Convenience or Obedience

1 Chronicles 13:9-10 ~ “And when they came to the threshing floor of Chidon, Uzzah put out his hand to take hold of the ark, for the oxen stumbled. And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he put out his hand to the ark, and he died there before God.”
 
Let me encourage you to read 1 Chronicles, chapter 13, as we consider the text for today.
 
David wanted to bring back the ark of the covenant to the city of Jerusalem. Uncertain as to how this could be accomplished, the king went to those he considered leaders of men, those who might have some wisdom or at least a valued opinion as to the manner in which they could deliver the ark to Jerusalem. In 1 Chronicles 13:1 we read, “David consulted with the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, with every leader.” They came up with a convenient plan, put it on a new cart. And this was a plan that satisfied the whole crowd of those gathered as we see in 1 Chronicles 13:4, “All the assembly agreed to do so, for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people.” But that is not the question to be asked—does it please the people. The better question to answer is this: is it right in the eyes of God? Is your desire to serve the LORD based on convenience or obedience?
 
So they came toward Jerusalem, following their own plan and with great fanfare and celebration they seemingly worshiped the LORD with all their heart. 1 Chronicles 13:8 says, “And David and all Israel were celebrating before God with all their might, with song and lyres and harps and tambourines and cymbals and trumpets.” But, beloved, just because there is excitement and everyone seems to celebrate the LORD does not mean that the LORD is pleased. There are many gatherings who come together in the name of Christ that have nothing to do with truly worshiping the LORD. Consider the words of Samuel to Saul in 1 Samuel 15:22, “Has 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 listen than the fat of rams.” If we are to worship the LORD acceptably, we must worship Him in obedience and not presumption.
 
And this brings us to our text for today. The oxen stumbled and Uzzah reached out to steady the ark of the covenant. Surely it was not supposed to fall upon the ground. Certainly, the man meant no disrespect to the LORD merely by trying to steady the falling artifact. Yet, when Uzzah reached out and touched the Ark, he did what was forbidden by the LORD. Consider the rule set by the LORD in Numbers 4:15, "And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, as the camp sets out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry these, but they must not touch the holy things, lest they die. These are the things of the tent of meeting that the sons of Kohath are to carry."
 
Even the manner in which the ark was returning to Jerusalem was done in disobedience to God’s Word. In Exodus 25:12-14 we read, "You shall cast four rings of gold for it and put them on its four feet, two rings on the one side of it, and two rings on the other side of it. You shall make poles of acacia wood and overlay them with gold. And you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark to carry the ark by them." This was the only method by which the ark was to be carried. No human hand was to touch the ark, for it was the very place where God had promised to meet with His people (see Exodus 25:22). Even if Uzzah's motives were generally innocent, it was a presumption to do what he did. There was a lack of the fear of God with Uzzah in such a presumption, believing that it was only a casual thing to touch the very object that represented the LORD before the people.
 
Uzzah did the very thing that God warned against, and the moment was used by the LORD to set the precedent against such presumption or casual indifference to the commands of God. David learned from this dreadful mistake and understood it when in 1 Chronicles 15:13 he says to the priests, "Because you did not carry it the first time, the LORD our God broke out against us, because we did not seek him according to the rule." What a statement—we did not seek Him according to the rule. They went back to the Word of God, the very commands as to how to bring the ark forward and carry it in honor of the LORD.
 
We cannot settle into our hearts any such presumption when we come before the LORD. Let our worship of Him be reflected in our obedience to Him. Let His Word be the rule by which we establish the means by which we honor the LORD. Then we will know that God is truly glorified.
 
In His Grace,
Pastor Michael
 
(For this devotional, I want to thank the elders of Faith Community Church, men of God who helped talk through this text during one of our meetings. The title for this devotional graciously provided by Milt Cantellay.)

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