8/20/21-OUR SERVICE TO GOD IS NOT A GAME!

“Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu put coals of fire in their incense burners and sprinkled incense over them. In this way, they disobeyed the Lord by burning before Him the wrong kind of fire, different than He had commanded. So fire blazed forth from the Lord’s presence and burned them up, and they died there before the Lord. Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord meant when He said, ‘I will display My holiness through those who come near Me. I will display My glory before all the people.’” And Aaron was silent. Then Moses called for Mishael and Elzaphan, Aaron’s cousins, the sons of Aaron’s uncle Uzziel. He said to them, “Come forward and carry away the bodies of your relatives from in front of the sanctuary to a place outside the camp.” So they came forward and picked them up by their garments and carried them out of the camp, just as Moses had commanded. Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Do not show grief by leaving your hair uncombed or by tearing your clothes. If you do, you will die, and the Lord’s anger will strike the whole community of Israel. However, the rest of the Israelites, your relatives, may mourn because of the Lord’s fiery destruction of Nadab and Abihu. But you must not leave the entrance of the Tabernacle or you will die, for you have been anointed with the Lord’s anointing oil.” So they did as Moses commanded. Then the Lord said to Aaron, “You and your descendants must never drink wine or any other alcoholic drink before going into the Tabernacle. If you do, you will die. This is a permanent law for you, and it must be observed from generation to generation. You must distinguish between what is sacred and what is common, between what is ceremonially unclean and what is clean. And you must teach the Israelites all the decrees that the Lord has given them through Moses.”

‭‭Leviticus‬ ‭10:1-11‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The Bible is vague on what made this fire unholy, but it’s clear by what followed that they had not followed protocol for how this act should've been carried out. They were the sons of the High Priest Aaron and priests themselves. Their role was to work alongside their father, doing whatever duties he told them to, as directed by God through Moses. If God didn’t direct them to offer fire before Him, it didn’t matter that they thought it was a good idea. Remember what happened to Saul when he stepped into Samuel’s role? Everything in the tabernacle was holy. The oil, the incense and the censers. God had instituted an order for when things should be done and by whom. They had overstepped their boundaries. Notice that it says “they offered unauthorized fire.”

We cannot offer to the Lord anything that is unholy. We cannot approach Him as though He’s submitted to us. We may know Him as friend, but we’re to yield to Him as King of kings and Lord of lords. Nadab and Abihu must’ve been drunk, something had made them forget who they were serving. They had a costly lapse in judgment and what they did was observed by the Israelites and God wanted to send a message that He will be revered, He will be honored and He must be obeyed. He said these words after the death of Aaron’s sons.

“Among those who approach Me I will be proved Holy; in the sight of the people I will be honored.”

Where did we read similar words? Numbers 20:12.

In Numbers 18 we learn what the responsibility of Aaron and his son’s were. God was very clear about what He wanted. He never asks us to do anything we’re not capable of doing. All we’re required to do is obey. Let’s read.

“Then the Lord said to Aaron: “You, your sons, and your relatives from the tribe of Levi will be held responsible for any offenses related to the sanctuary. But you and your sons alone will be held responsible for violations connected with the priesthood.”

‭‭Numbers‬ ‭18:1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Did you get that? So what these men did violated direct commands. So they must’ve been compromised in their thinking to have done what they did. What would’ve made them do what they knew would cost them their lives? Let’s continue.

“Bring your relatives of the tribe of Levi—your ancestral tribe—to assist you and your sons as you perform the sacred duties in front of the Tabernacle of the Covenant. But as the Levites go about all their assigned duties at the Tabernacle, they must be careful not to go near any of the sacred objects or the altar. If they do, both you and they will die. The Levites must join you in fulfilling their responsibilities for the care and maintenance of the Tabernacle, but no unauthorized person may assist you. You yourselves must perform the sacred duties inside the sanctuary and at the altar. If you follow these instructions, the Lord’s anger will never again blaze against the people of Israel. I myself have chosen your fellow Levites from among the Israelites to be your special assistants. They are a gift to you, dedicated to the Lord for service in the Tabernacle. But you and your sons, the priests, must personally handle all the priestly rituals associated with the altar and with everything behind the inner curtain. I am giving you the priesthood as your special privilege of service. Any unauthorized person who comes too near the sanctuary will be put to death.”

‭‭Numbers‬ ‭18:2-7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Aaron was not even allowed to grieve his sons deaths because at the time of their death he was performing his priestly duties and the Lord’s anointing oil was on him and his remaining sons. God demands holiness from us and towards Him. Listen to just how serious this was.

“Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Do not show grief by leaving your hair uncombed or by tearing your clothes. If you do, you will die, and the Lord’s anger will strike the whole community of Israel. However, the rest of the Israelites, your relatives, may mourn because of the Lord’s fiery destruction of Nadab and Abihu. But you must not leave the entrance of the Tabernacle or you will die, for you have been anointed with the Lord’s anointing oil.” So they did as Moses commanded.”

‭‭Leviticus‬ ‭10:6-7‬ ‭NLT‬‬

We should all be on our faces right now shouting Hallelujah and kissing the feet of Jesus. This was life before a Mediator. Half of the churches in America would be graveyards right now. We’re offering unholy fire almost every time we meet. We have shown little or no reverence to our Holy God. Do we even care what He thinks or wants from us? We just give Him what we want and tell Him to take it or leave it. We give Him the leftovers of our lives. Think about it. When was the last time you gave any thoughts to what truly pleases Him? Unholy fire, still repulses Him.

Listen to what the Lord says to Aaron after the death of his sons, which leads me to believe that there was more going on than the unholy fire. He didn’t speak through Moses here, He spoke to Aaron directly.

“Then the Lord said to Aaron, “You and your descendants must never drink wine or any other alcoholic drink before going into the Tabernacle. If you do, you will die. This is a permanent law for you, and it must be observed from generation to generation.”

‭‭Leviticus‬ ‭10:8-9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Grace has made the twenty-first century church slothful and irreverent when it comes to the things of God. When I was a young Christian in Jamaica, we were afraid to enter God’s House with unconfessed sins in our lives. We knew the Holy Spirit would reveal it. The only thing that I wished was different, was that we would’ve been taught Holy fear and not be afraid of God. We had reverence without intimacy. So instead of biblical repentance, people ended up leaving the church entirely. We didn’t know we had a Mediator in Jesus Christ. Fast forward to today. We now take our Mediator for granted and Paul had to address this problem with the Christians in Romans 6.

This is what the Lord instructed Moses to say to the Israelites concerning our obedience and the heart of the Father.

“Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to Me. And you will be My kingdom of priests, My holy nation.’ This is the message you must give to the people of Israel.”

‭‭Exodus‬ ‭19:5-6‬ ‭NLT‬‬

As priests, we are called to represent our High Priest Jesus in ways that will cause Him to be honored in the sight of the ungodly. Whenever we behave like Nadab and Abihu, we misrepresent who we are and dishonor Him. We can’t approach Him as though we’re buddies. As though He’s like us. He’s not! Reread those verses again. “Among those who approach Me I will be proved Holy.” This Christian walk is not a game. We’re not serving some cosmic image. This is the Creator of the whole earth we’re talking about. Aaron’s sons forgot, we must not. God will not be dishonored in the sight of the people by anyone. I pray that this message will cause us to reevaluate how we’re approaching Him and representing Him. Aaron couldn’t even mourn for fear of dying. Why he didn’t stop his sons from being foolish is not known. But God said that he and his sons would be held responsible for anything done against the priesthood. We too will be held accountable as priests for the things we do against the Priesthood of Jesus Christ.

To whom much is given, much is required. Luke 12:48. What have you been doing priests? How have you been approaching your High Priest? How have you been representing Him in the sight of the unsaved? Is your offering approved? Psalm 51 is a great place to start. Be holy! For I Am Holy!

Written by permission of the Holy Spirit

W. Tennant

August 20, 2021