Carriers of Glory — We Are Ecclesia

Oct 30

Oct 30 Carriers of Glory

I. The House of His Glory & Carriers of His Glory

a. Holy Spirit declared to East Gate that this year He was establishing us as the House of His Glory

i. Reminder – His glory is His goodness, which is His presence

Exodus 33:18-23 New King James Version
18 And he said, “Please, show me Your glory.”
19 Then He said, “I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” 20 But He said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.” 21 And the Lord said, “Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. 22 So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. 23 Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.”

ii. East Gate cannot be the House of His Glory, unless the people of East Gate are carriers of His Glory

b. David also had to learn how to host the glory of God before he could establish his house or tabernacle as the dwelling place of God’s glory.

2 Samuel 6:1-11 New King James Version
6 Again David gathered all the choice men of Israel, thirty thousand. 2 And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from [a]Baale Judah to bring up from there the ark of God, whose name is called [b]by the Name, the Lordof Hosts, who dwells between the cherubim. 3 So they set the ark of God on a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drove the new [c]cart. 4 And they brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill, accompanying the ark of God; and Ahio went before the ark. 5 Then David and all the house of Israel played music before the Lord on all kinds of instruments of fir wood, on harps, on stringed instruments, on tambourines, on sistrums, and on cymbals.
6 And when they came to Nachon’s threshing floor, Uzzah put out his hand to the ark of God and [d]took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled. 7 Then the anger of the Lord was aroused against Uzzah, and God struck him there for his [e]error; and he died there by the ark of God. 8 And David became angry because of the Lord’s outbreak against Uzzah; and he called the name of the place [f]Perez Uzzah to this day.
9 David was afraid of the Lord that day; and he said, “How can the ark of the Lord come to me?” 10 So David would not move the ark of the Lord with him into the City of David; but David took it aside into the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. 11 The ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite three months. And the Lord blessed Obed-Edom and all his household.

1. David wasn’t able to carry the Glory of God into his city or house.

II. We are Not Called to do ANYTHING the Way the World Does

a. David failed to bring the glory and presence of God into his city because he failed to carry the glory of God. This happened for a few reasons.

i. David foolishly attempted to carry the glory of God the way the Philistines did.

1. The world doesn’t know how to carry the glory or host the presence of God because His glory and presence stands opposed to the ways of the world.

a. Those who cannot dominate the glory of God have no choice but to reject it.

b. Sending Holy Spirit away is the ONLY way humanity can remain in sin, disobedience, and rebellion.

i. The enemy is trying so hard to remove God from family, education, government, media, arts and entertainment, business, and even religion, so that sin and unrighteousness can abound.

2. We CANNOT carry the glory of the Lord by imitating those who rejected His glory

3. We are NEVER to imitate those who fail to host His glory. We are NEVER to imitate those who reject His presence.

a. We can NEVER imitate churches, families, or individuals who fear man more than they fear God

b. We are not a seeker friendly, we are a Holy Spirit submitted

c. We can NEVER imitate churches, families, or people that compromise, tolerating and even celebrating sin

d. We can NEVER imitate churches, families, or people that call evil good and good evil

e. We can NEVER imitate churches, families, or people that support ungodly political leaders

4. If we carry His glory in the same way others rejected it, we will ultimately fail to host His presence and people close to us will lose their spiritual and sometimes even literal lives because of it just like Uzzah lost his physical life

ii. David opted for the easy way, the faster way, and the way that made more sense

1. It is believed the ark weighed anywhere from 600-1,000 lbs.

2. We are NEVER to make decisions based on what is easy, fastest, or makes the most sense, we read, hear and obey. That’s it.

b. Due to his failure, David rightly learned to fear the presence/Glory of God and not treat it as common. This fear initially led him to abandon his attempt to bring the ark into his house and he instead left it in the smaller house of Obed-Edom.

i. The Glory of God, Holy Spirit, does not care about the size of the house. His glory will dwell in whatever place has been prepared according to His ways and where hearts are postured rightly toward Him.

III. We are Called to God’s Ways

2 Samuel 6:12-15 New King James Version
12 Now it was told King David, saying, “The Lord has blessed the house of Obed-Edom and all that belongs to him, because of the ark of God.” So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with gladness. 13 And so it was, when those bearing the ark of the Lord had gone six paces, that he sacrificed oxen and fatted sheep. 14 Then David danced[g] before the Lord with all his might; and David was wearing a linen ephod. 15 So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouting and with the sound of the trumpet.
1 Chronicles 15 New King James Version
15 David built houses for himself in the City of David; and he prepared a place for the ark of God, and pitched a tent for it. 2 Then David said, “No one may carry the ark of God but the Levites, for the Lord has chosen them to carry the ark of God and to minister before Him forever.” 3 And David gathered all Israel together at Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the Lord to its place, which he had prepared for it. 4 Then David assembled the children of Aaron and the Levites: 5 of the sons of Kohath, Uriel the chief, and one hundred and twenty of his [a]brethren; 6 of the sons of Merari, Asaiah the chief, and two hundred and twenty of his brethren; 7 of the sons of Gershom, Joel the chief, and one hundred and thirty of his brethren; 8 of the sons of Elizaphan, Shemaiah the chief, and two hundred of his brethren; 9 of the sons of Hebron, Eliel the chief, and eighty of his brethren; 10 of the sons of Uzziel, Amminadab the chief, and one hundred and twelve of his brethren.
11 And David called for Zadok and Abiathar the priests, and for the Levites: for Uriel, Asaiah, Joel, Shemaiah, Eliel, and Amminadab. 12 He said to them, “You are the heads of the fathers’ houses of the Levites; [b]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 [c]about the proper order.”
14 So the priests and the Levites [d]sanctified themselves to bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel. 15 And the children of the Levites bore the ark of God on their shoulders, by its poles, as Moses had commanded according to the word of the Lord.

a. When David learned of the blessing Obed-Edom’s household received from the glory of God he once again longed to bring it into His house.

i. The Lord will make many of you Jealous for His presence. It’s not just this house that can be blessed, but yours as well.

b. Only this time, He did it according to the proper order

1 Chronicles 15:13 New King James Version
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 [a]about the proper order.”

i. The Proper Order for Carrying God’s Presence

1. David took time to LEARN of God’s ways for Himself

2. David took time to TEACH the Levites God’s ways

3. David took time to allow the Levites to PREPARE themselves

4. David stopped every six steps to WORSHIP

ii. This was SLOW – God is NEVER in a rush

1. Time to learn and inculcate God’s ways

a. So many leaders stop here and just start pulling the cart

2. Time to teach others God’s ways

3. Time for the Levites to mature or consecrate themselves

a. This is a word for families with children

b. It’s going to take them time to reflect the values of your house, and that’s if you’re taking the time to teach them constantly

4. Worshipped and sacrificed along the way every six steps for 10 MILES

a. Check in with Holy Spirit every six steps to make sure He’s still with you.

b. It’s too easy to lose Him when we are more focused on our destination than what we’re carrying

iii. This is a word for EVERY house represented in East Gate

1. Parents, learn God’s ways, teach your spouses and children

2. Give them time to get it and mature

3. And carry the glory as a household and watch as your house and everything in it is blessed

iv. God is attracted to and moved by obedience

1. If you love Me… obey My commandments (Joh 14:15)

2. If you obey My commandments you remain in My love, just like I obey My Father’s commandments and remain in His love. (John 15:10)

IV. Obeying His Ways Unlocks His Favor

Exodus 33:13 English Standard Version
13 Now therefore, if I have found favor in your sight, please show me now your ways, that I may know you in order to find favor in your sight. Consider too that this nation is your people.”

a. Moses asked to know God’s ways, so that he could know God and find favor in His sight. Let’s look at the favor that Israel received when they learned of God’s ways and carried His glory according to those ways.

i. Supernatural Strength and Endurance – this is FAVOR

1 Chronicles 15:26 New King James Version
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.

1. When you’re yoked with Jesus He does the heavy lifting

Matthew 11:28-30 New King James Version
28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am [a]gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

ii. Supernatural Unity

1. An Expansive Unity

a. The first attempt only the choice men could participate

b. The second all of Israel was involved

2. An Inclusive Unity

a. Not just follow me, but let’s steward this together – that’s favor

3. An Intentional Unity

a. When we ALL carry the glory, we will be in one accord like never before.

e. The load is shared by the house and the Lord

f. Everyone can bring their minds and strengths to the table

iii. Supernatural Worship

1. True Worship

John 4:23 New King James Version
23 But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.

a. The first attempt at carrying the glory it says that the people played music before the Lord

b. After they consulted the word about the proper order, David had Levites WORSHIP the Lord while he danced with all his might.

2. Sacrificial Worship

Romans 12:1 English Standard Version
12 I appeal to you therefore, brothers,[a] by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.[b]

a. Some scholars believed that up to 10,000 animals were sacrificed during the 10-mile journey from Obed-Edom’s house to the city.

b. Worship costs us something, dignity, preference, energy, time, etc…

3. Constant Worship

1 Chronicles 16:37 New King James Version
37 So he left Asaph and his brothers there before the ark of the covenant of the Lord to minister before the ark regularly, as every day’s work required;

a. David was committed to worshipping the presence/glory of God so long as it was with his house.

i. We are called to pray and worship in the same way