Excerpt from 52 Weeks of Pursuit, Vol. 1
[In] Leviticus 10, we learn something tremendously significant
about our holy, loving, gracious, merciful, tenderhearted, compassionate, forbearing and forgiving God—He takes His Word very seriously!
Though all of the qualities I just listed are wonderfully true of our God, when our sincere hearts, good intentions and pure motives don’t align themselves to God’s will and purposes as they are revealed in His Word—watch out! Just ask Nadab and Abihu! These men (Aaron’s sons) allowed themselves to be so caught up in the emotional excitement of experiencing God’s presence at the end of chapter 9 (vs. 23–24), they invented, as it were, their own self-styled way to worship God in chapter 10, verse 1.
Now, without understanding the God of the Bible, someone might think, “Well, isn’t that admirable! These two men didn’t want the expression of their worship to God to be limited by only what they learned in a Book. They wanted to be free to express themselves from their hearts and minds in a way that reflected their own ideas and personality!” And as “cool” and “organic” as that might sound to our modern way of thinking—God was not impressed! Not in the slightest! Out of the sincerity and goodness of their heart, Nadab and Abihu did what they thought was right in their own eyes by offering fire of their own creativity and invention to the Lord. God immediately let Nadab and Abihu, the children of Israel, and us know exactly how He felt about it by answering with fire out of heaven that “zap-fried” them right on the spot! Leviticus 10:2 says, “And there went out fire from the Lord, and devoured them, and they died before the Lord.” And again, don’t miss why God responded the way He did! Verse 1 says, “And Nadab and Abihu ... offered strange fire before the Lord, which he commanded them not”!
“ In response to the Word of God, true worship arises from deep within our innermost being (our spirits) and runs straight through our hearts, our minds, our emotions, and ultimately out of our mouths in honor, praise, and worship of God!”
The fire of God’s judgment devoured them because they refused to worship God in accordance with His Word! This is such an important lesson for us! Jesus reiterated this principle in John 4:23 when He said, “But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.”
Yes, God is certainly seeking worship—but not just any kind of worship! He is only interested in “true worship” that arises out of the spirit of a “true worshipper.” And biblically, worship will always be not only in spirit, but will also always be in truth! That is—it will always be generated and governed by the truth of His Word. In response to the Word of God, true worship arises from deep within our innermost being (our spirits) and runs straight through our hearts, our minds, our emotions, and ultimately out of our mouths in honor, praise, and worship of God!
The practical lesson we must learn from Nadab and Abihu is that, with any activity we are witnessing or being influenced to participate in, we must train our brain to constantly be asking: What is the biblical precedence for this? Does the Bible give an example of this? Does the Bible specifically command me to do this? And if there is a biblical example and/or command, does it actually apply to me, as one who is living in the dispensation of the church age?
In the 21st century, though God may not be “zap-frying” people who violate His truth in worship, we must make certain we understand that “strange fire” is being offered to the Lord at literally every turn in “Christianity” and in almost every “Christian” denomination.
Nadab and Abihu are a graphic illustration of the principle God laid out in Proverbs 14:12: “There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Oh, my brothers and sisters, we must learn the truth of the Word of God—and respond and worship accordingly—and not lean upon our own understanding or our own natural instincts or inclinations!