2010 – April 7 – Making Sense of Seeming Unfairness

Study from God’s Word…2nd Sam 5: 6 – 8 [1st Chron. 11: 4-5]; 2nd Sam. 5: 9-10 [1st Chron. 11: 6-9]; 2nd Sam. 5: 11-12 [1st Chron. 14; 1-2]; 2nd Sam. 6: 1-5 [1st Chron. 13: 1-8]; 2nd Sam. 6: 6-11 [1st Chron. 13: 9-14]; 2nd Sam. 5: 17-25 [1st Chron. 14: 8-17]; 2nd Sam. 22: 1-51 [Psalm 18] … Passage for Reflection: 1st Chronicles 13: 9 – 10 … NIV 9 When they came to the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark, because the oxen stumbled. 10 The LORD's anger burned against Uzzah, and He struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark. So he died there before God.

My Journal for Today: This study today, especially the highlighted passage and devotional, points to how we can be confused and perplexed, seeing “acts of God” being carried out in our times or in history when those events seem so unfair or inexplicable.

That was the way it was for Uzzah, David’s loyal servant and soldier who was just doing what David had commanded by bringing the Ark back to the new City of David; and in the process, Uzzah reacted instinctively when the Arc began to fall precariously, touching the Ark of the Covenant in the process, something that no one was to do but the prescribed Levites. And ZAP, God struck him down … dead! Wow! Why would God do such a thing? And this is an example of other things in our lives when a complex set of circumstances, some of which are totally out of our purview, might cause an event or occurrence which is out of the realm of our human explanation.

Dr. Smith this morning used the analogy of a plane crash which may have been labeled to take place because of “pilot error;” but if the examiners had all the information available they may have discovered a lot of factors which led to the pilot’s decision which led to the accident. But in the case of God taking action against Uzzah, on the surface it seems like a capricious action on God’s part to take his life just because this man instinctively tried to keep the Arc from falling. But, as Dr. Smith points out in today’s devotional, what if David, remembering God’s prescribed way of transporting the Ark had done what God said should be done to move the Ark, having the Levites carry it on their shoulders. So, perhaps it was David’s fault that Uzzah took the rap and died for the incident in question.

I just don’t know; and I’ve come to realize, as it says in Isaiah 55: 8-9, that there will always be things which God does which I cannot, or will not ever, explain. And so, like the recent earthquake in Haiti, I just have faith that God knows what HE is doing and why HE is doing it … especially when I don’t understand it when HE does it.

And so, when God takes a life, like Uzzah, where the circumstances seem unfair; or He wreaks havoc on a people as He did in Haiti; or there are things in my life which just don’t seem right, by my understanding, I’m coming to the place in my life where I realize that I must believe and accept the truth of Romans 8: 28 (I hope you know that one by heart), and move on, … trusting God, as His word also says in Prov. 3: 5-6; and letting Him do what He must do to guide my life.

I hope and I will pray today that you join me in this step of faith in our discipleship.

My Prayer for Today: Lord, help all who read here, and certainly myself, to recognize that You are God and You love Your children no matter what we may see happening in our lives which is not explainable by finite minds such as my own. Amen