Jason's Blog

Last Wednesday, I shared some thoughts about an incident from the life of David.  He and all of his officers and officials made a commitment to bring the ark of the covenant up from the little town of Kireath Jearim to Jerusalem.   David put together quite an assembly for this great procession and everything seemed to be going without a hitch.  That is until someone died. . .

When the oxen carrying the ark stumbled at the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzzah reached out his hands to steady the ark.  His actions seems innocent enough to you and me, but the LORD’s anger was kindled and burned against Uzzah.  He died right there on the spot before the LORD.  . .

This incident raises all kinds of questions:

• What was wrong with reaching out a hand to keep the ark from toppling over?
• Would God have preferred the ark to spill out on the ground?
• Why death?  Why not tumors or disease like the Philistines in 1 Samuel 5?
• Why is David so upset with the LORD’s anger?  (1 Chronicles 13:11, 2 Samuel 6:8)

We do know that the God expressly taught the Israelites to keep away from the ark.  Number 4:15 is clear that even the Levites were not to touch the holy things.  And if Scripture were not clear enough, Uzzah had to have known what happened to the people of Beth Shemesh (a nearby village) that looked into the ark.  It is hard to believe he would be so foolish after 70 (or 50,000+ see the footnote) people died after gazing into the ark.

But this passage is more David than Uzzah. . . I think David is upset with the LORD because he knows that Uzzah died rather needlessly.  If David and priests had really taken seriously the teachings of Torah, Uzzah would have been alive.  David was absorbed in what seemed “right to all the people” (1 Chronicles 13:4).

So what do we learn from this passage:

1.  God’s punishment is severe for those who take it upon themselves “to steady the ark.”

2.  God’s grace is surprising, and he forgives and offers new beginnings to those who set their hearts on pleasing Him.  People like David who would three months laster dance before the LORD (2 Samuel 6:11,16).

Being Practical – Uzzah’s Demise

I think it is important to realize that Uzzah very likely never realized how much danger he was facing as he reached out his hand toward the ark of the covenant.  He was so familiar with the sacred that he treated God with contempt.  His actions were “irreverent” (2 Samuel 6:7).

Could that happen to me?  Could I treat what is holy and sacred as if it is common?  The answer is yes.

It’s interesting to me that it is easier to see how other people (or other self-professing Christians) violate the sacredness of God by their flippant or casual behavior and not see in my own arrogance that I might be treading on sacred ground as well.  We can see that others violate “the Uzzah principle” but can’t seem to see that we ourselves might be in a dangerous position as well.

Jesus asks us to examine our own eyes before we venture out to take specks from our brother’s eyes (Matthew 7:3-4).

How am I doing with God?  Do I treat what is holy as I should?

Yesterday I mentioned the Marshmallow tests done by Walter Mischel in the late 1960’s.  I hope you enjoy this reenactment [or visit YouTube].  It’s pretty funny.  Remember:  self-control is a spiritual gift!

On Sunday, I mentioned 7 ideas from 1 Peter that we can use to pursue spiritual growth (and avoid spiritual decline).  Here’s the list:

1. Prepare your mind (more literally gird up your mind) – 1 Peter 1:13
2. Be self controlled – 1 Peter 1:13
3. Don’t conform to the evil desires – 1 Peter 1:14
4. Be Holy in all you do – 1 Peter 1:15
5. Love others deeply – 1 Peter 1:22
6. Rid yourselves of malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander) – 1 Peter 2:1
7. Crave pure spiritual milk – 1 Peter 2:2

Do you believe that it is natural for Christians to grow and mature?  If so, then you will need to face the inevitable natural forces that are pushing against you.  I believe that the fallen world that we live in is trying at least as hard (if not harder) to dampen your spirit, break your will, and arrest the work of God’s spirit in your life.

You can choose to take steps to grow in grace and salvation, or you can lie dormant for weeks, or seasons, or years.  Christ can be formed in you as you take up life giving practices. The list above is by no means exhaustive.   Be intentional in some way today about growing to be like Christ.

Not long after hearing the voice of His father from heaven, Jesus embarked on an arduous journey into the desert.  Here, he began a grueling forty day fast (Matthew 3:16-4:4).  My question is have you ever wondered why Jesus, the Son of God would fast?

We normally associate fasting with a need for repentance, and there are plenty of passages in Scripture that point to fasting as a way of entering more deeply into grief over sin (Neh. 9:1, Jonah 3:5, and Dan. 9:3).  But Jesus had no sin, His response in baptism was to fulfill all righteousness (Matthew 3:15).  However, though He was the perfect Lamb of God, Jesus felt the need to fast.

“Man does not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” – Jesus.”

Do you really believe these words of Scripture?

Jesus quoted them to Satan as an answer to the temptation to turn stones into bread.  Centuries before, Moses had spoken these words to the nation of Israel before they entered the Promised Land.  They needed to know that God had brought them both hunger and manna.  His purpose was that they might be taught and that God might know what was in their hearts (Deuteronomy 8:2-3).

What is in your heart today?  How has God provided for you?  Have you felt hunger pains of any kind?  That is one of God’s ways of reminding you that your trust cannot be in yourself alone.  You are in need.

Have you enjoyed food today?  Remember that all food is truly manna from heaven.  It is God’s gift for our journey.  Be thankful for what is yours.

Jesus knew these lessons by heart, and his fasting revealed that for all creation (and even Satan) to see.

Let me make two concluding observations about fasting:

1.  Fasting is a resource that we can use to measure what masters and controls us.  Jesus became like us in every way and embraced this discipline so that we could most clearly see that his heart was solely devoted to His Father in heaven.

2.  Fasting is a gift from God and through it we can show our praise for God.  We don’t fast to earn points with God or to prove ourselves to him.  The Scriptures clearly teach that he knows our needs before we even ask (Matthew 6:8).  There are no works that we can ever do that might earn us something before God (Ephesians 2:8-9).  Instead fasting is an act of surrender where we who are “poor in spirit” open ourselves and trust in the Lord to sustain us.