Tag: reverence

The Price Of Disrespecting God’s Holiness

Brent Pollard

On Wednesday nights at the Andrews, North Carolina, church, I have attempted to teach about the monarchs of united and divided Israel. After we finished studying Saul, I explored David’s life and reign. In the most recent installment of this series, we discussed David’s transport of the Ark of the Covenant from Kiriath-Jearim to David’s newly established capital Jerusalem (2 Samuel 6; 1 Chronicles 13). David didn’t follow Torah protocol when relocating the Ark of the Covenant; instead of having God’s priests carry it, he put it on the back of an ox cart. This decision by David set in motion the series of events that resulted in Uzzah’s death when he reached up to steady the Ark after the oxen jostled it. Such an outcome can more easily stir our emotions than our logic, prompting us to declare that Uzzah’s treatment was unjust.

Although God forbade the Israelites from worshiping graven or molten images, there was one physical object that they were permitted to honor: the Ark of the Covenant. This sacred artifact represented God’s Shekhinah (presence) on earth, facilitating communication with Him. We also recall the Ark’s significance on the Day of Atonement, when the high priest would sprinkle the blood of the atoning lamb on the mercy seat, which was located between the cherubim’s wings atop the Ark. During the conquest of Canaan, the Israelites took the Ark of the Covenant with them into battle as a symbol of God’s might. However, the apostate Israelites of the Judges’ Period treated the Ark as a mere talisman. This abuse of the Ark led to its temporary loss to the Philistines following their victory over Israel at Aphek (1 Samuel 4). 

Therefore, it becomes clear that God did not overlook Uzzah’s good intentions when he tried to prevent the Ark from falling off the ox cart. Instead, the dishonor David and company showed God kindled His anger because of this act. People treated this holy representation of God with great disrespect, as though they were hauling around a load of potatoes on a simple wooden cart with oxen. While God had overlooked the Philistines’ treatment of the Ark when they returned it similarly (1 Samuel 6), He had expected more from His covenant people. This carefree attitude towards the Ark of the Covenant ultimately led Uzzah to believe he could reach out and touch it without consequence.

It wasn’t the first time God made it abundantly clear that He demanded holiness. For instance, He incinerated Nadab and Abihu for offering an unapproved type of fire, as recorded in Leviticus 10.1. On that occasion, Moses reminded the men’s father, Aaron, of God’s words: “By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy, And before all the people I will be honored” (Leviticus 10.3 NASB1995). Even Moses missed out on the Promised Land for failing to give God the glory when he disobeyed God’s instructions for procuring water for the Israelites since his actions could not give God credit for supplying their needs (Numbers 20.12). Thus, David had ample examples to know that the things of God required the utmost reverence and care. Therefore, it is all the more puzzling that David, who typically sought God’s approval before acting, committed such a blunder here.

So, what is our application for Christians living today? I would suggest that there is something very holy from God that people too often treat profanely today. There are certain circumstances when people are not afraid to use the word “casual” when discussing certain assemblies. I am speaking of the church. As the Ark contained the ten commandments, Paul describes the church as the “pillar and support of the truth” (1 Timothy 3.15 NASB1995). This same passage teaches that the church is the household of God! As the Ark contained the manna that God used to sustain the Israelites, the church is where we partake of the Bread of Life (see John 6). And as the budding rod of Aaron within the Ark reminded the Israelites of God’s chosen priesthood, we are reminded that we who comprise the church are God’s holy priesthood today (1 Peter 2.9–10).In closing, the lessons from the time of David, Uzzah, and the Ark of the Covenant are not mere historical narratives; they are instructive for our relationship with God today. As David learned painfully, God’s holy nature demands our profound respect and obedience. This story encourages us, as modern-day believers, to examine how we approach that sacred institution God’s Son purchased with His blood (Acts 20.28). God’s word reminds us to live our faith with reverence and awe, understanding that we should not lightly take God’s presence. Like the Israelites of old, God calls us to honor Him in our actions and to treat the church with the respect and reverence she deserves as the bride of Christ (Isaiah 54.5; Revelation 21.2; Ephesians 5.22ff). Thus, as we go about our worship and service in the church, may we do so with the awareness that we are engaging with the living God, who calls us into a relationship marked by reverence, love, and obedience.

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PRAY RIGHT WITH PROVERBS

Tuesday’s Column: Dale Mail 

APPROACH HIM RIGHT 

Humble Yourself – The reward for humility and fear of the LORD is riches and honor and life. Proverbs 22:4

  • One’s pride will bring him low, but he who is lowly in spirit will obtain honor. Proverbs 29:23

Respect the Lord – The fear of the LORD is instruction in wisdom, and humility comes before honor. Proverbs 15:33

  • Blessed is the one who fears the LORD always, but whoever hardens his heart will fall into calamity. Proverbs 28:14

MAKE THINGS RIGHT 

Turn Your Lips – Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.  – Proverbs 28:13

Turn Your Life – Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones. Proverbs 3:7-8

  • One who is wise is cautious and turns away from evil, but a fool is reckless and careless.  Proverbs 14:16
  • The highway of the upright turns aside from evil; whoever guards his way preserves his life. Proverbs 16:17

HAVE THE RIGHT ATTITUDE 

Pray Confidently – For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding; Proverbs 2:6

Pray Humbly – Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding, In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths. Proverbs 3:5-6 

  • My son, do not despise the LORD’s discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the LORD reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights. Proverbs 3:11-12

Pray Ready – Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce Proverbs 3:9 

MAKE THE RIGHT REQUESTS 

Seek Him – Evil men do not understand justice, but those who seek the LORD understand it completely. Proverbs 28:5

Many seek the face of a ruler, but it is from the LORD that a man gets justice. Proverbs 29:26

Speak to Him –  The LORD is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayer of the righteous. Proverbs 15:29

Make Godly Requests:

“Two things I ask of you; deny them not to me before I die 

  1. Remove far from me falsehood and lying; give me neither poverty nor riches; 
  2. feed me with the food that is needful for me.” Proverbs30:7-8

Seek His Favor – A good man obtains favor from the LORD – Proverbs 12:2 

Seek His Answers – The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the LORD. – Proverbs 16:1 

Dale Pollard

Why Jesus Offended The Pharisees

Neal Pollard

Jesus wasn’t going around just trying to make enemies of anyone, but He was fearlessly living and telling the truth no matter the circumstances. What we read in Luke 11:37-54 is how the scribes, Pharisees, and experts on the Law were living by the gospel according to self. They looked really righteous and knowledgeable on the surface, but of course Jesus can see below the surface at what’s actually going on in the heart and mind. It seems that there are several reasons why Jesus offended these religious leaders on this occasion.

He Exposed “Surface Spirituality” (37-41). They were so obsessed with appearances, doing things to look good to others. Yet, Jesus said they were full of corruption and wickedness in their hearts. They knew how to look spiritual without being godly, a deadly condition! 

He Exposed “Majoring In The Minors” And “Minoring In The Majors” (42). He doesn’t rebuke the attention to details, but says they neglected what really mattered when making gestures that appeared to show how scrupulous and careful their religion was. True religion is supposed to stand on huge pillars like divine justice and love. Operate from those qualities and you are well on your way to true righteousness. 

He Exposed “Appearance-Driven Actions” (43-45). Jesus called them on their love of the chief seats and respectful greetings. Surely most people appreciate being appreciated, but such can never be what drives or motivates us to do praiseworthy things. 

He Exposed “Hypocritical Holiness” (46). They were good at making rules others needed to follow while not bothering to live by those same rules. Beware holding others to a standard you do not submit to yourself. Here, these appear to be their own convictions which they bind on others rather than God’s laws. 

He Exposed “Artificial Admiration” (47-51). They seemed to conclude that revering long-dead prophets was the spiritually acceptable thing to do, but they rejected and hated the greatest man in history–God in the flesh. While decorating the tombs of men their ancestors had slaughtered throughout the Old Testament, from Abel (Gen. 4) to Zechariah (2 Chron. 24:20-21)–like saying A to Z, they were actively fighting One even greater and ready to do the same to His disciples. 

He Exposed “Wicked Watchdogs” (52). Jesus’ last accusation is as piercing as they come. He says they took away the key to knowledge. They refused to enter the kingdom, but they actively hindered others who were trying to enter. They made themselves the gatekeepers to God, a presumptuous but also misguided effort. 

And did they humbly repent and change their ways when the Son of God called them out? No. Their pride overrode any other impulse, and they grew more hostile, plotting how they might trap Him in something He might say. They became more critical and vicious. They had hardened their hearts that much. The takeaway for me is abundantly clear. What do I do with Jesus’ will? Do I take to heart His admonitions and challenges, or do I allow sinful pride to eclipse my view of it? Do I dig my trenches deeper or do I allow His will to shape and influence me? I pray that I will choose the latter!

Focusing In Worship

Thursday’s Column: Captain’s Blog

Carl Pollard

As humans we have a hard time when it comes to focusing. Attention spans seem to be getting shorter and shorter. Goldfish have an attention span of about 5 seconds. I’m convinced that mankind will one day be on the same level if nothing changes. 

While focus in our everyday lives can be a struggle, what about in worship? How can we improve our focus when we come together each week? Before we even assemble, we should be preparing to focus on worship. 

Isaiah 29:13 says, “…Because this people draw near with their words, And honor Me with their lip service, But they remove their hearts far from Me, And their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote.”

They drew near to God with words, just like we do in singing songs each Sunday. 

They honored God with their lips, much like we do in our prayers each week. What they were saying sounded good! But, if our hearts are not in worship, we have failed God. 

Isaiah writing on God’s behalf says that their “reverence consisted of tradition learned by rote.” This word reverence is the the Hebrew word for “fear.” You may have heard that every time you read the word “fear” in the Bible to replace it with the word “respect” or “reverence.” This couldn’t be further from the truth. Hebrew language has a word for respect, and this isn’t it. It means literal fear. 

In fact, the Greek equivalent of this word is Phobos, which is where we get our English word phobia. For example, if you have arachnophobia you have a fear of spiders. If you saw a spider crawling on your leg, and you are afraid of spiders, you’re not going to look at it and go, “I respect you.” That’s not how fear works; you’re going to use any means necessary to dispatch the threat. 

So we are supposed to worship in fear? YES. 

Focus out of fear and awe of WHO we are worshipping. We are singing to the creator. 

We are praying to the God who parted seas, spoke the world into existence, and guided the Israelites with a pillar of fire. We are worshipping the King of Kings, the Great I AM, the Alpha and Omega, the One with no beginning or end, we are bowing down before the Most Holy God of the Universe. 

If we realize what we are doing in worship, we can’t help but feel a little fear. Isaiah says, their worship was done through traditions learned “by rote.” This literally means, “Mechanical or habitual repetition.” We may be physically singing and look like we are worshipping God, but only the individual and God above know what is going on in the heart. 

Isa. 12:5 “sing to the Lord.” This requires FOCUS, not mindlessly singing songs. 

There are songs for each other, and songs directed toward God. “I want to be a worker for the Lord” …do we mean it? We can’t sing “Stand up, stand up for Jesus” on Sunday when all throughout the week all we’ve done is sit down. Focus on the words. 

God would rather hear a tone deaf person who sings with their heart and mind, then a classically trained singer who only focuses on what it sounds like to them. Sunday morning worship comes once a week; it can be easy to let it turn into a mindless habit. Train your mind to focus on every act of worship. Don’t let worship become something we do out of tradition or habit. Focus on WHO we have come together to worship. 

FEAR!

Gary Pollard III

Have you ever been terrified? I have: I’ve been hit head-on at highway speed, been attacked by feral dogs on the Navajo reservations, and once had to eat kale.

Fear is a normal part of our life, and is sometimes an annoying reminder that we are vulnerable. Fear can save your life, or cause you to push yourself to overcome. Fear can also help you get to heaven.

The Bible talks about the fear of the Lord all throughout. The concept of fearing God is mentioned over 578 times in scripture! How do we fear the Lord? A very long time ago, a man named Jonathan Edwards preached a sermon called “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” The premise of his sermon is that we are all walking a frayed tightrope over the fires of Hell with God just waiting for us to trip up and be eternally lost. His sermon is extremely well-known (even today), but is not an accurate portrayal of God’s disposition toward us (I John 1.7). Our fear of God – literal fear – comes from knowing that He is our judge and creator. It stems from a sense of awe at who He is and what He can do.

We’re all told to fear the Lord, but how do we do that in 2017? When you’re about to do something that the back of your mind tells you is probably not a good idea, think about the power of God. Think about standing in judgment before Him and how He would view your decisions. Think about the fact that your very existence is due to Him – do you think He’s not aware?

God is love by nature (I John 4.7, 8), but God is also our righteous Judge (Romans 2.2). Let’s keep that in mind this week while we’re making our decisions.

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WHEN YOU ASSEMBLE THIS SUNDAY

Neal Pollard

Not every one who comes to worship comes with proper motives or attitudes.  The mother of James and John, after falling down to worship Jesus, asked Him to give her boys the positions of highest honor in His coming kingdom (Mat. 20:20).  She had come to get something rather than give it.  So, today, one may make their top priority in searching for a “church home” one that has the most or the most diverse programs.  They are looking to get rather than give.  Actual worship is, to such a one, incidental.

The ancestors of the Samaritan woman at the well went as families to worship God in the mountain, but their worship was vain (John 4:20,22).  People routinely go, with good attitudes and intentions, to worship with groups that have no right to exist or who teach for doctrine the commandments of men.  They assemble with those whose worship is a departure from Scripture. Sadly, no matter how often they say “Lord, Lord,” it will do their souls no good (Mat. 7:21-23).

Stephen remembered a time in the family ancestry of his fellow Jews where idol worship was a plaguing problem (Acts 7:43). They had the tabernacle (and later the temple), but they had a difficult time putting away the gods of their daily lives (read Jer. 7:17,18).  Even wise King Solomon foolishly worshipped the “strange gods” with his wives (1 Ki. 11:4). Today, families may assemble to worship God on Sunday, but the gods (of wealth, material things, pleasure, recreation, entertainment, job, etc.) are always within reach before which they can bow.

But, the person faithfully assembled for true worship is blessed. Such a one is properly responding to what God wants. Jesus, in the above mentioned context concerning the Samaritan woman, informs us that “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24).  True worship is spiritual, with acts done accurately by divine authority and with anticipation and proper attitude. The true worshipper wants to offer worship as often as he can as enthusiastically as he can.  He also wants what he offers to be what God wants.  When you assemble this Sunday, plan to place yourself in this last category!