Joan Boney ... apostle/prophet
II Chron. 5:11 ... There was nothing in the ark save the two tables which Moses put therein at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel, when they came out of Egypt.
The word had great power to destroy and great power to bless.
When they were moving the ark, the ark slipped and a man reached out his hand to stead the ark and God struck him dead. David was very upset over this and left the ark behind. The Philistines took the ark with them but they were not of God and were stricken with emerods so they kept moving the ark from one city to another and the plague followed because they were handling the ark of God that contained the Word of God and they were not of God. When the ark was left with a man of God, that man was greatly blessed. Finally they sent for the ark and Solomon built a house and put the ark into that house. But all the ark had inside it was the word of God which is where the power of God is. (I Sam. 5-7)
I Sam. 5 ... And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it from Ebenezer unto Ashdod. 2When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon. 3And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the earth before the ark of the LORD. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again. 4And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands were cut off upon the threshold; only the stump of Dagon was left to him. 5Therefore neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon’s house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod unto this day.
6But the hand of the LORD was heavy upon them of Ashdod, and he destroyed them, and smote them with emerods, even Ashdod and the coasts thereof. 7And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said, The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us: for his hand is sore upon us, and upon Dagon our god. 8They sent therefore and gathered all the lords of the Philistines unto them, and said, What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel? And they answered, Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried about unto Gath. And they carried the ark of the God of Israel about thither. 9And it was so, that, after they had carried it about, the hand of the LORD was against the city with a very great destruction: and he smote the men of the city, both small and great, and they had emerods in their secret parts. 10Therefore they sent the ark of God to Ekron. And it came to pass, as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying, They have brought about the ark of the God of Israel to us, to slay us and our people. 11So they sent and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and said, Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go again to his own place, that it slay us not, and our people: for there was a deadly destruction throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there. 12And the men that died not were smitten with the emerods: and the cry of the city went up to heaven.
Finally they put the ark on a cart pulled by milk cows and turn them loose and eventually the ark was returned to Israel where it could be properly handled.
It is like that with the Word of God today. It must be properly handled by people of God.
I Cor. 11 ... For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: 24And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. 25After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. 26For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come. 27Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. 28But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. 29For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. 30For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. 31For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. 32But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.
The Lord's supper is not the eating and drinking of crackers and grape juice as some church groups do. There is no power in eating and drinking crackers and grape juice. And you cannot "judge yourself" by crackers and grape juice.
The Lord's supper is the eating and drinking of The Word of God. This has power and by the Word of God we can judge ourselves (examine ourselves) as it says to do the I Cor. 11.
If we fail to deal properly with the word of God we bring "damnation" to ourselves.
And because some in the church fail to deal properly with the Word of God when they hear it and read it, "they are weak and sickly and some die." I Cor. 11
So the Word of God blesses us when we deal with it correctly, making proper adjustments in our lives to conform to that Word.
But the Word of God can curse those who do not handle it properly. The story of the dealing with the ark in the Old Testament is an example of that for us.