God’s Discipline...

No one like’s to be told they made a mistake!  No one really enjoys the prospect of being held accountable for something they did, but don’t think it’s all that big a deal.  It’s human nature to resist discipline.  

Trials, mistakes and yes that infernal three-letter word... sin, are a fact of life in a fallen world.  How we respond to what comes from being caught in sin is our choice.  A personal choice.  A person when confronted with sin, responds with anger, resentment and pride.

Nothing breaks my heart more than to hear someone who is caught in a sin, usually a serious sin, say they won’t be coming to church anymore because they feel as if the churches discipline is unfair and unwarranted.  Like... "what's the big deal?"

Unfortunately, many Christians have allowed their perception of discipline to turn them away from God.  How a person responds is critical.  Turning away from God because you made a mistake doesn’t make God nonexistent.  Leaving the fellowship of a church family that loves you and wants to restore your relationship with God does not solve your problem.   God has and always will be the final and absolute authority on all matters of human life.  Whether you like his program for human life or not, it is wise not to rebel against it. 

How you respond to God, the people of His Church and pastoral counsel to help you overcome sinful conduct largely depends on how you see yourself in a family environment.  The word “submit” grates on many souls.  Secular psychologists say that those who grew up in dysfunctional homes have a problem with authority figures and don’t easily “submit” to anyone.  

Psychologists will urge submission averse people to respond to an authority figure by being disagreeable, so as to assert their own individuality and personal authority.  In the Church, discipline for serious sin is administered by Holy Spirit appointed older men, elders or pastors, who try their very best not to hurt or shame anyone.  That said, sin does have consequences and they are simply following God’s biblically prescribed ways for restoring a sinner to God’s grace.  

For spiritual shepherds protecting the Church is paramount as they deal with sin.  Everything they do must bring glory to God and enhance the testimony of the flock.  They must seek to restore, heal, and build up sinning believers, doing so according to God’s ways. (Matt. 18:15; 2 Thess. 3:14-15; Heb. 12:10-13; Gal. 6:1-2; Jam. 5:20; 2 Tim. 2:24-26).  They desire to produce a healthy faith, one sound in doctrine for all members of the flock. (Titus 1:13; 1 Tim. 1:19-20).  (2 Tim. 2:24-26).  While never pleasant, corrective discipline of sinners silences false teachers and their influence in the church (Titus 1:10-11). Shepherds must set an example for the rest of the body and promote godly fear by their actions with a sinner (1 Tim. 5:20).

Discipline for sin sounds more harsh than it really is.  God’s loves us like a father and is only trying to help us grow in holiness.  Listen to what Hebrews says... And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons? “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, nor be weary when reproved by him. For the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and chastises every son whom he receives.”  It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline?  If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.  (Hebrews 12: 5–11)

I suppose it would be much easier if God himself came down to earth and administered spiritual discipline every time we needed it, but that’s not the way He works.  Listen to the writers of Hebrews and Proverbs on how God expects discipline to be lovingly administered...

Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you. Hebrews 13:17 (ESV)

My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline and do not resent his rebuke, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in. Proverbs 3:11-12 (NIV)

God uses discipline as a last resort. If all God needed to justify mankind to himself was a bigger cattle-prod, then Christ died for nothing! No, God's plan for the earth is love first, discipline when needed. 

To get us to listen and repent of sin, God will use deep conviction, the rebuke of friends, coincidental sermons, the quickening of Scripture, and every other means before disciplining us. But if we resist God's mercy, we are promised the rod of correction. Never forget... it’s His discipline not man’s.  When God disciplines, the punishment fits the crime. Time and again, we realize that we cannot get away with unrepentant sin. God is sculpting us into holy vessels, and the process can at times... be painful.   "Blessed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty. For he wounds, but he also binds up; he injures, but his hands also heal." Job 5:17-18 (NIV)

Though church discipline is a very difficult area of doctrine and one hard to practice, it nevertheless rests upon the divine authority of Scripture and is vital to the purity, power, progress, purpose and holiness of the church. The responsibility and necessity for discipline is not an option for the church if it obeys the Word of God, but a church must be equally concerned that Scripture is carefully followed in the practice of church discipline.  Again, older men – spiritual shepherds, are administering God’s discipline, not their own.

Sin in the life of the church grieves the person of the Holy Spirit and extinguishes His power. If sin remains unchecked by the loving application of church discipline in a body of believers, the Holy Spirit will abandon such a church to its own carnal resources. The unavoidable result will be the loss of the Lord’s blessing until the sin is dealt with.

When we know certain sinful things exist but ignore them or simply look the other way because it is difficult to deal with or because it involves one of our friends and we do not want to risk causing problems in the relationship... we are mocking the Holy God.

As His ambassadors to a lost and dying world, God has called the church to be a holy people, a people who, standing out as distinct from the world, proclaim the excellencies of the works of God in Christ (1 Pet. 1:14-16; 2:9-15). If this is to occur, we must be different from the world and church discipline helps us to both remember and maintain that purpose. 

One of the recurring criticisms against the church today as evidenced in various polls taken across the country, is the fact there is little or no difference between the church and the secular world when it comes to attitudes, values, morals, and lifestyle. 

A church that is reluctant to practice church discipline will see its ministry and purpose decline. The church may want to grow and reach out and it may try all kinds of stop gap measures, promotional campaigns, and programs in an attempt to turn things around, but if there is sin in the camp, it will all be to no avail.  Revelation 2:5 and 3:16 offer illustrations of this principle.

Church discipline is vital to the purity of the local body and its protection from moral decay and impure doctrinal influences. Why?  Because a little leaven leavens the entire lump (1 Corinthians 5:6-7).

Remember the church at Corinth.  They showed a serious lack of concern for purity. They neglected the responsibility to discipline and suffered as a result. Their insensitivity to one moral issue may have led to their compromise on other issues. The Corinthians engaged in lawsuits, misused their liberty, profaned the Lord’s Supper, neglected the primacy of love, failed to regulate the use of their gifts, and questioned the resurrection.  Failure in church discipline in Corinth could be compared to a lump of unattended leaven that caused numerous problems for the flock.

Facing up to one’s personal sin and how it will affect other Christians is not easy.  Compound that by facing God’s discipline in the presence of your church family... well, that just might be one of the toughest challenges anyone will ever face.  

Take heart and remember this... God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in His Holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time its necessary.  It can’t be anything but painful and humiliating. However, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who allow themselves to be trained by it.  So it is written for our edification...

"...My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son."  Hebrews 12:5-6 (NIV)

Choose Wisely

Joshua called the people of his time to make a choice about the god they would serve.  He laid out for them... four choices they could make.  The options were like four points on a compass, because whatever choice made, would lead in a different direction. A simple axiom... the choices we make in life ultimately will determine our direction and final destination.

Choice 1: Gods of Our Fathers 

"The gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River" (Josh. 24:14).

Long before God spoke to Abraham and told him of the future of his people, a people with a special standing before God, the ancestors of Abraham worshiped the gods of the region where they lived. There were three cosmic deities, three astral deities, and a whole bunch of specialized benevolent gods and corresponding malevolent demons. Dead people came back as spirits to haunt their children.  Animism was widely practiced... the hills, rocks, trees and mountains were considered to be alive and have powers.

Abraham came from a society that believed in such gods and held such beliefs. In fact, the Bible specifically tells us Abraham's father was an idol worshiper. Belief in these gods persisted even after the rise of the Hebrew people, right up to Joshua's era. Joshua wanted to know if they were going to default to the gods of their forefathers.

It's still a valid question today.  We raise our children in the church and hope as they grow to adulthood they will continue fellowship in the church. We may not do so consciously, but we constantly are erecting idols in our homes and teaching our children about who or what is worthy of our worship.

Think about how this is true for you and the family in which you were raised. Is it possible the gods at war in your life today are the same gods your parents or grandparents worshiped when you were younger?   Offspring often end up worshipping whatever gods their parents worshiped.

The basic premise supporting this generational transference is that our lives are determined by our thoughts, and our thoughts are determined by the things, the ideals we are exposed to.  Our minds absorb, habits are formed and our lives reflect the attitudes to which we are most frequently exposed. It shouldn't surprise us that we tend to worship the gods of our fathers and mothers.

Money. Perhaps nothing was more important to your father than a successful career. His life revolved around his job. He was willing to sacrifice days off and family vacations to work his way up the ladder of success. His mood was determined by what kind of day he had at work. His temple was his office, and he worshiped there 60 hours or more each week. Is it possible that you now worship the gods of success and achievement? Instead of finding your identity and worth in Christ, do you find it in your career?

Some of the gods worshiped today... Sports, Sex, Money, Status, Alcohol, Shopping, Career, Children, Entertainment... anything that occupies our time and captures our undivided attention.  Don't dismiss those examples. Think about what was held up for you in your childhood home.  Your parents wanted you to be successful in life and would hold their “gods” up to you as the path to a happy and productive life.  The most natural path in the world is to adopt the gods of our parents.

Choice 2: Gods of Your Past

"The gods your ancestors worshiped...in Egypt" (Josh. 24:14).

Joshua specifically mentioned the gods of Egypt. These were the gods of the previous generation, gods from the past that never completely went away from the Hebrew people.

The Egyptians had a diverse and highly developed pantheon of deities. The Egyptians had their popular gods, but they actually worshiped almost everything, including the sun, moon and stars. Smorgasbord worship, [pick one or two that suit your lifestyle] was their thing.

The Hebrews were slaves in Egypt longer than the United States has been a nation. Almost twice as long!  There was no way they were going to endure that long period of time without absorbing some of the culture around them. When Moses led his people out of that land, the local gods weren't about to give up without a fight. Old habits, including old worship patterns, die hard.

Do you ever find yourself struggling with things from the past that you thought you had left behind a long time ago?   Here's the point: A lot of people become Christians, but never quite “unload the old self.”  Everything is great until they get bored, or their expectations are not realized, or something they wanted from God doesn't happen and they begin to drift back to what was comfortable and known.  In reality, what they did was bring into their walk as Christians the gods of their previous worldly focused life.  Bad habits, unwholesome attitudes, all the stuff that should have been completely eradicated from their lives, has managed to come along for the ride, lurking quietly in the background waiting for an opportunity to raise havoc.

This necessary eradication of the “old self” is hard to understand, when the Bible tells us a person’s sins are forgiven.   If someone has been thoroughly cleaned, why does “stuff “ still clinging to them? It’s more than forgiveness of sins... its about changing everything that drives a person to the very core of one’s soul.   Conversion means little if a person clings to old desires, attitudes and habits.  You can’t have it both ways.  You can’t have Jesus in your life and still covet the old gods that ruled your previous life. That’s the challenge for many Christians today.  The problem isn't that we need to choose to follow Jesus... the problem is that we have tried to follow Him without leaving our old gods behind.  

Joshua knew there was a bit of Egypt’s gods still lurking in the hearts of his people. Old gods die hard. They hold on, creep in and quietly reinvade our most inner being. Never, never doubt their power over us.  Just because you’ve committed your life to Christ, doesn’t immediately free you from the corrupting influences of your old gods.  Those old gods fall silent for a while, but they surface, when you give them an opening.  They want to rule our hearts to our destruction.

So even if you've chosen the True God in the past, the challenge of Joshua is to choose “this day and every day ever after... who you will serve.”

Choice 3: Gods of Our Culture

"Or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living" (Josh. 24:15).

The Israelites were challenged to conquer a land where false gods and sinful living prevailed, similar to our contemporary society. There were many people groups and many different gods. The dominant deity was Baal, whose name meant "owner, master or lord" (sound familiar?). When the Israelites would conquer these peoples, they would continue to be a thorn in Israel's side.  Their weapon was proximity, these were the gods who existed in plain sight.

There was a goddess named Ashtoreth. She presided over temples devoted to abhorrent human sacrifices and sexual rituals.  The lifestyle of the Amorites was alluring to the Israelites.  Why?  Because these gods had home field advantage... they were right there operating in plain sight, right where the Israelites lived.  The True God had warned them.  He told them to eradicate those peoples and their gods from their land... they didn't and the consequences were devastating and destructive.

Two of the most significant factors that consistently determine which gods win the war in our lives, are time and place. We struggle with the gods of our culture every day. We live immersed in what is known as the spirit of the age, so prevalent, and yet it often seems to be invisible to us. Could it be that we have our own idols that are hiding in plain sight that we don't recognize simply because they're so common [comfortable] to us?  

Paul said, "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind" (Rom. 12:2). "The pattern of this world" is his way of describing the spirit or gods of this age. To go with the flow is to conform to the pattern of this world. The Bible advises us to renew our minds by plugging into the eternal, unchanging truth of God.  God’s Word and His ways are like an antibiotic that can eventually overcome the diseases within us... a lurking virus of false gods that seek to overtake our bodies, minds and very soul.  For the  antibiotic of truth to eradicate the demonic influences within us, we need to be constantly feeding on the healing power of God’s Word.

Choice 4:  The One and Only True God

"But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD" (Josh. 24:15).

Joshua's fourth option was the Lord of Heaven and Earth, the One True God. Joshua might well have been the consummate pitch man, because he saves the best and they only real choice till the end of his presentation. It’s the final option. None of the other options are real. They may look promising, but they do nothing to satisfy our quest for alignment with Deity.

Before Joshua gave the people these four options, he stacked the deck a bit by describing all the things God has done for His people through the years. The Lord God had been active and worked powerfully among them redeeming, protecting, guiding and providing. So in making their choice, the obvious question for the people to ask of these other gods... What have you ever done for us?

In making your own choice, maybe you should ask yourself the same question. What enduring value has the god of wealth really bought anyone? Did the gods of pleasure ever once deliver true and lasting happiness? What about the gods of pleasure? Can they provide a joy that is more than that of a passing moment?  What have these gods done for you?  If anything, they have enslaved you. They have robbed you. They have disappointed you.

People are insecure and uncomfortable when they can’t touch or see something they put their life’s trust in.  The True God requires steady trusting faith.  Not easy.  God delivers invisible, intangible things that are not convertible to currencies and assets in our world. Followers of Jesus Christ have moved beyond the “gods of this world” and accepted and hold firmly to such things as forgiveness, fulfillment, hope, contentment, joy and peace.  Psalm 86:8 says, "Among the gods there is none like You, Lord; no deeds can compare with Yours."

How did the people respond to Joshua’s great four-way challenge?  They said exactly the right words (see Josh. 24:16-18).  Even so, he didn't let them off the hook easily. Joshua warned them about the jealousy and the holiness of God. He described the disaster that would come upon them if they didn't live up to the words they were speaking.

Joshua had watched the Hebrew people all his life. He knew how fickle their hearts were, how quickly their attention wandered. He knew how easily they said the right things only to turn around and make the wrong choices. It's so simple to produce the right platitudes on cue as they often did, but it's so hard to keep living the truth. So Joshua warned them about their relationship with the One True God.

This story of the fledgling nation of Israel did not have such a good outcome.  They tried to “have no others gods before me” but they failed to live up to their words and promises to God.  

The “gods of this world” will never surrender.  They know how to work the “ebb and flow” of Christian people.   They may lose a generation, but even then, they know they’ve got a very good shot at the next one. They may lose you for a year or several years, but they'll wait quietly and patiently for you to stumble... they never give up.

Your Choice... Your Destiny

Have you ever had one of those unsettling moments, when you realized a decision you were contemplating could very likely affect your entire future? Just knowing that if you pursue a certain kind of job, or pursued a certain life partner or live in a certain place, your future could be profoundly negative. It’s a scary thought.

When it comes to making choices in life, we often find ourselves standing at a fork in the road,  knowing exactly what's at stake with the decision we are about to make.  But so many times, we just keep wandering down a particular path, missing the fork in the road without really thinking about it.  We make many choices without being aware we are actually choosing. We make many life choices because that's the way our families did things; or because that's the way certain other people—people we admire—do them; or we’re influenced by media, marketing and the majority... “everyone does this or that, this way.”

Whether we are aware of it, we regularly make choices that declare “which gods” are winning the war in our lives.  

Moses led the homeless nation of Israel out of Egypt, where the people had been enslaved for several generations. God demonstrated His power through the 10 plagues, dividing the Red Sea, providing food from heaven and water from a rock.  He also led them by a cloud during the day and pillar of fire at night.  

However, the people still didn't have much faith. They constantly whined and complained. It should have been about a month-long hike to the Promised Land, but God caused them to wander in the wilderness for nearly 40 years because of a lack of trust and confidence in Him. Moses and his generation died before entering the land God had promised. Joshua replaced Moses as the leader of God's people and brought them into the Promised Land.

By this time, with the Promised Land before them.  Joshua is compelled to layout the future for the Israelites... a future that hinges on the choices they will make.  Joshua had been a commander through many battles.  He had seen the walls of Jericho come thundering down in miraculous fashion.  He had fought the battles, and he bore the scars and the wisdom and faith that grows and deepens with every struggle.

Joshua seemed to know he didn't have much time left, by now he’s a very old man. He gathered the people of Israel together for what could be likened to a farewell address. He stood and cleared his throat as the assembly turned toward him expectantly. He no longer was the powerful figure he once was, but still his voice carried power (Joshua 24:14-15).

Joshua got right to the point and issued a challenge: It's time for the people to make a choice. The people can follow the Lord God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, or they can choose a different god. It's time to select a god to follow, to accept a worldview and allow it to guide, shape and influence their future.

"It's up to you," Joshua said, "but I can tell you this much: As for me and my house, our decision is made. We know who we will serve; you must make your own choice."

It’s interesting that Joshua gave three other options along with the one True God.  Joshua was a leader used to giving orders and having them followed, but in this situation he knew the people would have to make a choice.  No one can be ordered into the kingdom of God. It's a path individuals must freely choose.

So Joshua laid out the options this way:  [1] Follow the old gods from beyond the river, from the place where you started.  [2] Follow the gods you met in Egypt, where you were enslaved.  [3] Follow the local gods, those of the people recently defeated by the one true God.

How would you have reacted to Joshua’s options?   Likely you would have said, “no problem, I don't worship Egyptian or local gods or any from beyond the river.”   Forget the details for a moment, and notice each category has to do with a time and a place of life. This is highly significant. The gods that compete for our attention come at us based on the circumstances of everyday life, invited in to our lives by the choices we make. These unholy gods merge very quietly and subtly with the things we value and the routines of our lives, becoming our primary focus. 

It's important to understand the easily missed assumption here:  You will make a choice.  All of us are worshipers. Worship is hardwired in who we are. It's true of every culture and every civilization. Everyone worships... something or someone.

Wherever you go, you see that people have chosen. You will, too. It's written into our genetic code. You can go to places where they have old-school idols, rituals and sacrifices; or you can go to the most technologically advanced placed, where folks think they're way past "religious mumbo jumbo."

Upon closer inspection, you find they are sacrificing a great deal on the altars of power, pleasure or finance—it's really all the same: People are choosing their gods and bringing their offerings. At the end of the day, the real offering is one's self.

Noted philosopher Peter Kreeft sums it up this way... "The opposite of theism is not atheism; it's idolatry."  In other words, everyone is going to worship a god of some sort. We were created to be worshipers. The question for you is: Who or what will be the object of your worship?

In our modern thinking, we associate worship with religion. We think worship has something to do with the trappings, rituals and music that frame an assembly of  believers. If someone doesn't have a “box” in life labeled "organized religion," then they assume the question of what god they worship doesn't apply to them. You've got boxes labeled "work," "family," "finances" and "hobbies," but not "worship."

The problem is a misunderstanding of what worship is. Worship is the built-in human reflex to put your hope in something or someone and then follow it passionately.  Sooner or later, you grow some assumptions concerning what your life is all about, what you really should be going after. When you begin to align your life with that pursuit, then whether you realize it, you are worshiping whatever it is you are pursuing.

That's what human beings do, along with breathing, eating and thinking. We identify things we want—good and bad—then we make sacrifices to get them. The end result is that our lives begin to take the shape of what we care most about. We each make the choice to worship, and then at some point we discover the choice makes us. The object of your worship will determine your future and define your life. It's the one choice by which all other choices are motivated.

So, Joshua was speaking to all humanity when he said, "Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve." Make an educated decision about the greatest goal of your life. Otherwise, you will flow passively into some choice, a little bit of yourself at a time, until you find yourself inside a temple bowing to a god you never recognized having chosen.

More to come on this discussion, next week.

The Dangers of an Irreverent Attitude

Are you shocked by irreverent attitudes and behavior?  You know, the sort of attitude and behavior that shows no respect for anything or anyone.  

Consider the definition of irreverent:  Lacking or exhibiting a lack of reverence; disrespectful.  Critical of what is generally accepted or respected; satirical without due respect or veneration; a flippant attitude. 

Human respect, empathy for one another, caring, gentleness, generosity... all the things that make for peaceful relationships among people seems to be at an all‐time low.   I have a theory:  Lack of respect for others reflects and is exacerbated by a lack of reverence for God.  In other words... how you see and interact with God, is how you see and interact with other people.

It's difficult to understand casual irreverence toward God considering what He has done for humanity. Just his unfathomable power alone should be enough to push you to your knees whenever you ponder His name!   

In the last thirty years we've watched our culture change dramatically.  Today's youth rebel against their parents, there's blatant disrespect for authority, almost everything seems to foment a fight.  Battle lines are drawn, people take sides in opposition to one another, even to values and godly principles. Respect and caring for one another are growing as scarce as hens teeth.  What is most disturbing, is the lack of reverence many so-called followers of Christ actually show toward God as they get embroiled in unholy lifestyles.

There is such a great difference between the holiness of God and the unholiness of men. Yet it seems like today we relate to God as something just a little higher than ourselves, someone we impose our smallness on.  We bring Him down to our size to avoid responsibility for living reverent lives.   He's no longer revered as the Infinite, Almighty, Holy God that created us and sustains life.  He is no longer feared; no longer given His due respect and reverence. It's interesting what people will stand up for today. They show reverence for the military, historical days, and the dead.  God may or may not be on the “list” of those we revere.  

This attitude stems from a lack of understanding of God’s nature and character.  Of course, if you don’t read your Bible and pour over the Scriptures to gain the wisdom He has promised,  then you will surely lack in understanding of who He is and how to live in reverence of Him.

Everyone should search the scriptures to learn how to live reverently towards God.  He gave us His Word the Bible to get us through the challenges of living in a sinful world.  Someday Jesus Christ will return... when He does, will we have followed the instructions He has given us?   Or will we be found to have ignored, rewritten or redesigned His instructions to suit our own desires and preferred way of religion?  

There is a story in 2 Samuel 6:1-15 that illustrates the problem of ignoring God's Word.  I think this passage is especially appropriate for Christian’s today. Why?  Because too many so-called Christians are doing things and living lives contrary to the standards God has set before us.  It’s dangerous to call ourselves His followers and then to live by standards that trifle with His holiness.  Such an attitude cost a man named Uzzah his life.  

The story involved plans to move the Ark of the Covenant, the symbol of God’s presence with His people the Israelites.  For several years the Ark had not been properly housed in the Tabernacle.  It had been carried off by the Philistines, recovered by the Israelites and stored for an extended time in the house of a Levite priest. So, King David wanted to return the Ark to Jerusalem and restore it to its rightful and proper place in the “most holy place” in the Tent of Meeting [Tabernacle].  

Many years before David’s plan was hatched, God had given very detailed and specific instructions as to how the Ark was to be carried and moved.  It was to be borne upon men's shoulders, Levites only, and only those of the family of Kohath (Exodus 25:12-14; Numbers 7:9), using long poles as prescribed by God.  Moving the Ark came with a stern warning... DO NOT touch it or gaze upon the holy things contained therein or those who do will die. God was clear...  failing to follow His precise instructions would be seen as (1) not revering God’s words when He spoke them through men such as Moses whom He had appointed; (2) having an independent attitude that might border on rebellion, i.e., seeing and acting on things from a worldly, rather than a spiritual, perspective; or (3) outright disobedience, expediency, ignoring precise details.  

An aspect we often neglect to consider in our relationship to God’s holiness... is summed up in the phrase... “familiarity breeds contempt.”   The Ark had stayed for a long period of time at Abinadab’s house (2 Samuel 6:3), where his sons, Uzzah and Ahio, may well have become accustomed to its presence.  Uzzah, having been around the Ark in his own home, could very likely have marginalized the holiness that it represented. The Ark became like just another piece of furniture.  He became too familar with it, and lost focus on what it really represented.  There are times when we, too, fail to recognize the holiness of God.  We focus too much on the warm fuzzies we get from thinking of God's great love for us and become too familiar with Him.  We can easily develop an irreverent attitude, even though we don’t realize that’s what we are doing. 

So, it’s time to move the Ark to Jerusalem. It’s not a long journey, less than 10 miles.  How did they do it?  NOT the way God had prescribed, not even close!  Instead of following the precise instructions given by God, they moved the Ark on a cart pulled by oxen, escorted by Levites, but not carried by them.   The journey begins.  Along the way on level ground, the oxen stumble, the Ark begins to tip as if it was going to fall off the cart and crash to the ground.  

Uzzah, a Levite, walking alongside the cart seeing what was happening, felt it was his responsibility to reach out his hand and steady the Ark so it would not fall.  What was going through his mind?    Did he believe that his actions were going to save the integrity of God?  Did he think that Almighty God somehow needed his assistance?  Did he presume that, without his intervention, God’s presence among the Israelites would be dealt a blow?  Who knows what he was thinking.  God killed Uzzah.  When Uzzah reached out and touched the Ark of the Covenant, God’s anger burned against him for “his irreverent act” (2 Samuel 6:7)

Many Christians are horrified by the story of Uzzah.  The story is not just about the holiness of God... it also demonstrates, harshly so, the   reverence we must always have towards Him.  This story should teach Christians that the holiness of God is not something to take lightly. 

When you reflect upon the holiness of God today, do you stand in awe of Him?  Do you have the sense of “hallowed be your name” (Matthew 6:9) when you pray?  In your encounter with God, do you reflect upon the Old Testament’s concept of God’s holiness?  What does “take off your sandals” convey to you?  The worshipers of the Old Testament knew that “take off your sandals” (Exodus 3:5) spoke of the presence and holiness of God.  Abraham’s meeting with God called forth this cry: “I am nothing but dust and ashes” (Genesis 18:27).  Do you ever feel this way?   The God of the Old Testament has NOT changed... He is the same holy God today as then and we must treat Him with awe and reverence.

Christians are servants of righteousness... Christians are to present themselves holy to the Lord.  It is in this regard that Paul admonishes the believers at Rome: “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:1-2).  Peter also called for holiness in the life of the believers: “Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy” (1 Peter 1:13-16).

Something of God’s presence as embodied in the Ark of the Covenant seems to be lost in the Church today. It's not reverence for a relic or sacred piece of furniture... its an attitude of the heart.  We’re not even sure what irreverence look like because the attitudes of our minds have not changed (Ephesians 4:23).   In the time of Moses, the people knew the awesomeness of God’s absolute holiness.  They had witnessed great miracles when the Ark was with them. They respected that God’s ways and thoughts are much higher than ours (Isaiah 55:8-9).  

In truth, the more we try to bring God down to our worldly way of thinking and reasoning, the further away He will seem to us.  That’s what irreverence looks like today... intentional or not, it’s minimizing and marginalizing the commands of God, so that what He demands doesn’t interfere with the way we want to live.   

Those who would draw near to God and have Him draw near to them are those who approach Him in reverence and holy fear.  Uzzah forgot that and the consequences were tragic.