Derek Smith
Lead Pastor
Leviticus 10:1-3
Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu each took his own firepan, put fire in it, placed incense on it, and presented unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them to do. Then fire came from the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord has spoken: I will demonstrate my holiness
to those who are near me, and I will reveal my glory before all the people.”
God told Moses and the people to erect a tabernacle for the honor of His name. It is the place where the sacrifices for sin were to be offered, worship was to take place, and the ark of the covenant was to rest. It was the very place where the presence of God was manifest among the people. Aaron and his sons were called, ordained, and anointed to lead the ministry at the Temple and were called to exemplify the faith for others to see. However, on their very first day, Aaron and his sons misrepresented the Lord and defamed his holiness. What was so wrong about offering unauthorized fire? What does that even mean? The issue was not so much the type of fire or firepan they brought in. The issue was the heart behind it and the attitude and actions they displayed in doing it. In verses 8 and 9 the Lord spoke to Aaron and said that he and his sons were not to drink wine or strong drink before entering the tabernacle. Aaron and his sons waltzed into the tent of meeting having had too much to drink. This was more akin to an immoral party than ministry, and as a result God sets the precedent at the very beginning of the ministry of the Temple that He is not to be trifled with.
This is compartmentalized faith; displaying one life on the surface while living an inauthentic life behind the scenes. This is familiar faith, taking God for granted simply because of your knowledge or commitment in the past. This is also presumptive faith; they assumed that just having the title of priest was enough and that actually exemplifying the faith was secondary.
Child of God, how dare we live one life on Sunday but a different life on Monday. Our God is holy and glorious and He will not be trifled with. In all our talk about the grace of God we often forget that He is holy and calls us to that same kind of life. Holiness is not perfection, it is authenticity. It is humbly confessing our sins and approaching the throne of God with reverent fear. It is true worship, a daily lifestyle of commitment to Jesus not just a Sunday church service faith. Just walking into the doors of the church and calling yourself a Christian doesn’t make you right with God, a heart of submission to Jesus does. Obligatory sacrifices don’t please God, authentic humble worship does. May we never presume upon God’s mercy and grace, but may his mercy and grace motivate us to honor Him with our daily lives. Today, let’s bring a sacrifice of praise, that is the fruit of lips and a life that gives thanks to His name.