Dave spoke this morning on 2 Samuel 6, the passage where David finally brings the ark back to Israel. The ark represented God’s presence and favour and blessing and was supremely important to Israel, but for many years, it had been held in foreign territory (see 1 Sam 4). David’s desire to see the ark restored to Israel demonstrated a heart that yearned for God’s presence.
Genuine worship will always flow from a desire to be with God; our God is known as ‘Immanuel’, God with us. Worship is not really about form or structure (the kind of music we use in worship or our position – standing, sitting, kneeling, dancing). It is a matter of the heart.
Genuine worship also has to be conducted in God’s way. Ex 25 and Num 4 gave precise instructions about how the ark was to be transported and by whom. When David disregarded these instructions and did things his own way, the result was disaster – Uzzah died when he reached out to steady the ark on a cart, struck down because he had dared to touch something holy. God defines how we should worship Him and we cannot simply do things our own way. For three months after Uzzah’s death, the ark stayed in the home of Obed-Edom because David was too afraid to move it again. Only after he saw the blessing on Obed-Edom’s house and learned of the true way of worship did he bring the ark back.
David’s excitement and exuberance in bringing the ark back (he danced before the Lord with all his might) give us a picture of whole-hearted worship which is nothing less than God deserves. The chief aim of mankind, according to the Westminster Catechism, is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. Our worship and lives need to convey the joy, hope and passion which God brings to our lives. Genuine worship will frequently be misunderstood by people (Michal despised David for his worship, feeling he had behaved in a manner unbecoming to a king) but is the natural overflow of hearts that have been touched by God’s grace and love.
