A House for His Presence
Pursuit in Prayer • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 10 viewsPrayer as fellowship with God through the covenant, expressed both vertically (communion with God) and horizontally (fellowship with the body).
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Review: Week 1 - Origin and Center: Gospel shaped prayer; Week 2 - The Altar God Ignored: Self Centered Prayer
1 Now it came about when the king lived in his house, and the Lord had given him rest on every side from all his enemies,
2 that the king said to Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells within tent curtains.”
A. After Joshua’s Conquest
Ark placed at Shiloh (Joshua 18:1) — tabernacle established
God’s presence dwelled among His people, but still in a tent (temporary)
B. In the Time of the Judges
God’s people did what was right in their own eyes (Judges 21:25)
Tabernacle presence is still accessible, but not central
C. Under Eli and Samuel (1 Sam 1–6)
Ark is taken into battle as a good luck charm → captured by Philistines (1 Sam 4)
Returned on a Philistine cart to Kiriath-Jearim (1 Sam 6–7)
Ark sits in a private home for 20 years — not forgotten, but not prioritized
D. During Saul’s Reign
No effort to restore God’s presence to the center
Builds his first altar for answers, not worship (1 Sam 14)
Prayer is political, not covenantal
E. Saul’s Fall and David’s Rise:
14 “But now your kingdom shall not endure. The Lord has sought out for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has appointed him as ruler over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.”
Saul was Israel’s first king, chosen because he looked the part—tall, strong, impressive (1 Sam. 9–10).
But Saul repeatedly disobeyed God’s instructions and tried to carry God’s authority without surrendering to God’s heart.
In 1 Samuel 13, Saul offers a sacrifice himself, stepping into the priest’s role out of fear and control.
It’s here that God rejects Saul’s dynasty and declares that He has chosen another—a man according to His heart.
F. According to His heart…
14 “The Lord has sought out for Himself a man after His own heart…”
The Hebrew phrase means Literally: “a man according to His heart” or “in alignment with His heart.”
David wasn’t just emotionally hungry for God—he shared God’s desires:
He wanted God enthroned, not just invoked.
He longed for God’s dwelling, not just His direction.
He desired fellowship, not just favor.
“Saul wanted answers. David wanted alignment.
One prayed for outcomes. The other prayed for presence.”
“True prayer starts from a heart like His. And when your heart aligns with His, pursuit follows naturally.”
When Saul reigned, the ark was neglected. When David reigned, the ark became the pursuit.
That shift in leadership mirrors a shift in prayer—from self-preserving, self-centered to presence-seeking, God centered.
TS:
“Two kings sat on Israel’s throne—but only one made it his mission to bring God back to the center.”
A. David sees the disparity
He has comfort, security, rest on every side. But God is still in a tent.
David’s heart aches not for outcomes but for dwelling. For God to have a central place, not a portable one.
David is longing for more than military victory or national blessing—he’s longing for communion.
This reflects the original heart of prayer in Scripture:
Genesis 4 — “Then men began to call on the name of the Lord.”
Prayer begins when fellowship is broken, and the people cry out for God to dwell again.
Prayer is not just communication. It’s covenantal. It’s a response to God’s promise to dwell among His people.
God Desires to Dwell
God Desires to Dwell
A. A biblical theology of presence
God has always wanted to dwell with His people:
Exodus 25:8 — “Let them build Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.”
What was cut off in the Garden, God immediately begins to restore with a promise…
And even though it was imperfect and only partial, He finds a way to dwell with His people in a tabernacle…
Tabernacle — (tent) God moves with His people
This separates all other religions… In other religions, God is out there somewhere and it’s man’s job to search them out and try to approach them, but this God comes to His people…
He came in the garden to find Adam…
He came to Cain before and after he killed Abel…
He appeared to Abraham in Gen. 18…
He comes to Jacob in Genesis 32 when Jacob wrestles with him.
God finds Moses on the back side of a mountain and comes to him as a burning bush.
And now in Exodus 25 he desires to come to his people and dwell among them…
He even gives them specific instructions on how to host His presence, provides the mercy seat where they could be cleansed of their shortcomings that would keep them from Him, but…
After the people of God are given the land they were promised, after they were led in by Joshua and established themselves in the land…
it is recorded that the tabernacle and the ark of God’s presence is kept in Shilo.. Rather than in a central location…
Rather than in the capital, the presence of God is left in a side place…
Through the time of the judges and even in Saul’s reign, the ark and presence of God is neglected…
David — Let’s build Him a dwelling place, not just a tent, not some temporary place, not a place off to the side, but in the center in the capital…
Let’s put God in His rightful place at the center of His people…
B. God’s response to David (2 Sam 7:4–17)
In a lengthy reply over the next 13 verses, God basically says,
“You won’t build Me a house. But I’ll build you one.”
God affirms David’s desire but redirects the outcome. He makes a covenant: a house, a lineage, a promise.
12 “When your days are complete and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your descendant after you, who will come forth from you, and I will establish his kingdom.
13 “He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.
16 “Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever.” ’ ”
That promise is fulfilled in Jesus, who becomes the dwelling of God with us (John 1:14).
14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.
It has always been God’s desire to dwell with His people…
It’s always been His heart to fellowship with His creation…
That’s why when we align with His heart like David did, we see that prayer is about dwelling, not demanding…
IV. Prayer is about Dwelling, Not Demanding
IV. Prayer is about Dwelling, Not Demanding
We don’t pray to get God to act. We pray to be with Him.
We don’t just ask for provision. We long for presence.
Prayer is not dragging God into our needs. It’s inviting Him into our lives.
This is what David modeled.
And this is what the temple foreshadowed.
And now… this is what we have become.
V. We Are the House
V. We Are the House
1 Peter 2:5 — “You also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house.”
5 you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
We don’t go to the temple anymore. We are the temple.
He dwells in the Church. Not a building, but a people.
16 Do you not know that you (plural) are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you (plural)?
19 Or do you not know that your (singular) body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you (singular), whom you have from God, and that you (singular) are not your own?
So we are the dwelling place of God.. Both individually and as a collective…
Which is why our gathering is so important. Because we aren’t just temples individually, but when we gather, we create a temple collectively..
When we get together we are embodying God’s desire to fellowship with His people.
VI. Fellowship as Evidence of His Dwelling
VI. Fellowship as Evidence of His Dwelling
1 John 1:7 — “If we walk in the light… we have fellowship with one another.”
7 but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
Our horizontal fellowship is a visible reflection of our vertical communion.
Every time we gather in fellowship, we echo God’s heart that He would dwell among us…
In the same way, when we pray as a collective and call on His name, we show outwardly the inward desire for God to establish His Kingdom in our midst.
Thy kingdom come thy will be done…
Call Worship Team
VII. Altar Call / Response
VII. Altar Call / Response
God, make me a dwelling place. Not just a praying person, but a place You live, a living temple, a living tabernacle of your presence…
God, dwell in our church. Make our rhythms and relationships reflect Your nearness. Let our fellowship with one another shine your light…
What if we became the place He called home?
We talk a lot about heaven as home, but what if heaven isn’t home, HE IS…
And when we pray, we get a foretaste of what home is because He comes to dwell with us…
Will you pray these two prayers with me? Let’s pray that God make each of us as individuals and us as a collective the place He lives…
Let’s do this together: If we as a collective are the dwelling of God and our fellowship is reflective of His desire to dwell with us… Let’s fellowship together for a while today: Meet’n’Eat..
PRAY FOR FOOD.
