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Introduction:
Using our imagination, let’s travel back through time,
back to a more barbaric time. It is approximately 1000 B.C. and is
about the eighth year of David’s reign. Israel has recently come
out of some difficult days. The kingdom has been divided between
David, ruling over Judah, and Ish-Bosheth, ruling everyone else.
It took two years for David to reunite the kingdom. About six
years later, David has moved the capital from Hebron to Jerusalem
and is now moving the Ark of the Covenant there. It is a joyous
occasion (I Chronicles 13:8).
Picture yourself as Ahio, son of Abinidab. You and your
brother, Uzzah, have been specially chosen by David to transport
the Ark. Using the poles, you carefully set the Ark on the new
cart. You and your brother now begin the 7.6-mile journey to
Jerusalem, escorting the Ark amid the people who are singing,
shouting, dancing and celebrating. Approximately halfway to
Jerusalem, the unthinkable happens. The oxen somehow upset the
cart and the Ark is going to fall to the ground. Without thinking,
your brother reaches out, grabs hold of the Ark and steadies it.
Relief washes over you since your brother has saved the day. But
in the next instant, tragedy strikes. You are stunned. The
celebration is silenced. Even King David is angered. God did not
view Uzzah’s action as you did. His anger burned and He struck
Uzzah dead for touching the ark.
Over time and with study of the Law, David realized that
this tragedy occurred because only Levites were allowed to
transport the Ark (I
Chronicles 15:2). Aghast at this awful occurrence, you strive
to make sense of your brother’s death. In your personal prayers
of anguish, you offer what seem to be valid excuses in defense of
your brother. Yet, God, being omniscient, knew these excuses and
brought judgment upon Uzzah anyway. Consider the excuses you could
make. Discussion: I. Uzzah only intended to do good. A.
Uzzah was not intending to violate the law of God.
Uzzah had only the best intentions. After all, what would you have
done if you had been behind the cart and had seen that it was
going to fall to the ground? Surely it is not ever wrong to do
good. B.
However, this is human reasoning that does not
consider the greater context of God’s pattern. To make this
excuse, we must think God’s pattern is not important. Uzzah and
the people of Israel were sinning even before Uzzah touched the
Ark. Uzzah had no business transporting the Ark to begin with. The
Ark had no business being transported on a new cart. God had
authorized the means of transport for the Ark of the Covenant in Numbers
4:5-6, 15. The Kohathites, of Levi, were to transport the Ark,
carrying it by its poles. The fact is, sin was involved before
Uzzah ever touched the Ark. He was only in this situation, because
God’s pattern had already been discarded. C.
God does not think as men do (Isaiah 55:8). That something seems good, does not make it right.
There was a way that seemed right to Uzzah, but its way led to
death (Proverbs 14:12).
II.
You never said we couldn’t transport the Ark. A.
Though David was angered, he obviously went back to
the Law to learn why God struck Uzzah. This judgment came because
God said Levites were to carry the Ark (I
Chronicles 15:2, 13). B.
David could have searched the scripture from front
to back, reading every word and not once found where it said
Judah’s tribesman could not carry the Ark. Not one single time
does it say Abinidab’s family, which had cared for the Ark for
more than forty year, could not transport it. C.
This fails to take into account that God does not
work solely on the basis of condemnation. To be lawful an action
must be authorized. As demonstrated earlier, God commanded a
particular family to transport the ark, the Kohathites from among
the Levites (Numbers 4:5-6, 15). God did not have to then say no one else could
do it. Specifying this family ruled out any other family. Instead
of asking where God condemned Uzzah transporting the Ark, we
should ask where God authorized it. The answer—nowhere. III.
How can you hold Uzzah accountable when he didn’t
know the pattern. A.
It is very apparent that the Law of God regarding
transporting the Ark had been forgotten. There is no doubt that
had David known only those from Levi could carry the Ark, this
would never have happened. Surely it was not proper to hold Uzzah
accountable for a pattern he did not know. B.
Notice David’s words to the Levites in I Chronicles 15:13. Part of the reason this judgment took place is
because they acted without seeking God according to His ordinance.
They sinned because they did not study to learn whether they had
authority to act. The guilt lay not just in violating the law, but
in not first seeking out the pattern and then following it. Not
knowing the pattern was no excuse, because the pattern had clearly
been revealed. Anyone who could read could easily determine the
pattern. C.
One would think that a family who had cared for the
Ark for more than forty years could have found the time to brush
up on God’s pattern for dealing with it. Ignorance was no
excuse. IV.
Uzzah loved God, surely that was more important
than who transported the Ark? A.
Uzzah was not an idol worshipper. His family had
been devoted to caring for the Ark. They were obviously followers
of Jehovah. They obviously loved Jehovah God. Surely, that was
what was really important. How important can it be to maintain a
pattern regarding the transportation of the Ark in comparison to
being idolatrous? It almost seems as if God is majoring in minors,
nitpicking and splitting hairs. If Uzzah had committed some really
big sin we could understand, but such a small and trivial issue of
Ark transportation is surely not worth punishment from God. B.
No doubt, idol worship was bad. No doubt, there
were sins condemned under the Old Law of graver import and more
significance than Ark transportation. God demonstrated that He
wants His pattern followed, even when we might believe it trivial.
This is reminiscent of Nadab and Abihu who offered strange fire
before the Lord. God said that their offering did not honor Him (Leviticus
10:3). The only thing that honors God is following His
pattern. Doing anything else is dishonorable, no matter how much
Uzzah may have claimed to love God. V.
King David didn’t see anything wrong with it, and
he is the king. A.
This is an appeal to the higher authority. I
Chronicles 13:11 says David even became angry because of
God’s outburst. David did not see anything wrong with the way
they were transporting the Ark. He was the king. Surely if it were
wrong, he would know about it. B.
But, David, the higher authority was wrong. And his
error did not justify Uzzah. David in time, went back to scripture
and learned the truth. God demonstrated with clarity that each
individual is responsible for searching the scripture and learning
the truth. David’s ignorance did not make the new pattern
correct, nor did it nullify God’s pattern. Proverbs 14:12 does not just apply to normal people like you and me.
It also applies to kings, prophets, experienced teachers, etc. VI.
Of course, we are not really talking about Uzzah.
We are talking about us. A.
I am sure you have been able to figure out this
lesson is not really about the past. It is about the present. I
know we are no longer under the Old Covenant. The laws regarding
the Ark of the Covenant are really unimportant regarding modern
worship. But we know these things were written for our learning (Romans
15:4; I Corinthians 10:11). We are not under the Old Covenant,
but we are a covenant people with God. We do not use the Ark to
worship God, but we do worship God. The particular pattern
presented in I Chronicles
13 no longer applies, but God’s response to rejecting His
pattern does. We have a pattern reserved for us and recorded in
scripture. We must follow it. Dispensing with the pattern will
bring about only judgment and condemnation. Just like it did for
Uzzah. B.
No excuses worked for Uzzah, why would they work
today? Yet we hear these things in various forms from our
denominational friends. How many times have we been asked where
something is condemned instead of hearing the question where is it
authorized? How many times have we been accused of majoring in
minors and nitpicking? How many times have we heard people claim
that some preacher who has been studying for years doesn’t see
anything wrong with it? These excuses are nothing new. C.
Even worse is when members of Christ’s church
start making these excuses. Too often, Christians are so afraid of
offending someone in error that they end up defending error. These
kinds of excuses do not remove the need for Biblical authority.
They simply put us in the same situation as Uzzah. D.
If we don’t want to end up like Uzzah, we must
not commit the sins he committed. We must not rely on excuses that
did not work for him either. God has a pattern. It is not too
difficult to understand and we are commanded to understand it (Ephesians
5:17). If we do not want others to end up like Uzzah, then we
must hold them to God’s pattern. Do not be swayed by their
complaints. In the end, they will be thankful. Conclusion:
God has a pattern for becoming one of His
children. Despite the controversy that rages, it is actually
very simple and clear. It only becomes difficult when man
wants to interject his desires into it. One must hear the
gospel of Jesus Christ (Romans
10:17). He must believe that Jesus is the Christ and
confess his faith (Romans
10:9-10). He must repent of his sins (Acts
2:38). He must then call upon the name of the Lord
in baptism for the remission of his sins (Romans
10:13; Acts 22:16; 2:38). Don't make excuses, just
follow the pattern.
Glory
to God in the church by Christ Jesus
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