Obed-Edom, A Faithful Steward
Dear Reader,

HappyFamily2

As a Christian, you probably know about Obed-Edom in the Old Testament, a man who was blessed by God in three months after King David "abandoned" the Ark in his house. We invite you to read today's articles to learn much more about the man's stewardship as a faithful, even though temporary holder of the ark, a devoted worshiper and gatekeeper in the house of God, and above all, a good family man who raised capable sons and grandchildren. We hope you take away a lesson or two from the life of Obed.

Bringing the Ark to the City of David
 
2 Samuel 6.11

After David had secured the kingship in Israel, he moved his palace from Hebron to Jerusalem and named it the "City of David". He felt strongly compelled to also bring the Ark of God to Jerusalem. Therefore, with pomp and pageantry, he and thousands of his countrymen embarked on bringing the ark on a new oxen-driven cart he provided. Sadly, as the transporting party progressed, the oxen stumbled and Uzzah, one of the three men guiding the oxen touched the ark to steady it. We're told that God struck him to death. Here is the Bible report of this sad story, as it were:

 

When they came to the threshing floor of Nakon, Uzzah reached out and took hold of the ark of God, because the oxen stumbled. The Lord's anger burned against Uzzah because of his irreverent act; therefore God struck him down, and he died there beside the ark of God.

 

Then David was angry because the Lord's wrath had broken out against Uzzah, and to this day that place is called Perez Uzzah.

 

David was afraid of the Lord that day and said, "How can the ark of the Lord ever come to me?" He was not willing to take the ark of the Lord to be with him in the City of David. Instead, he took it to the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. The ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite for three months, and the Lord blessed him and his entire household. (2 Samuel 6:6-11)

 

David, a man of unbeatable fearlessness was much shaken. The man who in his youth killed a lion, a bear and Goliath the Philistine warlord, panicked on account of the sudden death of Uzzah. We need to fear God at all times but understandably, on this occasion, David was visibly shaken. As a result of this, he decided to leave the ark at Perrez-Uzzah, the place where Uzzah died.

 

Introducing Obed-Edom...

 

Up to this point, there had been no mention of Obed-Edom the Gittite. But on that day, King David chose him to be the one to keep the ark after Uzzah's death.

 

Let's ask ourselves: Would David trust just anyone to keep the ark in his house, with his wife and children endangered? Was this a trap to kill the host and his household, after all any member of Obed's household could just go to where the ark was and touch, feel or even play with it? Additionally, we should be interested in knowing if Obed-Edom was well-known or unknown, respected or disrepute in his community. As I said, this was the very first time he came into the limelight. However, further reading of David's appointees in 1 Chronicles (chapters) 13-16 and 26 reveals so much about Obed-Edom and that he was a well deserving host for the Ark. 

Qualities of Obed-Edom 

 

By reading those chapters we can reasonably conclude that:

  1. Obed-Edom the Gittite was not a complete stranger, at least in his community. I believe King David immediately made consultations on who was trustworthy to keep the ark around the community where Uzzah touched the ark and died.
  2. Also, Obed-Edom was a Levite, so by leaving the ark in his house, David ensured the ark was within the priesthood.   
  3. Obed-Edom proved to be a faithful steward of the ark in his house so much so that in 90 days, God fell in love with him and blessed him and all his household.
  4. How did he do it? We can safely conclude that knowing that the ark had killed a fellow citizen, Obed made up his mind to do all in his power to safeguard, treasure and dignify the ark in the time he would keep it in his house.
  5. We have a wonderful testimony of Abraham from God in Genesis 18:19 "For I have chosen him, so that he will direct his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing what is right and just, so that the LORD will bring about for Abraham what he has promised him." It won't be a mere speculation that this was the position Obed-Edom adopted: to compel everyone in his household to avoid being careless about their new "treasure". They must all see the ark as God's presence in their home. We can hear him saying to everybody, family members, relatives and visitors alike, "God is in this house; please don't mess around".
  6. Also, we can safely interpret that being a player of musical instrument, Obed-Edom led his entire family, including relatives, to worship God like never before on account of the ark. 1 Chronicles 16:4-6 shows that he was one of the Levites appointed by King David "to commemorate, to thank and to praise the Lord God of Israel". I could imagine that when the ark was in his house, everyone, young and old, children and neighbors were brought into the atmosphere of praise and worship to God. He did not want to die, rather he turned the "life and death" situation of the ark to just praising the Lord. When churches run Home Cell Fellowships, cell hosts are always encouraged to believe that they are entitled and pray to God for His blessings after the order of Obed-Edom.
  7. As a confirmation of his faithfulness, King David also conferred on him and Jehiah, another Levite, the assignment of keeping the door to the ark when it was eventually brought to its resting place in Jerusalem. His gift made ways for him and he found favor with the king, 1 Chronicles 15:24
A Consummate Family Man
 
Narrating the family descendants of Obed-Edom, 1 Chronicles 26:4-8 reads like this:

Obed-Edom also had sons: Shemaiah the firstborn, Jehozabad the second, Joah the third, Sakar the fourth, Nethanel the fifth, Ammiel the sixth, Issachar the seventh and Peullethai the eighth. (For God had blessed Obed-Edom.) Obed-Edom's son Shemaiah also had sons, who were leaders in their father's family because they were very capable men. The sons of Shemaiah: Othni, Rephael, Obed and Elzabad; his relatives Elihu and Semakiah were also able men. All these were descendants of Obed-Edom; they and their sons and their relatives were capable men with the strength to do the work - descendants of Obed-Edom, 62 in all.
 
As the scriptures show, Obed-Edom raised his children in ways that pleased God. His grandchildren also were well raised. We have a duty to raise our children in the way of the Lord. Our parental priority should be that our children would be capable men and women in the things of the kingdom of God. When we do our part, God will do His. He will bless them. 
 
Similarly, when we pray that God should bless us with the blessings of Obed-Edom, we must remember to also ask God to place His ark in our home as long as we are ready to be accountable for keeping it. God chose this man to keep the ark when David temporarily rejected it. Because the ark carried His presence, God manifested Himself in the lives of the Obeds, all his sons and his relatives. Not only the man but all who surrounded him. May the Lord bless you and everyone in your family to many generations. 
Teachable Lessons:
  1. Obed-Edom accepted responsibility for the ark even though there was visible, deadly fear about it as demonstrated by the citizen-in-chief, King David.
  2. He acted maturely and was accountable for the safe-keeping of the ark. We should learn to be accountable for whatever assignment God gives us.
  3. He led his family in regular worship of God on account of the property they harbored under their roof. We should endeavor to lead our family to praise, exalt and thank the Lord continually.
  4. He used his talent as a player of instrument to inspire his family to praise God rather than live in dejection of what could be a deadly object. God is the One we should fear, not any situation that may come our way.
  5. He was a great and visionary leader. He saw an opportunity for God's blessing with the ark in his house. He saw beyond the death of Uzzah. Instead, he raised an altar of praise. You too can turn a bad situation to a praiseworthy occasion. You can make a success out of what is ordinarily  a hopeless situation.
  6. He was a good family man. He led his family to the holy presence of God. He invited God into the place of the ark; after all, he had learned that God lived in the ark. As heads of families, we must inspire our children and spouses to believe that God is in our homes. We must show courage and live by faith and not by fear.
Postscript: As 2 Samuel 6:12 shows, some "whistle-blowers" went to tell King David that the man upon whom he "dumped" the Ark of God had been blessed in three months. I believe the blessing was so real that people became jealous of Obed and his family. God's unmistakable blessing can come to us in a short time if we, like Obed-Edom, devote our lives to the stewardship of the Lord's kingdom and worshiping Him unashamedly with our family and relatives. 
 
King David wasted no time as he immediately embarked on bringing the ark to his City but not without consultations to identify and correct what made God angry with his first attempt to bring the ark to Jerusalem namely:
  1. The ark was not properly carried. God's instruction was that it must be carried on poles and not a cart. Therefore, David's attempt to modernize the carriage was rebuffed by God. (Exodus 27:7)
  2. Also, it was the job of the Levites, the priesthood family to carry the ark not just anyone. (Numbers 1:50-51)
David would find out these two fundamental instructions of God about transporting the ark and apply them at the second attempt. This teaches us to first consult God on the things that we embark upon, whether big or small so that we can always avoid costly mistakes. 
 
We are told in Luke 6:12-16 that before Jesus appointed the Twelve Disciples, He spent all night praying to the Father. The ministry of Jesus exploded following that night-long prayer and consultation with God. He appointed the Twelve, went on to do the marathon "Sermon on the Mount" - the Beatitudes, and His healing ministry escalated. Should we not even spend an hour praying before we do anything serious? Let us determine that starting this July, we will make a difference in our individual and family Christian behavior: we will pray and consult God on the steps that we take, whether major or minor.
New Wine Church
810 31st St W
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55408

Persistency

This last Sunday, something happened in our Church auditorium. Due to the storm on Friday June 21, the lights were out and the City of Minneapolis, for once, could not restore the electricity supply as of the time of our morning service. Our Choir raised the bar and took us back to our clapping and stumping days with songs like "A-amen, A-amen, A-amen, Amen, Amen.

Then, it was time for the Word ministration. I don't know how to describe Pastor J but if you have seen her, she is not of big stature. She used that to an advantage on Sunday! We were spell bound as she taught from Luke 18:1-8 on Persistency in Prayer. Jesus said, we aught always to pray and not give up. He used the illustration of a Woman who was being denied justice by a judge but never gave up until he granted her a hearing.
I confessed to Pastor J afterwards if I could ever hold the congregation the way she did without a mic and without electricity. She told me, "In the days of Jesus, they had neither of the two!" She graciously agreed to share with our readers 9 Lessons from the Woman and the Judge in the illustration of Jesus on Persistency:
1. The Widow was a stranger to the judge. We are God's own children, His elect and chosen people, 1 Pet. 2:9
2. She was pleading alone but we can come together in corporate prayer agreement, Deut. 32:30
3. She came to a judge who kept her at a distance. We are told to come boldly to the throne of grace, Heb. 4:16
4. She came to an unjust judge but we come to a righteous Father, Jn 17:25
5. She came to the judge purely on her own merit, but we come on the account of the finished work of Christ on Calvary, Jn. 14:13-14
6. She had no friends to speak for her, but we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, 1 Jn. 2:1.
7. She had no encouragement given to her to ask, but we have the assurance to "ask and we shall receive, to seek and we shall find, to knock and the door will be opened, Matt. 7:7
8. She had limited access to the judge, but we have unrestrained, unlimited access to our Father.
9. Finally, her impunity was provoking and annoying to the judge. On the contrary, our God wants us to pray to Him without ceasing. James 5:16 (Amp) says, "The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available (dynamic in its working)".
 
So, thanks and no thanks to the City of Minneapolis, the New Wine Church Choir and Pastor J won the day on Sunday June 23, 2013. To the joy of everyone, light was restored at about 5:30 p.m. during a college graduation reception at the lower level. Pastor J (By the way, someone said we didn't have light because Pastor J just came back from Nigeria where there's a cliche for electricity supply: "Never Expect Power Always" an acronym for the moribund government department responsible for power supply, NEPA. Please save the joke, it's mine - The Editor)
The Word of Faith Weekly

 
Every week, we bring you the Word of Faith to enrich and inspire you in your walk with God. As God's word says, "Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God"; Romans 10:17. We are interested in seeing your feedback. You can also see the ARCHIVE of past editions at our website for your reading pleasure and refreshing.

Dipo Ajayi Cornelius, Editor/Impartation Ministry Pastor. Email me at: news@nwcmpls.com

 

 

About Us:

New Wine Church is a Christ Centered, Non-denominational, Bible-Based Church. Our desire is to raise a thriving and vibrant community of passionate believers who are impacting their generation with the transforming power of the Gospel. Tony Oliha, Senior Pastor