The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1908-10-01
Jf7e
Sn7oo,l-Scf7Oof
INTERNATIONAL LESSON COM
MENTs FOR OCTOBER A.
Subject; David Brings the ARK to Jc-
rusalem, Sam. 0--Golden Text,
Ps. tO0:f-Commit Verse 12-


Ps. fOO:f-Commit Verse 12-
Read Chron. Chapters 10, ., tG.
TIME. -1045 B. C. PLACE
| Kirjath-iearlm.
EXPOSITION. II. bringing Up
! Gods Ark In Mans Way, leo. This Is
one of the most solemn and searching
passages In the entire Bible. II
! teaches a lesson needed to be learned
| In our day. It shows us how neces-
| sary It is TO serve God in Gods way.
Z David's desire to bring up the ark OF
| Gods presence into his own city, the
very centre of the national life, was
! most commendable; but he should
| have inquired from Gods own book
/ the proper way In which to bring 1t
mp 1t was declared there with per-
feet plainness tNu. 4:5-12; 7:9).
| His neglect TO consult and obey the
Word of God got David and others as
well into great trouble. Neglect OF
Gods Word has gotten many well
meaning man into great trouble, and
his friends also. The ark was the
symbol Of Jehovah's s own holy and
glorious presence. Men must be
taught to treat II with the reverence
aue 20 His great and holy Name. 1t
was the ark of God which Is called
by the Name, even the name Of the
Lord of hosts" The ark.was also a
remarkable tyre OF Christ. Christ is
Immapuel. God with US, and the ark
was the symbol Of Gods presence
with His people. Moreover, in the
! ark the law Of God was perfectly
kept, and in Christ the law Of God is
! perfectly kent Further still, over
| . 10 l-g In tya hlnnh-
J sprinkled mercy seat whore God met
, His people (Ex 25:1S-22). In Christ
we have our blood-sprinkled mercy
| seat where God meets and communes
with us David had no intention Of
not comforting due honor on the ark
! of God. He made great and costly
preparations. He gathered together
all the chosen men of Israel, thirty
! thousand" IL Is often said that II
/ does not make any difference what
man believes or does If ne is only sim
| cere David was perfectly sincere,
| hut he was wrong - and 1t made Q
| great deal of difference both to him
and to Uzzah. David was tc blame
! for his ignorance. He had the means
of enlightenment. If men to-day are
| ignorant of what is in the Word of
! God and suffer for ii. II is their own
| fault. They cannot blame God for it,
though they would often like to. The
ark had been in Kirjath-jearim twen-
ty years & Sam. I'D. Men always
get into trouble when they try to i'm
prove on CT as way. God had given
| explicit command that the sons OF
Iiohath bear the ark upon their shoul-
ders (Nu. 4:4-1s; 7;9), and a new
cart under the circumstances was no
better than an old cart. David had
really learned this improved plan
from the heather ;cf. Sam. 6:7. 81.
| That is whs;e all improvements upon
! Gods way come from.
III. Gods Judgment on Disobcdi-
cnce and IPreverencc, Go. David s
folly was soon made manifest. He
! had sown the seed of disobedience
and soon reaped harvest of greater
disobedience and death. A cart drawn
| by oxen, even though it was a new
cart. was no place fcr the ark; and
| trouble soon comes. the oxen stun
hled." OF course they did, but what
| had oxen TO - with drawing Gods
ark? The pl,:e for that was upon
the shoulders of fit men. II was quite
natural for U2Zah to put forth his
hand to steady the ark, but it was al
together wrong. 1t was an act of eN-
| plicit disobedience (" God, and CT
! gross irreverence. ETen the sons Cf
Kohath, who were divinely appointed
to bear the ark, we're not permitted
| 10 touch the arb, or even to look at IL
! for q moment (Nu. 4:15. 19, 20, T.
! W. Those are very solemn words
with which the 7th verse opens. r.
/ reverence towards God and His holy
name is an awful sin, and God in His
great mercy often deals very sternly
| with It in order that we may know
| Row He regards 1t (cf. Lev. 24:11-16;
| 1919; Sam. 6:19) Even in the
( Christian dispensation men are cut
| OF when they approach the table that
sets forth the solemn truth about
! Chrlst's atoning death in a thought
! less way Il Cor. 11:27-30). We do
! not need TO suppose that Uzzah was
| eternally lost He simply suffered
| temporal punishment for his sin, even
unto death (cf / Cor. 11:30-32; G.
| 81. David was displeased at God 5
| Judgment: he might much better have
| been displeased with his own folly
that made that judgment necessary.
| When he had taken time to think ii
| over he put the blame where II be-
| longed, on himself Il Chron. 1911
| 13). We are often tempted to be
displeased at Gods judgments when
| a little honest reflection would show
| us that we are to blame ourselves,
and that Gods Judgment is only a
merclful way of bringing us TO our
! senses.
III. God Dlesses the Home in
Which He Dwells, 1912. We have
Just seen God dealing in Judgment,
and now we see Him dealing in mer-
cy. A moment ago all was death
now all is blessing. Obed-edom was
only a heathen by descent, a Gittite
(cf ch. 15:19), but he welcomed the
presence OF God in his home. and
God blessed Obed-edom and all his
household" Nothing else brings
such blessing to a house as the pres
ence OF God in It, That ark in his
home was the symbo! of Christ in ouI
homes. Where He is there is bless
ing for all (cr. Acts 1o:Sl)s