God Demonstrating His Holiness
God struck dead the two sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, because they carried out their duties in the Tabernacle in the wrong way. They had just been ordained as priests, and God had just completed His instructions about how to carry out their functions as priests. I am sure it was a terrific shock to Aaron and to all who were present that day. Before they could even express their shock and dismay, Moses stepped in to explain how this was totally understandable and how it was according to what God had said, (Leviticus 10:3) This message should be sobering for all of us, as believers.
God is very serious about His holiness. He does not want anyone to doubt that He is totally holy. Therefore, He cannot allow people to disregard His instructions or give the impression that He is soft on sin. This is especially true when it comes to holy things that pertain to His worship. That is why He told Moses, "I will demonstrate My holiness to those who are near me." God does not spare believers when we fail to uphold His holiness. In fact, He may be more strict on us than on unbelievers, We see this truth in the death of Uzzah in II Samuel 6:8 when he innocently put out his hand to steady the ark from falling off of the cart. Then, we see it in Acts 5 with Ananias and Saphira, who lied to the Holy Spirit and to other believers. Also, the believers in Corinth who took the Lord's Supper in vain were killed by God. (I Corinthians 11:30) This shows that we must follow God completely, if we do not want to suffer the appropriate punishment for our sins.
Also, God told Moses, "I will reveal My glory before all the people." God's glory is His awesome presence. When God shows His power, we see His glory. He wants everyone to see His glory. Most of the time, God showed the people His glory when they did the right things, but He can and will do it when we sin, too. All Christians should want to live in such as way that our actions and worship bring God near to display His glory. We should never want to do anything that would cause God not to be respected in the eyes of the people around us.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Leviticus 12-15.
God is very serious about His holiness. He does not want anyone to doubt that He is totally holy. Therefore, He cannot allow people to disregard His instructions or give the impression that He is soft on sin. This is especially true when it comes to holy things that pertain to His worship. That is why He told Moses, "I will demonstrate My holiness to those who are near me." God does not spare believers when we fail to uphold His holiness. In fact, He may be more strict on us than on unbelievers, We see this truth in the death of Uzzah in II Samuel 6:8 when he innocently put out his hand to steady the ark from falling off of the cart. Then, we see it in Acts 5 with Ananias and Saphira, who lied to the Holy Spirit and to other believers. Also, the believers in Corinth who took the Lord's Supper in vain were killed by God. (I Corinthians 11:30) This shows that we must follow God completely, if we do not want to suffer the appropriate punishment for our sins.
Also, God told Moses, "I will reveal My glory before all the people." God's glory is His awesome presence. When God shows His power, we see His glory. He wants everyone to see His glory. Most of the time, God showed the people His glory when they did the right things, but He can and will do it when we sin, too. All Christians should want to live in such as way that our actions and worship bring God near to display His glory. We should never want to do anything that would cause God not to be respected in the eyes of the people around us.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Leviticus 12-15.