Do It God’s Way

Leviticus 8 and 9 describe in great detail the consecration of Aaron and his sons mentioned in Exodus 40:12-15.  When they finished making the sacrifices, Leviticus 9:24 tells us, “And there came a fire out from before the LORD, and consumed upon the altar the burnt offering and the fat: which when all the people saw, they shouted, and fell on their faces.” 

In Leviticus 1-6, God gave detailed instructions about how the different sacrifices were to be made.  Leviticus 6:12-13 made a point that the fire was never to be allowed to go out.  “And the fire upon the altar shall be burning in it; it shall not be put out: and the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order upon it; and he shall burn thereon the fat of the peace offerings.  The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out.”

Every morning and evening the priests were to burn incense on the altar of incense, according to Exodus 30:7-9.  “And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it.  And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations.  Ye shall offer no strange incense thereon, nor burnt sacrifice, nor meat offering; neither shall ye pour drink offering thereon.”  Nothing but the incense God had prescribed was to be offered on that altar.   In Leviticus 16:12, God describes how incense was to be offered on the day of atonement.   “And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the veil.”

Apparently, Nadab and Abihu found I a hassle to try to catch coals from the fire on the brazen altar that God had started, so they took coals from another fire to burn the incense, assuming that it wouldn’t make any difference.  Leviticus 10:1-2 describes what happened.  “And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded them not.  And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died before the LORD.”

Moses explained that they had died because they had failed to sanctify God, in Leviticus 10:3.  “Then Moses said unto Aaron, This is it that the LORD spake, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me, and before all the people I will be glorified. And Aaron held his peace.”  Although the fire they used appeared the same as what God had started, it was the product of man’s efforts and cheapened God’s glory.   It is the same reason Moses and Aaron were not allowed to enter Canaan after all their years of serving God.  In Numbers 20:10-11, Moses had disobeyed God striking the rock to get water rather than just speaking to it as God said, leaving the impression it was his power rather than God’s.  As a result, Numbers 20:12 tells us, “And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have given them.” 

By doing it their own way rather than following God’s instructions, they had taken his glory, and in both instances lost blessings they would have otherwise had, even though the initial results appeared the same on the surface.  Sadly, I suspect that many today are doing the same thing, doing things in their own power and to attain their own goals.  While the results appear the same superficially, the glory goes to the person rather than to God, and they will miss many of the rewards they could have had in heaven.  John 3:6 tells us, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”  Emotional, psychological, or other motivational techniques can never produce spiritual results.   God’s way is still the best even though others may seem easier or faster.