The Raiders of the Lost Ark

 

1 Samuel 4:11 KJV  And the ark of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.

1 Samuel 4:16-22 KJV  And the man said unto Eli, I am he that came out of the army, and I fled today out of the army. And he said, What is there done, my son?  [17]  And the messenger answered and said, Israel is fled before the Philistines, and there hath been also a great slaughter among the people, and thy two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God is taken.  [18]  And it came to pass, when he made mention of the ark of God, that he fell from off the seat backward by the side of the gate, and his neck broke, and he died: for he was an old man, and heavy. And he had judged Israel forty years.  [19]  And his daughter-in-law, Phinehas’ wife, was with child, near to be delivered: and when she heard the tidings that the ark of God was taken, and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she bowed herself and travailed; for her pains came upon her.  [20]  And about the time of her death the women that stood by her said unto her, Fear not; for thou hast born a son. But she answered not, neither did she regard it.  [21]  And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel: because the ark of God was taken, and because of her father-in-law and her husband.  [22]  And she said, The glory is departed from Israel: for the ark of God is taken.

l.  INTRODUCTION  —  HARRISON FORD AND “RAIDERS”

I recently read in Time magazine about how the movie industry has changed over the last several years, particularly with all of it’s sound effects and use of computer generated animation.  However, in a portion of the article that was about this industry, there was the mention of an actor by the name of Harrison Ford.  It said that this man has risen to some prominence and respect among the Hollywood crowd.  It stated that his rise to fame really began back in the 1980’s with rise of a character named Indiana Jones.  It was in this series of three movies that Mr. Ford began his journey from just a common actor to one who over the years has really stood out.

Oddly enough, his first movie had some biblical context to it, in that, he and his team were to find the Ark of the Covenant and to return it to a museum for the public to look at.  The movie was called “Raiders of the Lost Ark.”

When I read that article, I again thought of a sermon that I had preached back in the early nineties.  The more I thought about the sermon, the more that I decided to revisit those notes and add to and take away from and preach it again.

This is that effort.  I might add that Harrison Ford was not the original raider of the Ark.  In truth, I do not know if he was successful or not in his Hollywood venue in recovering the Ark.

ll.  THE ARK OF THE COVENANT

-When Moses went to the mountain to gain the vision and pattern of God for Israel, God gave him much more than just the Ten Commandments.  Moses received much instruction about how and why that God wanted him to construct the Tabernacle.  It would be a pattern that would establish something down through time even until now.

-I have heard numerous ministers reference that fact that everything about New Testament salvation is contained in the layout and the articles of the Tabernacle.

-When you look to the book of Exodus, beginning in chapter 25 and moving all the way through chapter 40, God uniquely gives Moses the pattern for worship.  So in that course of fifteen chapters, God gives some very important details to Moses and those who would be the craftsmen for this magnificent place of worship.

A.   It had precedence over all other things of the Tabernacle.

-Of the seven pieces of furniture that existed in the Tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant was the most important.

-It’s direction for creation is given first to Moses in Exodus 25.  It was first in order of importance.  Before any of the details of the sanctuary itself were given to Moses, before anything concerning the garments of the priests, before a word was given to Moses concerning the courts and the chambers, before any communication was given about the rituals of the priesthood, God directed Moses to the very minute details of the Ark.

-Without the Ark, all the actions and worship surrounding the Tabernacle would have been meaningless and empty.  It was upon the Ark that God had a visible place among His people.

-It was the first of the Holy Vessels that were made.  It achieved so much respect and purpose in the eyes of the Israelites.

B.  It’s Description

-The Ark was actually two pieces.  The ark was a lower chest type affair with a separate Mercy Seat that the two cherubim were attached to.  It was a chest with a very articulate and ornate top.  Nothing more and nothing less.

-The ark was made of a special species of acacia would (shittum).  In addition to this special wood, it was gold plated on the inside and outside.  In addition to this, it was rimmed with a border of gold.

-It was 3 ¾ feet long and 2 ½ feet wide, and 2 ¼ feet high.

-The wings of the cherubim that stretched over the top of the Ark was made of hammered or “beaten” gold.  (This is another sermon in itself:  Beaten or Molded.  The Ark was beaten gold, the calf was molded gold.  The great comparison is important to understand.)

-It was an elaborate piece of wood and gold.  Extremely valuable both to the material world and much more to the spiritual world.

C.  The Contents of the Ark

-Inside of the Ark, it housed some unique contents.  The tables of the Law were within, Aaron’s rod that budded was within, and a pot of manna rested inside.

-The Ark then either rested on the shoulders of the sons of Kohath (Levites) while in transit or it rested in the Holy of Holies.

lll.  THE ARK BEFORE DAVID’S REIGN

-The Ark played a very significant role in the travels of the Israelites.  The Ark originated in the wilderness, in a hard and difficult place.  It came to them as they were shaking off Egypt from their feet and clothes.

-Spiritual revelation always will come from a separation.  One notes that every time that Moses heard the voice of God in Egypt it always had to do with escape and never with revelation.

-Once the Israelites had left Egypt behind, the nature of the relationship with God totally changed.  One of the reasons that some saints have a “let me hold out to the end” mentality, is because there has never been enough separation from Egypt.

-There is a great hesitation to experience the wilderness.  To really leave Egypt means experiencing the wilderness.  However, one must understand that in the “wilderness” situations of life, is where God shows Himself even more powerful.

·        It is there that deliverance occurs (a drowned army of enemies).

·        It is there that direction comes in the darkest of nights (a pillar of fire).

·        It is there that comfort comes from the heat of the days (a covering cloud overhead).

·        It is there that lightnings and thunderings on the mountain signal new things from God.

-It is always better to leave the worlds of men and journey to the wildernesses of God.

-This Ark originated in the wilderness.  What a symbol of power that manifested itself to the children of Israel in their difficult days.

-Before the reign of David, the Ark of the Covenant had led the Israelites to great victories and had increased their confidence in God.

A. The Desperate Days of Eli

-After going through a series of judges, the priestly judge, Eli, and his two sons began to attempt to lead the nation.  History tells us that Eli was a grossly obese man who could not control his appetites nor his sons.

-Hophni and Phinehas, the sons of Eli, endorsed outright, “in-your-face” immorality in close proximity of the Tabernacle.  They became devious mercenaries of the devil.

-Israel sank lower and lower into a sense of spiritual decadence.  There was no “open vision” (1 Sam. 3:1) in the land at that time.

-Spiritual things were degraded and very unimportant.  The Tabernacle and it’s furnishings became neglected.  The old banners that identified the tribes became tattered and torn.  The sacrifices held little importance to the people anymore.

B.  The Ark of the Covenant Is Taken

-While the Ark may have maintained some sense of dignity, it had now lost much of the devotion and attention that it had under the leadership of Moses and Aaron.

-It is evident that the Ark had already been taken from the Israelites in a spiritual sense.  Now God was simply allowing time to pass before they would lose it physically.

-The time approached when the children of Israel began to be troubled along their borders by the Philistines and their governors of the five major cities of the nation.

-The children of God then went to battle with the Philistines.  Much to their dismay and surprise, they received an old fashioned whipping.  Retreating quickly, they held counsel.  It was charged that the Ark of the Covenant should be taken into battle.

-Things that are valuable to God and valuable to His people are not to be used as a good luck charm.  We do not rely on objects, but rather on our faith.  The Ark was a material item that represented a very powerful spiritual concept.

-Holy things become holy only because of the presence of God.  When these holy things are taken out of a proper setting, under the direction of man, they become very weak and beggarly elements.  Material things can never compensate for spiritual things no matter how valuable they may be.

-The second time around in the battle, the Philistines took the Ark from the Israelite warriors.  Not only was the coveted Ark taken but also Israel lost thirty thousand men, along with Hophni and Phinehas.

C.  Ichabod, The Glory of the Lord Has Departed

-When the news reached the ears of old Eli, he fell of his bench and broke his neck and died.  When the news reached the ears of the wife of Phinehas, she went into labor and had a child.  The birth of that child led to her death.

-The hue and the cry of the nation is now, “The glory of the Lord has departed.”  What a sad thing for this to have happened.  I pray that it never happens in my own personal life or the life of this church.  The Glory of the Lord has to remain with us forever.

-Not only had the glory departed, it would be twenty long years before the Ark would find it’s rightful place again.

D.  The Philistines’ Trouble with God’s Ark

-The Philistines quickly found that the Ark of the Covenant as not a trinket that they wanted to trifle with.  They wanted to put it on display for all the nations to see but God was determined that His Glory in a strange land would not be defiled.

-The Ark passed through three of their five major cities.

1 Samuel 5:1-5 KJV  And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer unto Ashdod.  [2]  When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon.  [3]  And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of the LORD. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again.  [4]  And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold; only the stump of Dagon was left to him.  [5]  Therefore neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon’s house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod unto this day.

-It’s first stop was in the temple of Dagon, the fish god.  On two successive times, the Philistines found the statue of Dagon lying before the Ark of God.  The second time around, the hands were broken off and the god of the enemies became a “stump.”

-God will never allow His glory to be mocked.  The Philistines became weary with having to prop up their god and with the heavy, afflicting hand of God on their own bodies (smitten with emerods).

-So the Philistines placed the Ark on a cart drawn by oxen and sent it back to Judah.  Inside the Ark they placed five trespass offerings, five golden emerods and five golden mice.  One each for the cities:  Ashdod, Gaza, Askelon, Gath, and Ekron.

-The Ark then arrived in Bethshemesh.  The curious there numbered 50,070.  They were both curious and foolish because they all looked into the Ark and God smote every one of them.

-It was sent from Bethshemesh on to Kirjath-jearim to the house of Abinadab where it stayed for twenty years.  A man named Eleazar was sanctified to take care of the Ark .

(NOTE:  There is another sermon in this also:  The Art of Tending an Ark When No One is Looking.  There are many of God’s greatest disciples who are diligently seeking, praying, and hungering for revival away from the limelight.  Their part is just as crucial as those who are in the forefront of revival leading the way.  God needs everyone in His Kingdom.)

E.  The Reign of Saul

-Israel’s spiritual decadence continued under the reign of the new king, Saul.  Saul never even had a desire to restore the Tabernacle or to find the Ark.

-Saul was a vain man who wanted his own needs met.  After he was taken care of, then maybe the needs of the nation could be accommodated.

-Israel needed a king that would restore the Tabernacle, offer up sincere repentance to God, and confess their apostasy.  What Israel really needed was a Raider of the Lost Ark.

lV.  THE FIRST RAIDER  —  DAVID

Acts 13:22 KJV  And when he had removed him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will.

-God always has a man at key points in history.  He has men at key points in our lives.  That is exactly what God had in David.

A.  Characteristics of a Raider

-In looking at what David did to retain the Ark back to it’s original state, we note several different things and actions that David carried out.  Things that once were carried out became successful at restoring the Ark.

1.  He Inquired of the Lord.

2 Samuel 5:19 KJV  And David inquired of the LORD, saying, Shall I go up to the Philistines? wilt thou deliver them into mine hand? And the LORD said unto David, Go up: for I will doubtless deliver the Philistines into thine hand.

-Even after a great victory, when the Philistines were threatening again, he inquired of the Lord again.

2 Samuel 5:22-25 KJV  And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim.  [23]  And when David inquired of the LORD, he said, Thou shalt not go up; but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon them over against the mulberry trees.  [24]  And let it be, when thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself: for then shall the LORD go out before thee, to smite the host of the Philistines.  [25]  And David did so, as the LORD had commanded him; and smote the Philistines from Geba until thou come to Gazer.

-Inquire in the Lord in all things.  Lean not to your own understanding, but acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.  Inquire with prayer, with fasting, with the Word, with diligence and with courage.  Then go with God.

2.  He Was Hungry for Change.

Matthew 5:6 KJV  Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.

Isaiah 26:9 KJV  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

-David was not hungry for change just in his own life, but for that in the heart of the nation.

-There is a spiritual hunger that can be attained that can collapse all of the material wants and desires.  My spiritual hunger needs not to just exist for myself but for this church, for this city, for this state, etc.

3.  He Was A Man Who Unified the People.

2 Samuel 6:1-2 KJV  Again, David gathered together all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand.  [2]  And David arose, and went with all the people that were with him from Baale of Judah, to bring up from thence the ark of God, whose name is called by the name of the LORD of hosts that dwelleth between the cherubims.

-A nation, a country, a team, and even more, a church becomes an unstoppable force when they get unified.  David proved to be a fearless leader and one who was capable of directing the people of God.

4.  He Remained Obedient to God Even After His Mistakes.

2 Samuel 6:8-9 KJV  And David was displeased, because the LORD had made a breach upon Uzzah: and he called the name of the place Perez-uzzah to this day.  [9]  And David was afraid of the LORD that day, and said, How shall the ark of the LORD come to me?

-Even after the initial mistakes of moving the Ark the wrong way, David did not give up.

-The Law said that the Ark was to be carried by the staves and rings on the Ark.  David put to use the wheels of haste and convenience and it caused him a great loss, the life of Uzzah.

-Instead of trying to justify his actions, instead of saying it is going to be done my way or no way, he adjusted to the outline that God had called for.

-Rebellion will create a void in the life of a true worshipper.

5.  He Was A Worshipper.

2 Samuel 6:13-14 KJV  And it was so, that when they that bore the ark of the LORD had gone six paces, he sacrificed oxen and fatlings.  [14]  And David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod.

-Worship is separated from praise.  Praise is feel-good.  Worship goes far beyond feel good.  Worship is commitment.  Worship is a lifestyle.  Worship is what comes from way down deep within.

1 Chronicles 15:25-29 KJV  [25]  So David, and the elders of Israel, and the captains over thousands, went to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the house of Obed-edom with joy.  [26]  And it came to pass, when God helped the Levites that bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD, that they offered seven bullocks and seven rams.  [27]  And David was clothed with a robe of fine linen, and all the Levites that bore the ark, and the singers, and Chenaniah the master of the song with the singers: David also had upon him an ephod of linen.  [28]  Thus all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the LORD with shouting, and with sound of the cornet, and with trumpets, and with cymbals, making a noise with psalteries and harps.  [29]  And it came to pass, as the ark of the covenant of the LORD came to the city of David, that Michal the daughter of Saul looking out at a window saw king David dancing and playing: and she despised him in her heart.

-Every man who has served the Lord for any length of time will find that there are some Arks that the enemy has taken.  But I now that the Ark can be taken back to it’s proper place of prominence, if we will just do as David did.

-Once the Ark of the Covenant had been brought back to it’s proper place, Israel began to have a revival of worship.  Twenty long years, but because a “raider” came the Ark was restored.

V.  THE SECOND RAIDER  —  JESUS CHRIST

-The mission of Jesus Christ was far different than that of David.  Yet, Jesus Christ was of the lineage of David.  Both raiders came from the same bloodline.

-David created a revival.  Jesus Christ came for more than just a revival.  He came for redemption.

-He came to provide power for His church, for His saints, for His ministers, for His present day disciples.

A.  The Heiron and the Nahos

-In the New Testament, the word “temple” occurs 117 times.  When we find that word “temple” we note two different Greek words.

-The first is HEIRON.  This has reference to the outer court.  It was the place where the Gentiles were free to roam.  This word is just a general reference to the Temple area.  It was a very common area.

-This is the place that Jesus drove the moneychangers from.  This HEIRON is important but there is another Greek word that gives even more of a description than this one.

-The second word is NAHOS.  This word is a very specific word related to the Holy of Holies.  The NAHOS was the place where the Spirit of God dwelt.  The NAHOS was literally the Ark of the Covenant.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 KJV  [19]  What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?  [20]  For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.

-In effect Paul was saying, “What. . . . don’t you know that your body is a walking Ark of the Covenant?  Don’t you know that the power of God dwells there?”

-The religious world has something, they have the HEIRON.  But there is another place, another level, a higher spiritual plane, that once a man has been filled with the Holy Ghost with the evidence of tongues. . . . That second place is the NAHOS of God.

-God fills us with His power and we become the NAHOS that the world looks at.

-David came and raided a lost ark in the physical sense.  Jesus Christ came back and raided a spiritual ark.  When the Temple veil was torn down the middle,  mercy was guarded no longer.

-An ark that had been lost by the fall of man.  But no more, God values man.  He redeems man.  Man becomes that Ark by which God invests Himself in this world.

Vl.  THE PURPOSES OF THE ARK

-In the Old Testament, numerous references tell us the things that God did with the first Ark of the Covenant.

Exodus 25:22  —  The Ark was the place where God communed with man.  The NAHOS, right down within our own heart is where God communes with us.

Exodus 26:34  —  The Ark was the place where the Mercy Seat was.  His mercy has been extended to us.  He dwelt between the wings of the cherubim, today He has another Ark to dwell in.  The NAHOS.

Exodus 30:26  —  The Ark was called the Ark of the Testimony.  The NAHOS is the Ark of the Testimony today.  Testimony to what?  Powerful, prevailing prayer.  Power over sin.  Power over our flesh.  Power over the world.  Power over the devil.  Our lives are a continuous testimony to His power.

Numbers 7:89  —  The Ark was the place where God spoke to Moses.  Think it not strange, when God begins to speak to you, in the place of the NAHOS.

Numbers 10:33  —  The Ark led the children of Israel through the wilderness areas.  We, by the power of God, lead others through the wilderness areas.

Numbers 10:35  —  The Ark was set forward with this cry, “Rise up Lord, let thine enemies be scattered; and let them that hate thee flee before thee.”  All enemies of the flesh must scatter when the power of the NAHOS arrives.

Deuteronomy 31:26  —  The tables of stone, the book of the Law, was inside the Ark of the Covenant.  The Word of God should dwell richly in us.  We have the right apostolic doctrine in Acts 2:38; the Oneness of God; the Mighty God In Christ; The New Birth, etc.

Joshua 3:3-6  —  The Ark led the Israelites across Jordan.  New horizons and new victories are waiting.  The NAHOS must get into motion.

Joshua 3:13-15  —  The river Jordan parted when the priests carrying the Ark stepped down into the water.  Not only did the water stop, it was at flood stage.  Impossible situations are nothing when the NAHOS gets rolling.

Joshua 6  —  The Ark led the conquest of Canaan.  The walls fell at Jericho.  The NAHOS has the ability to destroy walls.  It can flatten them, it can tear down the strongholds in the mind.

1 Samuel 5:2-3  —  The Philistine idol fell down before the Ark.  The devil has to fall before the NAHOS.

-The NAHOS works in impossible situations because:

1 John 2:27 KJV  But the anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in him.

Romans 8:11 KJV  But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

1 Corinthians 15:51-55 KJV  [51]  Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,  [52]  In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.  [53]  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.  [54]  So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.  [55]  O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?