2018 06 10 pm Strange Fire Levi 9:1-10:3

June 10, 2018

Congregation of the Lord Jesus Christ,

At a guess, I suspect that some of you will be thinking, Wow!  Isn’t this a bit OTT (over the top!)  All they did was offer unauthorized fire?!  Why the instant death?  What’s the big deal?

 

Well, to be able to answer that question we have to do a bit of work together.  One of the things we saw this morning as we considered Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman is that true worship is obedient to the Bible.  And this is a Second Commandment principle.  The Second Commandment, as we just read, forbids us from making any image of God, worshipping Him through an image, or “worshipping Him in any other way than He has commanded in His word.”  And we are going to see that this is critical to understanding this episode in Leviticus.  And once we establish that, we will be ready to apply these lessons to our situation today.  So let us consider the Second Commandment lessons from the strange fire Episode.

 

  1. So let’s first consider the strange fire episode:
    1. We come across this episode in the Book of Leviticus.
      1. And the name Leviticus has to do with the Levites. Who were the Levites, boys and girls?  They were one of the twelve tribes of Israel; they were the tribe that God set aside to be the priests.  So this book is called Leviticus because the book is about the Levitical priesthood and the things that the priests were to teach God’s people.
      2. Now, think about what we just read about the priests and the other rules for the priests and the people in this Book; what are some of the common words and ideas that are repeated? Holy, spotless, pure, clean, separate…  And they teach us that?  God is holy/perfect/good/true/separated from sin.  And if we want to come near to God, we must be holy.  So are we holy, in and of ourselves?  No we are not.  Most importantly then, Leviticus teaches us to be thankful for the Lord Jesus Christ!  That is why we read from Hebrews;  Hebrews really is Leviticus explained!  We learn there that Jesus is THE great High Priest.  Jesus is The perfect Law-keeper.  Jesus is THE holy, pure, spotless one.  And it is through Jesus that may come into the presence of God.
      3. And congregation, this is vital to everything else we will consider. Leviticus is first and foremost about Jesus Christ.  Before we consider what this episode says about worship, we must first understand what this event reveals about the Lord Jesus.

 

  1. So let’s look next at the immediate context that leads up to ch. 10.
    1. The worship centre for Israel, the tabernacle, has been built and the glory of the Lord has come down and filled the Holy of Holies.
    2. So now the Priests are to be prepared for their work in the Tabernacle. Their job is to stand between God and sinful man; to receive and present the offerings and sacrifices of the people.  The problem is though that the priests themselves are sinful.  So beginning back in chapter 8, we read about the elaborate ritual to ready the priests for their work.  There was a careful and strict washing procedure that must be followed.  Then they had to dress in a very specific way and with a magnificent uniform.  Then they were anointed with oil.  They then had to stay at the entrance to the Tent for seven days and do what the Lord had commanded so that they would not die.  And then on the eighth day there was a whole range of offerings and sacrifices to atone for their sins and for the sins of the people.
      1. And just by way of a secondary point, what we read here says something to how we prepare for and even how we dress for worship. This doesn’t mean we have to wear suit and tie or an elaborate dress.  But the God who was worth careful preparation and the best His people had to offer in the OT is the same God today.  If we are part of or are attending a wedding, or if we have some official and important meeting with an official and important meeting, none of us would grab what ever is lying on the floor and just rock up.  We would prepare for the occasion and dress up for it.  Well, nothing is more special than worship and no one is more important than God.
    3. But back to the context. As you read through this whole section, again and again, the refrain is Do “as the Lord commanded.”  God was very clear about this in His law.  4:2 says, “Do not add to what I command you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the LORD your God that I give you.”  And how does the Second Commandment end?  God is a God who will “show His love to a thousand generations of those who (what?) love [Him] and keep His commandments.”  We were created to obey God.  Jesus said, “If you love me, you will obey my commands.”  God expects our obedience and He delights in our obedience.
    4. Well, after all this ceremony is done, we read about Aaron’s blessing and then the glory of the Lord that appeared before the people and then the fire of the Lord that came out of the Tabernacle and consumed the offerings And then we read, “When all the people saw it, they shouted for joy and fell facedown.”  What a marvelous occasion this must have been.  You can picture the awe and reverence and amazement and wonder on the faces of all the people!  Wow!

 

  1. And then? Well, the next thing we read is that the same fire came out and consumed Nadab and Abihu, Aaron’s sons.  So two dead bodies are lying on the ground.  And you just couldn’t get two more contrasting scenes, could you!  We are supposed to be shocked!
    1. So why this severe judgment? Well, the sin of Nadab and Abihu is described in v1; “they offered unauthorized (or strange or foreign or unlawful or completely different) fire.”  All of these are the English words that explain the Hebrew word used here.
      1. Now, we don’t know exactly what it is that N&A did wrong. But whether it was because it was not their job or their turn to offer incense, or that they did it at the wrong time, or that they used the wrong incense or the wrong fire, they disobeyed the Lord’s command about who and how to worship Him with incense.
      2. And this is made plain as we see what happened next; for Moses says to Aaron, “This is what the LORD spoke of when He said: “Among those who approach me I will show myself holy; in the sight of all the people I will be honoured.”” N&A were priests of the Lord.  It was their responsibility to continually remember that the Lord will never allow His holiness to be taken lightly.  Their task as to obey the Lord.   But they thought that they could decide what would please God.  And in so doing, they paid the ultimate price.
      3. Can you remember another OT person who made this same mistake? King Saul.  Maybe you boys and girls remember that Samuel had told Saul to kill all the Amalekites and their animals because of the sin of the Amalekite people.  But when Samuel arrived he found that some of the animals had been kept alive.  And when he asked Saul why this was, Saul said he had decided to offer them to the Lord.  And that sounds so wonderful and noble.  But what was Samuel’s response?  “To obey is better than sacrifice.”  And because of his sin, Saul lost the kingdom.
      4. When it comes to worship, God does not want us to invent; He wants us to obey!

 

  1. Well, the last three words of v3 are deafening: “Aaron remained silent.” I am sure you can imagine how completely crushed he was as a father at that moment.  There lie the dead bodies of his two sons, killed by the Lord.
    1. But congregation, our major response should not be sympathy for Aaron but awe and reverence for the holiness of God.
    2. And God Himself makes that clear as He gives the burial instructions. Aaron will not bury them; other relatives will.  And they are to be buried quickly.  And Aaron is not allowed to do the normal things that grieving people do, lest he die!     Human customs, emotions, sympathies, all of this must come a distant, second place to the holiness of God and Aaron’s role as a priest.
    3. Can you imagine then the thoughts of Aaron and the other priests and the people? Who can serve as a priest with a God like this?
    4. Do you see where we are being driven? The answer is: No normal human being.  Sinful humans will always fall short of God’s standard.  At the very least, they will have to offer sacrifices for their own sins, again and again and again.  So the message here is that what we need a perfect Priest and a perfect sacrifice.  And that is why we read Hebrews 7 earlier.  “[Jesus] is able to save completely those who come to God through Him … Such a high priest meets our need– one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens.  Unlike the other high priests, He does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for His own sins, and then for the sins of the people.  He sacrificed for their sins once for all when He offered Himself.”
  2. So, there we have the strange fire episode. What are the Second Commandment lessons?
    1. And let’s get something straight right at the get go. Do not make the mistake of thinking of this episode as an OT episode that is not relevant for us as NT believers.  Let me read you the words of 1 Peter 1:15, which, just to be clear, is in the NT J “Just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do.”  That is the message of Leviticus, repeated in the NT.  Hebrews 12:28-29 makes a similar and striking point.  There we are told that we may not be standing at the foot of Mt. Sinai when there was darkness and gloom and it was burning with fire, but we are in the presence of the same God, who is in heaven, surrounded by worshipping angels, and who is the judge of all men, and in the presence of Jesus, the Mediator.  “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.””  There too is a precise echo of this episode in Leviticus.  So holiness and worship are still very important.

 

  1. But a Second Commandment lesson from this episode is that we must avoid human-centred worship.
    1. This was N&A’s error. They thought that they could decide what God would like.  But this same mistake is made in many churches today that try and design worship around humans.  So they think about unbelievers and try whatever they might like, to get them in.  Or tastes and styles and elements of worship are introduced that appeal to our preferences as believers.
    2. We don’t introduce puppet show because kids like them. We don’t sing a particular song because we like old songs or new songs.  Worship is not about us being entertained.  It is not about us being inspired.  Worship is to be God-focused, Christ-centred, and obedient to and full of the Bible.  That is what God commands and that is worship that will best bless us.
    3. And that is why, as we said this morning, worship should only include the reading and preaching of the Bible, song, prayer, the sacraments, and offerings. We should not add things to these or think we can leave these things out.  For to do so would be like offering unauthorized fire.

 

  1. A closely related Second Commandment lesson is that we must also avoid self-centred worship.
    1. I trust we all have a pretty clear sense now that we are the main attraction here today; God is! God does not exist to make you and me happy and successful; you and I exist to worship Him.
    2. So this means that if you are here in order to get something rather than to give something (namely, praise, thanksgiving, fellowship, and service), or are here as a member of an audience who will passively experience ‘the show’ or pick out the parts of the service/sermon that speak to you, then you are setup for disappointment and you will be of little use to the world that you head out to on Monday morning. As one commentator puts it, “If God must provide the fish and loaves to hold the attention of His demanding consumers, it is inevitable that those who accept such an orientation will think of themselves first – at home, on the job, and in the neighbourhood.”
    3. So who will be most blessed by worship and most useful in their homes and jobs and neighbourhoods? Those who come here to worship God; who actively participate in every element of the service as a member of Christ’s congregation; who come, praying, “Not to us, O Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory,” and “help me to love you with heart, soul, mind, and strength, and my neighbour as myself,” and “fill my vision with Christ that I may know again that my sins are forgiven and that I may become more like Him in every way.”

 

  1. So, by way of conclusion, let’s think about Aaron as he stood there that day:
    1. He was not entertained. He was not inspired.  He didn’t go home with seven steps for a successful marriage.
    2. What he experienced, powerfully, was the utter holiness of God. And what this revealed to Aaron was that he was unholy.  Very vividly, Aaron saw that he was a sinner who deserved to be consumed by the fire of God.
    3. And he learned that God is to be worshipped as He commands. But try as he might, he could not keep this commandment, perfectly.
    4. So you and I stand with Aaron, don’t we. We too are unholy sinners.  We too cannot offer God the worship that He commands and deserves.
    5. Ultimately then, Aaron’s eyes and our eyes are pointed to Christ. He is holy.  He is the perfect worshiper.  He is the high priest we need.  He is the perfect sacrifice for sins.
    6. So “Therefore, (looking to Jesus) … let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.””