Leviticus 10:1-11
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Leviticus 10:1-11
Discernable Distinctions
During my first pastorate in 2004 in a little country church in rural North Carolina when I was in the Volunteer Fire Department
One of the biggest concerns in our fire department was the
chemical plant in town with its million plus gallons of flammable liquids. Or
maybe we should be concerned about the railroad cars that go through town
hauling all kinds of toxic chemicals. Or maybe it is the pesticide distribution
warehouse that can poison the whole town if the wind was right. Or maybe it’s
what our fire chief likes to warn us about concerning all those tanker trucks
going down our little highway hauling dangerous chemicals. That’s where a
special book comes into play. And that is the “Emergency Response Guidebook”
for chemical fires. You see, you can’t treat every fire alike. It’s ok to throw water
on a brush fire or a house fire, but when it comes to a chemical fire you need to treat it
differently. That book would identify the type of chemical with the proper way
of putting it out. If you put water on some chemical fires you could cause an
explosion, or a chemical reaction that could cause dangerous toxic gases. Using
that book could save your life and those around you.
What I want us to see this morning goes beyond this mere saving
of physical life, to the dangers that face your eternal soul when you come in
the presence of God.
In Matthew 10:28 Jesus says
“And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather
fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”
The book you will need for this is the Bible.
‘God has revealed everything He wants to reveal, and everything that is good for me to know is in the Bible. If it is not in the Bible, I am content not to know it.
David Martyn Lloyd-Jones (Welsh Preacher and Writer)
“Discernable Distinctions”
Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. So fire went out from the Lord and devoured them, and they died before the Lord. And Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke, saying:
‘By those who come near Me
I must be regarded as holy;
And before all the people
I must be glorified.’ ”
So Aaron held his peace.
Then Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come near, carry your brethren from before the sanctuary out of the camp.” So they went near and carried them by their tunics out of the camp, as Moses had said.
And Moses said to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons, “Do not uncover your heads nor tear your clothes, lest you die, and wrath come upon all the people. But let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which the Lord has kindled. You shall not go out from the door of the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die, for the anointing oil of the Lord is upon you.” And they did according to the word of Moses.
Then the Lord spoke to Aaron, saying: “Do not drink wine or intoxicating drink, you, nor your sons with you, when you go into the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations, that you may distinguish between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean, and that you may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord has spoken to them by the hand of Moses.”
This text shows that we need to have an understanding of the
relationship between Holy and Common, which is the same now as it was then.
Sin in Leviticus is Sin today. Nothing has changed in that respect. What God calls
sin will always be sin.
In Hebrew thinking everything was either clean or unclean,
holy or common.
Let’s look at the relationship between these 4 things.
Ordinarily everything starts off common. Common is the opposite of holy and in
order for it to be holy it needs to be sanctified. What is common can’t come in
contact with what is holy. What is unclean can’t come in contact with what is
holy either. To be unclean doesn’t mean you have sinned but it does mean you
can’t approach God. But something that is common can be clean or unclean but
can’t come in contact with what is holy. God’s concern is in His providing a
way for unclean things to be made clean and common things to be made holy.
Quick survey of Leviticus:
This is a book found in the Torah which was written by Moses
in the wilderness. In this book we see that God gave His people (who are
sinners) a way to have a relationship with Him (who is holy) and provided
access to Himself through the sacrificial system. God also provided a way for
His people to worship and express their commitment, love, and peace with God in
the different rituals He gave them.
Let’s work our way to our present text through the book of
Leviticus.
In chapters 1-7 we are provide with the rules for the
different offerings, such as,
Burnt Offering (1), Meal Offering (2), Peace Offering (3),
Purification Offering (4), and Reparation Offering (4-6).
In chapters 6-7 we have a more extensive discussion on the
rituals involved in each offering.
Chapters 8-10 takes up the matter of the consecration of the
priesthood and the inauguration of sacrificial worship.
In chapter 8 the Ordination of Priests takes up 7 days.
And chapter 9 shows the day of inauguration or the beginning
of the ministry which takes place on the 8th day.
Now our chapter for today takes place the same day as
chapter 9 or the 8th day of the inauguration of public ministry, in
which things are still new and fresh for the children of Israel. As ministers of God, we
should be able to glean some important points as we too are responsible to
uphold the holiness of God before God’s people.
Regarding holiness we will see from these verses…
A danger we should know
A perspective we should show
A command we should follow
So as ministers of a Holy God, we need to understand what
Holiness means.
I.
There is a danger
regarding holiness that we should know. (1-3)
Then Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. So fire went out from the Lord and devoured them, and they died before the Lord. And Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord spoke, saying:
‘By those who come near Me
I must be regarded as holy;
And before all the people
I must be glorified.’ ”
So Aaron held his peace.
“Holiness is dangerous unless approached by the proper
persons and according to the proper rules.” (Snaith, 58)
Nadab and Abihu were the 2 eldest sons of Aaron.
They also were among those privileged of seeing God on
Mt. Sinai. (Ex 24:1)
Now they have been ordained as priests. (8:30)
What they did wrong:
Profane fire (strange fire)
Unauthorized, unholy, illegitimate, the wrong kind of, alien, forbidden
Bottom line
is that they offered something that was not commanded
What were the consequences:
Fire from the Lord
Same fire that consumes the sacrifices;
and fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat on the altar. When all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces.
Notice how, they shouted, now Aaron was silent
For our God is a consuming fire.
Dirty hands
God is light, and judges what is not found in Him.
Don’t be caught holding a false light:
The false
light of church membership
The false
light of good works
God demonstrates His holiness by judging sin.
But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession. And he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself? While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.”
Then Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and breathed his last. So great fear came upon all those who heard these things. And the young men arose and wrapped him up, carried him out, and buried him.
Now it was about three hours later when his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. And Peter answered her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much?”
She said, “Yes, for so much.”
Then Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.” Then immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. And the young men came in and found her dead, and carrying her out, buried her by her husband. So great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things.
Everything was going well, then a harsh reality.
Bishop Hall says, “It is a dangerous thing, in the service
of God, to decline from his own institutions; we have to do with a God, who is
wise to prescribe his own worship—just to require what he has prescribed—and
powerful to avenge what he has not prescribed.”[1]
We deal w/ God who secures His own holiness. He deals with
His ministers as he has His congregation deal with the laity.
Now the son of an Israelite woman, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the children of Israel; and this Israelite woman’s son and a man of Israel fought each other in the camp. And the Israelite woman’s son blasphemed the name of the Lord and cursed; and so they brought him to Moses. (His mother’s name was Shelomith the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.) Then they put him in custody, that the mind of the Lord might be shown to them.
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Take outside the camp him who has cursed; then let all who heard him lay their hands on his head, and let all the congregation stone him.
By regarding God as holy we are glorifying Him.
(Regarding is added to our translation because holy has a
verb stem: niphal which means it takes the action of the verb)
We might think this is harsh but we need to see this in
view of God’s perspective that others might see what God being holy means.
II.
There is a perspective
regarding holiness that we should show. (4-7)
Then Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come near, carry your brethren from before the sanctuary out of the camp.” So they went near and carried them by their tunics out of the camp, as Moses had said.
And Moses said to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons, “Do not uncover your heads nor tear your clothes, lest you die, and wrath come upon all the people. But let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which the Lord has kindled. You shall not go out from the door of the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die, for the anointing oil of the Lord is upon you.” And they did according to the word of Moses.
As ministers of God we need to constantly show God’s
viewpoint.
First cousins
Aaron with the 2 that took out the dead bodies
For the anointing oil of the Lord is upon you
God shows us what holiness means:
They were not to mourn. If normal lamentations and burial
took place in public, people might get the wrong idea about the deaths and
perhaps sympathize with them against the Lord.
The people are to carry on so they don’t forget but the
priests are to show God’s perspective.
Jesus said, “Let the dead bury
their dead.” Let the world alone so you can show God’s perspective.
Visitors to the Kennedy
Space Center
are a little disappointed at the Vehicle
Assembly Building.
Touted as the largest building in the world, it does not seem too impressive at
first. One approaches it over the flat scrub of Merritt Island. There are no nearby
structures for comparison. With no sense of perspective, it seems quite
ordinary. Then one goes inside. There is a man on a scaffold. He seems no
bigger than a fly. There are clouds that form at the top, sometimes making it
rain inside the building. Once he has acquired a sense of perspective, the
visitor is able to grasp the immensity of the structure. Our faith gives us a
sense of perspective. With it we can distinguish the large things in life from
the small. We can see how really large the spiritual issues are that confront
us!
Exodus 15:11;
"Who is like You, O LORD,
among the gods?
Who is like You, glorious in holiness,
Fearful in praises, doing wonders?
Psalm 145:21;
My mouth shall speak the praise of
the LORD,
And all flesh shall bless His holy name
Forever and ever.
They shall not mourn as the world mourns, thus showing them
the uniqueness of who God is, and how His ways are to be feared.
By knowing God’s perspective on His holiness, we need to
tell the difference in what is proper for God and what is not.
III.
There is a command
regarding holiness that we should follow. (8-11)
Then the Lord spoke to Aaron, saying: “Do not drink wine or intoxicating drink, you, nor your sons with you, when you go into the tabernacle of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations, that you may distinguish between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean, and that you may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord has spoken to them by the hand of Moses.”
“Ministers must ensure that they can distinguish between
holy and unholy, between clean and unclean, as they teach the decrees of the
Lord.” (Ross, 231)
Ephesians 5:15-18;
15 See then that you
walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,
16 redeeming the time,
because the days are evil.
17 Therefore
do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is
dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,
This is the only time in Leviticus were Aaron is addressed
by God personally and alone.
THERE IS TOO MUCH AT STAKE!
All priests 1 Peter 2:9
But you are a chosen
generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you
may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His
marvelous light;
Closing Illustration:
Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world.
Therefore, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another. But if anyone is hungry, let him eat at home, lest you come together for judgment. And the rest I will set in order when I come.
2 Samuel 12:23
23 "Moreover, as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you; but I will teach you the good and the right way.
Samuel’s responsibilities are the same as ours today. We
need to know the danger, show God’s perspective, and follow God’s commands regarding
holines
