Aaron was Moses’s brother, and God designates the former’s family line or descendants as the priesthood. As a priest’s, Aaron’s family line will be responsible for the temple and sacrifices. Nadab and Abihu, his two elder sons, apparently were not up to the task as they didn’t take things seriously. Aaron also has two other younger sons named Eleazar and Ithamar.
In Leviticus chapter 9, God has already shown how serious the temple sacrifices will be. After following the instructions on how to prepare the sacrifices, God powerfully showed His presence among everyone, including the sons of Aaron.
“Fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat portions on the altar. And when all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown.” Leviticus 9:24
However, in Leviticus 10:1-2, Aaron’s elder sons made a terrible mistake. The King James Version of what happened gives us a more chilling picture:
“And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the Lord, which he commanded them not.”
“And there went out fire from the Lord, and devoured them, and they died before the Lord.”
Scholars are not in agreement what “strange fire” really is, but it’s possible that they got the fire from the wrong source. What scholars agree upon, however, is that it was because they were too casual with the presence of God. It is possible that they had grown too familiar with the whole thing and took it for granted.
When we give God less than our best, it’s an insult to him. God is not interested in the leftovers of our energy, time, and attention. God wants all of you and doesn’t want your scraps. God is insulted by your scraps. The American church is good at this. In the American church, we are good at creating a God in our image instead of us trying to be in His image. He is just the guy that forgives us and act as if He has to forgive us! This is blasphemy since you now have a wrong idea of God. Blaspheming the Holy Spirit, of course, is a different thing. But if we are making this sin of creating a different character for God, then it is still blasphemy!
A person having an unbiblical image of God is in a dangerous situation. Let’s say you don’t repent and pride prevails in your heart. The Holy Spirit comes to convict you, but you resist and think you are doing fine. What happens next is that your spiritual growth stops. You still go through the motions of church, but you have just committed spiritual suicide because you have now pushed God away. Habitual sin creeps in, and you don’t fight it anymore. All of a sudden, things that used to bother you are now acceptable. Spiritual numbness and calluses have taken over your life.
“And without faith, it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” – Hebrews 11:6
If you want to live a passionate life, the best way to do it is to give it all to Him by faith. Don’t give God your second best. God wants to be first in your time, finances, and relationships. God doesn’t need your money, of course, and he is not lonely, but these things show if God is your priority or not. How you pursue God in spiritual disciplines is another indicator. Do you still pray or read your Bible? God can see your preferences, and He can know if He is the Lord of your life or if you’re playing footsie with Him.
Rock Church serves the communities of Fargo, West Fargo, and Moorhead. We meet at West Acres Cinema, Sundays at 10 am. At the Rock, you can belong before you believe.
