Address—G.H. Hayhoe
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First Chronicles, chapter 1230, second verse.
And of the children of Issachar, which were men that had understanding of the times to know what Israel ought to do, the heads of them were 200 and all their brethren were at their commandment.
Then the 38th verse, all these men of war that could keep rank, came with a perfect heart to Hebron to make David king over all Israel.
And all the rest also of Israel were of one heart to make David king. And there they were with David three days, eating and drinking, for their brethren had prepared for them. Moreover, they that were nigh them, even unto Isakar and Zebulun and Naphtali, brought bread on ***** and on camels, and on mules.
And on oxen and meat meals.
Cakes or figs and bunches of raisins and wine and oil and oxen and sheep abundantly where there was joy in Israel.
I'd like to read as some other things from the passages that follow here, but I was thinking brethren, how this little scene that is brought before us would perhaps correspond to the happy 3 days that we have had together here as we have been over the precious word of God.
And oh, how lovely it is that we can be here of one heart.
To be occupied with our David, with the Lord Jesus, to seek to give him the place that is due to him. And here we find that these were men of war. They were those who had been valiant, who had sought to stand for the truth of God. It particularly mentions about the men of Isakar that they had an understanding of the times to know what Israel ought to do.
And surely, brethren, we do need in these times.
To have an understanding of situations that exist so that we can be a help one to another.
The Word of God is written for all time. It is written to suit the need of every time, whether it be in the days of the apostles or whether it be today in the year 1970. It is perfectly adapted to our present needs because it's the Word of God. When men write books, they have to rewrite them as times change.
But not God, what God gives us is the truth and is suited to our need and in a evil way. I'd like to try and bring a few things from these chapters that perhaps have a present application to our very day. Here were these happy 3 days.
But those happy 3 days have sort of been a measure. He had the real state of things of the people of God.
And God is so good to us that when we come together in times like this.
Our hearts are lifted above present things, lifted above difficulties and problems that some of us may face.
Whether it be in assemblies, or in home, or in business, and in the goodness of God, we are withdrawn from all that to spend our three days with our David, with the Lord Jesus, occupied with him, filled with His love and goodness, and our brethren have prepared to for our temporal needs.
And so it has truly been a time of rejoicing. But this time of rejoicing came to an end.
And the people of God in this day had to face realities again.
They had to meet situations that were not always the easiest. And so it is with us. When these three days come to an end, as they have just about done, we have to return to our own assemblies. We have to return to our own homes, to business and things that confront us. They're going to be exactly the same when we go back. But I hope that we'll be different. If we're different, then we'll be able to meet these situations.
Even though they haven't changed. That's why it tells us in the Psalms. He maketh my feet like Hinds feet.
He maketh me to walk upon mine high places. I'm sure we've all watched the little deer as it comes to an obstacle in the way and it doesn't remove the obstacle, doesn't ask to have the obstacle removed. It just makes a graceful little spring and up it goes over that fence or over the obstacle and all. How nicely.
It just seems to act as though the obstacle were not there. Well, brethren, that's what the Lord wants to do with us, too. He wants us to have Heinz feet so that we might be able to rise above the difficulties even though they remain. Only there's something nice about what it says.
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He maketh my feet like hindspeed, and then it says he maketh me to walk upon mine high places in all the little hind. When it goes up over the fence, it comes down on the other side.
To the same level it was before. But it says here that the Lord enables us to rise up, and then to walk upon my high places. That is to be above the difficulty in the enjoyment of the one in whose company we desire to be.
So here there was a time of great joy and of great feasting. But now I want you to notice the beginning of the 13th chapter.
And David consulted with the captains of thousands and hundreds, and with every leader. And David said unto all the congregation of Israel, If it seemed good unto you, and it and that it be of the Lord our God, let us send abroad unto our brethren everywhere.
That are left in all the land of Israel, and with them also to the priests and Levites, which are in their cities and suburbs, that they may gather themselves unto us. And on a spring again the ark of our God to us. For we inquired not at it in the days of Saul, And all the congregation said that they would do so. For the thing was right in the eyes of all the people.
And the sixth verse And David went up, and all Israel to Bala, that is, to Kurdish Durham, which belongeth to Judah, to bring up fence the ark of God, the Lord that dwelleth between the cherubims, whose name is called upon it. And they carried the ark of God in a new cart out of the House of Abinadab and Aza, and a higher.
Drove. Drove the cart.
Here we find a mistake that is, after all this happy time, what did David do? Well, he looked to man instead of to the Lord. He consulted with the captains of thousands and hundreds, and with every leader. And because we have had a happy time together, there is perhaps a tendency with us to look to man and not to realize that the only way of meeting the.
That come up is by looking to the Lord and being guided by His word. But David looked to man, and he thought good advice. You might say. He went to the captains of thousands and hundreds and every leader.
And it tells us in the fourth verse all the congregation said that they would do so, for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people. He went to these leaders, he sought their advice. And shall we say he was going to do a right thing, but we find he was doing it in a wrong way. And it's possible for us.
Too to do a right thing in a wrong way.
To desire to please the Lord, to serve Him, to go on for him, and yet to have sought the advice of others instead of sought the mind of the Lord through His word. This, I believe is a great danger and perhaps more especially after three days meetings. We've been here, we've enjoyed one another's company, we've enjoyed the ministry. And so we get our eyes.
Instead of upon the Lord, we remember how that the disciples went up to the Mount of Transfiguration.
And there they saw Moses and Elias talking with Jesus and Peter said.
Let us make here 3 Tabernacles, one for Thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.
He would actually have put the Lord on a level with Moses and Elias. And then we find that after this experience, when they came down from the mountain and there was a a man who met them, wanting them to cast out the evil spirit from his child, they weren't able to do it.
I believe it was because they had their eye upon man. They were occupied with an experience.
Instead of in full depends upon the Lord and we can have this same feeling.
We can be so happy that we have been together and think, oh we've heard precious things, we've enjoyed the ministry together. Now things are going to be different and we find the first situation that we meet, we're quite unable for it, it's too much for us. So we go and ask someone's advice, just like David did, and they give us advice.
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And this advice that was given by the captains of thousands and hundreds and every leader.
Was not according to the word of God, Alhamdulillah verse. See she from man whose breath is in his nostrils, For wherein is he to be accounted of? And let me say again, brethren, that when we go back to our little gatherings, as our brother mentioned in his prayer, where there are often difficulties and problems, we need to have our eye upon the Lord.
If we have our eye upon man.
We are sure to face disappointment. Well, they made a new cart now. This was a new idea. This was surely going to solve the situation. And I say again, it was a good purpose definitely to bring up the Ark of God from the House of.
Benedict and the Hill was definitely a very good thing and but the idea, the way it was carried out.
Was a human idea. It was not according to the mind of God. It was the idea that they had learned from the Philistines, because when the Philistines had sent back the ark of God, they had put it upon a new cart, and God had prospered this plan in the hands of the Philistines. Why? Well, the Philistines didn't have the word of God.
They were not believers and when they acted in this way.
God honored the measure of desire there was, and He allowed the.
Are to be brought up safely upon the new cart made by the Philistines. But for those who had the word of God, for those who ought to have been depended upon the Lord, this was an entirely different matter. And so when they tried to do this.
There was great singing and there was great rejoicing, as if they would say, oh, now this matter is going to be solved. Things haven't been right in the past. Notice they said in the third verse, let us bring again the arc of our God to us, for we inquired, not added. In the days of Saul, they said, things haven't been right. We're going to set them right, but they were going to set them right in a human way. They weren't.
Right, according to God's plan. And so most of us know the story quite well. As they were going along with a higher and other driving the cart, the oxen stumbled. God couldn't bless this human plan. And so when the oxen stumbled, other put forth his hand to steady the ark, and God smote us. He showed his displeasure because it wasn't.
In his way, oh brethren, God is jealous for his own glory. He is desirous that we should do what we do according to His Word. He hasn't left us to our own ideas or resources. He hasn't hasn't left us to follow the ideas of man. Because God says my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord.
When Azar and Ohio were driving the cart, I suppose we might say they were the prominent people.
Everybody thought what a fine position they have driving that new cart with the arch on it. They were greatly honored men. But God's plan, as we learn the 15th chapters, was that the ark was to be carried on the shoulders of the Levites, and that would be high above their heads, so that the men would be hidden and the ark would be seen.
The truth of God always exalts Christ.
Men's plans always bring men into prominence, always give them honors, but honor is due only to the Lord Jesus Himself. Well, it tells us the oxen stumbled, ASA put forth his hand, and it says in the 11Th verse. And David was displeased because the Lord had made a breach upon Aza.
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Sometimes we get very displeased too because our plans don't work.
And we say, well I tried so hard and my plan didn't work and I really meant well and I asked advice of others and they said it was the right thing to do too.
Why didn't it seem to work?
He hadn't gone to the Word of God, He hadn't inquired of the Lord, and so the plan didn't work and he was displaced. Our brethren, is it right for us to get displeased? Isn't it better for us to get before the Lord? Thank God David did afterwards. He did afterwards. But I'd like to point out something that I think is very beautiful here, and that is.
That when this took place, it says in the 12 Person, David was afraid of God that day, saying, how shall I bring the ark of God home to me? It raised a question in his mind, a question that was later solved by dependence upon the Lord and by going to His word to find out the answer. But the point that I'd like to particularly bring out is this 13th verse.
It says.
So David brought not the ark home to himself, to the city of David, but carried it aside into the House of Obed Edom the giftite. And the ark of God remained with the family of Obed Edom in his house three months, and the Lord blessed.
The House of Obed Edom and all that he had. Now I think there's something very nice here.
And the point that I see and that I'd like to apply to our hearts is this, that when there is failure, when mistakes have been made, when we find people are displeased, isn't it nice to see that there was one family here that got a blessing from all this? And what family was it? The family that gave the ark of the Lord its place. Oh, how lovely this is. And perhaps in the assembly where you are, there are difficulties and problems.
But your home, your own personal life, can be still.
Carried on in communion with the Lord in a way pleasing to him and this very sad circumstance that arose in Israel, this mistake that was made by the leaders and by David himself was overruled of God and this one family got a blessing through it. Paul Braden. Is it possible the trials and difficulties.
In home life and in business life and in the assembly can actually turn into a blessing.
Yes, if the oxen stumble on your plan, if the oxen stumble and things don't seem to workout, the Lord still has a blessing in it when we seek to take it from Him, when we, as it were, give the Lord His rightful place in our homes and in our lives. And when David was upset because his plan didn't work, here was one man and one family that got a blessing.
And all, let us not be discouraged.
It's similar to what we have in the third epistle of John. Things were in an unhappy state when.
John wrote the third epistle. There was a man named who loved to have the preeminence.
But it's nice that John by the Spirit of God writes to Gaius and tells him, Follow that which is evil. Follow not that which is evil, but that which is good. Now do us faithfully, whatsoever thou doest to the brethren and and to strangers. So there was a home even in that assembly that was enjoying fellowship with the Lord, and here was the home in Israel.
In the midst of failure.
In the midst of what really dishonored the Lord that was still enjoying sweet and happy fellowship with the Lord and because this home was open because the Lord was given his rightful place. It says the Lord blessed the House of all that Edom and all that he had while he kept the ark of God there for the three months all may this be our experience If there's anyone here and you're discouraged and you.
I don't see how I can be happy or how things can be happy. Remember, the Lord is always faithful. He is able to fill our hearts. Jesus Christ the same yesterday and today and forever. The principle in God's ways is where sin abounded. Grace did much more abound again.
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Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.
So how sweet it is to see this happy family.
Family in the midst of a sad condition that existed among the people of God as a whole, and even David himself upset and displeased.
When we come to the next chapter.
Here we find.
The eighth verse. When the Philistines heard that David was anointed king over all Israel, all the Philistines went up to seek David, and David heard of it, and David went out against them. The Philistines came and spread themselves in the valley of Rapium, and David inquired of God, saying.
Shall I go up against the Philistines, and wilt thou deliver them into my hand? And the Lord said unto him, Go up, and I I will, for I will deliver them into thy hand. Here we find that David had profited too from this experience. He didn't go and ask, Now the captains of thousands and hundreds, and every leader, what should I do?
How will I meet this situation? What did he do?
He got on his knees, he got before the Lord. Another thing to notice that even when there was a desire to honor the Lord for the bringing up of the ark, as I said, was a good desire. It was very nice that David had such a desire that that ark which was a symbol of God's presence among his people. For God said about the mercy seat on top of the ark.
There I will meet with thee, and there.
I will commune with thee. That was a wonderful thing, that ark. And when the Philistines heard that David was honored as king, and the people had desired to bring up the ark, then the Philistines made an attack. So there was not only failure within, but the enemy came in from without too, and he was going to try and break up everything.
Oh, how busy he is. Don't we feel it in these last days, brethren, the enemy is busy. Weakness within.
The power of the enemy from without is, our brother reminded us in the young people's meeting. Is there deliverance? Is there power? Can we meet it if all the captains of thousands and hundreds were giving bad advice? If other was smitten and David was displeased?
Had God-given up his people? Had He forsaken them? No. When there was a cry of dependence upon Him, he heard it. He heard it and all. Let me say to you, if there has been things, if there has been things that have discouraged you and cast you down, remember the Lord hears the cry of dependence upon him.
And God broke out upon the enemies of Israel, and David had a great victory over these Philistines.
Why? Because they were in such a good state. Because they were dependent on the Lord. God was showing that the way of victory was to be dependent upon Him and that He was able to come in and help His people when there was a true turning to Him. Well, the enemy didn't give up. Notice again the 13th verse and the Philistines yet again.
Spread themselves abroad in the Valley.
Then David inquired again of God, and God said unto him, Go not up after them, turn away from them, and call upon them over against the Mulberry trees. 16th verse David therefore did as God commanded him, and they smoked the host of the Philistines from Gibeon, even to Gazer.
Oh how wonderful. This is the second attack. The enemy will never leave us alone.
If we defeat once, by the power of God, he's not going to say, well, I'll give them up. No, the enemy is going to try the second time. And so here he gathers himself again. The Philistines come out, and what did David do? Isn't this lovely? David inquired again of God. He didn't act on the precedence. He could have said, well.
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We did it this way the last time, so we'll do it this way this time. It worked last time, so we'll try it this same way this time. Now he inquired of God, and God told him to go about the situation in a different way the second time than the first. The first time he had told him how to attack them. The second time he told him an entirely different thing.
It says here that he was to not go up after them, turn away from them, and come upon them. Now this seemed like a weakness itself, to turn away from them and go around and listen for the sound in the Mulberry trees, and then go out and God would give a victory. Sometimes we go by a precedence. We say, well, we did it this way before.
And so we're going to do it this way this time too. Well, perhaps it won't work. What we need in every fresh circumstance that arises is fresh dependence upon the Lord. Perhaps we might say, well, we did it this way some years ago, but we're living in 1970 now, and we need fresh wisdom from the Lord for this year and for this situation.
And for what? Our dear young people are meeting not in 1960, but in 1970.
They are meeting a different situation. Is God sufficient for it? Is His Word sufficient? Is He able to meet the difficulties of 1970 just as He was able to meet them in 1960, just as He was able to meet them in 8060? He is sufficient. But He would teach us dependence. He would teach us that we must look to Him, and that we must find from Him the wisdom for all.
Comes up for nothing, happens by chance. There was a second victory, a second victory. God granted a great victory. Again, David was encouraged. Now David before had been displeased. He'd been cast down. He'd been discouraged, but he had learned something by the experience. Brethren, do we learn something by the experiences of the pathway? I've made many mistakes.
I hope by the grace of God, He will help me to profit by the mistakes and by the experiences that He passes us through. I hope that He will. And here we find that David did profit. And so it tells us here in the 15th chapter in the first verse.
And David made him houses in the city of David, and prepared a place for the ark of God, and pitched for an attempt. Now notice this second verse. Then David said.
Carry the ark of the God. But the Levites, for them hath the Lord chosen to carry the ark of God, and to minister unto him forever.
Passing on to the 13th verse. 12Th verse. And said unto them, Ye are the chief of the Fathers of the Levites. Sanctify yourselves.
Both he and your brethren.
That she may bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel into the place that I have prepared for it. For because she did it not. At the 1St, the Lord our God made a breach upon us, for that we sought him not after the Jew. Order the 15th verse. And the children of the Levites bear the ark of God upon their shoulders, with the staves thereof, as Moses commanded.
According to the word of the Lord.
Now we see there were two things in the first instance where David made a mistake. He didn't ask the Lord, He didn't go to the Word. He consulted with captains of thousands and hundreds and every leader, and the plan failed. But now he has learned the need of those two things. He has learned dependence, for twice we find him in prayer.
In the mind of God in the 14th chapter. And now we find Him.
Searching the Word, getting the answer from the Word, and those two things always go together in Christian life. If we would walk here to please God, the reading of the Word and prayer, they must go together for blessing. And so David didn't consult with the captains of thousands and hundreds and with every leader. David took the place now of being absolutely sure of what he said.
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How could he be so sure? Could he actually look into the face of these men?
And say I am going to tell you now what should be done.
Said it's the word of the Lord.
It wasn't David telling them he had the word of God for it. And when you and I have the word of God for our past, what peace it gives, what true assurance. If we trust our own opinions, even the best might be mistaken. But if we trust the word of God, we can be sure heaven and earth shall pass away, but my word shall not pass away.
So we find here that David gives the word of God its proper place, and he tells them none ought to carry the ark of God but the Levites. And then he acknowledges the mistake too, which took much humility. He said because we didn't seek the Lord after the Jew order, He made that breach upon us and he said we must do it.
As we have in the end of the 15th verse, as Moses commanded according to the word of the Lord.
How beautiful this is.
So we find these two things.
Dependence in prayer and following the Word of God.
Now the desire that he had was the same desire on this occasion.
Before, he had wanted to bring up the ark of God.
He hasn't changed this desire. It's the same desire, but it's had to be done in God's way. People say, well, I want to serve the Lord. I'd like to worship the Lord. We must find the answer in the word of God. We must find it independence in prayer. You say, I'd like to please the Lord in that situation in my home.
I'd like to please the Lord in that situation. In my business, I'd like to have the Lord's solution to that problem that has arisen in the assembly.
Has there been true dependence upon the Lord? Has there been a turning to His word? And shall I go a step further? Has there been a willingness to admit that we made a mistake? David did. David admitted. Think of him, King.
King David acknowledging that he made a mistake. The hardest thing for any of us to do is to say, well, I made a mistake. I didn't do it the right way. I didn't ask the Lord, I didn't go by his word. I just followed the advice of others.
We see these things brought before us in the Word of God. What blessed lessons? This happened hundreds of years ago, I suppose we could say almost 3000 years ago.
But is still suited to our needs today. We're the same and the Lord is the same. The Lord is the same, perfectly able for the situations. And rather than I do believe that many of our difficulties would be solved, many of our problems would be overcome if we remembered those three things.
Prayer and the Word of God and the willingness to admit that we made a mistake.
We made a mistake. God came in. Know what a happy ending there is to this story? They got the Ark of God.
Was placed upon the shoulders of the Levites, and they carried it up to Jerusalem with shouting and with joy. The oxen didn't stumble. There weren't any oxen there. There wasn't any new cart that might allow the ark of God to tip.
There weren't, there wasn't an Aaya there to get a great deal of prominence and glory and say these are the people that solved the situation for us, No.
How lovely this is, that ark for those cherubims of glory.
The place where the blood was sprinkled, all that honored and exalted God and God's plan and God's way. This was what was prominent. And as those people, those Levites, carried the ark upon their shoulders, the people looked, and the heads of the ones that carried it were all hidden. But how lovely there was that.
To which God would attract attention, without which though could be presence of God among his people.
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Oh, how lovely. God delights to honor His Son. God delights to give his beloved Son the rightful place. And in glory, brethren, heaven is going to be heaven because the Lord Jesus has His rightful place, because He's everything.
Because He is above all that throne on which he sits, and those redeemed hosts around him, saying, Thou art worthy, for thou was slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood, out of every kindred and tongue and people and nation. Well, we know, as I say, the happy story and how they went up, what rejoicing there was, what singing there was.
And they carried the ark of God all the way up to its appointed place.
And there it was, and it tells us here there's perhaps just one little sad note which shows what the natural heart is, the 29th verse. And it came to pass as the ark of the covenant of the Lord came to the city of David, that Michael, a daughter of Saul, looking out of the window, saw King David dancing and playing.
And she despised him. In her heart. She was one who was not, I believe, a true believer.
She was one, a daughter of King Saul, who was a man after the flesh. She couldn't see any reason for all this rejoicing. She could quite understand that she didn't despise David when they were bringing up the ark on the new cart, but she did despise David when he rejoiced. Shall I say that the Lord was having his rightful place? The flesh never wants to see the Lord have his rightful place, the flesh.
Christian wants some recognition for self, some place for self, some honor for self and cannot see how the Lord should have all the glory and all the praise, but he's worthy of it. Brethren, may we check the flesh that would want to have some honor for myself that would like to be able to say, well I did it, the Lord used me, I was the one that gave this good advice.
Oh, how our natural hearts like to have some little place and we are so anxious for it. May the Lord give us grace to see that He wants to honor His Son. He wants the Lord Jesus to have His rightful place. Now I just want to notice a little portion in the first part of the 16th chapter.
So they brought the ark of God and set it in the midst of the 10th that David pitched for it.
And they offered burnt sacrifices and peace offerings before God.
And when David had made an end of offering the brute offerings and the peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord. And he dealt to every man, everyone of Israel, both man and woman, to everyone a loaf of bread and a good piece of flesh and a flag of wine. And he appointed certain of the Levites to minister before the ark of the Lord.
And to record and to thank and praise.
The Lord God of Israel, well they brought the ark to the appointed place here and David doesn't take any credit to himself. It says they offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. I might say that I believe the burnt offering brings before us what the work of Christ is to the heart of God.
And how lovely it is to see here these burnt offerings.
That which recognized what Christ is not only to us, but what He is to the heart of God. For God delights to have his Son honored, and it should give us delight to do what is pleasing to Him. And then the peace offering has often been remarked. The peace offering could be called the communion offering because the peace offering was actually.
One that the people could eat of.
They could share in it. And isn't it a lovely thing that you and I, when we seek to do God's will and we seek to please him and honor him, we can actually enter into the thoughts of God, so to speak, in the burnt offering. And we can hold fellowship, communion with God. We can actually enjoy fellowship with God in our own souls. And so here we find.
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When this was done.
That it says He blessed the people in the name of the Lord. Well, the time came then that this happy assemblage had to break up this grand gathering of the people of God that had such blessing from God and now had to break up. I notice what it says the third verse. And He dealt to everyone of His Israel, both man and woman.
To everyone.
A loaf of bread and a good piece of flesh and a flag and a wine. Yes, they had to break up. We noticed in the beginning they'd had three days of eating and drinking altogether, with one heart to make David king. But now this was all going to break up, and they were going to their homes. Did they go away empty? God says in his word, None shall appear before me empty.
But does He send us away empty? Does He send us away empty? He doesn't want us to appear before Him empty. He surely done so much for us that we ought to have praise and Thanksgiving in our hearts to Him. But I say again, does he send us away empty? No, never. And so it tells us here that each one received a loaf of bread.
Well, if I could just apply this.
I believe the scripture does. And the loaf of bread, The Lord Jesus was the bread of God that came down from heaven.
Perhaps we could think of the Brad says that which is associated with our wilderness life.
Just as the children of Israel eat man as they went through the wilderness, so all their needs were met in that dry and thirsty land by the manner that fell. And so the Lord said, your Father's the manna in the wilderness and our dead. I am the true bread that came down from heaven. And so isn't it nice we're going to face wilderness life again.
We're going to go back and the office is going to be the same.
Yes, the home is going to be the same, perhaps the assembly too, but we can carry a loaf of bread. That is, we can have the food for the soul that enables us to go on in the wilderness pathway and then it speaks of a good piece of flesh. Well, Paul spoke to the Hebrews and said.
That he wanted to feed them with meat, not just with milk he wanted them to have.
More mature food. I hope we've learned a little more of Christ. I hope we've gained a little more knowledge of himself. I hope we can say that we're going to carry away a good piece of flesh. That is something that has contributed to our spiritual growth in the things of God. He doesn't want us to remain babes forever. He wants us to grow. He wants us to. It says strong meat belong us to them who are full age.
Even to those who, by reason of use, have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
And then last, a flagon of wine. All this tells us that not only to have comfort for the difficulties of the way, not only to have a better knowledge of Christ and what we have in him, but oh, I hope we'll also carry away a flagon of wine. I hope we'll also carry away a deeper enjoyment of himself.
That is, as it says, be not drunk with wine or in his excess, but be filled with the spirit.
And I trust that there will be a joy ministered to our hearts that as these three days are over and we leave again, that He will be comforted as we see these things. Isn't it lovely, brethren, as we trace this to see that which answers to the very things that we meet in our life, in our assembly life, the very same circumstances and conditions.
Existed among the people of God.
They displayed what was in their hearts, just as we display what is in our hearts. But God is faithful. God delights to bless. He's sufficient. And may we remember what it was that helped them in this, the situation. Let us think of that House of Obed Edom in a time of failure, where the ark of God was.
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Let us think of David praying and asking God's mind.
Let us think of him turning to the Word and discovering his mind. Let us think of his humility in being willing to admit that he was wrong. Let us think too, of his joy and the people's joy in giving the Lord his rightful place. And the result was that when the congregation broke up and they went to their homes again, that they carried away those three things.
And we carry away precious things with us too, things that will make a difference.
In our lives, that will show that we have received a blessing.
By being together, not that we will just talk about the fellowship that we had is a thing of the past, but something that we have for the present, that which we've carried with us from His bountiful supply.