Are You Doing the Right Thing the Wrong Way?

I Chronicles 13: 3-14 And let us bring again the ark of our God to us: for we inquired not at it in the days of Saul. And all the congregation said that they would do so: for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people.

So David gathered all Israel together…and they carried the ark of God in a new cart out of the house of Abinadab: and Uzza and Ahio drove the cart. And David and all Israel played before God with all their might, and with singing, and with harps, and with psalteries, and with tambourines, and with cymbals, and with trumpets.

And when they came to the threshing floor of Chidon, Uzza put forth his hand to hold the ark; for the oxen stumbled. And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Uzza, and he smote him, because he put his hand to the ark: and there he died before God. And David was displeased, because the LORD had made a breach on Uzza: why that place is called Perezuzza to this day. And David was afraid of God that day, saying, How shall I bring the ark of God home to me? So David brought not the ark home to himself to the city of David, but carried it aside into the house of Obededom the Gittite. And the ark of God remained with the family of Obededom in his house three months. And the LORD blessed the house of Obededom, and all that he had.

Okay, that was a lot of scripture to read, but you really had to read the whole thing to get the picture here. The title of this post is ‘Doing the Right Thing the Wrong Way’ and it’s a very fitting message for today’s ’situational ethics’ based society.

When you read the story about David and all of the people of Israel gathering together and deciding to move the ark of God, you don’t really find anything wrong with that. They wanted the ark of God near them. The ark of God represents the presence of God, so wanting it near them was a good thing, right?

But as we read further we see how the scene unfolds. David gathered everyone together, threw a big party, had a parade and lots of music and they proceeded to move the ark. There they all were, walking along…moving the ark on a cart pulled by oxen. Everything seemed good. Then, suddenly the oxen stumbled a bit. Uzza, who was walking along beside the ark probably noticed that the ark was slipping and he put his hand out to steady the ark. As soon as he touched it he was struck dead.

Wow. What’s up with that? Seems pretty crazy at first glance, doesn’t it? That’s if you only read this one story. If you look back in the book of Numbers (chapter 4-7) you will read that God had very specific instructions about how to move the ark. First, no man, except the sons of Aaron, could touch the ark and live. The ark (or presence of God) was holy and was to be handled and treated with reverence. The ark also was not to be moved by a cart pulled by oxen. The book of Number specifically states that the ark was to be carried on long poles by the sons of Kohath.

So what happened to God’s instructions? Why weren’t they followed? They seem pretty clear, don’t they? Well, if you take a good look, you’ll probably find a bit of yourself in this story. I know I do. Uzzah was related to David and was familiar with the laws governing the ark. He had witnessed the moving of the ark before, when they did it the correct way. But, as it is with us humans, familiarity often causes us to lose our way. We start taking shortcuts, doing little things our own way…Our way seems okay to us at the time. What is the harm in deviating from the instructions a bit, right? WRONG.

God is not simple by any stretch of the imagination, but the laws and instructions He lays out for us are. So, simple in fact that we’d have to be crazy not to get them right. Guess what, we’re crazy. It’s part of human nature to deviate, to adjust, to ad lib, to do it our way. That’s not how God operates. Once He sets down a rule or a law, it’s a done deal. Uzzah should not have touched the ark. He knew better. Was he trying to do a good thing? Basically, yes. He was trying to steady the ark. The ark that was being pulled the wrong way (by oxen) in the first place. God loves us, yes He does. But He is not going to look down and bless the mess we’ve created when we insist on doing things our way. If God had allowed Uzzah to touch the ark and live, He would be going against His own Word that clearly said, “No man can touch the ark and live.” God is not man. God doesn’t lie.

This should be both a lesson and a comfort to us. First of all, a lesson: Do it God’s way. Exactly God’s way. He knows what He’s doing.

Secondly, His laws are a comfort to us: When He says, do these things and you will be blessed, guess what? You will be blessed. The promises found in His word generally come with conditions. When we fulfill the condition, we can boldly stand on His promises and expect them to come to pass. Isn’t that exciting?
Bottom line: God’s ways are not our ways and we might not always understand them. But we can trust in them. If God says, “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength” then guess what? If you let patience have its perfect work in you and you wait upon the Lord, YOUR STRENGTH WILL BE RENEWED! It’s going to happen. You can count on it. That’s good news!

So, in light of this…here’s something to do before Easter. Take a look at your life and at the things you are doing. Take the time to let God perform a ‘moral inventory’ on you. Are you caught up in lying? Maybe you need to allow God to put an end to your anger issues or break the stronghold of addiction in your life.

Whatever it is, dig into your Bible and find the promises of God that pertain to your issue. Find out what the conditions surrounding your promise are and make the decision to enter a whole new way of thinking. Start living God’s way, by His rules. Put an end to situational ethics in your life. You’ll be glad you did.