Carrying the Presence of God
Part 1
Being a presence bearer implies a life of continual preparation and sanctification. Have we done all we can to be holy, to steady our hearts in forgiveness and continue to take captive our thoughts by the washing of our minds by God's word? Be warned that God judges continued and rebellious presumption.
Lastly, God blesses those who have the ark, or are the carriers of God's presence. Not only are they blessed, but their entire household were also blessed. In this case, Obed-Edom's son's were blessed although later they ended up being corrupt priests, continuing to worship at Shiloh even though the ark was moved to Zion. They were performing ritualistic worship and were leading others to do the same when God's presence was gone. Paul says about Godless people, their 2TI 3:5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them. God's power is not released in a form or religion but through His presence.
Has your worship grown stale? Maybe you are not worshiping in God's presence. There are a lot of reasons that God's presence might be hard to find, but a worshiper cannot maintain religious integrity by allowing empty worship. There are times that require that we press into God's presence and it will take a persistent effort to get past the comforts that hinder us. God's worshipers know how to worship Him despite what might be going on in or around them.
In review we learn from David's example four ways of being carriers of God's presence. First, is our worship informed by the Bible or by historical worshippers? Secondly, are desiring a fresh experience with God. His mercies are new every morning; our worship should also be new every morning. Third, are we living a live worthy of God's presence? Forth, cast aside the things that keep you from worshipping.
Next time we will talk about living a life that radiates God's presence.
Used by churches all over the world to help teach worship, the Experiencing Worship study can help your worship team too.
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This is the debut album by EXW friend Paul Langford. Paul is a Chicago based singer, arranger, keyboardist, producer and conductor. Paul has a career that spans 14 years. Paul's work includes arranging for groups like GLAD, Voices of Liberty, VoiceTrek, The Chicago based "Caroling Party" and Day of Discovery Singers. His arranging has appeared on recordings side by side with greats like Gene Puerling and David Maddux, and he has sung with Don Shelton, Bonnie Herman and Bob Bowker, among others.