After the disastrous first attempt to bring the ark up to Jerusalem, David is perplexed. He wonders, “How can the ark of the Lord ever come to me?” (6:9). Given that the ark represented the presence of God, what David is really asking is how he can truly dwell with God. This is a good question that we should all be concerned about. Later, David will make another attempt at bringing up the ark and this time he will succeed. So obviously David discovered the answer to this question. What was different about the second attempt? The account is expanded in 1 Chronicles 13-15 and here we find the answer. There are two things that were different the second time. Today we will focus on the first of these. The second time around the ark of God’s presence was borne by properly consecrated people, that is, the Levite priests. The priests were those whose lives were devoted wholly to God. They still worked like everyone else, but they understood that ultimately their purpose in life was to serve God. What the Levites were in Old Testament times is what we are all called to be now under the New Covenant by which we are all consecrated to God as the Levites were. But this is a choice for us. If you want to know the presence of God in your life you must consecrate yourself to God as the Levite priests did. God will only be borne by those whose lives are surrendered to him.
Dedicate yourself to God.
Read 2 Samuel 6:12-23
