From the Pastor |
2 Samuel 6: 1-15
Today we have a story that seems a little strange. In our Old Testament reading we are told about how the Ark of the Covenant was being returned to the Israelites. During the reign of King Saul, the Ark of the Covenant was used as a talisman. The Israelites often carried it into battle to ensure a successful outcome. Like a very big good luck charm. However on one occasion, it was taken to battle and lost to the Philistines who remained in possession of it for 20 years. One of David’s first acts as king was to see that it was returned. Thirty thousand men of Israel were assembled for this purpose; only instead of suiting up for war, they went on a holy pilgrimage. They retrieved the Ark and placed it on a new cart accompanied by a procession of Israelites celebrating the Ark's return. This was the beginning of trouble, because there were rules in place… the Ark was to be carried, by designated people, on poles threaded through the rings on its side as stated in the law. As a result a man dies along the way. David gets angry, and then scared, and he leaves the Ark behind for 3 months. Then David hears how the house where the Ark was left has been blessed, and David overcomes his fear and remembers that it was God’s blessings he wanted for all the people of Israel. So he went back and brought the ark into Jerusalem and with it the power of God. Now, history had demonstrated that the presence of God was so powerful that lives were at stake. There was supposed to be specific protocols of respect for the Lord… This had been forgotten. David forgot about the rules that said to treat the ark with the utmost respect, to not touch it, to carry it in a certain way, with poles, with reverence, not on some cart. But not the second time around. This time… When he retrieved the Ark… David did it right. And not only did David worship and celebrate… but David danced before the Ark with all his might. What David remembered, and what we need to remember too, is that the presence of God is a blessing and is to be celebrated, even in the midst of all of its power. “David danced before the LORD with all his might; David was girded with a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet.” David was King but there was no private, quiet, dignified worship for him. NOOO… He led the way with trumpets and dancing. In fact, the verses that follow this reading tell us that it was such a spectacle that his wife reprimanded him for it telling him that it was an embarrassment that a king would act in such a manner. But David simply reminded her that he was celebrating before the Lord who had chosen him to be king. When was the last time you worshipped the Lord by truly celebrating… with joy and exuberant praise? When was the last time you jumped to your feet… cried out Alleluia and danced before God? Can you even imagine dancing before the Lord… let alone with all your might? Definitely seems like a strange concept considering the debates we have simply over what music is “appropriate” in church. Classic traditional hymns vs. contemporary selections, pipe organ or praise band. But Dancing? That would make so many people in our churches cringe like David’s wife… its inappropriate… undignified… unheard of. Maybe the problem for us is that we have forgotten that when the community gathers together for worship, we gather in the very presence of the Holy and Living God. Instead of celebrating this amazing fact, we play it safe… we restrain ourselves and become spectators instead of full-fledged participants. We tend to turn worship into a routine event… one that fills an hour and maybe even entertains us a bit. The problem is that when we do this… it makes our time of worship about US… NOT about celebrating and praising God. We fail to connect with the God who created us, loves us and sustains us. We need to spend time truly worshiping God in spirit and in truth. We live in our heads much of the time these days... there are times we need to just let loose… to let the problems of this world slip away as we rejoice and celebrate in the Lord. Our God is amazing and more powerful than we can ever imagine… God is mighty and is to be feared… we stand in awe of this powerful deity… the Lord of all creation… and yet, this is the God of love and grace… worthy to be praised… the God of mystery to be worshipped and celebrated. Like David we need to dance before the Lord with all our might. We need to come before the Lord with an air of celebration and joy. Now I am not suggesting we all get up and do the Hokey Pokey, but worshipping God is more than coming to church and sitting (sometimes sleeping) in the pews. We need to joyfully, exuberantly praise God with our whole selves. Our celebrations reveal the God of love and joy to the world around us… and as we celebrate and rejoice before God we pass on the inheritance of our faith to the generations yet to come. We are to celebrate the love and grace we have received through Jesus the Christ. We are to express our gratitude because the Christian life is a life of joy and celebration. When our lives are touched by the love of God, God’s grace flows into our hearts and enable us to better demonstrate God’s love to the world around us through our acts of compassion and grace to others... providing a channel for love and healing. It is through our worship of God that we can become a visible symbol of God’s presence to others outside these walls. Let is remember that life is a gift from God… a joyous dance and Jesus our savior is the Lord of the Dance!! If our hearts are moved, so our bodies, our lips, our voices and our very lives will be. So “Dance, then, wherever you may be, I am the Lord of the Dance, said he, And I'll lead you all, wherever you may be, And I'll lead you all in the Dance, said he” Dance and Let all the world see God within you.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Yeon Shin
|