Feb 2: Leviticus 8:1 –
11:8
It
is hard for me to comprehend the seriousness of today’s passages. In our pretty
informal Christian churches we don’t see much pomp and circumstance as was seen
with these original priests. But we don’t live in the world in which they
lived.
The
Israelites had been camping in the desert for at least three months at this
time and had very little religious leadership beyond Moses, who was often gone.
Before this time God had not established much in the way of specific guidance
to individuals who lived in a culture that worshipped more than 2000 gods, and
each had established rituals for worship! (https://www.worldhistory.org/article/885/egyptian-gods---the-complete-list/) Now the one true God was
establishing HIS protocols for holiness to establish a clear delineation
between truth and current culture.
What
a ritual it was to establish priesthood! It took a full eight days with many
sacrifices, lots of splattered blood, and very clear instructions. Aaron and
his four sons were required to sit at the entrance to the tabernacle for seven
full days as they participated. Did you notice that this time Moses did most of
the sacrificing? And I know this is a silly thought, but every time I read this
story I have to wonder what they did when they had to go to the bathroom!
Then,
in their enthusiasm to worship, Nadab and Abihu really mess up. We don’t know
if they were following their own ideas, being lazy and not doing all they were
told, or something else, but they broke the serious rule not offer incense on
the altar. This was God’s opportunity to prove that he meant what he said –
these rules were serious and holiness was expected of the priests. This may
seem excessively harsh to us, but it’s important to remember that God knows our
hearts and intentions and regardless of our own ideas he is in charge.
Do
you think we have lost a bit of reverence for God in our informality?
TOMORROW’S TEXT: Leviticus 11:9 – 13:39
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