THE OBED-EDOM DIMENSION

I have met many believers who aren’t only not aware of the dimensions of the supernatural, but also faith to progress anywhere beyond the first dimension.

God has ordained for you and me, long before the foundations of the Earth, to tap into the dimensions of the supernatural, both to attain ‘higher living’ for ourselves, as well as for those around us.

To begin, I’d like to inform you of what these five dimensions of the supernatural are:

1. Faith Dimension
2. The Presence of God
3. The Anointing
4. The Glory
5. The Person of Christ (this is, God Himself walking into your room)

Today we are going to be looking at the Glory dimension, and we’ll do so but focusing on 2 Samuel 6.

2 Samuel 6:1-23 “Again David gathered all the choice men of Israel, thirty thousand. 2 And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from Baale Judah to bring up from there the ark of God, whose name is called by the Name, the Lord of Hosts, who dwells between the cherubim.

In Verse 2, we read that God dwells and lives between the Cheribims. The Ark of the Covenant, the Glory of God is the mercy seat. It’s important to bear in mind that mercy is one of the components and ingredients of the Glory. As God lives between the cherubims, so shall it be for those who carry His Glory. You will be divinely protected by cherubims.

Are you a carrier of the Glory?

Are you an Ark to carry the Glory?

3 So they set the ark of God on a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill; and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drove the new cart. 4 And they brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill, accompanying the ark of God; and Ahio went before the ark. 5 Then David and all the house of Israel played music before the Lord on all kinds of instruments of fir wood, on harps, on stringed instruments, on tambourines, on sistrums, and on cymbals.

Verse 3 is descriptive and very interesting when you study it further because it is greatly loaded with revelation. We see that David put the presence of God on the new cart and Uzzah and Ohio drove the cart. The name Uzzahh and Ohio means strength, pride and flesh. They carried the Ark by their own flesh and natural strength. God ordained for the Glory to be carried on the shoulders of the holy priests, which would have been a much slower process – which is why they tried to drive the presence of God on a cart. Many churches want to have drive-through services, in and out within an hour. But the Glory of God is in a place where you will be able to sit under it for hours – not even slightly aware of the passing time.

6 And when they came to Nachon’s threshing floor, Uzzah put out his hand to the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled. 7 Then the anger of the Lord was aroused against Uzzah, and God struck him there for his error; and he died there by the ark of God.

We read in Verse 6 that Uzzah and Ohio came to Nachon’s threshing floor with the Ark. We read how one of the oxen stumbled and caused the Ark to become unstable. Uzzah then put out his hand to secure the Ark, but when he touched the Glory, he was struck dead on the spot by an angel.

A threshing floor resembles a place of testing. When the body of Christ has gone through persecution and a place of testing, if they were carrying the Ark of the Glory on the new cart, at the place of testing, they would stumble and fall at the threshing floor. The hidden truth in this is that people will surely stumble when they do not carry the Glory as they should.

8 And David became angry because of the Lord’s outbreak against Uzzah; and he called the name of the place Perez Uzzah to this day.

9 David was afraid of the Lord that day; and he said, “How can the ark of the Lord come to me?”

Verse 9 shows us how David was scared to host the presence of God after Uzzah’s death. When you stand for His Glory, and when you stand for the Prophetic movement and revival in South Africa, when you stand for the presence of God… you will be persecuted and feel like you want to give up, because you may become scared.

10 So David would not move the ark of the Lord with him into the City of David; but David took it aside into the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite. 11 The ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-Edom the Gittite three months. And the Lord blessed Obed-Edom and all his household. 12 Now it was told King David, saying, “The Lord has blessed the house 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 with gladness.

Verse 11-12 is particularly interesting. The word blessed in this portion of scripture means that God Himself went onto His knees and blessed Obed-Edom that day. After three months of prospering in all things, the blessing was so great that even David, the king, heard of how blessed Obed-Edom was. 

When you decide to host the Glory, when you decide to make a stand for His Glory, you shall be utterly blessed.

13 And so it was, when those bearing the ark of the Lord had gone six paces, that he sacrificed oxen and fatted sheep.

In Verse 13 we see that David realises that he can’t put the Ark on the new cart as he did before. He had to put the Ark on the shoulders of those who were qualified to carry it. David would walk six paces and give an offering of oxen and fatted sheep – these careful practices are proof that he didn’t want to make the same mistake as before by trying to hasten the process and move the Ark in his own strength.

We can see that David had wisdom and recognised that when the Glory is in your midst, giving and sacrifice is the only way to carry it.

14 Then David danced before the Lord with all his might; and David was wearing a linen ephod.

Verse 14 shows us David’s attitude towards God and that he celebrated His presence. David danced until his clothes fell off, gave his best sacrifices every six paces on a ten-mile walk, he shouted and played loud trumpets. David spoilt God so much that it’s difficult for us to come close to his giving.

There are so many people that think that they are doing God a favour when they give, but in this verse, we see how we are to honour the Glory of God. 

David realised that if he was to host the Glory, that he would have to pay the full price. No short-cuts, no low cost. 

15 So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouting and with the sound of the trumpet.16 Now as the ark of the Lord came into the City of David, Michal, Saul’s daughter, looked through a window and saw King David leaping and whirling before the Lord; and she despised him in her heart. 17 So they brought the ark of the Lord, and set it in its place in the midst of the tabernacle that David had erected for it. Then David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord. 18 And when David had finished offering burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of hosts. 19 Then he distributed among all the people, among the whole multitude of Israel, both the women and the men, to everyone a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a cake of raisins. So all the people departed, everyone to his house.

Verse 19 We can see that the results of the Glory is a giving heart. David immediately gave to the whole multitude of Israel a loaf of bread, a piece of meat and a cake of raisins. It’s something that was automatic after he encountered the Glory of God.

Another aspect I want you to take note of is the fact that David brought back the Ark to the house of Israel and they prospered. Does it mean all were holy and without sin? Not at all. I want you to take note that the blessing of hosting the Glory goes beyond sin.

Are you willing to make a decision today that you want to bring back the Ark of the Glory of God into your homes?

The results, the response, and the rewards are immeasurable.