The ark of the covenant is back.
We last saw the ark in 1 Samuel 7. It played a major part in the opening stories of this book. We may have forgotten about it. Israel may have, too.
But David has not.
David has taken the city of Jerusalem. It’s a strategic city, highly defensible from enemy attacks. He’s making it his capital. And now he goes to the edge of the kingdom to retrieve the ark of the covenant in order to make it an essential part of his new city.
Remember, the ark of the covenant was made during the desert wanderings after Israel went through the Red Sea and met God at Sinai. This was the symbol of God’s presence with His people. Women and men were made to live in the presence of God, made in the very image of the Almighty. But because of the Fall, the human race lost the presence of God.
It has always been God’s intention to live right smack in the middle of his people.
Now David takes this symbol of God’s holy presence and puts it center stage in his new capital city. The kingdom will revolve around the Presence.
The good king leads people to the presence of God. The good king puts the Presence in the middle.
How willing are we to be like David, take God off the shelf and put Him right in the middle of the hustle and bustle of life?
What might it look like to refuse to take another step forward, like David, until God was the center of all your activity?
What will it take for you to insist on God’s presence in your life and all those you influence?
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