“If
we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the
truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of
judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of
God.” Heb. 10:26-27
What
is the difference between a sinful
mistake, like the ones exemplified by Moses and Uzzah, and willful sin described in Heb.10: 26?
Let’s explore together:
Moses example of disobedience:
Num.
20:8; 11-12 “Take the
staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to
that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring
water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can
drink…Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his
staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank….The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, ‘Because you did not trust in me enough to
honor Me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this
community into the land I give them.’” (the consequence of
disobedience)
Moses' disobedience, amongst other things,
"ruined" a divine pictorial
God had teed up.
1 Cor. 10:4 tells us of spiritual water
quenching our thirst (coming from Jesus our Rock, divinely exemplified in the
rock that Moses was supposed to speak to, not strike) Hence, God had to punished Moses by not allowing
Moses to enter the Promised Land ...that is this side of heaven. Seems unfair?
Check out God’s grace in Matt. 17: 1-3! ~God
views man’s earthly life through eternal lenses, hence His priorities on
earth often differ from man’s.
Uzzah’s
example of disobedience:
1 Chr. 13:9-10 (7-11) “And when they came unto the threshing floor of Chidon,
Uzzah put forth his hand to hold the ark;
for the oxen stumbled. And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Uzzah,
and he smote him, because he put his hand to the ark: and there he died before
God.” (the consequence of disobedience)
Can’t you just hear our merciful God saying
something like this?
"Ohhhh...no...no...no... Uzzah, don't
touch...Don’t touch!.......OH DUDE, oh dear ……..Bummer.
Now, Uzzah, you know what I have to do. I have
to, for My Name's sake, punish you.
And understand Uzzah, people may think that this punishment outweighs the crime
(as they did with Moses and as David has with you, but you AND MY people have to learn that I mean business. I will use
your earthly "end" as an example for hundreds of thousands of MY
saints now and throughout the centuries. And although you, my precious Uzzah, will die and earthly death today,
I will usher you into heaven to be with Me and to reign with Me forever."…And
God struck Uzzah dead.
Uzzah seems to have acted out of love and
concern, not out of a motive of flagrant disregard for God's directive. Yet
the action violated God's mandate. For "divine pictorial
sense"
God HAD to punish him, and He ushered Uzzah
into heaven, into His eternal loving embrace.
Out of love, let’s choose to honor God’s commandments; His reasoning's are beyond us.
“Don’t you realize that your body is the
temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do
not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price.
So you must honor God with
your body.” 1 Cor. 6: 19-20
Much love and hugs this week, ~Shaun and Betsy
