Sermon: Dancing before God Summary: Worship that connects us to God must proceed from a God centered life that express shameless, true love and loyalty to God. Know: Worship is not part of a checklist, but a way to honor and encounter God i n a special way Feel: The need to openly express love and adoration to God shamelessly Do: Consider the level of love, loyalty, and longing for God and how it is expressed in worship and daily life. Identify ways to increase love, loyalty, and longing through things such as prayer, reading, reflection, and going slow when doing it. Scripture Reading: Ps 47:1-2 Intro: 1. What do you think of when hear word worship? 2. Text: Ark comes to Jerusalem a. Famous scene - David dancing with all his might b. Notice context c. Dance comes between death and barreness d. Death of Uzzah, and the barreness of Michal 3. We can learn some important lessons about worship here 4. 2 peaks and a valley I. The place of dead worship (2 Sam 6:1-11) A. The last thing God wants is dead worship B. The scene looks anything but dead here 1. David wants to bring the Ark of Yahweh to Jerusalem 2. The procession was like a big parade a. All kinds of instruments b. ILL: When at a parade, sense of pride - Big bands on display - Military troops, showing our strength c. How much more so it must have been here - 1 Chr 13 - David consults with captains and leaders - Idea this may have been military procession d. 1 Chr 13:8 - The celebrate with all their might - All kinds of instruments - Military troops - What an impressive display it must have been 3. What went wrong? a. No one but Levites to touch the Ark - The parallel story implies that Uzzah wasn't a Levite - Perhaps he was a soldier, it was military procession b. Treating God as an instrument - Irreverence and Indiginity of the cart - Carry dignitaries on poles - elevated above others - Those carrying poles are servants - Like riding a horse - Rider is the master - Different with a cart - Like a pickup truck - What you carry in it? - Carry furniture, hay, posessions - You don’t carry dignitaries in bed of truck c. As military procession, Ark appeared to be a commodity 4. Boiled down to self centered worship a. Self-Centered worship centers on what I can get from it b. It is about what I want c. This does not honor God C. ILL: Box of chocolate illustration for self centered worship 1. I not chocolate eater, if I do, it's sugar free 2. My wife is a chocolate eater a. She gets in a mood, she says, "bring me Chocolate" b. There is just something about Chocolate c. She cannot stand sugar free Chocolate, makes her sick 3. What if I insist on bringing her Sugar Free, because "I" like it? 4. That is self-centered - It doesn't communicate love or honor D. Worship that honors God keeps him and his desires at the center 1. Self centered worship is dead worship 2. But worship that places what pleases God above all else is true 3. So, we don't want to be on the mountain of dead worship - Let's go across valley to other mountain and take a look II. The place of barren worship (2 Sam 6:12-23) A. Imagine the scene 1. Wasn't like the first time they transported the Ark a. 1 Chr 15 - Demonstrates this not military procession b. In military procession, king would be dressed in pomp & splendor with royal dignity c. Parade would display all the honor and power of the king - Mighty men in formation - Perhaps instruments of war d. That is probably how the first parade looked - Display of David's military forces - Among them, display of the Ark in the cart 2. But now look at David a. There is no display of pomp and splendor b. He is not in his royal uniform c. He is shamelessly dancing about in linens B. His wife was not impressed 1. Here was a person concerned with appearances a. Her husband's public display embarrassed her - The king should not be so undignified - Where was the pomp and ceremony? - How humiliating this must have been for her b. David should have dressed appropriately c. David should have acted appropriately 2. A brother in Vermont said David's conduct not appropriate a. Wife embarrassed, and he could relate to that b. However, God never blessed her with a child - It was a sign of disgrace not to bear children - One who disgraced David is disgraced herself c. Text implies it was Michal who acted inappropriately d. Rather than criticize David, she should have been joyful! - The Ark was coming to Jerusalem! - The very presence of God above the Cherubim! - God would be in their midst! 3. Some words that characterize Michal's type of worship a. Pride - Pride prevents: - prevented her from seeing God - prevented her from the joy David had - prevented her from praising God - David, on the other hand prostrated himself - Same example in Moses b. Academic - Mainly an intellectual exercise - Rehearse the right formulas, say the right things - End result - "I" worshipped correctly (self centered) - End result should be - "Isn't God Wonderful?" - Without pride, can see how God works in your life c. Dry & Barren - David's glee was too much - Emotion okay? Growing up, people spoke against it - Looked down on those who emotional - Examples: Acts 2 - Pierced to the heart - Responded in emotion at preaching of Gospel - Is there any other way to respond? - Psalms - Pour heart out to God in praise & lament - Many were written by David himself C. If experience God, have to praise! What could be more wonderful? 1. We experience ball games, and jump up and down and cheer a. When my son gets on base, or hits home run b. Some parents dance around, jump up and down 2. Isn't what God does far greater than hitting home runs? a. The Red Sea, Crossing Jordan, March around Jericho b. David's Psalms, Filling the Temple with his glory c. The Cross, the preaching of the Gospel to the world d. Empower us as his family to serve him, Spirit, his return 3. What can I do but serve, worship and praise him! D. If I can put aside prideful, academic, dry religion, I can really worship 1. My life with God will not be a barren one 2. I'll experience God's power in my life 3. God will be glorified in my life III. The place of live worship - In the Valley (2 Sam 6:20-23) A. David has no pride to preserve 1. Was David flippant? No a. He a man after God's own heart b. He saw what God thinks of irreverence with Uzzah c. His Psalms show he was anything but flippant 2. He said "I will be more lightly esteemed than this…" a. No pride in David b. He humbled himself before God c. True humility and Joy of the Lord go hand in hand 3. Greatest Worship Literature from David in the Psalms a. He was the sweet Psalmist of Israel b. Reason: Got was his center - Ps 51: "Against You and you alone I have sinned" - Sure there was regret for what he did to Uriah - But ultimate dismay was that he sinned against God c. God was his center 4. If you lose track of center, worship will be dead or barren B. Ps 73 - Example of 1. v.1-14 - Psalmist Complains a. v.1-12 - About prosperity of wicked b. v.13-14 - About bareness of his life c. Was Dead and Barren d. Focus was everywhere BUT God 2. (v.16-17a) - Perspective changed when came sanctuary 3. (v.25-28) Nearness of God is my good a. Not about what I can get out of it b. It is about God 4. That's why we have instructions such as a. Jas 5:13-15 - Suffering? Pray; Cheerful? Sing Praises; Sick? Call elders to pray b. God is at the center c. 1 Thes 5:17 - Paul said Pray without Ceasing C. ILL: In My Study in Vermont 1. Feeling prgood about life and God's blessings, began to sing 2. Sandy Sherman came in, was watching me, I saw her 3. I said, "Oh, I was just singing" 4. She said, "I know, I could hear you when I came in building" a. No embarrassment, no pride b. Just sheer joy at God D. Live worship keeps God at the center 1. We were created to Love God 2. When God is at the center, we are neither dead nor barren 3. With God at the center, we are full of the life God gives Concl: 1. How to have this live worship? 1. Must be redeemed first 2. (Invitation) - Jesus redeemed us to we can worship and serve God 2. Three things a. Put away your pride - Come down of the mountain and in the valley - It is not about you, but God. - I am not a great person, but God is a great God - Say it with me b. Recognize who you are - Ark hasn't come into the sanctuary anymore - You are his sanctuary, his temple - He lives and works in YOU c. Spend as much time with God as possible - Not just here, but always - Walk and talk with him. Read, reflect, pray, do his will - Let his thoughts guide your thoughts - How to view your job, how to view your neighbor - How to respond to others like he would