David

 

When David became king, He wanted the Ark of the Covenant, the dwelling place of God among mankind, in his city of Jerusalem. So, David pitched a tent on Mount Zion that housed the Ark of the Covenant. Mount Zion is a small rise in the earth within the city of Jerusalem. That is where the presence of God rested for the benefit of the whole nation of Israel. We don't know the size of the tent. All we know is that God was there, and so were the priests. They ministered to God through thanksgiving, praise, and worship with their musical instruments, physical expressions like raising their hands, bowing low, the dance, as well as lifting up their voices. The great honor for anyone, terrifying as it may have been, was to be able to come into the presence of the Almighty God. That very act was forbidden to them under the Law. But God in His mercy allowed them to taste of a New Testament reality long before its time. Under David, they did this daily. He had all the priests trained in music so they could lift up praises twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. They took shifts so they could do this nonstop. The priests had to shift their focus from the sacrifice of animals to the sacrifice of praise. Their role changed so dramatically that it would be hard for us to comprehend what it must have been like to serve under King Saul and then under David. The skills needed under one leader were completely useless under the next. They turned from the focus of keeping the Law to keeping the presence. An important feature to remember is that most of the time when the Bible talks about the presence of God, it's actually talking about His face. That is the meaning of the Hebrew word translated presence. The prophet Amos declared that in the last days there would be a rebuilding of this tabernacle of David. The time of the fulfillment of this word would be when the Gentiles were added to what God was doing on the earth they, too, would become His people. After the Great Commission given to the Church by Jesus to 

Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen. Matthew 28:19-20

 followed by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit that would help them be effective 

​¹ When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. ² And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. ⁴ And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. Acts 2:1-4

Gentiles began to be added to the church. It became so controversial that the leaders of the church called a meeting in Jerusalem

² Therefore, when Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and dispute with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas and certain others of them should go up to Jerusalem, to the apostles and elders, about this question. Acts 15:2

The conclusion of this gathering of apostolic leaders was that the inclusion of Gentiles to the faith was in fact from God. They were to be careful not to burden them with the requirements of the Law that they, themselves, could not keep. But reading from Amos.

that day I will raise up
The tabernacle of David, which has fallen down,
And repair its damages;
I will raise up its ruins,
And rebuild it as in the days of old;
¹² That they may possess the remnant of Edom,
And all the Gentiles who are called by My name,”

Says the LORD who does this thing. Amos 9:11-12

Notice that the rebuilding of this tabernacle, known for the abiding presence of God and the worship from the priests, coincides with Gentiles being added to the faith. There is a connection in the unseen realm between the effect of worship and the conversion of souls. The Tabernacle of David changed the focus of life and ministry for all priests in the Old Testament. It's a good thing, too. In the New Testament, we discover that every believer is now a priest unto the Lord 

⁹ But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 1 Peter 2:9

The Old Testament priesthood would be impossible for a New Testament believer to emulate, as it was focused on the sacrifice of animals and the worship of God in one location, the tabernacle or temple, depending on the time period. So, this Old Testament story is once again a prophetic prototype of what we are to become. We now have the privilege of ministering to God as they did in David's tabernacle. And the beautiful thing for us all is that this worship can and must be done in our homes, our cars, as well as in the corporate gatherings with our brothers and sisters. Such a role has such a dramatic effect on the atmosphere here on earth that people become converted. My thinking is that the atmosphere in our homes and churches becomes so saturated with the glory of God in response to our worship that people are able to see and hear truth clearly. Worship clears the airwaves. In that sense the Tabernacle of David, and its corresponding role in worship, is unchanged from the Old Testament to the New. Further study will again verify that the ministry of thanksgiving, praise, and worship, all aspects of our ministry unto Him, are all unchanged by the cross. In fact, it was the cross that brought this prototype out of the laboratory of an Old Testament experiment into the daily life of God's people, who have become His eternal dwelling place. It has become a norm. Psalms is the great book of worship. Songs were written to exalt God. But something unique happened in a few of these psalms. The writer would start to make declarations about the nations rising up to give God glory. Decrees were made about every nation worshipping the one true God. Now, regardless of where you think this fits into God's plan for the nations, worshippers first declare it. Why? Worshippers are in a place to call nations into their purpose, into their God-given destiny. It's the sacred privilege of those who worship.

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