The essence of the entire gospel can be condensed in a nutshell, in that the work of regeneration, that is accomplished through Christ, centers primarily on The Holy Ghost being given to those who believe, so that we may be empowered to obey God. Our love to God is manifested, not merely by empty words or praise, but by obeying Him because of an intelligent understanding and appreciation of His character. Fair words and flattery do not impress God, nor is He pleased with obedience that is partial, rational, or subject to humanistic modes of reasoning.
When God instructs us in His ways and His law, He expects that His every word will be carried out to the letter, in a cheerful, understanding spirit. Thus, whenever praise is coupled with obedience, it is accepted, for if He had to choose between praise and obedience God would choose obedience any day. Let’s read:
1st Samuel 15:22 And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.
John 14: 15 If ye love me, keep my commandments. 21 He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.
1st John 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
However, in our day, a very disturbing trend has obtained in Christianity, where there is much talk about faith, without the corresponding works of obedience. Again, there is partial obedience, or a sort of compliance that is based on convenience alone, and for these reasons, it has now become necessary for those of us living in this generation to understand clearly the issue of obeying God.
In the unfortunate history of Uzzah, we may read clearly the important issues pertaining to obedience which must be understood by all, and especially the last generation of believers who will face the final conflict against the dragon and his agents. Nothing but exact obedience to God’s word will do. Let us repeat, nothing but exact obedience to God’s word will do. God had given the Hebrews explicit instructions for the transportation of the sacred ark, which housed the laws of God and the Shekinah glory.
Whenever it was to be moved from its place, certain ordained persons were to carry it on their shoulders and they were forbidden to even look on it, on pain of death. This is because the immediate presence of destroys sin, in those who know right from wrong, and thus, the instructions given for the transportation of the sacred chest was given to the children of Israel in a most solemn manner, so that the consequences of any deliberate violation thereof, would be clearly understood by all. Let’s read:
Numbers 4:1 And the Lord spoke unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, 2 Take the sum of the sons of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, after their families, by the house of their fathers, 3 From thirty years old and upward even until fifty years old, all that enter into the host, to do the work in the tabernacle of the congregation.
4 This shall be the service of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation, about the most holy things: 5 And when the camp sets forward, Aaron shall come, and his sons, and they shall take down the covering vail, and cover the ark of testimony with it.
15 And when Aaron and his sons have made an end of covering the sanctuary, and all the vessels of the sanctuary, as the camp is to set forward; after that, the sons of Kohath shall come to bear it: but they shall not touch any holy thing, lest they die. These things are the burden of the sons of Kohath in the tabernacle of the congregation.
19 But thus do unto them, that they may live, and not die, when they approach unto the most holy things: Aaron and his sons shall go in, and appoint them everyone to his service and to his burden. 20 But they shall not go in to see when the holy things are covered, lest they die.
However, after the ark was returned from Philistia, it was placed in the house of Abinadab, and there it remained for twenty years, until David decided that it was time for it to return to its rightful place. Thus, with great joy and expectation, David, together with thirty thousand of his men went to fetch the ark. It is worthy of note that David took thirty thousand of Israel to go, for thirty thousand were slain when the ark was taken by the Philistines.
All goes well, and with great joy and rejoicing, they make their way home, when suddenly, the ark was shaken by the oxen, as if it was about to fall, and in what some people might consider a natural, reflex reaction, Uzzah stretched forth his hand to prevent it from falling. What happens next is where we will begin our study on obeying God.
Several important pointers will be highlighted, and several phrases will be focused on, so that whatever may be our current understanding of obedience, we will be instructed in the ways of God as it pertains to this very essential, and indispensable aspect of Christianity. Let the Bible speak for itself. Let’s read:
2nd Samuel 6:1 David gathered together all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. 2 And David arose, and went with all the people that were with him from Baal of Judah, to bring up from thence the ark of God, whose name is called by the name of the Lord of hosts that dwelleth between the cherubims.
3 And they set the ark of God upon a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab that was in Gibeah: and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drove the new cart. 4 And they brought it out of the house of Abinadab which was at Gibeah, accompanying the ark of God: and Ahio went before the ark.
5 And David and all the house of Israel played before the Lord on all manner of instruments made of fir wood, even on harps, and on psalteries, and on timbrels, and on cornets, and on cymbals. 6 And when they came to Nachon's threshingfloor, Uzzah put forth his hand to the ark of God and took hold of it; for the oxen shook it.
7 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah; and God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God. 8 And David was displeased, because the Lord had made a breach upon Uzzah: and he called the name of the place Perezuzzah to this day.
9 And David was afraid of the Lord that day, and said, How shall the ark of the Lord come to me? 10 So David would not remove the ark of the Lord unto him into the city of David: but David carried it aside into the house of Obededom the Gittite.
11 And the ark of the Lord continued in the house of Obededom the Gittite three months: and the Lord blessed Obededom, and all his household. 12 And it was told king David, saying, The Lord hath blessed the house of Obededom, and all that pertaineth unto him, because of the ark of God. So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obededom into the city of David with gladness.
13 And it was so, that when they that bare the ark of the Lord had gone six paces, he sacrificed oxen and fatlings. 14 And David danced before the Lord with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod. 15 So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouting, and with the sound of the trumpet.
As was stated before, several important points will be highlighted, so that all who are listening should have clearer insights into the issue of obeying God, and how it does affect our relationship with Him.
[1] It was a joyous occasion, for according to the Bible, “David and all the house of Israel played before the Lord on all manner of instruments.”
It is always good to be joyful at the presence of God and it is good to celebrate whenever God has done great things for us. Just remember this, joyfulness does not make disobedience acceptable in any way, shape, or form. This coming week millions the world over will be celebrating another new year, and with grateful hearts we will reminisce on those blessings God has bestowed all year through.
Just remember this, that in the heat of the moment and in the joy of celebration, obedience to all that we know is right, is still required. There is a right, and acceptable way to celebrate, and then there is a wrong and forbidden way to celebrate. Whatever we do, let us make sure that our celebrations meet with God’s approval in all things.
[2] “Uzzah put forth his hand to the ark of God, for the oxen shook it”
Here it would seem to many individuals that there was a good reason to disobey, because Uzzah was apparently trying to save the ark from falling. This is one of the more common temptations to sin, where reason, rationalization and so-called common sense may seem to warrant a departure from the explicit commands of God. But, in such a case as this where God has repeatedly stated that the ark should not be touched, the right thing to do will be to let it fall and break into pieces, if God would permit that to happen.
The tendency to disobey on rational grounds is what has led many to trample on God’s holy day, because a multitude of “Good” excuses and reasons for non-compliance are now being offered. But sooner or later the curtain will be lifted, and it will be seen that God means exactly what He says, and nothing else. When Christ was on this earth, He taught us by precept and example that it is lawful to do “Well” on the Sabbath day.
However, in our day, that word “Well” is being stretched to the limit and currently encompasses almost any and every work that can be construed or misconstrued into being something good. Thus, any and every type of work, from gas station attendants to cooks, from garbage collectors to the banking sector, from insurance companies to the electrical grid, and a multitudinous variety of goods and services are now all huddled together under the umbrella called “Well”.
But just to be clear, the scriptures declare that God changes not, and the sanctity of the Sabbath has in no way been depreciated, revoked, altered, or even annulled to adapt to the changing circumstances of life. What was commanded us on mount Sinai is still valid today, and applies equally across the board to every living person. In other words, times may have changed, but God has not. Let’s read:
Exodus 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. 9 Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work. 10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. 11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day and hallowed it.
[3] “God smote him there for his error”
There are some who may be inclined to endorse sin on certain grounds as being excusable, but The Lord labeled uzzah’s sin an error. The wages of sin is still death even though the gift of God is eternal life, for the offer of eternal life does not guaranty that the transgressor will be let off the hook. Judgment may be delayed for some time, because of God’s great mercy, but sooner or later, those who continue in sin will reap whatsoever has been sown. Let’s read:
Exodus 34: 5 And the Lord descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. 6 And the Lord passed by before him, and proclaimed, The Lord, The Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, 7 Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty.
[4] “David was displeased”
The reason why David was displeased is because in this instance he thought God had acted unfairly, for after all, as David thought, Uzzah was only trying to prevent the ark from falling, and therefore he didn’t agree with how God responded. This is a critically important point for all would-be Christians to be cognizant of, for it is not everything that God does we may agree with, even thought it’s good if we do.
Obeying God should not be predicated on agreeing with Him, on the contrary, it should be based on our acknowledgement of His Sovereignty, and when this is clearly understood and practiced it then opens up the way for us to understand God’s ways, what He does, and why He does it. But for persons to base their obedience solely on agreement with God will run many into serious difficulty sooner or later.
Those who defer obedience until they agree with all God does will never obey, for there are numerous examples in the Bible where God’s commands, and His way of doing things often conflicted with man’s ways of reasoning. This truth is clearly stated, and is exemplified in the scriptures, so that we may not be snared by the agreement-based type of obedience. Let’s read:
Isaiah 55:8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the Lord. 9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.
For example, one day, after fishing all night, Jesus instructed Peter to let down his net into the sea for a catch. That particular time of day was actually the worst time to go fishing, and to Peter, who was a seasoned fisherman the command seemed to be an illogical one. In fact, by his response, Peter demonstrated that he did not really agree with Jesus, as to the rationality of the command, however, Peter acknowledged the sovereignty of Christ, and based upon that alone he obeyed, and the rest is history. Let’s read:
Luke 5:4 Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught. 5 And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless, at thy word I will let down the net. 6 And when they had this done, they enclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net broke. 7 And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink.
Again, the centurion in Christ’s day understood the concept of obedience based on Jesus’ sovereignty, and that is why he petitioned Christ to only speak the word, and his servant would be healed. In this instance Jesus marveled at the man’s understanding of faith and obedience, which then stood in marked contrast to others, who had trained their minds to obey, only when they agreed with God. Let’s read:
Matthew 8:7 And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. 8 The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. 9 For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.
10 When Jesus heard it, he marveled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. 11 And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven.
Thus, after David rolled the whole experience over and over again in his mind with a humble, teachable spirit, he correctly came to the conclusion that God was right in what He did, for an express command was disobeyed. In addition, it was observed that the household of Obed-Edom, to whom had been committed the ark, was blessed tremendously, for blessings, both in the temporal and spiritual realm will always accompany obedience to God’s word. Let’s read:
Psalms 1:1 Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. 3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
[5] “The anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah” We left this one for last, for it has to do with one’s knowledge, understanding, an awareness of right and wrong, and the responsibilities that go along with such knowledge. The two following passages need to be carefully considered, for they bring to light the sacred truth, that an intelligent Being was residing in the ark, none other than the great God of heaven. Let’s read:
1st Samuel 4:10 And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man into his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen. 11 And the ark of God was taken. 1st Samuel 5:1 And the Philistines took the ark of God and brought it from Ebenezer unto Ashdod. 2 When the Philistines took the ark of God, they brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon.
2nd Samuel 6: 1 David gathered together all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. 2 And David went with all the people that were with him to bring up from thence the ark of God. 6 And Uzzah put forth his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it. 7 And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah; and God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God.
The Philistines, who had not known of any of God’s requirements in the transportation of the ark, took it up with uncircumcised hands and transported it for several miles, touching, and handling it with no visible sign of God’s displeasure. But Uzzah who had known better, is described as committing an error, and accordingly, he perished because of it. When the knowledge of God’s requirements shines radiantly in our consciences, our duty to obey that which we know is increased an hundredfold, for to whom more is given, more will be required.
But if persons erroneously believe that the knowledge of God’s will renders obedience optional, then we will find out too late that this is absolutely not the case. Even though we are free moral agents to choose either right or wrong, God often has mercy on those who do not presently know better. But when folks commit sin against the knowledge of His will, they place themselves in an attitude of presumption, or rebellion, and adverse consequences are sure to follow. Let’s read:
Luke 12:47 And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. 48 But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.
One of the reasons why God called Adam first, after both he and Eve had eaten of the forbidden tree, is because Adam was more guilty than his wife, for he sinned in the full knowledge of what he was doing, with a clear understanding of all the consequences. But Eve was less guilty, because she was under the deception of the serpent. Let’s read:
1st Timothy 2:14 Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression.
Those who minister in the word cannot do certain things, and cannot go to places where others may go without any compunctions of conscience, for the study of God’s word causes the truth of His laws to shine radiantly in their consciences, and because of this, what will be sin to them, might not be held as sin against those who do not know better. Therefore, as Seventh Day Adventists, we are under much greater scrutiny, and responsibility for those sacred truths we espouse, than are other nominal Christians who might not know better.
While they may be judged on the law of conscience, we will be held to a much higher standard, for to whom much is given, much will be required. Therefore, in closing, let us always remember that we are approaching an era in earth’s history where strict, and exact obedience to God’s word will be our only safety, because probationary time is being granted to us to prepare us for graduation to it is spoken. But first we must major in it is written. We close with a passage of scripture that will explain what is being referred to. Let’s read:
Joel 2:1 Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand; 2 A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.
11 And the Lord shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; and who can abide it? 23 Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month.
God Bless!