Carrying the Burden

In 1Chronicles 13, King David wants to bring back the Ark of God—the place where God said he would meet and talk with his priests.  Everyone agrees that’s a wonderful idea, and soon there’s a celebratory procession of singers and instrumentalists leading the Ark home. It’s a joyous occasion—until the Ark starts to fall, Uzzah tries to steady it, and dies for touching it. David gets afraid, refuses to bring the Ark back to his city, and leaves it in another man’s (Obed-edom) house.
I’ve heard people talk about this passage before, and most of them focused on the fact that the man who ended up with the Ark gets blessed. That’s a good point, but I think there’s more to this.
In Exodus, God lays out the plan for the tabernacle, including the plans and rules for the Ark. It was to be fitted with 2 carrying poles that were never removed, to enable it to be carried on the shoulders of the priests. As I read this passage, I imagined a conversation between David and his officials after they agree to transport the Ark.
“Um, King David, this Ark is really heavy. It’s covered in gold, you know.”
“I know, that’s why you have the poles.”
“Riiiiiiiight, but if we made a cart for it, the oxen could pull it. It’d be a really special cart, and then it could ride nice and safe, and our guys wouldn’t get all tired out from carrying it.”
“Okay, sure. That sounds reasonable. . .”
As we know, it ended badly; but the repercussions affected more than just Obed-edom. The presence of the Ark brought God's favor, protection, and blessing, as evidenced by what happened for Obed-edom’s household. But when the people of God didn’t want to bear the weight, didn’t want the burden, didn’t want to carry out their responsibility, the entire people of Israel—including the carriers—missed out on the blessings that come with the presence of God.
Sure, having the presence of God was great for Obed-edom’s house—but what about everyone else?
The Body of Christ is eaten up with disease, financial disaster, and divorce; the blessings of God are almost nowhere to be found. There are some pockets here and there—I believe World Revival Church to be one—where God has found people willing to carry the weight and has therefore been able to extend his favor; but they are few and far between. God is happy to be pouring out in these places, but is that his original intention? Or is he looking for more people to pick up the weight, shoulder the burden, and begin to carry what we call revival so that the rest of the Body can be blessed?

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