathites from the tribe of Levi (Num 4:4–6, 15, 17–20).[1]

David was frustrated. He badly wanted for the ark of God to be with him in the City of David – Jerusalem so he arranged a different kind of parade. And, in this parade we can see some things about the heart of David.

David Sees that He Has a Great Opportunity!

A few years ago, I listened to a message titled “6 Paces and a Shout of Glory” by the Pastor Carter Conlon of Times Square Church in NYC. I suppose there a lot of things that could be said about this method, but it is a great reminder that you can’t go more than six paces before you stop and give God a shout of glory. Don’t ever get so caught up in your life that you forget to give God the glory. David knew that he was doing something great and when you are doing something great there should be both praises and the work – don’t forget to do both.

David Was NOT the Grand Marshal of the Parade – God Was

As a king it would have been tempting to see the arrival of the ark of God as a huge accomplishment for the king. But David hadn’t put together the move to make himself look good. In fact, it was exactly the opposite. My study revealed that David was not dressed in the ephod of the priests. He was not performing in the duties of the priests. He was a worshipper. He was a ‘fan’ of God, worshipping with all his might. “His appearance was not dignified and could perhaps legitimately be described as indecent.”[2]Somehow, mixed into the march and the sacrifices, were the shouts, songs, and music of the ‘band’.

My father recalls the parade that went down the streets of his small hometown of Waterville after the end of World War II. By the time it had gone through the main street and arrived at the street where he lived it was just 3 firemen - 1 beating a galvanized #2 wash pan, one holding the effigy (likeness) of Hitler, and the other with the effigy of Tojo. Across the nation were banners, bands, civic leaders, and veterans celebrating the end of the War to end all wars.

David’s emphasis in the parade that brought the ark of God into Jerusalem was not himself as the king. His wife Michal thought that he made a fool of himself. No, God was the Grand Marshal of the parade and David made sure it was that way.

See the Heart of David

Bible scholars believe that there are several psalms that were written about this moment – Psalm 24, 68, and 132. I can almost imagine the view as David was dancing in front of the parade. As we read Psalm 24, imagine looking up the road into Jerusalem.

The Lord is King!

Psalm 24:1–2 NIV

The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters.

What is your world view? David viewed the world as God’s creation that was raised above the chaos. Genesis 1:9 says, “This far you may come and no farther; here is where your proud waves halt.” David celebrated the understanding that the Lord causes the chaos to end. Where do ‘the proud waves’ in your life halt?

Who May Ascend the Mountain of the Lord?

Psalm 24:3–6 NIV

Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not trust in an idol or swear by a false god. They will receive blessing from the Lord and vindication from God their Savior. Such is the generation of those who seek him, who seek your face, God of Jacob.,

David had learned that the ark of God had to be handled respectfully. The Levites needed to carry the presence of God. God’s people needed to have clean hands a pure heart. They needed to have removed the idols from their lives.This is what qualifies the participant in the parade.

Make Way for the King of Glory!

Psalm 24:7–10 NIV

Lift up your heads, you gates; be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, you gates; lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. Who is he, this King of glory? The Lord Almighty— he is the King of glory.

David looks up and encourages us all to look up. It is the gates of the city. They were reset in the days of Nehemiah now they were opened to receive the ark of God – the visible presence of the Lord.

The composite psalm which according to 1 Chronicles 16 was used later on that day of celebration traces its origins further back still. It was rooted, we are told, in the covenant made with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Indeed, it was from these very gates, from the ancient doors of the city then called Salem, that the august figure of the priest-king Melchizedek had stepped forth to give Abraham the blessing of ‘God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth … who delivered your enemies into your hand’.

One might even say that the day of the ark’s arrival was in one sense the climax of all Bible history up to that point. We have already seen how verses 1–2 reflect something of Genesis 1, the imposition of order on chaos. But from the moment of Adam’s fall, the possibility of renewed chaos has always been present, and the incessant warfare that has plagued humanity is the most obvious sign of it.While his people are a nation, then, the Lord will be a warrior, the Lord mighty in battle, overcoming chaos still as he gives David victory everywhere. Today, as the ark arrives, Jerusalem, the city of peace, becomes the dwelling-place of both the lesser king and the greater King.

I love the way that the past is connected to this moment. David was right to prioritize bringing God’s presence into the heart of Jerusalem.

If David Could Rejoice, How Much More Can We?

It is interesting to see that the Lord responds in Chapter 7 by giving David a promise of a dynasty that would endure forever.

2 Samuel 7:11–12 (NIV)

... “ ‘The Lord declares to you that the Lord himself will establish a house for you:

When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom.

The Lord rejected David’s offer to build a temple but for David prioritizing the placement of the ark in Jerusalem, God establishes the house of David.

There is another story but this one is found in the NT when a man named Jairus needed to have Jesus in his house. In the case of Jairus, his 12-year-old daughter was dying. Jairus knew that if Jesus came into his house and touched his child, she would be well. Jesus went at once. But, then Jesus was distracted. Someone in the crowd had touched him and Jesus stopped. Jairus waited. Jairus watched. Jairus saw a miracle. Then Jairus received the news that his daughter was dead. Now what?!

Luke 8:50–56 NIV

Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus, “Don’t be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed.” When he arrived at the house of Jairus, he did not let anyone go in with him except Peter, John and James, and the child’s father and mother. Meanwhile, all the people were wailing and mourning for her. “Stop wailing,” Jesus said. “She is not dead but asleep.” They laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. But he took her by the hand and said, “My child, get up!” Her spirit returned, and at once she stood up. Then Jesus told them to give her something to eat. Her parents were astonished, but he ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened.

What will happen when Jesus is in the house? What will happen when Jesus is placed at the center of it all? I think that the story of David tells us that blessings will follow. I think that the story of Jairus’ daughter tells us that miracles take place.

It really leaves just one question, “Why wouldn’t we want to place Jesus at the center of our lives?”

[1] J. Robert Vannoy, Cornerstone Biblical Commentarya: 1-2 Samuel, vol. 4 (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2009), 300. [2] Mary J. Evans, The Message of Samuel: Personalities, Potential, Politics and Power, ed. Alec Motyer and Derek Tidball, The Bible Speaks Today (Nottingham, England: Inter-Varsity Press, 2004), 194.