Faithful Trustee

So the men of Kiriath-jearim came to get the Ark of the Lord. They took it to the hillside home of Abinadab and ordained Eleazar, his son, to be in charge of it.
-1 Samuel 7:1 (NLT)

Eleazar got an assignment to be in charge of the Ark of the Lord.  What is your  assignment?  God has an assignment for everyone in the kingdom.  You will be happy doing what God has created you for and assigned you to do.  We all want to find out what our assignment is now and be faithful to that.

Long before the Ark came to their house, God had been preparing or setting apart Eleazar for this important task.  When the time came, there he was.  The ordination, consecration, or setting aside of Eleazar for this task was the "yes and amen" to the preparation he already had, from God.

Today is preparation for tomorrow, even when we do not realize it.  God is developing you.  God is refining you.  If you are a son or daughter, God has been causing you to learn his ways, through discipline.

The Ark went to a place of obscurity, but watching it was a very important assignment.

The Ark of the Lord represents:
  • God's covenant.
  • God's presence.
  • God's power.
  • God's holiness.
The Ark is not itself God, but represents God and must be handled very carefully and reverently.  Just before the Ark was brought to the house of Abinadab, 70 men were killed by God for looking into the Ark.  It is not a vanity piece or a lucky charm, but represents a holy God. 

Eleazar was entrusted with keeping the ark safe.

How long will this last?  We know that it was 20 years (1 Sam. 7:2).

God and Israel are waiting.  God is waiting for his people to turn back to him.  God had raised up Samuel, who was working to turn Israel back to him.  Meanwhile, the Ark sat dormant.

Welcome to the time between the times.  Welcome to the waiting room.  Eleazar, the man who's name means, "God has helped", was entrusted with a task that required faithfulness and steadfastness.

Often in our lives, there is a waiting time.  Sometimes you must wait, because other people you will be partnering with are not ready.  While you wait, there is still plenty to do.  Waiting is always active, as in being a waiter or waitress, who are attentive to serving.  We don't constantly serve, but are continually attentive to God.

We are all called to have faith, as in believing in and for something, through a person, God. Faith grows faithfulness, a lifestyle of faithfulness.  He is faithful and I want to be faithful back.

Can we be faithful to hold onto something holy?  Can we watch over something that has been powerful, but is dormant today?  Can we believe that God is the same today as yesterday?  Can we hold that belief, that faith, about God; God's holiness and God's power, that was displayed in the past?  Can we watch over it and still believe it, when we do not see it or experience it today?

That is the challenge.  


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