Title Leviticus 10:1-20
Contents
Text: Leviticus 10:1-20 / Hymn 205 “Lord Jesus, great love”
Leviticus 9, which we looked at yesterday, shows the scene of the first sacrifice after the ordination of the priests. In the midst of offering burnt offerings, sin offerings, and peace offerings, there was a scene where all the people instantly fell on the spot in reverence for God when they saw that fire came out of the presence of God and consumed the sacrifices on the altar in an instant.
Although that bloody sacrifice is not in front of our eyes today, we meet and look to God through worship. Therefore, worship is more than just a religious act, it is an essential characteristic of Christians and an identity of life.
However, one of Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abihu, were killed right in front of the sanctuary while performing sacrifices to God as priests. Since this event became a very important event in the history of Israel, it is quoted in the Bible four more times besides the text (Lev 16:1; Num 3:4, 26:61; 1 Chronicles 24:2). This reiterated reference several times tells us that today's text has become a warning message for Israel. So, what problems did the sacrifices of Nadab and Abihu, two of Aaron's sons, have?
This is verses 1-2. “Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu each took their censers, and filled incense before the LORD with other fire that the LORD had not commanded; and fire came out from before the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.”
Here, we can find many suspicious aspects of Nadab and Abihu, who served as priests. Why is there two priests offering incense instead of one? In Exodus 30:7-8, they went to the sanctuary once in the morning and in the evening to burn incense, and the text introduces them as if they each held a censer and burned incense at the same time.
Why would they suddenly come to God at once, both carrying their censer? Verse 9 says, “When you enter the tent of meeting, do not drink wine or strong drink. The fact that God's stern warning was written, "You shall escape your death," indicates that they entered God's tabernacle while drinking.
Considering this situation in mind, Nadab and Abihu each carried their own censers and went to the altar of incense in front of the Most Holy, each with their own censer for the portion of one priest who had to offer incense. Even while drunk.
God is glorified only when worshipers, especially those who lead worship, approach God with the right attitude. Otherwise, you will be nothing more than a messy yard. God is spirit. God, who is the Spirit, is the One who examines the attitude of our invisible heart, and He is pleased with the worship of our hearts.
Nadab and Abihu were not alone in their attitude. Incense was made using ‘other fires’ that were not commanded by God. In Leviticus 16:12-13, God told us to put the fire from the burnt offering into the censer. Perhaps they came with fire from a source other than the fire from the altar of burnt offering.
They did not follow God's ordained sacrifices and worship methods, thinking to themselves, "What if it was a fire that was kindled from anywhere?" Then, ironically, the fire of God appeared and burned them to death.
The summary judgment at the stake is also found in Numbers 16. When the 250 commanders who were opposing Moses, including Korah of the Levites and Dathan and Abiram of the Reubenites, set fire to the censer and stood before God, the earth split apart and devoured the Korahites. He made them a holy censer by burning them to death.
In verse 4, Moses had Nadab and Abihu's cousins carry the bodies of his relatives. And he urges Aaron, who remains silent even though his sons have died two by two, and not to mourn the family. Because the sacrifice is still not over yet. That is why sacrifices and worship are very important ceremonies centered on God.
In order to have proper worship, we must follow God's word, even if it does not conform to our thoughts. Sometimes the Word seems trivial and primitive, but the Word of God should be the principle of worship and our life.
In fact, the sacrifices of Nadab and Abihu were not at all problematic from the outside. They brought incense, fire, and incense, and went before God to even burn incense. Outwardly, it seemed too religious. However, worship that disregards the Word of God internally, even if it is worship before God, becomes a worship that God is not pleased with. In that regard, today's verse makes us realize once again how important the holiness of worship is in the community.
In addition, today's text reminds us of the case of Ananias and Sapphira in the early church, a series of events that break the purity of the community. In Acts 5, Ananias and Sapphira donated some of their property to the church, and some of it was hidden because it was a waste. Then, through Peter, he struck this couple against God, and as in today's message, they were left as cold corpses.
How could Peter have noticed their deception without the help of the Holy Spirit, and could have knocked them down without lifting a finger?
Therefore, the purity of the community was still maintained because everyone knew that these disciplinary actions did not come from the personal decisions of leaders like Moses or Peter in the community, but from God. Although Aaron, the high priest, had his two sons killed while offering an erroneous sacrifice, he knew that it was clearly God's action, not Moses' discipline, so Aaron and his family were able to obey without any disturbance. will be
In this respect, even in the early church 1500 years after the time of Moses, God took the initiative to protect the purity of the community, and even today, 2,000 years later, the church community begins to recover its holiness and purity If we do, God will protect our community every day.
Therefore, today, too, we must become a holy believer before the Lord and we must live with a beautiful devotion just like the early church.
<Prayer>
Lord. We believe that the true sign of living as a Christian in the world is above all a restoration to a holy worshiping community. Let our worship at the church be more fully offered, and let our day-to-day life become a life of worship every day. So, help us to live more boldly with the assurance that God will protect the people of God when we keep holiness and purity as God's people in this age when it seems that we need to learn the ways we are familiar with the world every day. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen. (Written by Park Jong-ho)