Follow God's Guidelines

446 - Today's Prime Time Devo comes from: 2Sa 6:1-3, “Again David gathered all the choice men of Israel, thirty thousand. 2 And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from Baale Judah to bring up from there the ark of God, whose name is called by the Name, the LORD of Hosts, who dwells between the cherubim. 3 So they set the ark of God on a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drove the new cart. ( 2 Sam 6:1-3) With the threat of Saul's family diminished and the Philistines defeated, David turns his attention to bringing the ark of the covenant to Jerusalem. The ark of course was the very throne of God amongst the people, the footstool of the Most High God. It was the ark where God bore witness to the people and through prescribed rites and rituals in His Word dispensed mercy to His people. It was a type of Christ who now stands as the Mediator between sinful man and a holy God. Saul had let the ark lie in obscurity in the house of Abinadab for over 50 years and now David sought to bring this focal point of the God of His fathers front and center. This was no small occasion to David, and 30,000 choice men of Israel were selected to bring the ark to it's new home. We read in 1 Chr 13, that there were “songs, lyres, harps, tambourines, cymbals, and trumpets.” This was a huge festive procession! But there were some problems here. David, in his haste to bring the ark home, forgot to read the instruction manual for the ark. The ark had been returned to the Israelites by the Philistines in a new cart, and so a new cart was used to bring it to Jerusalem. The Philistines didn't know any better, but the Israelites should have known better. God's instructions were that the ark was to be carried on the shoulders of the Levites! This transportation by cart had serious repercussions as we shall see, and this whole incident should serve as a reminder to us that our zealousness to serve God should always be carried out within the guidelines of His Word. Father, you have given us Your Word for a reason. Help us to learn to follow it on all occasions.