A “through the bible” devotion from Leviticus 10.
I paid for my room and board at my college fraternity house by washing lunch and supper dishes each weekday. It wasn’t an exciting job, but some of the brothers and I found ways to make it fun.
One fun game involved stabbing at an empty milk jug with a large chef’s knife. I know what you’re thinking. No, it never crossed our minds that this was a stupid thing to do. When my friend Bob attacked a a jug, the tip of the knife caught on the edge of the metal counter, so that his hand slid up the blade, slicing all four fingers on his hand. After a bloody trip to the emergency room later, we were all a little wiser. It’s all fun until someone gets hurt, right?
“Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took their respective firepans, and after putting fire in them, placed incense on the fire and offered strange fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. And fire came out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord” (Leviticus 10:1-2).
Ordination of the priests lasted a week (Leviticus 8:33). The job was important. But if you keep reading chapter 10, God reminds Aaron, that you didn’t drink when you were performing priestly duties. Is that what happened with Nadab and Abihu? Was their blood alcohol over the limit? Were they under the influence?
Theirs was a tough lesson to learn. The same fire that had consumed the burnt offerings (9:29) now incinerated two of Aaron’s sons. The Lord gave specific instructions for the burning of incense in the tabernacle. Here’s the first addendum: show up sober.
A friend of mine in new home construction told me that many of his crew was high or buzzed when they showed up for work each morning. Yep, those were the guys working up on the roof or on the ground brandishing nail guns and circular saws.
By the grace of God, I never had any pastoral work-related injuries. Although, I did climb a few ladders to work on a few roofs.
Waite for it... 