Be Careful How You Handle It

Oh, good morning, Refuge. Y'all doing all right this morning? So good to see you guys, man. I'm so grateful for our church. How many of you guys love the Refuge?

I feel like it's one of the greatest churches on the planet. Give it up for Pastor J and Mel. I love them so much. Listen, yesterday I have a significant birthday coming up. I turned 40 in the month of November.

Give it up for those people who turn 40. See, you see how people feel when you turn 40. Well, listen, I was excited about turning 40 until yesterday. Tell you what happened to me yesterday. First thing that happened in the indicator that I've turned 40.

First of all, my youth team has this joke. They call me Uncle D around here. So I kind of. Kind of had that running joke going on. But then, let me tell you, when I knew I was turning 40, I bent down yesterday at my house and I had the old man grunt.

I was like. I was like, I'm turning 40. I'm telling you, things are changing. Well, let me tell you what happened. I had a wedding yesterday in a place called Union.

If you've never been to Union, don't worry about it. Don't go. I'm telling you, after yesterday, I didn't want to ever go back to Union. I go inside of the wedding, I'm preparing for the wedding. I get back in the back, I'm getting dressed to get ready for the wedding, and I go in the room, and the guy was like, hey, what's up, old head?

I said, what, old head? He didn't know he was about to lose his life. In the next few seconds, I allowed him to spare his life. I'm getting old, but I'm excited to be here this morning. Refuge is so good to see you guys.

If I have not had the privilege of introducing myself to you, my name is Derek Hawkins, and I get the amazing privilege of serving as one of the pastors here at the Refuge. And I believe that it's one of the greatest churches on. On the planet. It's a church that prioritizes the presence and the power of God. Hey, guys, if you're following with your app, if you don't have the app, you can go download the app and follow it with us along.

As we're taking notes this morning, we're going to stand to read Second Samuel, chapter six. If you guys can, you have your Bibles, the notes and the scriptures are going to be on the screen. Before we dive into that text, there's a few things that's happened in The Life of David. In second Samuel, chapter five, David is a newly anointed king. Saul dies in verse number chapter number five.

He assumes Judah first. So now he also has Abner, which is a military strategy. But Abner dies, Joab kills him. Joab now is in place. A few things happen if you go on down through that chapter.

Chapter number five, going to chapter number six, he now takes over Israel. And one of the things that David decides to do is to go pick up the Ark of the Covenant and bring it back to Jerusalem. So that's where we're going to pick up our text. All right, so if you guys can read verse number one, 2nd Samuel, chapter six, it says, David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, 30,000. And David arose and went with all the people who were with him in baal Judah, and to bring up from there the Ark of the Covenant, which is called by the name of the Lord of hosts, who sits enthroned on the cherubim.

And they carry the Ark of God on a new cart. I want you guys to highlight that. And brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. And Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, were driving the new cart with the Ark of God. Ahio went before the Ark, and David and all the house of Israel were celebrating before the Lord with songs, lyres, harps, tambourines, castanets, and cymbals.

And when they came to the threshing floor of Nakan, Uzzah put out his hand to the Ark of God and took hold of it. For the oxen stumbled and the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah. And God struck him down there because of his error, and he died there beside the Ark of God. And David was angry because the Lord had broken out against Uzzah. And that place is called Perez Uzzah to this day.

And David was afraid of the Lord that day. And he said, how can the Ark of the Lord come to me? So David was not willing to take the Ark of the Lord into the city of David. But David took it aside to the house of Obed Edom the Gittite. And.

And the Ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed Edom the Gittite for three months. And the Lord blessed Obed Edom and all of his household. And it was told to King David, the Lord has blessed the household 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, rejoicing. And when those who bore the Ark of the Lord had gone six steps, he sacrificed an ox and flesh fattened animal.

And David danced before the Lord with all his might. And David was wearing a linen ephod. So David and all the house of Israel bought up the Ark of the Lord with shouting and with the sound of the horn can we make the declaration that we make here every week. Go. I will hide this word in my heart that I might not sin against God.

This word is life to my body and health to my bones. I will be a doer of the word and not a hearer only. And I am confident of this that he who's begun a good work in me will complete it in Jesus name May be seated.

We live in a day and time where people in positions of authority and leadership, believers, etc. Don't feel the need to cherish or honor the presence of God and even the things of God like we used to. There was a time where things were sacred. I seldom early in the first service that I grew up in a church that my pastor preached in a robe every Sunday. Okay, I'm so grateful that that time has kind of transitioned.

And then I was in the choir and we wore robes, pink robes at that. Lord, forgive us. Help us, Lord. And in the choir, you know, you just had to come in the choir. And then we would like go back and forth with our robes.

And then we had hymnals and we would have to like sing out of the hymnals, Psalms 127, you know, so back in the day, we had kind of an honor to the things and to the house of the Lord. We took communion on a regular basis. We honored the sacraments of the house of God. We're in a generation now that we are enamored with newness. We love anything that's new, that's different.

And sometimes it's kind of dishonoring and disrespectful of what God is trying to do in preserving the sacred things in the house of God. And God is challenging us this morning. It might be even difficult for this generation to hear. However we throw words around like this. Don't judge me.

Oh, you heard it before. Show me some grace. These things are all vitally necessary within context and reason. God always shows grace to those who do not know better. Scriptures are clear.

The issue is not with those who do not know better. The issue lies in the hands of people who know better, believers who know the way and deliberately mishandle and God's presence and his anointed. And God has an issue with it. The biggest issue that God had in this context of Scripture is that David failed to follow the instructions. This message that I'm preaching today is called, be careful how you handle it.

Careful how you handle it. David had a party, 30,000 people. He's partying up. He's living it up. He goes, gets 30,000 of his men.

He brings them out, say, we're gonna have a celebrate. In the words of Brown, he's like, we gonna bring all of our people together and we're gonna have a big party. They're having their tambourines and castanets, and they're having a good time. They're making a lot of noise. They're celebrating, but they don't have any context to what they're doing.

A lot of times in our church, we celebrate without context. We're having celebrations and moments without honoring the thing that we're being called to carry. See, David has an assignment, but he has an assignment. He's trying to do something good the wrong way. How many of God's been that way, trying to do the right thing the wrong way?

Henry Blackaby says this. He says, if you know that God loves you, you should never question a directive from him. It will always be right and best. When he gives you an order, you are not just to observe, discuss, or debate it. You are to obey it.

Come on. We don't like to obey things. Deuteronomy, chapter 8, verse 1. Deuteronomy has a few scriptures that we're going to list out. But the first one says, be careful to follow every command I'm giving you today so that you may live and increase and may enter and possess the land the Lord promised as an oath to your forefathers.

When we carefully follow God's instructions, here's a few things that happens. Following God's instructions can release the promises of God in your life. When we follow God's plan and his way for our lives, the promises of God are released in and through our lives. The second thing is following instructions is imperative for carrying the presence of God. God wants us to carry his presence.

But there is a way that we have to handle the presence and the anointing of God. Because when we mishandle God's instructions, we cannot be angry when things happen when we fall and fail to do all that the Lord has commanded us to do. Why? Because we did not Follow God's instructions. When we fail to carry out his instructions, we can jeopardize not only our lives, but the lives of the other people who follow us.

And this is what we see happen in the text. David has been newly assigned king and he does a good thing. He's like God, I'm gonna help you bring the ark of the presence of God into Jerusalem. I wanna bring it back home. I wanna bring God's presence back to where it deserves to be, and rightfully so.

Nothing was wrong with that act. The only issue with that is, is that David failed to consult God about his business.

We're in positions of leadership, but we feel like just because we're being used by God that we don't have to consult God. Here's the thing. Gifts are irrevocable. Being gifted does not mean that you're in order. Being utilized by God doesn't mean that you're right.

Come on. There's thousands of people all across the world are being used every day that live duplicit lives in secret. But they're being used by God to accomplish his purpose. Let us not be like this generation. Let's be like a generation that lives holy.

Deuteronomy 5:32 says, God says, therefore you should be careful. Where is the care in the church to do as the Lord your God has commanded you? You shall not turn as to the right hand or to the left.

Chapter four says, you shall not add to the word which I commanded you, nor take from it that you might keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you. 12 says this. Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it. Here's what he says. You should not add to it nor take away from it.

This culture loves to add and take away from the word of God. The things that we feel like are, okay, we're saying, okay, God, I'll take it. The things that we disagree with, we're like no. Things that challenge our conviction, we look away from. And there is a generation, there is this American church that has compromised the integrity of the Word of God to fit into circles and environments and to get preach engagement and opportunities.

Here's the thing. There has to be a generation that will not bow to baal.

God, make us that generation that does not compromise to get on a platform that does not speak truth in the midst of darkness. God, make us make me like this. So here it is. I love this. When I grew up, I had individuals, people that I looked up to in my life.

They always would say, do as I say, not as I do. You ever heard that before? Do as I say, not as I do. Here's the thing. Good advice is not a substitute for obeying God's word, God's will and his instructions for your life.

I don't care how good the advice sounds. If it's not sound from God's word, I don't want to hear it. We're in a generation that I don't want to hear. I love your quotes, but if it does not come from the word of God, your quotes not save me. Come on.

Only the power of Jesus and the word of God has the ability to save you do. I have a church this morning that still believes in the power and the word of God.

So you have to then be careful how you handle God's presence. There was a mishandling. Numbers, Chapter four. There were clear instructions to the way that the presence of God should be handled. Instructions were clear.

They were spared. Out with clarity. There was no confusion about how the Ark of the Covenant was supposed to be transported. Here's what it says. After Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy furnaces and all the holy articles, and when the camp is ready to move, the Kohoathites are to come to do the carrying.

But they must not touch the holy things. Watch this or they will die. Structures were clear. The Kohathites are to carry those things that are in the tent of meeting. Here's what we cannot do.

We can never forsake good intentions for obedience. It's like, well, you know, I was gonna. I intended to, but that does not stand in the way. It can sacrifice God's promise from being revealed in your life. But we have to carry out God's instructions.

Second Samuel, chapter six. We go back to that text now. David is excited. He has good intentions. He's like, man, I just want to bring the presence of God back.

I want to do a good thing for God. He's excited, celebrating, shouting, dancing, falling out, speaking in tongues. Maybe even, I don't know, they're having a good time. All of a sudden, Uzzah sticks out his hand and tries to save the presence of God. Can I challenge you with something?

God's presence is not in danger. We are.

God's presence is not in danger. We are. Because the way that we failed to carry out the instructions of the Lord, God's presence didn't need to be saved. We do.

So what God is saying, it says this in numbers 4, 18, 20. It says, see that the Kohoathite tribal clans are not destroyed from among the Levites so that they might live and not die when they come near the most holy things. Do this for them. Aaron and his sons are to go into the sanctuary and assign to each man his work and what he is to carry. But the Kohoathites must not go in to look at the holy things.

Watch this, even for a moment, or they will die. Here's what it doesn't say. This commandment was not supposed to change, no matter the generations. And we're in a culture now that feels like things can be changed based upon our feelings. Okay, let's go.

Politics can change the word of God. No, it cannot. The word of God is true no matter what it feels. It's gonna be true today, it's gonna be true tomorrow. Come on.

The topics that we don't want to touch on the pulpit because you're like, I don't want to speak about that. And then there's no clear line of what you really believe. And now society is looking at the church being silent because we don't want to voice what we really believe. And God is calling the church to rise up. It's calling the church to rise up.

Now. This danger is a danger of familiarity. I know we like big sins like homosexuality, right? Adultery. All of those things, scripturally, are wrong.

But what about the sin of commonality?

What about becoming too familiar, too common with God's presence? Because nothing has happened. And some of us have escaped because your sin hasn't been found out yet. Nobody's ever discovered your text messages or your secret accounts or the things that you're doing because God has covered you with grace. You feel like it's okay that God is never going to come.

See, but I came to serve the church. A warning this morning that God is still looking at your business. And even though it might not have been found out publicly, God knows we cannot compromise the word of God to make ourselves feel good. Exodus chapter 25:10 through 16 says, have them make an ark. Vacacia wood, two and a half cubits long, a cubic and a half wide.

He says this. I'm like, okay, God, this is. This is very detailed. He says, insert the poles into the rings on the side of the ark to carry. Says, the poles are to remain in the ring of the ark and they are not to be removed.

Pastor Derek, what are you talking about? What is the first thing that David does? And Ahayu and Uzzah. They put the cart, the covenant on a cart. Hold on.

Hold On. Hold on, hold on. Let's go back. All right. So presence of God is supposed to be carried on poles.

Watch this. On the shoulders of men. It was never supposed to be relegated to a cart. But because it's a new way, it's a new generation, we don't feel like the word of God is still intact. So they pick and choose the way that God's sacredness is supposed to be carried.

We don't get a choice in carrying God's presence. We can't live any type of way and feel like we're going to be carriers of the presence of God. We've been bought with a price. The price is too expensive for you to carry it any way that you want to carry it. And here it is.

The problem happens. Familiarity comes in. It is close acquaintances with our knowledge of something relaxed friendliness or intimacy between people. Well, Pastor Derek, let's. What are you talking about?

That sounds amazing. Well, Ahayu and Uzzah were the sons of Abinadab. Well, Abinadab, the presence of God was selected to stay in his house. And his two sons were familiar. They were in a close acquaintance with God's presence.

They were around. The presence was in their house. Sort of like our churches in America today, we experience God's presence, and because we can come in and out of it and steal our lives, not be transformed, and nothing happened, we feel like we're okay. Well, I don't have to change, you know, I'm just keep coming to the presence of God. I'm just gonna keep coming.

Pastor Jay's gonna keep praying for us. We'll get messages, and maybe I'll change one day because nothing is happening. You feel like you're okay. So they keep coming, keep coming to the house of God. They keep coming.

Nothing happens. Until something happens.

Until something happens. David doesn't consult the Lord, but Uzzah and Ahayu, they know how the ark is supposed to be carried. They never instruct David on what he's not to do. Why? Because they become familiar.

Meaning that nothing will happen to me. Spending my house. I've been around it, you know, David, I'm just gonna help you out, man. You know, David, man, I'm just gonna do you a favor. I'm just gonna step in and help you out.

I'm gonna help you with this business, and nothing will happen to me. There had to be a spirit of pride for God to become so angry. And what we have to address in our walks with God and in our heart is the pride that we carry because we become familiar. Well, God's been using me for 20 years, and I've still been living in a backslidden state, but he's still using me. No, that's not an excuse for you not to repent because you're still being used.

Come on. I feel a preaching anointing in this place today.

So it's comfort. And I'm having. I'm not preaching this message because I have it all together. To be honest, God gave me this message in one of the lowest places of my life and one of the seasons that I felt the most unworthiness that I've ever felt. God downloads this message and he challenges me.

Derek, have you become too common with my presence?

Because we are anointed and skilled and we get a chance to preach and we hadn't been found out doesn't mean that God's pleased and I want to challenge you. Well, you're saying. Well, Derek, you know, it wasn't the big church sins. It was the sin of being too familiar. You know, I don't have to read every day.

I can read every other day. I don't have to pray. You know, every day I can skip a few days and pray. You know, I don't have to fast. You know, I've been fasting for 20 years, man.

I put work in, you know, like, you know, I don't have to come to, you know, night watch service. You know, I was here when the church started.

I put my blood, sweat and tears in. No, you have not. Come on. We don't get a chance to become common with our church, common with our leaders, and common with the presence of God. Cause the day you get common, you just might miss a move of God.

And that's what we're in danger of missing, is a move of the spirit of God.

I love this. In the NIV version, it says that uzzah does an irreverent act. Here's what irreverent means. Showing no respect for people or things generally taken seriously. That means he knew the way, but he just didn't take it serious.

How many of us know the way but we just don't take it serious?

It'll never happen to me. No, that'll never happen to me. Listen, I'm gonna get myself together. Just one more Diet Coke.

No, no, no. I promise. It's like the binge before the fast. Let me just eat everything that night before. Let me be a glutton the night before, and then fast for 21 days.

And nothing breaks because we become too common. We have lost respect. Second Samuel, chapter six. When they came to the threshing floor of naked Uzzah, reached out and took hold of the ark of God. And because the oxen stumbled, the Lord's anger burned against him because of his irreverent act, and therefore God struck him down.

Well, I hadn't seen it yet, so I'll just keep. I'll keep dabbling.

Do you know when sin is full grown and it turns into death? The question is, how do you know when sin is full grown?

It's a question. How do you know when the last time you do it is the last time?

Okay, let me make it look clear. How do you know the last time that you compromise is the last time because you know better?

We have encountered God's presence. We are hearing sound messages of truth, but we're still living as though we don't hear it.

We are ignoring the clarion call of God's message coming to our hearts. We are hardening our hearts against the truth of what we know to be God's word. And God is saying, how much longer will you compromise and think that my anger will not burn against you? And I came to give a prophetic message to the church. There's an anger of God that's coming to the church not for those who do not know, but for those who know and do not do.

And I want you to feel the soberness of this word. I've been in Church for 20 years. I've heard this message over and over. Pastor Derek, that's amazing. It sounds great.

You don't know what I've been through. You don't know what my struggle is. Yes, but I know God's word is enough. I know God's blood is enough. I know he can give you peace despite what you're feeling.

I know that he's greater than your trauma in your childhood. I know that God's word is enough. And he's challenging you. Do you love your sin enough to die in it?

See, a lack of reverence for the presence of God will lead to spiritual natural death.

This is what David does in the worship team is Coming and band. He gives God a reverent praise. If irreverent means disrespect, then that must mean reverent. Must mean respect for God's presence. That means that there's a generation that God is asking, do you respect the presence?

David respected God enough to make it right. See, that's the difference between the unrepentant and the repentant is that we know, man. God, I messed up. I know I disappointed you. I know I failed you.

I know I missed it time after time. But God, I don't want to stay in the state that I'm in. God, I need you to help me.

I'm repenting. Proverbs 9, 10, 12 says, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. And the knowledge of the holy is understanding. God wants us to come into the perfect fear of the Lord and understand. It's like God.

What happened in David's story? What happened in David's life? David says something in 1st Chronicles 15, verses 1 through 3. Says, After David had constructed buildings for himself, the city of David, he prepared a place for the Ark of God and he pitched a tent for it. And David said this, no one but the Levites might carry the Ark of God.

David says, no, I can't let my friends do it this time. I can't let those that have been walking with me. I cannot let them carry it this time. This time I have to do it God's way.

I have to do it the way that God told me to do. I cannot live in compromise this time. Because now that I know, now that I've had this revelation of the Gospel, I gotta do something different. What are you gonna do with the things that you know now?

David says, no one but the Levites must carry the Ark of God because the Lord chose them to carry the Ark of the Lord and to minister before him forever. This was not a one generation word. It was a word that was supposed to hit every generation. It says this David assembled all Israel, Jerusalem to bring up the Ark of the Lord into place to the place he had prepared for it. And he called together the descendants of Aaron and the Levites.

I was thinking about this. I shared this earlier in the first service.

As a people, we have to understand the weight of our decisions.

I believe that David had a moment for the Lord, that he understood the weight of his mishandling. I believe that David understood the weight of what he had done. Uzzah dies because he fails to consult him under David's leadership. To be honest, the death should have been on David. But because David's heart was to please the Lord, David was spared.

What about Uzzah? Uzzah doesn't get the same opportunity. Why? Because he had a revelation of God's knowledge of how God's presence was supposed to be carried. And Uzzah doesn't receive the same grace that David receives there's two different types of people in the room.

There's a David, Pastor Mel said this earlier and there's a Uzzah. Those of you is like, man, I really don't know. I'm trying to figure this thing out. And those of you who know it, watch this number two, feel conviction about it but still yet do it. God's like, no, I'm challenging you to come to a place of repentance.

David gets it right in. Second Samuel 6 says this and David danced before the Lord with all of his might. David was wearing a linen ephod. And so David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord was shouting and the sound of the horn. Hey, thanks so much for joining us for this message.

If God spoke to your heart in a special way, we would love to hear from you. You can reach out to us@testify.therealFuge.net I look forward to you joining us again, whether it's in person or online. God bless you.