A Fresh Perspective

In 2 Samuel 6 David is now king over Israel. David has successfully brought the northern tribes and the tribe of Judah together, and he has established Jerusalem as the new capital and wants to bring the Ark of the Covenant there. The Ark was Israel’s most ancient symbol of the presence of God among the people. It was a chest made of wood and plated with gold. Its lid of solid gold was called the mercy seat. Two cherubim, which were angel like figures stood at opposite ends of the mercy seat. The Ark had been shelved for a long time in the house of Abinadab and now David wants to bring it to Jerusalem. The story in 2 Samuel 6 begins with dancing and ends with dancing, but in the middle there is mourning. God rains death on the parade when Uzzah is struck down trying to steady the ark when it wobbles on the cart it is being transported on. That, of course, brings a sudden halt to the celebrative procession. David is both angry and afraid. David tells everyone to go home and the Ar...

In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul instructs: “Do not get drunk with wine . . . but be filled with the Spirit” (5:18). He compares the Spirit’s fullness to drunkenness. One who is intoxicated is under the influence of alcohol and that influence impacts and affects one’s thinking and behavior. By way of analogy, the one who is filled with the Spirit comes under the influence of a different Reality, a Divine Reality, and that Reality impacts and influences one’s thinking and behavior. This command is an active-passive command. Paul exhorts the faith community to be filled with the Spirit, yet the filling of the Spirit is not completely within the community’s control. In John’s Gospel, the Spirit is compared to wind that blows where it will. It’s beyond human coercion and manipulation. Yet, there are things we can do to set our sails in the direction that the wind is blowing and live within the flow of the Spirit’s power. A River Runs Through It  was a book from which a mo...