Leviticus 10 … Consider Him Who Will Be Treated as Holy

Originally posted: 05/07/2019

“By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy,
And before all the people I will be honored,” (10:3).

The LORD had directed Aaron and his sons in every meticulous detail and could not have been clearer; the sacrifices and offerings were to be conducted faithfully according to His command, not man’s preferred ideas.

But Aaron’s two sons, Nadab and Abihu “offered strange fire before the Lord.” In the Hebrew, this phrase “offered strange” is actually one verb.

offered strange: 2114. zuwr  (Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance)
1. to turn aside (especially for lodging)
2. hence to be a foreigner, strange, profane
3. specifically (active participle) to commit adultery

Whatever possessed Aaron’s sons to do approach God in their own way (a strange, profane and adulterous way), we may never know; but one thing is absolutely certain, He Will Be Treated as Holy

Consider Him Who Will Be Treated as Holy

Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took their respective firepans, and after putting fire in them, placed incense on it and offered strange fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. ² And fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. ³ Then Moses said to Aaron, “It is what the Lord spoke, saying,
‘By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy,
And before all the people I will be honored.’”
So Aaron, therefore, kept silent, (10:1-3).

• Those who desire to come near must treat Him as Holy.
  • “By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy,”
    

• He will be honored before all people.
  • “And before all the people I will be honored.”
    

• And there is nothing more to be said.
  • So Aaron, therefore, kept silent.

How are we to respond to Him Who Will Be Treated as Holy?

Sadly, we live in a time where the mention of God’s holiness and man’s sinful condition are almost taboo. But this does not eliminate His truth or His commands.

• We must not give heed to the lies of our culture’s preferences and thus deceive ourselves. We must not ignore the actuality of His Holiness as revealed in the Truth of His Word. Therefore we must Treat Him as Holy; we must approach Him in reverence and in accordance with His commands.
  • Worship the Lord in holy attire;
    Tremble before Him, all the earth, (Psalm 96:9)
  • “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. ²⁴ God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth,” (John 4:23-24).

• He Who is exalted above all else has invited us to know Him, receive Him by faith, and live to bring Him honor. There is coming a day, however, when the choice will no longer be available. But, all will bow before Him, honor Him, and Treat Him as Holy.
  •  For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, ¹⁰ so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, (Philippians 2:9-10).

• Ultimately, no one will be able to argue with God. The day is coming when all will acknowledge His rightful and Holy place. As His born again children, we have the privilege to acknowledge and confess His Holiness each and every day, as we obey Him in all He has commanded. By His grace and by faith, we profess Jesus Christ as LORD and give Him the Holy Honor due His Name; for He Will Be Treated as Holy.
  • and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father, (Philippians 2:11).

• Let us daily seek to live in the awareness of the magnitude of His Holiness.
  • “Who is like You among the gods, O Lord?
    Who is like You, majestic in holiness,
    Awesome in praises, working wonders?” (Exodus 15:11).
  • “There is no one holy like the Lord,
    Indeed, there is no one besides You,…” (1 Samuel 2:2).
  • Your way, O God, is holy;
    What god is great like our God? (Psalm 77:13).
  • “To whom then will you liken Me
    That I would be his equal?” says the Holy One, (Isaiah 40:25).

Let us daily seek Him in prayer, that He would empower us to depend on His Holy Spirit, and that by His grace through faith we would grow in our desire to glorify and honor Him in all that we do; so that in all that we are, He Will Be Treated as Holy.

To this end also we pray for you always, that our God will count you worthy of your calling, and fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith with power, ¹² so that the name of our Lord Jesus will be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ, (2 Thessalonians 2:11-12).

Let’s Grow Together!