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We will never fully understand God until we’re in heaven with Him. Let’s stop trying to make sense of His ways—because sometimes they just don’t make sense!

The first shall be last?

The last shall be first?

If you want to be great, head to back of the line and start serving?

Let’s make it our goal to simply OBEY God . . .

whether we understand His commands or not.

If only Saul had known this truth!

Maybe you remember the story. If not, you can find it in 1 Samuel 15.

God sent Samuel the prophet to instruct King Saul to kill the Amalekites. Who were they? The Amalekites were an evil and brutal tribe who attacked God’s people, the Israelites, as they traveled through the wilderness to the Promised Land.

The Amalekites had no reverence of fear of God. They had a reputation for especially attacking the weaker members—women and children and elderly people who couldn’t always keep pace with the rest of the Israelites.

God’s word to Samuel was to instruct King Saul to kill every living being among the Amalekite tribe—every man, woman, child and animal. So Saul gathered 210,000 soldiers and destroyed the Amalekites.

Maybe you’re familiar with what happened next.

Saul and his troops were returning home from battle when Samuel met them on the road. “Glory be to God!” Saul shouted. “He has given us victory in battle because of our obedience.”

“Seriously?” Samuel asked. “Your obedience? Then how come I’m looking at a bunch of fat sheep and oxen? You were supposed to kill every living thing!”

“Well . . . you’re gonna love this, Samuel! I decided to keep the fattest sheep and the strongest oxen so we can offer them as a sacrifice to the Lord when we get back to hometown. That way all the people can come out and celebrate WITH us as we praise God for this victory! Great plan, huh!”

Samuel was disgusted. “No! It’s a horrible plan. You’ve acted in direct disobedience to God. What you have done is as bad as satan worship. God desires your obedience over sacrifice any time and every time! And because you’ve disobeyed, God will remove you from the throne. That’s right—you nor any of your family will continue to rule over Israel! And by the way . . . who’s he?”

“This is King Agag. We didn’t kill him, because when we return home, we’ll have a giant victory parade so everyone can see him as our trophy—and as we give thanks to God, we’ll kill him THEN.”

Samuel was so horrified at Saul’s blatant disobedience, he grabbed Saul’s sword and immediately annihilated Agag.

Seems pretty harsh, you may be thinking.

What’s the big deal with some animals and killing the king now or later?

It kind of makes sense.

It DOES kind of make sense, doesn’t it?

Why wouldn’t God want the sacrifice of all these animals?

Again, we don’t understand God’s ways. If we try hard enough, we can make anything make sense. We can rationalize and rationalize until it seems right.

But it’s not our job to make God make sense. It’s only our job to obey Him.

OK on the animals. God didn’t want them as a sacrifice. But what’s the big deal about killing Agag then or in a giant victory parade? Isn’t the bottom line that he’s killed? Does it really matter when?

Every detail of God’s will always matters.

Let’s push the fast-forward button on this story. It’s 20 years in the future, and Saul is down in battle on Mount Gilboa. His enemy has the sword at Saul’s neck, so Saul is unable to turn around and identify him. So Saul asks: “Who are you?”

The response of his enemy?

“I . . . am . . . an Amalakite.”

Gasp.

What?!?!?!

How can this be? Saul killed all the Amalikites. He wiped them out.

Yes, but he didn’t do it God’s way.

From the time Saul took King Agag into captivity from the time he met up with Samuel was less than a week. But it was just enough time for Agag to escape, father a son and be taken captive by Saul again before meeting Samuel.

And now . . . 20 years later . . . the son of Agag is out to destroy Saul.

The son of Agag HATES you!

He will do everything in his power to destroy you.

That’s why a God who loves you more than you can comprehend says, “If there’s anything in your life that’s keeping you from obeying Me wholeheartedly, annihilate it.”

 

Anything you need to annihilate?

 

 

 

 

Maybe you’re familiar with the Ark of the Covenant. It was a large and beautiful golden “box” created with specific instructions from God. It weighed approximately 615 lbs.

The original stone tablets on which God inscribed the Ten Commandments for Moses to give the Israelites were inside the Ark.

It also held Aaron’s rod that budded when he helped Moses lead the Israelites through the wilderness.

What else was inside the Ark? The golden pot that contained manna (the food God delivered from heaven to the Israelites as they headed toward the Promised Land for more than 40 years).

In 2 Samuel 6:1-7 and 1 Chronicles 13:9-12 we see that the Ark was being transported on a cart with poles on it. And it was being pulled by oxen.

The oxen stumbled, and Uzzah reached out to steady the ark. He died immediately.

That’s right. God killed him for touching the Ark of the Covenant.

Seriously?

Doesn’t that seem a bit harsh?

Looks to me like Uzzah was trying to help the Ark.

Let’s look a little deeper.

Does God EVER need help?

If we read Exodus 25:12-14 and Numbers 7:9, we see that God gave Moses and Aaron extremely specific instructions on how to transport the Ark. It was way more than a big golden box. It served as the place of the presence of God. “And there I will meet with you . . . on the ark of the Testimony, I will speak with you” (Exodus 25:22).

God made it plain that touching the Ark was in direct violation of God’s law and would result in death.

We know that God isn’t bound by time or space. He’s above and beyond all. Yet for His people, He bound Himself to this box. He was (and is) everywhere; but He was there.

Uzzah’s touching the Ark wasn’t the only thing that went sour that day. Actually, several mistakes were made!

(We’ll chat about that next week, but today let’s just look at one.)

The Ark had been at Abinidab’s house (King David’s son) for a few years, and Abinidab’s sons Uzzah and Ahio may have become too comfortable with its presence. Maybe the Ark became too familiar. Could Uzzah have forgotten the holiness it represented?

And what about us?

Are there times when we also fail to recognize God’s holiness and His presence? Has church become a social gathering place for us?

We grab a donut, some coffee, chat with friends, sing cool songs and hear a message about God. But are we revering Him? Are we moving inside His very presence with awe and respect? Do we really stand on holy ground?

Maybe we, too, have lost some of the respect we should have for God’s presence. The Israelites had witnessed several miracles of God (the parting of the Red Sea, manna from heaven, defeating their enemies en route to the Promised Land, water from a rock—just to name a few).

God’s ways are always higher than ours (see Isaiah 55:8-9). And the Israelites were well aware of this fact. They marveled at His greatness.

The truth is: The more we try to bring God down to our worldly way of thinking and reasoning, the further away He will seem.

Should we stop trying to bring Him to us? Should we ask instead that He bring us to Him?

Let’s determine to come to Him in reverence.

Let’s come to Him on His terms—not our own.

Uzzah forgot that essential ingredient. He no longer revered God’s presence in the Ark.

And the result was death.

I don’t think we’ll be struck physically dead if we forget . . .

But if we keep forgetting—

If we continue to treat God casually in our lives AND in our churches—

we could very easily experience spiritual death.

What are some ways you revere God?

Or has He become so familiar to you, that He is now simply your buddy?

Have you ever thought about what it means to praise God?
Psalm 96 tells us that someday
the seas will demonstrate His glory,
the earth will rejoice,
and the fields will display His greatness.

Let that soak into your brain for a second.
How will the seas demonstrate His glory?
Will trillions of waves simply stand on top of the ocean’s surface
and begin singing?

Or will the plant life and mountains from the very bottom of the sea rise to the top and begin shouting glory?

Will coral hum a praise tune?

Try to imagine how the very earth will rejoice.
Will trees do hip-hop?
Can you see a hill starting the wave?
Maybe every blade of grass will boogie down to some rock and roll! Or the leaves will sing in harmony.
Every grain of sand on the earth may belt out a brand-new praise song to the Creator.

And what about the animals?
They’re part of God’s creation.
You know they’re going to be in on the action.
I can’t wait to heart it!

Hippos, hyenas, hamsters, hawks, hedgehogs, hummingbirds, and horses may have their own “H Choir.”

And I can just hear the cats, chipmunks, cows, canaries, camels, chickens, cheetahs, crocodiles, caribou, chimpanzees, cobras, candors, crows, cranes, and even cockroaches trying to outdo them!

How do you personally praise your heavenly Father?
I’m not talking about being in church and just singing what’s on the screen because that’s what everyone else is doing.
I’m talking about personal praise that comes straight from your heart. It may be through singing or listening to praise music.
Though that’s what usually comes to mind when we think of praise, there are other ways in which you can praise your Father.

Try praising Him by kneeling the next time you pray.
This is an act of humility and reverence.
It shows that you revere Him as your absolute authority.

You can also praise Him vocally.
When you’re having your quiet time with God, interrupt the quiet by saying “Hallelujah” loudly, or “I praise You, Lord!”

Another way you can praise God is by lifting your hands.
This shows you’re sending the praise in His direction.
You’re pointing toward the heavens.
You’re raising your hands in gratitude.

 

Try thanking God in prayer.
This blesses Him. Yes, you can actually bless the Lord.
In fact, it’s scriptural! The proof is found in Psalm 103:1:
“Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name” (KJV).

We can only imagine what it will sound like someday to hear turtles, wildflowers, and caves praising our God.

I can’t wait to hear the melody of the stars singing in unison.
Maybe the little ants will be singing soprano,
and the queen bees will be singing bass.

But we don’t have to imagine what it’s like for us.
We have the privilege of praising God right here, right now.
Let’s do it!

“All the earth worships you and sings praises to you; they sing praises to your name” (Psalm 66:4 ESV).

How do you most often express your praise to God?

I’ve been reading the Old Testament book of Job this week.
Are you familiar with this true story?
Good man goes through horrific times.
His 10 children die, his ranch full of animals die.
His wife suggests he turn his back on God.
His three best friends tell him the reason he’s experiencing such horrific physical and emotional pain is because of his sin.

But Job is a godly man.
He has been obedient to God.
And he’s not bitter. But he IS confused.
He can’t understand why he’s experiencing such pain.
Still . . . he remains faithful to God.

The bulk of his story are his three best friends belittling him for days and trying to persuade him to admit that he’s done something wrong.

Friends?

I don’t know where the saying “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all” came from . . . but it could have birthed itself here. Wouldn’t it have been great if his friends would have simply sat with him? Put their arms around him? Prayed for him?

Check out what’s said in the last chapter of Job’s book:

“After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before” (Job 42:10 NIV).

Did you catch the key?
After Job had prayed for his friends.
He forgave them, and he prayed for them!
We can’t imagine the emotional pain his “friends” dumped on him.
But Job forgave, AND he prayed.

Wow.
I want to be the kind of friend . . . the kind of disciple . . .
who will forgive those who hurt me—
and even pray for them.

Maybe that’s the key to God’s blessing of peace.
And contentment.
And deep joy.

Why not go to YouTube and listen to Matthew West’s song “Forgiveness.”

If you haven’t heard it yet, I’ll give you a sneak preview of the beginning:

 

It’s the hardest thing to give away
And the last thing on your mind today
It always goes to those that don’t deserve

It’s the opposite of how you feel
When the pain they caused is just too real
It takes everything you have just to say the word…

Forgiveness
Forgiveness

 

 

Is there someone you need to forgive?
Go ahead.
It takes too much energy to hold a grudge.
Enjoy God’s deep settled peace by forgiving!

Imagine: A young lady becomes engaged to the love of her life. She spends several days searching for the perfect wedding dress. Hours are spent trying on dress after dress. She finally discovers the one-in-a-million dress that seems to be made just for her.

She marks the days off on the calendar; it seems her wedding can’t come fast enough. Soon the big day has arrived. Her hair is styled perfectly. The pedicure and manicure have been completed. She pulls on an old pair of jeans and grabs the sweatshirt she wore to breakfast that morning (with pancake syrup on it) and walks down the aisle to be pronounced her husband’s wife.

Something’s missing, right?

The wedding dress!

As weird as that would be, God hints that forgetting to spend time with Him every day is even stranger than a bride who would forget her wedding dress. Check this out: “Does a young woman forget her jewelry, or a bride her wedding dress? Yet for years on end my people have forgotten me” (Jeremiah 2:32 NLT).

We often make excuses about not spending time reading the Bible each day:

“I don’t need to actually read anything; I’ll just chat with the Big Guy.”

“I have too many other things to get done today. If I stop and make time to read the Bible, I may not have time for my friends.”

“Ahhh, God knows I love Him. I don’t think I really need to spend time with Him to prove it.”

Yet we’d go nuts if God ever used one of those excuses on us, wouldn’t we? Imagine asking God for help and getting one of these responses:

“Seriously? I have people praying from a war zone right now!”

“It takes a lot of strength to be attentive to bazillions of prayers around the world. I just need to take a quick nap.”

“Get in line. Others were praying before you bothered to send me yours.”

Aren’t you glad that when we call on our heavenly Father, He’s always there? And He’s always ready to meet our needs, hold us in His lap, and listen to everything we say.

What’s the most recent excuse you’ve given for not meeting with God? With His help, you can determine to make your daily quiet time with Him part of your lifestyle. Will you do it?

As we continue into 2016, commit to spend time with your heavenly Father every single day.

 

Try memorizing this:

“I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me” (Proverbs 8:17 ESV).