Intro and Pt 1

We are going to do things a little different this morning. Minister Bridges, Rev Smith and I are going to do a collaborative sermon – don’t worry we won’t go longer than a normal sermon.

I want to ask those of you in the building and those watching online…

Do you believe in the promises of God? Don’t fool me. If God gives you a specific promise for your life will you believe it? If it got hard along the way, would you still believe God? Some of us in the building or watching online are in the middle – you’ve received a promise and you are waiting for it to come to pass. I’m not talking something dreamed up that you hope will happen – no this is a God-given promise that you cannot shake. And it’s too big for you to make happen. And if we are honest, the middle is filled can be filled with pain, uncertainty, heartache, fear, confusion…and despite all of that it is also somehow still filled with joy. It’s the joy that helps us not quit.

Our impact theme this month is joy. And we have to be careful to not think that joy is only present when the promise is fulfilled. No, God doesn’t hold his joy back and say when this happens you’ll have joy. No that’s happiness not joy.

Happiness is an emotional state…but Biblical joy is a long term state of commitment when we know God will use our experiences to accomplish his work in and through our lives. Oh but there is a role we play also…and it’s called obedience.

Come with us to examine the celebration of David becoming king of Israel and how he came to know that Joy is a fruit of obedience.

The nation of Israel wanted to be like all of the other nations and have an earthly king. So God gave them Saul. He had all the physical appearances to make them think he would be great – head and shoulder above everyone – aka super tall – and handsome. But the only problem was the spiritual condition of his heart - he did not have a heart of obedience toward God.

God ultimately rejected Saul as king for his lack of obedience. Samuel tells Saul that God has chosen someone else to be the next king, a man after his own heart. God sent Samuel the prophet to anoint David as king.

David didn’t become king, but the anointing ceremony where oil is poured on his head, was symbolic of God’s selecting him as king. It was a promise from God but Saul was technically still king. So David was the king in waiting.

But after that promise, Saul tries to have David killed multiple times. One time David was playing the harp trying to console Saul who is being tormented, and Saul hurls a spear at David nearly pinning him to the wall. Even though he had the opportunities, David never fought back or tried to kill Saul. He ran for his life, played crazy, and lived among the Philistines, Israel’s enemies. David respected the anointing on Saul’s life to be king and knew that God would be the one to either strike him or Saul would die in battle.

15 years after being anointed king, Saul dies. Yeah David is king – kinda. David becomes king of Judah only. The commander of Saul’s army appoints Ish-Bosheth king of Israel (really the other 11 tribes). So for 7.5 years David is king of Judah. But when Ish-Bosheth is murdered, the elders of Israel appoint David king over all of Israel.

I need you to understand this is 22.5 years after the original promise. How long have you had to wait on God? God never forgot David. God’s plans never changed. Not for David and not for us.

David seeks God’s direction to defeat the Jebusites to take over Jerusalem. That becomes the new capital for Israel. The ultimate symbol of God’s approval of David as king is to bring the ark of the covenant.

Our first point – God’s work must be done God’s way

6 David again brought together all the able young men of Israel—thirty thousand. 2 He and all his men went to Baalah in Judah 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 on the ark. 3 They set the ark of God on a new cart and brought it from the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, sons of Abinadab, were guiding the new cart 4 with the ark of God on it, and Ahio was walking in front of it. 5 David and all Israel were celebrating with all their might before the Lord, with castanets, harps, lyres, timbrels, sistrums and cymbals.

I need you to picture this celebration. When Israelites left Egypt over 400 years prior, God commanded Moses to construct the ark. We have a picture on the screen.

In Exodus 25 gives the description of how to build the ark. It’s to be made of acacia wood which is the hardest of hardwoods, durable, water-resistant. Overlayed with gold inside and outside. Four rings of gold for the four feet. Make poles of the same wood overlaid with gold. Poles go through the rings for carrying. Poles never come out of it. The ark itself was 3 ¾ ft long, 2 ¼ ft wide, 2 ¼ tall. Mercy seat made of pure gold in front was also 3 ¾ ft by 2 ¼ ft. Two cheribum on top made of gold.

When Moses would go into the tent of meeting to speak with God, he would hear his voice over the mercy seat. The tablets of the law were in there, a jar of manna, and Aaron’s rod were all in there. This ark was a big deal. Everything back then was visual. This is a visual representation of God’s approval and presence with them.

We think we have parties with a few hundred people. 30,000 young able-bodied meaning soldiers went with David to get the ark. They even got a new cart to bring it from the house of Abinadab where it had been for over 20 years.

They are celebrating David is king as God promised, they are getting the ark. It’s all good. Oh it’s a time of great rejoicing.

Except it’s not! God gave specific instructions 400 years ago how to carry the ark. Only the Levites were to carry and it was to be on poles. Not a cart.

I know what you are thinking…but it’s been 400 years, why do we have to keep those old rules. They made a new cart. Like God should be pleased. He picked David after all. David is a man after his own heart.

New transportation system with a music and dancing is still seen as disobedience in God’s eyes.

The only other time it was on a cart was after the Philistines captured the ark and God cursed them. They sent that thing back on a cart. David is a man after God’s own heart…and he knew better.

We need to be careful to make sure when we are doing God’s work fulfilling his promises, we do things his way. He’s a holy God who requires our obedience.

Which leads us to our 2nd point with Min. Bridges.

Before the Lord, Share your joy

Remember in the beginning when I gave the definition of joy,… long term state of commitment when we know God will use our experiences to accomplish his work in and through our lives. And I said that joy required obedience.

Think about the experiences that David had up to being king. And now all that it took to get the ark properly to Jerusalem. He knew God didn’t quit on him. God used all the good and bad to still accomplish his promise. How do we know that David knew that God was using everything in his life to accomplish his purpose…let me read the final scriptures.

2 Samuel 6:17-23

17 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. 18 After he had finished sacrificing the burnt offerings and fellowship offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord Almighty. 19 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.

20 When David returned home to bless his household, Michal daughter of Saul came out to meet him and said, “How the king of Israel has distinguished himself today, going around half-naked in full view of the slave girls of his servants as any vulgar fellow would!”

21 David said to Michal, “It was before the Lord, who chose me rather than your father or anyone from his house when he appointed me ruler over the Lord’s people Israel—I will celebrate before the Lord. 22 I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes. But by these slave girls you spoke of, I will be held in honor.”

23 And Michal daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death.

They successfully get the ark and place it in the tent.

Burnt offerings were for consecration – this is a nation set a part for God. Think about Saul’s heart – he was disobedient. He was rejected by God yet remained king. God had given him a tormenting spirit instead of his anointed spirit. If the head doesn’t serve God and in fact he even had priests killed for helping David, what do you think the spiritual condition of the people have been like.

Think about what this body would be like if our Pastor didn’t have a heart for God. If he didn’t seek God. You think oh that can’t be possible he’s the pastor. But it happens. What happens when you lead God’s people but you don’t follow God. Oh can you imagine the heart of the people.

So David is reseting the nation. Burnt offerings to remind the people they have been set apart.

Peace offerings for fellowship with God. Oh their leader is now leading the people back to a right relationship with God.

We just had a church celebration for 156 years at St. James. Each year we celebrate. But imagine, a drought spiritually and all of a sudden the presence of God is back.

Years ago when we moved in this building, we did a building campaign called Faith Forward. One of the Pastor’s visions was a 24 hour prayer vigil. Ornette and I came for our hour requirement to lead. It was like at 11 pm so there were only a handful of people in this sanctuary. When we walked in we had both been in a dry season of life. We were still active in ministry but our personal devotion was lacking. But that vigil ushered in the presence of God like we had not experienced in a while. We ended up staying for hours. It’s so significant that 12 years or so later, I still remember it.

What about you, have you had a time that you weren’t connected to God and yet he restored you. Now imagine a nation, not following God. The leader doesn’t seek God at all. David’s had a promise that would almost cost him his life on multiple occasions.

What would your celebration be like? See it wasn’t just about him. He knew it was about God and the nation.

So he offered blessings for every person and then tried to come home. To Michal and I hope you noticed she wasn’t referred to as his wife. No she was referred to by her spiritual condition – daughter of Saul.

He wasn’t uncovered and naked, he was dressed like everyone else. But his praise was unhindered. Unashamed.

And listen to his answer… It was before the Lord, who chose me rather than your father or anyone from his house when he appointed me ruler over the Lord’s people Israel—I will celebrate before the Lord. 22 I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes. But by these slave girls you spoke of, I will be held in honor.”

Can I ask you, when you a question. If you had to wait like David and go through what he went through, what would your praise before the Lord be like? Not before me, not before Pastor, not before Min Bridges, not before your friends, but what would your rejoicing before the Lord be like?

See he had joy while he waited or he would have killed Saul a long time ago.