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116_The holy and the common

Lev 10: 1-11 Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. 2 And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. 3 Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord has said: ‘Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.’” And Aaron held his peace.

4 And Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, the sons of Uzziel the uncle of Aaron, and said to them, “Come near; carry your brothers away from the front of the sanctuary and out of the camp.” 5 So they came near and carried them in their coats out of the camp, as Moses had said. 6 And Moses said to Aaron and to Eleazar and Ithamar his sons, “Do not let the hair of your heads hang loose, and do not tear your clothes, lest you die, and wrath come upon all the congregation; but let your brothers, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning that the Lord has kindled. 7 And do not go outside the entrance of the tent of meeting, lest you die, for the anointing oil of the Lord is upon you.” And they did according to the word of Moses.

8 And the Lord spoke to Aaron, saying, 9 “Drink no wine or strong drink, you or your sons with you, when you go into the tent of meeting, lest you die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations. 10 You are to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean, 11 and you are to teach the people of Israel all the statutes that the Lord has spoken to them by Moses.”

One of the most striking illustrations of presumption is the story of the Titanic. In 1912, the ship was heralded as “unsinkable,” a marvel of engineering that could defy nature itself. Despite multiple warnings about icebergs in the vicinity, the ship continued at full speed, deeming as if it were invincible. Many lives were lost because of human arrogance that thought human ingenuity could overcome the forces of nature.

Something of the same spirit actuated Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron. On the day they were consecrated as priests, they became overconfident and irreverent. The consequences were devastating.

Leviticus 8 details how Aaron and his sons were ordained, as first laid out in Exodus 29. Leviticus 9 describes the first offering made by Aaron and his sons, first for their own sins, then for the sins of the nation. This was the preparation for the revelation of the glory of God. As Moses said in Leviticus 9:6, “This is the thing which the LORD has commanded you to do, that the glory of the LORD may appear to you.” And so the fire of God came forth and consumed the sacrifices, signifying his presence among them and his acceptance of their work and their worship. The people fell on their faces in awe.

Yet, the very next incident reports sad presumption and its deadly consequences. Nadab and Abihu, Aaron’s eldest sons, took “strange” fire in their censers and went to offer incense on the golden altar before the Lord. In an instant, consuming fire came forth from the Lord and they died near the front of the tabernacle.

The Lord’s warning was given to Aaron through Moses: “Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.” (Leviticus 10:3). It was necessary for the Israelites to learn to distinguish between the holy and the common, and the burden of teaching and demonstrating this was on the priests. Later in the same chapter, God gave an explicit command: “You are to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between the unclean and the clean, and you are to teach the people of Israel all the statutes that the Lord has spoken to them by Moses.” (Leviticus 10:10-11). Ezekiel 44:23 continues to affirm this priestly responsibility: “They shall teach my people the difference between the holy and the common, and show them how to distinguish between the unclean and the clean.”

In the book of Leviticus, the term “unclean” is used nearly one hundred times. It emphasizes what is ritually unacceptable to God. This distinction applied not only to objects and food but also to animals and people. Long before the Mosaic Law, Noah was instructed to take seven pairs of clean animals but only two pairs of unclean animals into the ark. His thanksgiving sacrifices after the flood included only clean animals.

But throughout the Old Testament, we see a growth in understanding that outward cleanness is only a symbol and manifestation of the heart’s purity of devotion to the will of God. Psalm 19:9 says, “The fear of the Lord is clean,” and Psalm 51:10 pleads, “Create in me a clean heart, O God.” Jesus reinforced this understanding when He declared, “What comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person” (Matthew 15:18-20).

In 1 Corinthians 6:9-11, following a list of defiling sins, we have the glorious assurance: “And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.” God cleansed us and made us holy through the gift and the work of his Spirit.

The word “holy” in Hebrew is said to come from the stem meaning “separate.” The priests were called to be holiness to the Lord. Set apart to bear the iniquity of the people, their vocation ensured that the people would not die like Nadab and Abihu, by knowingly or unknowingly transgressing the holiness of God.

Holiness is rooted in the reverence of faith. Adam and Eve despised the warning of God through unbelief, and became unholy, treating the forbidden fruit as common. Esau despised the promise and blessing of God and became a castaway from the covenant because he treated it as a common thing.

Eleazar, the third son of Aaron, became the eldest son of Aaron after Nadab and Abihu died. He was impressed with reverence for God, and so was his son Phinehas. In Numbers 25, Phinehas took decisive action against a man committing flagrant sin even as the people were mourning because of God’s judgment of their unfaithfulness. God commended him: “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, has turned back my wrath from the people of Israel, in that he was jealous with my jealousy among them, so that I did not consume the people of Israel in my jealousy. Therefore say, ‘Behold, I give to him my covenant of peace, and it shall be to him and to his descendants after him the covenant of a perpetual priesthood.’” (Numbers 25:10-13).

Holiness is not an optional pursuit; it is a divine calling. God repeatedly states, “Be ye holy, as I am holy.” Peter echoes this in 1 Peter 2:9: “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.” As part of God’s holy nation we are set apart to do his will in all humility and reverence.

When we recognize this calling, we realize that we no longer have a right to our own decisions, our speech, and our attitudes. Holiness is about love, love for a God who first loved us when we were helpless under his anger and cursed by our own disobedience. It is love born of his immense love for us which drove him to do everything possible to redeem us and let us know his love.

When we treat what is holy as common, when we approach God with irreverence or casual disobedience, we risk his judgment. Nadab and Abihu were consumed for their unholy offering. But Phinehas was accepted because he feared God above all. Such reverence brings forth obedience and faithfulness, leading to God’s blessing and peace.

Let us embrace our calling. Let us distinguish between the holy and the common in our lives. Let us be a people who are holiness to the Lord, passionately devoted to love him. Let us give him the whole of our lives each moment, so that he may be known and loved and glorified by others as they see our deeds. God bless.