“Who’s running the show”
by rev. Thomas B. Gates
Text:1 Sam. 4:1-11
Explain the ark of the covenant
Intro: Explain what’s happening
There is a lot of things that we need to know about God, if were going to serve him in a way that’s pleasing to him. Now Israel realized that they were in trouble, because God was not with them, and so they went about it trying to get God in their presence and they went about it the wrong way. And they discovered some things that I believe would help us if we would discover them as well, if we want to live for the lord.
1. God Will Not Be Used!!
Verse 3.
Now they Sent for the Ark and wanted it to
come among them.
Not that they may serve God or worship God
or that they might reverence him.
- they wanted the presence of the lord for their own personal use!
really in essence it bordered on superstition.
They said ,”if we can just get the ark of the covenant then that’s all that we will need.
So we find that they wanted to use God for their own personal use, but I want you to know that God didn’t fall for it!
We see a lot of folks that try to do the same thing:
we see some that may be having family problems,
and they say well if we can just go to church
then everything will work out.
or they may have financial problems and
they’ll get in church, or
if there is sickness in the family they come
and say well we have got to get in church they
think that it will solve all their problems.
We need to realize and understand,
Now if your coming to church for the right reason
that is fine, but what we have go to understand
is that:
God is not going to be used like a mop or a dish rag, or maybe when we spill our cup of tea over and we need God to come and wipe it up for us, Amen
now that’s the way a lot of folks try to use him
When they get in trouble they want to go get him and use him.
But as soon as he cleans up the mess then back on the stand he goes until they need him again.
- Now what we need to see is just like he wouldn’t
let Israel use him, he wont let us either! And
Israel found out the hard way. They thought that
as soon as their good luck charm got their then that
was all that it was going to take.
But God showed then that he was not the kind of God that was going to be used.
We Need to realize that there is more to it than just
showing up at church
or wearing a cross around a necklace
or carrying a bible around
There is also serving!
So they found out that they would not use God and so they lost the battle and lost the presence of the lord.
Now after the philistines took the ark of the covenant back home they said
“oh we have accomplished a great thing”, and so they took the ark and they place it in the house of their God “Dagon”
Tell about Chapter 5.
2. The lord will not share his glory with any
other God.
We have got a lot of folks who say “I have excepted God” And all they wanna do is add him to all the other Gods of the world that they have in their life!
In here to tell you that all that’s gonna do is make your life 10 times as miserable than it was before the bible says That we are to serve the lord thy God and have no other Gods before him. AMEN
If were gonna serve God, and be pleasing to him, then he has got to be #1.
So we find that as soon as they got the ark out of the house and put it in another place, then things began to happen they began to be afflicted with sores and boils, every time they moved him. they said “well what we need to do is get rid of him” because he is just causing us problems.
- Now I’m telling you that when you put on an front or a face that your living for God and you dont really except him then your gonna have problems! you’ll be like this group right here. And they said well we just want to get away from the lord, we want to get out of here and get back to our old life as it was before.
And so they took the ark back in to the land of Israel .
And the Israelites took the Ark to Abinadab’s house
then later David became King, and he said
“what good is it to have a kingdom and not have the presence of the lord in it."
and so he went and got it and took it to Jerusalem.
And so I ask you tonight :
WHAT GOOD IS IT TO HAVE A CHURCH IF THE PRESENCE OF THE LORD IS NOT IN IT? Amen
and thats what David felt like.
*But let me tell you some of the mistakes David made in trying to get the ark back to Jerusalem
1. He made a bran new cart!
Just like the philistines did. and he said
that’ the way to do it so he made
a bran new Cart.
“God has a specific way that the ark was to be transported’ and it was not on a bran new cart”. It had rings and Golden staves that it was to be put on and certain people to carry it.
And David said well the philistines put it on a cart and that looked Good and so I’m gonna do the same.
Did you know that that exact thing is going on in the church today?
Were trying to get the presence of God on a Bran new cart.
Were trying to get the presence of God in our churches on something that the world has developed.
I heard one preacher telling that he read in a christian literature magazine about a christian night club!
I want to tell you tonight church that there is no such a thing as a christian night club. !
There are night clubs and there are christians but there are no such a thing as a christian night club.
I tell you that there are churches that are holding dances in there basements trying to draw a crowd.
that will never draw the presence of the lord into our churches, amen
But we are trying to get God in to a cart that the world has and it didn’t work for David and it wont work now.
But Gods got a certian way and as they tried to carry it on a cart, all of a sudden it hit a wash in the road and Uzziah put his hand on it to try to steady it and God smote him and he died! Amen
Now whats the lesson in that:
3. God don’t need man to steady his church., or
his work
God dont need the worlds methods
he has a certian way and a certian plan that he
wants things done amen.
and folks they must be done.
God has given us instruction on what the church is to do. when we get away from this book, then were looking for trouble!
The bible says: “to love not the world neither the things that are in the world, if any man loveth the things of the world then the love of the father is not in him”.
God dont need us to prop it up!
You know Uzziah didn’t take the word too seriously or
Gods instruction too serious. when God said only certain people can touch the ark
I believe that its time that we children of God wake up and realize the seriousness of being a child of God and serving him. Amen
I’m a Christian, I’m a child of God.
That’s a serious thing to take upon you
The name of a child of God.
listen God expects things out of us and his not gonna settle for anything less.
I want you to know that there is a chastening hand on those of rebellion and will not obey him.
I believe that us
preachers and
us teachers and
us singers, we need to get serious with God tonight
*Tell about each one
one day were gonna stand before God and were Gonna give an account for the lessons we teach and the sermons we preach. just like you will of the ones you’ve heard.
folks the word of God is a serious thing and we’ve got to get serious with this!
We have got to the point to were we don’t take this serious anymore!
*Tell about reverend Jesse Jackson.
and we wonder why the world doesn’t have any respect for the church and Christianity
Because we preachers and leaders don’t do right and don’t live right bless God.
Its a serious thing tonight!
Well after Uzziah got killed, David got his feelings hurt and he said well im just not going to mess with it if that is the way it it going to be.
He said “take the ark of the covenant over to Obededon’s house and so they did and the bible said that it stayed there 3 months.
But the lord blessed Obededon in every thing that he did.
you see when the Ark Got to Obededons house the his hens started laying doubled yoke eggs and his cow started producing more milk
4. When the presence of the lord Gets to your
house, folks that’s a blessing there!
David then learned about how Obededon was being blessed and then he said well we need to get it here so we can be blessed. but you know something he didnt get it this time in a cart, He went and he read up on it and he found out Gods way.
And the bible said
that he they went and Got it and they started back and they didn’t even go but six paces and David cut lose and done a dance before the lord.
I mean right there in front of everybody.
i’ll tell you what happend He got so excited that when he got into the presence of the lord he couldn’t stand still.
That would do us a lot of good. Amen
When he finally got back, David went to his house to bless his house and the bible said that his wife met him and she said:
“well didn’t the King of Israel shows himself today”
she said “you took off your kingly robe and you looked like one of the common folk, I can’t believe you of your authority and of your position and of your prestige that you would just take off your collar and robe and just behave as you did.
And she dispised him in her heart.
Let me tell you what David said:
2 sam 6:21-22
He said let me tell you something women, he said “i got to thinking about when i was on the back side of the desert.
I was a nothing and i was a nobody and I wasnt doing nothing but tending some stinking sheep.
and one day the lord looked down upon me and he saved me and he called me, and he made me king,
and he is building me a mansion, and some day he is coming back for me and i couldnt help but to just “cut loose” Amen
and he said “ill tell you something else” you aint seen nothing yet, ill be more vile that that
You know that’s what a lot of us need to do.
Now in gonna show you something, In Israel its a wonderful thing for a women to have children and a curse for her to be barren, you know what the bible said
“the lord closed up mikels womb, that she was not able to have any more children
You know what Gods saying,
Alright if you dont like the things of God, if you dont like the shouting.
I’ll make you barren
thats what happens to alot of our churches today, we have become so formal and so stiff that Gods shut up the womb and no one is being born again.
Israel found out a few things that you and I need to find out.
and that is that
God will not be used,
and God will not be shared!
You now what would do us a lot of Good is to be the same person that you are in church
when your out at home or at a ball game, or at work. Amen
You know what that’s called “Honesty”
Let me ask you a question.
I love a good live church service, and I hate a dead service.
What do you think God thinks of one?
Every time we come in to a church serviced we ought to be shouting the victory because of our savior.
Because you know that we were once just like David.
prayer.
