David’s Song of Thanksgiving

1 Chronicles 16:7-36 (NKJV)
7 On that day David first delivered this psalm into the hand of Asaph and his brethren, to thank the Lord:
8 Oh, give thanks to the Lord! Call upon His name; Make known His deeds among the peoples!
9 Sing to Him, sing psalms to Him; Talk of all His wondrous works!
10 Glory in His holy name; Let the hearts of those rejoice who seek the Lord!
11 Seek the Lord and His strength; Seek His face evermore!
12 Remember His marvelous works which He has done, His wonders, and the judgments of His mouth,
13 O seed of Israel His servant, You children of Jacob, His chosen ones!
14 He is the Lord our God; His judgments are in all the earth.
15 Remember His covenant forever, The word which He commanded, for a thousand generations,
16 The covenant which He made with Abraham, And His oath to Isaac,
17 And confirmed it to Jacob for a statute, To Israel for an everlasting covenant,
18 Saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan As the allotment of your inheritance,”
19 When you were few in number, Indeed very few, and strangers in it.
20 When they went from one nation to another, And from one kingdom to another people,
21 He permitted no man to do them wrong; Yes, He rebuked kings for their sakes,
22 Saying, “Do not touch My anointed ones, And do My prophets no harm.”
23 Sing to the Lord, all the earth; Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.
24 Declare His glory among the nations, His wonders among all peoples.
25 For the Lord is great and greatly to be praised; He is also to be feared above all gods.
26 For all the gods of the peoples are idols, But the Lord made the heavens.
27 Honor and majesty are before Him; Strength and gladness are in His place.
28 Give to the Lord, O families of the peoples, Give to the Lord glory and strength.
29 Give to the Lord the glory due His name; Bring an offering, and come before Him. Oh, worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness!
30 Tremble before Him, all the earth. The world also is firmly established, It shall not be moved.
31 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; And let them say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.”
32 Let the sea roar, and all its fullness; Let the field rejoice, and all that is in it.
33 Then the trees of the woods shall rejoice before the Lord, For He is coming to judge the earth.
34 Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.
35 And say, “Save us, O God of our salvation; Gather us together, and deliver us from the Gentiles, To give thanks to Your holy name, To triumph in Your praise.”
36 Blessed be the Lord God of Israel From everlasting to everlasting! And all the people said, “Amen!” and praised the Lord.

! I. Introduction

A. Read David’s Psalm of Thanksgiving

B. 1 Chronicles 16:7-36 records a beautiful Psalm of David expressing heartfelt gratitude to God.

1. The Culmination of Expressed Joy

a) Celebration of the Ark of God

b) Coming to the City of God

(1) Wonderful exhortation that is our theme verse:

(2) 29 Give unto the LORD the glory due His name; Bring an offering, and come before Him. Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness. (1 Chronicles 16:29)

2. In order to truly understand David’s heart of Gratitude

a) Helpful to have an understanding of

(1) The importance & significance of the Ark of the Covenant to the Nation Israel, and

(2) The events that transpired prior to this song of praise

3. My prayer & sincere desire as we look into these things

a) That we would glean and apply to our lives those truths that would help us as worshippers of Jesus Christ

II. The Significance of the Ark of the Covenant

A. God commanded that the Tabernacle should be built

1. Tabernacle was to be the Visible Sanctuary of God upon the Earth

2. Moses was given specific instructions from God on Mount Sinai

a) On the size and dimensions of each item in the Tabernacle

b) Including the Ark of God,

(1) Exodus 25:8-9 - 8And let them make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell among them.9According to all that I show you, that is, the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furnishings, just so you shall make it.

c) The Lord goes on to give the specific instructions on how it was to be made, including the very materials to be used

3. Great care & reverence was required by those who would serve in the Tabernacle

a) Detail after detail was given by the Lord

b) In every regard of the Tabernacle

(1) Who may serve

(2) How they should be sanctified for service

(3) What sacrifices should be offered and how

(a) Every last detail –

(b) Including how the various components should be transported

(i) As they moved in the wilderness

(ii) The Ark being borne upon the shoulders of the priests themselves.

4. In all these instructions, The Lord revealed to Moses the purpose and intent

a) The Tabernacle was the prescribed way in which God and Man might fellowship together

(1) As the sacrifices and various offerings provided a covering for sins

(a) The Tabernacle representing a Holy God

(b) Means by which we may approach

(i) And a means of fellowship

(2) Hebrews 9 is a great cross reference

(a) All of these were a type and shadow of Christ

(b) Who, having fulfilled all the righteous requirements of the Law

(c) Has provided access into the Holy Place, the presence of God

b) In Exodus 25:22 The Lord said in regards to the Ark itself:

(1) Exodus 25:22 - 22And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are on the ark of the Testimony, about everything which I will give you in commandment to the children of Israel.

(a) The Ark represented – and indeed was – God’s manifest presence among His people

B. God Desires Intimate fellowship with His people

1. Can’t you just sense the heart of God

a) As He speaks to Moses in Exodus 29:42-46 –

(1) 42This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your generations at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the Lord, where I will meet you to speak with you. 43And there I will meet with the children of Israel, and the tabernacle shall be sanctified by My glory. 44So I will consecrate the tabernacle of meeting and the altar. I will also consecrate both Aaron and his sons to minister to Me as priests.

(2)  45I will dwell among the children of Israel and will be their God. 46And they shall know that I am the Lord their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt, that I may dwell among them. I am the Lord their God.

2. As worshippers & worship leaders

a) Let us be careful to cultivate a close intimate walk with the Lord Jesus.

b) And be careful to minimize any hindrances or distractions from God’s people as they worship and encounter Him

C. A few more examples of the historical significance of the Tabernacle

1. God’s presence directly led the children of Israel through the wilderness

a) At the completion of the construction of the Tabernacle

(1) Exodus 40:33b-38 – 33b So Moses finished the work. 34Then the cloud covered the tabernacle of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 35And Moses was not able to enter the tabernacle of meeting, because the cloud rested above it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 36Whenever the cloud was taken up from above the tabernacle, the children of Israel would go onward in all their journeys. 37But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not journey till the day that it was taken up. 38For the cloud of the Lord was above the tabernacle by day, and fire was over it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.

2. Throughout all Israel’s journeys, wanderings and rebellion in the wilderness

a) Even in His judgments God’s presence remained

b) And God continued to lead them and provide for their needs

(1) Deuteronomy 8:2-6 - 2And you shall remember that the Lord your God led you all the way these forty years in the wilderness, to humble you and test you, to know what was in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. 3So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord. 4Your garments did not wear out on you, nor did your foot swell these forty years. 5You should know in your heart that as a man chastens his son, so the Lord your God chastens you. 6“Therefore you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God, to walk in His ways and to fear Him.

3. As they came to Enter the Land of Promise

a) The Ark of God – borne upon the shoulders of the priests – opened the way

(1) Allowing the children to cross over on dry land

(2) Even though the Jordan River was at flood stage

(a) What a wonderful picture of Christ

III. The Tabernacle and Ark of God was the Center of Life and Worship to be the Tabernacle and the Ark of God

A. Their lives were to be built around the Worship of Jehovah God

1. The Ark of God was to be the focus

a) When they traveled and when they camped

b) When they battled and when they rested

(1) In every aspect of their lives

(2) The worship of God was to be at the center

This is a great picture as the same should be for us!

IV. The Backdrop to David’s joyful expression!

A. But Problems arose as Israel became settled into the land of promise

1. They became complacent and grew weary

a) In the book of Judges Israel is no longer focused solely on the things of God

(1) They grow complacent and begin to turn aside

(2) To other so called gods

(a) “Each one doing what was right in their own eyes.”

b) No doubt the offerings and sacrifices continued to be offered by the priests

(1) But relationship & faith were giving way

(2) To empty ritual and formalism

2. We need to take care so that our hearts don’t grow cold lest our worship become empty

a) Easy to fall into a familiar routine and pattern

b) And lose sight of the primary focus…

(1) Where it ceases to be about worshipping Jesus

(a) And becomes simply singing songs,

(b) Or warming up the congregation, or even worse –

(c) Having a hot worship band to draw the people in

3. Look what happened in Israel

a) As Hophni and Phineas, the sons of Eli, the High Priest

b) Who served as priests before the Lord in the Tabernacle

(1) 1 Samuel 2:12 - 12Now the sons of Eli were corrupt; they did not know the Lord.

c) Consequently, they corrupted the entire worship of God

(1) Served themselves and their own desires

(2) Took advantage of the people as they brought offerings before the Lord

(3) Took advantage of the women who dwelt near the Tabernacle –

(a) Either speaks of taking advantage of innocent women as they came near to worship

(b) Or in the setting up of temple prostitutes much in the same way the pagans worshipped.

(c) Either way, these two were truly “sons of Belial” (KJV rendering)

d) Worst of all their sins & actions caused others to stumble

(1) So that people began to despise the offerings of the Lord

4. It is a good thing to allow the Holy Spirit to search our hearts

a) Where is my heart regarding the Lord?

b) What is my motivation in serving Him?

c) Are my actions causing others to stumble?

5. Hophni & Phineas did not heed the correction of their father

a) For whatever reason, Eli failed to restrain them

b) Consequently, judgment fell upon all Israel

(1) With grave consequences

(a) Israel lost the battle with the Philistines

(b) Hophni & Phineas were killed in the battle

(c) The Ark of God was captured and taken away

(d) The High Priest, upon hearing of this, fell down, broke his neck and died.

(i) All in fulfillment of the judgment pronounced by God because of their evil deeds

6. I pray that our hearts would always stay open

a) To receive the correction of the Lord

(1) Minor course corrections are easier

(2) Than having to completely turn around

(a) But better that than proceeding against the will of the Lord

B. The Ark of the Covenant was stolen by the Philistines.

1. The ark that signified the reality of God’s presence with his people

a) When the Philistines stole the Ark of the Covenant they in essence stole the reality of God’s presence from God’s people.

(1) God’s people lost their focus.

(2) It is easy in daily life to lose our awareness of God’s presence.

(a) The enemy wants to rob you of that awareness.

(b) Satan will use anything he can to distract you from intimate relationship with Christ and make you lose your focus.

(c) If he can make you lose your focus, then he can make you ineffective.

2. After seven months of self-torture, the Philistines sent the ark back.

a) It was placed ten miles from Jerusalem

b) At a place called Kiriath Jearim and forgotten about.

C. For over 20 years it is all but neglected

1. Saul became Israel’s first king and he neglected to bring it back to Jerusalem. (Center of worship)

a) Saul who started out humble and seemingly open to God

b) Did not truly have a heart for the things of God

(1) Sadly, as goes the leader

(2) So often goes the Nation

2. God’s people lost their focus for a long time.

a) God’s presence wasn’t at the center of their lives.

b) The ark was gone and no one missed it.

(1) When God isn’t at the center of your life, then things get out of balance.

D. Finally, David becomes King

1. David was a man after God’s own heart.

a) He had a heart for the things of God

b) Desiring to see the worship of God once again be the center of life for His people.

(1) Which brings us to David’s Psalm of Thanksgiving

(2) As he rejoiced – singing, praising & dancing – before the Ark of the Lord

(a) Overjoyed that God’s presence was again the focus of His people

2. There are many things to be gleaned from David’s life

a) David’s first attempt to bring the Ark to Jerusalem failed

(1) Because David did not follow the Lord’s direction in moving the Ark

(2) But instead employed the ways of the Philistines

(a) Attempting to move the ark on a new cart

(b) Rather than upon the shoulders of the priests

(3) This is a great reminder for us to be careful that we do not imitate the ways of the world

(4) Just because they worked for others in the past

(a) May we instead stay focused and attentive to the Lord

b) Despite this, David’s was teachable and his heart was open

(1) Great joy and victory flow out of obediently following the ways of the Lord

V. Closing

A. Let us seek to glorify the Lord

1. Let us focus on God & seeking him daily

a) Let us be careful to cultivate a close intimate walk with the Lord Jesus.

(1) When you are aware of God’s presence in your life,

(2) The natural response is a grateful heart

(a) Not only for what He has done

(b) But for Who He Is

(3) Because He is worthy.

(a) Heartfelt thanks is his due.

(b) When you see the “splendor of His holiness” (v. 29), you can’t help but reverence him.

(c) You can’t help but desire him.

b) I pray that we would all have a heart like David

(1) Seeking to sing His praise

(2) And give Him more glory

(3) Desiring to grow ever more closer to the Lord

2. Maybe you have lost your focus

a) Maybe you have allowed your heart to lose sight of the Lord

(1) Have you taken your eyes of the Lord?

(2) Has your personal worship become routine?

(3) Has worship become more about the songs, or the sound, or the performance – than simply about glorifying Jesus?

b) Maybe none of these apply but you’re feeling beat down

Tired and weary from the battle, not of the battle

(a) As worship leaders, there will always be those who can be critical

(b) Like David’s wife Michal

(c) Who had her eyes on the wrong place –

(i) Not on the Ark of God, rejoicing in His returning presence

(ii) But critically upon David, the servant of the Lord – to despise him in her heart

3. May this weekend be a time for you to regain your focus

a) To surrender your heart even more to the Lord

b) And to have a greater awareness of His presence in every area of your life.

VI. Let’s Pray