A Christian's Labour

How true it is:  unless the LORD builds the house, they labour in vain who build it.  The great fallacy is that if God is doing the building, men need not labour.  The deception is that somehow, someway, the house will be built without us.  God works in and through His people.  Each man is responsible to built his own house:  we are either building for God or someone else.  In His wisdom beyond our comprehension, God has chosen to use men to labour for His glory.  Certainly the angels appear from a human perspective more suited for such heavenly work than mere men!

I read yesterday about when David desired to bring the Ark of God into the city of David.  Since King Saul had killed the priests at Nob, no one had inquired of the LORD with the Ark (1 Chron. 13:3).  The Ark was placed on a new cart pulled by oxen amid celebrating people who sang and played instruments unto God.  As the procession moved along, the oxen stumbled and Uzza steadied the Ark with his hand.  Suddenly he was struck dead and the procession halted.  God's anger was kindled against Uzza because he had touched the Ark in disobedience to the Law, and David was displeased that such a joyous occasion ended in tragedy.  The Ark remained in the house of Obed-edom for three months and his house was richly blessed by God (1 Chron. 13:14).

How could this tragedy have been prevented?  The Ark was designed to be carried on poles by Levites, men chosen and sanctified for this role.  It was never intended to bump along a path pulled by oxen just as they would haul dung in a cart!  Carrying the Ark of God was a man's job, not just another thing for oxen to drag along.  This breach upon Uzza caused David to do research, prepare a place for the Ark to rest, and properly organize the priests and Levites.  In 1 Chronicles 15:12-13 David said to them, "You are the heads of the fathers' houses of the Levites; sanctify yourselves, you and your brethren, that you may bring up the ark of the LORD God of Israel to the place I have prepared for it. ¹³ For because you did not do it the first time, the LORD our God broke out against us, because we did not consult Him about the proper order."  How important it is to consult God in everything!  Only after consulting with God can a man know the proper order.  God works in us both to will and do His good pleasure.  This communication only comes through communion.  Reverence is the good fruit of divine revelation.

This story has a joyous ending!  1 Chronicles 15:25-26 reads, "So David, the elders of Israel, and the captains over thousands went to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD from the house of Obed-Edom with joy. ²⁶ And so it was, when God helped the Levites who bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD, that they offered seven bulls and seven rams."  It was men who bore the Ark, but it was God who helped them.  Unless men stood up and were sanctified to do the work of God, the Ark would have remained in the house of Obed-edom.  God did not want to bless a single house, but the whole nation.  Notice how God "helped the Levites."  The word "helped" in Hebrew means, "surround, protect, or aid."  God protected them as they walked according to God's design.  He aided them in providing them physical strength and courage to perform His will.  Labour comes at a cost, and seven bulls and rams did not come cheap.  A principle of sacrifice for God is it must cost us something.  Any work we do for God will involve commitment and sacrifice.  Our greatest sacrifice is nothing when compared to the reward for obedience.

The Ark of the Covenant at one time housed the 10 Commandments on two tables of stone, a pot of manna, and Aaron's rod which budded.  People still wonder what may have happened to the Ark.  Because the 1st Covenant of the Law has been superseded by the 2nd Covenant of Christ's blood, the Ark is only a relic.  It used to be that the Spirit of God dwelt between the cherubim over the mercy seat which was sprinkled with the blood of sacrifice.  Every born-again Christian is now the Temple of the Holy Spirit, having been sprinkled with the blood of Jesus Christ through faith.  Though we do not need to carry the Ark around on gilded poles, all Christians are tasked to carry the Gospel and the presence of God everywhere.  God doesn't simply want to bless our families or church groups:  we are to spread the words of life to all who are lost, to those outside our comfortable circles.  God has sanctified every follower of Christ to carry this message of salvation and peace.  It's not a job only for men or Levites:  it is a calling for every Christian both young and old.

How wonderful it is to know that God will help us when we carry the Good News to the world!  He will surround us with angels, protect us with His mighty right arm, and aid us in wisdom, understanding, and utterance.  We need not fear when we are on God's side.  Instead of bringing the threat of death, Christ brought the hope of life.  Let us be faithful imitators of Him!