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Caution!
by Marguerite Shuster
Text: 2 Samuel 6:1-15
Topic: What God's holiness really looks like.
Big Idea: We mustn't become so familiar with God that we "tame" him and begin to treat him disrespectfully.
Keywords: God, holiness of; Holiness; Reverence; Wrath; Wrath, divine
Introduction
The ark was a symbol of God's presence.
- What was the ark of the covenant?
- As a piece of furniture, described in detail in Exodus 25.
- But it's more than just a piece of furniture; it was a symbol of God's presence.
- It stopped the Jordan, felled Jericho, and brought destruction to Philistines.
We must reverence what is sacred.
- What went wrong when Uzzah touched the ark?
- The ark was about to fall, and Uzzah steadied it; God struck him dead.
- Uzzah apparently had no deep awareness of the ark's significance.
- He had become so familiar with it that he lost his sense of sacred awe.
- The ark shouldn't have been carried on a cart; it should be carried by Levites.
We humans need concrete, physical ways to set apart those things that are holy.
- An "instinct" tells us not to play poker on the Communion table, for example.
- God tells us not to take his name in vain—or to use it flippantly, carelessly.
- The holy must not be defiled; a certain reverent distance must be maintained.
- If it is not, the sense of awe is lost, and how can it be restored?
- What was at stake when Uzzah touched the ark: God will not be domesticated.
The wrath of God is a fearful thing that may, from our perspective, seem irrational.
- The wrong we do may be a much greater offense to God than we know.
- In Old Testament, divine anger also indicates God's greatness and sovereignty.
- God is not a God who remains coolly untouched by human behavior.
- In the face of God's anger we learned that God is not to be trifled with.
- God's anger is transient; his lovingkindness and righteousness are permanent.
David got the point, and decided to try it again, to do it right.
- He learned that you can't have God's blessings while being apart from him.
- One must take the risk of bringing God right into the middle of one's own house.
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