As we studied with the children the other night about Uzzah and David’s ox cart one of them asked, “What does authority mean?” It occurred to me that we often use words in our teaching that are not properly understood by all. With this in mind we decided to revisit this old but important concept.
AUTHORITY: “The power to enforce laws, exact obedience, command, determine, or judge.” (American Heritage Dictionary)
God had made a law that the Levites were to cover the ark of the Testimony, inserting poles in rings on the sides of it, and carry the ark with these poles on their shoulders (Numbers 4:4-15). Anyone who touched the ark of God would die (Numbers 4:15).
Uzzah died because these instructions were ignored (2 Samuel 6; 1 Chronicles 13). David did not have Levites carry the ark on their shoulders; instead he had the ark transported in a cart pulled by oxen. When the oxen stumbled Uzzah reached up to hold the ark steady with his hand and the LORD struck him dead instantly. Uzzah’s death is a powerful witness to the fact that God has authority, the “power to enforce laws, exact obedience, command, determine, or judge.”
David understood his mistake later. In 1 Chronicles 15 we hear him say, “No one may carry the ark of God but the Levites, for the LORD has chosen them to carry the ark of God and to minister before Him forever.” (v 2) He then said to the Levites that they must carry the ark and that “because you did not do it the first time, the LORD our God broke out against us, because we did not consult Him about the proper order.” (v. 13)
David learned an important lesson. He learned that God has all authority to order and direct and that when we do not consult His Word about the proper order the consequences are severe.
The church at Corinth needed to learn the same lesson. Paul wrote to them:
Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak, but they are to be submissive, as the law also says. And if they want to learn something, let them ask their own husbands at home; for it is shameful for women to speak in church. Or did the word of God come originally from you? Or was it you only that it reached? If anyone thinks himself to be a prophet or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things which I write to you are the commandments of the Lord. 1 Corinthians 14:34-37 – emphasis added
On Paul’s question in verse 36, “Did the word of God come originally from you?” Leon Morris has this in his commentary: “Clearly they felt free to strike out new lines, justified only by their own understanding of things Christian…” Just as David felt justified in creating a new way of transporting the ark, so did the Corinthians when it came to ordering their assemblies. They felt they could throw off the constraints of God’s directions and create new practices based on their own wisdom. Such an attitude is dangerous.
Authority does not originate in man. David did not have the right to change God’s command. The church at Corinth did not have the right to ignore God’s prohibition. And if one of Israel’s greatest kings had to honor God’s authority, and if one of the churches in the first century had to do the same, who are we to think that we can ignore what God has said? Surely if we disregard God’s authority it will be at our own peril. May these examples be sober warnings to us to never depart from God’s instructions.
~ by David Maxson