THE ARK OF GOD’S PRESENCE: RETURNING THE GLORY
INTRODUCTION: I want to talk to you this morning about “THE ARK, RETURNING THE GLORY”. When the MANIFEST PRESENCE and GLORY of God is in His Church there will be joy; there will be power; there will be miracles of healing, health, financial blessings, victory over the Kingdom of darkness and the nations will come to the light of the Church’s rising.
1. In the Old Testament the ARK OF THE COVENANT was God’s DWELLING PLACE, the place of HIS MANIFEST PRESENCE. While the Lord was PRESENT among His people in the exodus, He LOCALIZED His presence in the Tabernacle or Tent of Meeting for the GOOD of His people. The Tabernacle was constructed by Moses so the Lord could dwell among His people: “…let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst” (Ex. 25:8).
a. In an even more localized and specific way, the ARK of the Covenant served as the DWELLING PLACE of the MANIFEST PRESENCE of God. As we read in Exodus 25:22, “There I will meet with you . . . on the ark of the testimony, I will speak with you.”
b. The ARK was the special dwelling place of the Lord where He MANIFEST His PRESENCE and GLORY to His people, bringing them His blessings, His miracle power and victory over their enemies.
c. In rank and order Joshua and the nation of Israel HAD FOLLOWED the Ark of God’s Presence, LEFT the wilderness and CROSSED OVER into Canaan and CONQUERED the 31 Kings and POSSESSED the cities and nations that dealt in the land. The Ark was God’s dwelling place, the place of His presence and glory.
2. According to 1 SAMUEL, Chapter 2, when the PROPHET SAMUEL was born ELI was the Priest of Israel. The Tabernacle of Moses or Tent of Meeting, that housed the ARK OF THE PRESENCE of God, was located at SHILOH. Eli had two sons, Hophni and Phineas who served as priests with their father. 1 Samuel 2:12 declares, “Now the sons of Eli were worthless men; they did not know the Lord.”
a. 1 SAMUEL 4 tells us Israel went out to BATTLE and WAS DEFEATED by the Philistines. 4000 Israelites were killed. So Israel WENT to Shiloh and GOT the Ark of the Presence and CARRIED it into battle. But they were DEFEATED again and 30,000 Israelites were SLAUGHTERED. The priests, Hophni and Phineas, were killed and the Philistines TOOK the ARK.
c. A MESSENGER from the tribe of Benjamin was sent to Shiloh to report what had happened and there was a great outcry. When ELI the priest heard the OUTCRY and learned the Ark was taken he FELL OFF his seat backwards, broke his neck and died.
d. Eli’s daughter-in-law, PHINEHAS’S WIFE, was about to give BIRTH. When she HEARD the news that the ARK OF GOD was taken and that her father-in-law and her husband had died, she KNEELED DOWN and GAVE BIRTH.
1 Samuel 4:21 says: “And she called the boy ICHABOD, saying, “The GLORY has departed from Israel,” because the ARK of God was taken and because of her father-in-law and her husband.”
I. What I want you to see is that BECAUSE of ISRAEL’S DISOBEDIENCE---BECAUSE THEY WERE OUT-OF-ORDER---the PHILISTINES were able to DEFEAT them in battle---and they LOST the ark.
A. The PHILISTINES took the ark into their territory.
1. They THOUGHT the ark was just another IDOL, just ANOTHER GOD that they had conquered.
a. 1 SAMUEL 5 tells us that the FIRST place they TOOK the ARK was to the TEMPLE of their “FISH GOD” in the Philistine City of ASHDOD. They SET the ARK of GOD’S PRESENCE before their fish-god, a LARGE FISH with a head and hands. They WORSHIPED DAGON and then they walked out.
b. The next day they came in they found that the ARK of GOD’S PRESENCE had PUSHED the fish idol over. God was MANIFESTING HIS PRESENCE & GLORY to them and REVEALING that DAGON was not God. It was merely an IDOL made of wood.
c. They SET Dagon back up and WORSHIPED him again. They came back the next morning and the ARK had not only PUSHED Dagon over, but had CUT OFF its head and its hands.
d. I SAMUEL 5:6 declares: “Now the hand of the Lord was heavy on the Ashdodites, and He ravaged them and smote them with tumors, both Ashdod and its territories.”
2. Saints the PRESENCE of God, i.e. the ARK in the WRONG hands or in the hands of the DISOBEDIENT, brings God’s JUDGMENT upon them.
a. You see the SCRIPTURES tell us that Eli’s sons HOPHNI and PHINEHAS were worthless men. Even though they were priests, they did not know God. They had become PROMISCUOUS. They were GETTING DRUNK and COMMITTING FORNICATION in the TABERNACLE, THE TENT of MEETING. Because of this, the GLORY---God’s PRESENCE and PROTECTION---had left them.
b. We read in the O.T. that God’s GLORY would be ISRAEL’S DEFENSE. But because of their DISOBEDIENCE, because they were OUT-OF-ORDER, because the ark was not in it’s PROPER PLACE---God HAD LIFTED His GLORY off of them. Therefore the enemy was able to defeat them in battle, slaughter them and take the ark.
B. GOD IS HOLY! When you are NOT RIGHT with God and HIS GOVERNMENTAL ORDER you are NOT QUALIFIED to handle the glory. That is WHY God works so PURPOSEFULLY, DILIGENTLY and with such PERSEVERANCE in your life to get you to the PLACE where you can HANDLE and BE HANDLED by the glory.
1. In the OLD Covenant when the HIGH PRIEST would go into the HOLY OF HOLIES once a year to SPRINKLE the BLOOD of the sacrifice on the MERCY SEAT of the ARK of GOD’S PRESENCE and MAKE ATONEMENT for the people, he was KEPT UP all night long. They had that priest QUOTE scripture all night long.
a. This was so that NO UNGODLY THOUGHT could enter his mind when he got behind the veil. This was so he could be as CLEAN as he could possibly be.
b. If the High Priest was not CLEAN, the BELLS on the bottom of his garments would stop ringing. They tied a ROPE around one leg, so that if they did not hear any bells they would say, “Oh no, another one bit the dust”. They would DRAG him out of the Holy of Holies by the rope.
2. We SING sometimes, “Come Lord Jesus, come in the fullness of your glory”. But you REALLY do not want that! You only want WHAT you can HANDLE.
a. Moses said, “show me your glory”. God said, “I can not show you my face. I can only show you a portion, I will show you my hinder-part”.
I will set you in the CLEFT of a rock and put my hand over you and I will allow my goodness to pass. One thing you can see is God’s GOODNESS. God has KIND INTENSIONS toward you. God has kind intensions towards all mankind.
b. Outside of Christ, in our NATURAL or EVIL and UNRIGHTEOUS STATE mankind can’t bear God’s MANIFEST PRESENCE or His GLORY. It’s not that God is being mean. It’s just God SHOWING UP and BEING Himself. Today, THINGS are so out of order that the NATURAL MAN cannot bear His glory. When the earth QUAKES and THINGS happen it is just GOD SHOWING UP. Things are so OUT OF ORDER that we CANNOT BEAR the fullness of His MANIFEST PRESENCE or glory.
c. The Israelites were OUT OF ORDER; they were DISOBEDIENT. So God WITHDREW His glory and the PHILISTINES broke through their hedge of protection, SLAUGHTERED them, TOOK the ark and CARRIED it into the land of the Philistines,
C. But after the Ark had CUT OFF the head and hands of DAGON, 1 SAMUEL 5 tells us that the Philistines took the ark out of their temple and took it to one of their other cities. Because of the PRESENCE and GLORY of God---STUFF started happening there also.
1. The NASV says that immediately everyone got TUMORS. (The KJV says they got HEMORRHOIDS.) I think God has a sense of HUMOR. It got SO BAD they said, “We can’t keep the ark here”. So they SENT the ARK to another place and AGAIN everyone got tumors or hemorrhoids. It FINALLY got SO BAD the Philistines said, “We don’t want to have anything else to do with this”.
a. If we look at the WORLD today, especially PEOPLE at the top, people who DON’T KNOW God, but who have THINGS and have POWER. If you get into the REAL STORY behind their life, most of the time their lives are TRAGIC. The worry, the lack of peace, the unhappiness, the fear, the greed, the disease and sickness, the family problems they experience simply because they are at the top, but they are there WITHOUT GOD’S PRESENCE or GLORY. They are not able to CONTAIN His PRESENCE. They are not able to CARRY His GLORY.
b. You see PEOPLE like this, especially in the MUSIC and ENTERTAINMENT industry. When they get close to the top, you see just HOW WACKED OUT they are. The DEVIL demands this of them because they have NO GLORY to protect them. We frequently hear of COUPLES having 5 or 6 marriages and experiencing one tragic thing after another.
They cannot CONTAIN God’s glory.
2. So the PHILISTINES said, “We are going to send this thing back to Israel”.
a. We are going to TEST this and see if it is just COINCIDENCE. We will HOOK this cart up with COWS that have nursing calves. MOTHERING COWS with calves will not move from where their calves are pinned up in a certain place.
b. So, the PHILISTINES said, “If it is of God these cows will go back to Israel. But, if it is just coincidence they will not budge.” AS SOON AS they HOOKED those cows up those cows started HOOFING their way back to the border of Israel!
3. Saints, we have to LEARN how to HANDLE GOD’S GLORY and HOW TO BE HANDLED BY HIS GLORY.
a. You see WHEN we have been EXPERIENCING the PRESENCE and GLORY of God it is EASY to get into spiritual pride. YOU are the SAME person. But GOD has moved you on into another season and you are experiencing the PRESENCE and the GLORY. Don’t act like you are the GENERAL MANAGER of the Universe. Tell someone, “God is still in control.”
b. There is no room for PRIDE. Pride is a DELAY, a DISTRACTION. We have to STAY TRUE to our course, our calling and purpose in God. BLESSINGS are just a SPIN OFF. We don’t get CAUGHT UP in the blessing. We APPRECIATE and thank God for the blessings, but that is NOT our DESTINATION. That is only a PART of it. We ENJOY all of that, but we keep our eyes FIXED on the PRIZE of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. There are GREATER THINGS, MUCH GREATER THINGS that God has in store for you. YOU have not seen the FULLNESS of His glory yet. WE ARE ALREADY BLESSED, but we HAVEN’T SEEN anything yet.
c. Do you know that in the LAST 24 HOURS of Jesus life here on earth more prophesy was FULFILLED than in all the other 33 plus years he had lived on earth. The last 24 hours. God always SAVES the most, the best, the fulfillment for last.
d. At the WEDDING of Cana, they SERVED what they thought was good wine UNTIL Jesus got involved and served the BEST wine last. The GOVERNOR of the wedding said, “Usually they serve the best wine first and then, when everyone is drunk and can’t tell, the difference they serve the Wild Irish Rose.” Some of you may know what I am talking about. Some folks used to call it the “Brick” because it hit you like a brick and you would be out. The GOVERNOR of the wedding feast said, ”you saved the best for last”.
e. I am telling you that the BEST will suddenly come on the scene BECAUSE God has been SHAPING, MOLDING and FASHIONING you to PREPARE you for what He is going to do swiftly. The PROCESS is coming to an end. Things will happen quickly.
4. My QUESTION to you today is, “Can you stand to be blessed?” SOMETIMES we say, “Bring it on, bring it on”, but can you STAND to be blessed.
Can you stand the RESPONSIBILITY it is going to bring? Can you STAND it when 25 MILLION DOLLARS is coming to your ministry every month? When GOVERNMENTS and NATIONS are drawing upon you and making demands on you, can you STAND to be blessed? God has to MAKE and FASHION you. When the GLORY comes, will you be in a PLACE to handle it?
II. But WHEN the ARK of the PRESENCE showed up, Israel made a MISTAKE.
A. They were so BACKSLIDDEN and so SUBNORMAL that they did not UNDERSTAND how to handle the glory.
1. As soon as the ark appeared they OPENED it up and LOOKED inside of it. “Oh, look at this!” They were touching it and handling it.
a. When the GLORY was among the PHILISTINES, it DEALT with God’s enemies, giving them HEMORRHOIDS.
b. But when it was in the PROCESS of RETURNING and APPROACHED the border of Israel, SOME THINGS started changing. When Israel OPENED it up over 50,000 of them died. This HAPPENED because they were OUT-OF-ORDER. They were breaking God’s spiritual laws.
2. As a RESULT the Israelites FEARED the ARK, 1 SAMUEL 7:1-2 says they TOOK it and PARKED it at KIRIATH-JEARIM. They JUST PARKED it in the YARD of a man named ABINADAB and LEFT it.
a. For 20 YEARS, all the TIME that SAUL was King, ISRAEL NEVER INQUIRED of the ARK. Saul is REPRESENTATIVE of the FLESHLY or SOULISH man. “I got this, I don’t need God.”
b. But 2 SAMUEL 6 tells us that ONE DAY, remember this is 31 CHAPTERS LATER. This is AFTER SAUL has been killed and DAVID has become king, DAVID INQUIRED about the ARK of God’s PRESENCE and DECIDED to bring the ARK back to its PROPER PLACE. I am telling you right now GOD’S GLORY is coming back to its proper place. That‘s WHY you and I have got to be READY. God has been PREPARING us here at the King’s Church, teaching us His ways, preparing us to handle and be handled by the Glory.
3. You read about GOD’S GLORY In the BOOK of ACTS, and it’s going to be restored in our day. We are going BACK to the GLORY of the New Testament Church and even greater Glory. The Glory you read about in the N.T. is the Glory of the INFANT Church. Wait until we experience the Glory of the MATURE Church.
a. In ACTS 5 ANANIAS and SAPHIRA told what we would call a “WHITE LIE”. After all it was THEIR PROPERTY wasn’t it? Yes it was, but the HOLY GHOST through PETER said, “Why have you chosen to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back a portion?”
b. WELL, that’s THEIR BUSINESS isn’t it? No, when the GLORY is present, it BECOMES God’s business. WHAT you need to UNDERSTAND is that WHAT you are carrying is not YOURS. What God has called us to is not OURS. We are just VESSELS, just INSTRUMENTS. God has a KINGDOM PURPOSE. God has a PLAN. He has His Own AGENDA for the 21st Century.