Suddenly, in the excitement of the moment, Aaron's sons Nadab and Abihu took censers and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord. But God did not take it lightly and struck them down on the spot. Moses spoke the truth: "Among those who approach me I will be proved holy; in the sight of all the people I will be honored." (3) God's judgment seemed to be too harsh. But God who is holy must be honored by his servants. In their sinful pride, Nadab and Abihu worshiped God in their own way, adding to the law, and dishonored God before the people. To God, how we approach him and live before him is very serious. We very easily forfeit the grace that would be ours by our sinful pride.

Moses commanded their cousins to take their dead bodies outside the camp. Moses also warned Aaron and his sons not to mourn for the anointing oil was on them and they were in the tent of meeting. They must respect and uphold God's judgment in spite of their personal feelings. Moses gave instructions for the sacrifices to be eaten, yet Aaron's remaining sons Eleazar and Ithamar refused to eat because of grief. They also disobeyed God in their omission of the law. Yet Aaron answered wisely on their behalf in the spirit of the law. There must be truth and grace.


Application: Father, help us by Jesus' grace to honor and obey you with devotion, and also catch the spirit of the law, which is mercy.
One Word: To obey is better than to sacrifice