Whoever Insults His Brother

Lift up your heads, O gates!  And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in. – Psalm 24:7

The Ark of the Covenant had been carried into battle by Hophni and Phinehas, the apostate sons of the high priest, Eli.  They had been killed and the Ark captured by the Philistines, who were, in turn, so afflicted with plagues due to its presence that they sent it back on a cart drawn by bawling milk cows (1 Samuel 4-7).  Some of the Israelites who were present to receive the Ark as it returned dropped dead when they attempted to examine it a little too closely. 

Thus we learn that the presence of the Lord, as represented by the Ark, will not be of benefit to a person who is, toward God, dismissive, disrespectful or antagonistic.  In fact, such a person, if it were possible, would be better off getting and staying as far from God as he could get.  It is not possible, not even in hell, to avoid God, as too many find out too late. 

So the Ark was left out in somebody’s field for decades.  When David became king of Israel, it was in his heart to bring the Ark to Jerusalem which, by that time, he had established as his royal city (2 Samuel 6).  Not without difficulty was it done for, initially, he attempted to carry it up on a cart, resulting in the death of a man named Uzzah who touched the Ark trying to steady it.  The next effort, however, followed the instructions given to Moses:  that the Ark should be borne on the shoulders of the priests.  It was successful.  David danced for joy before the Ark all the way up to the Tabernacle of David situated somewhere on the heights in the city. 

Our verse above reflects the joy that David felt, written by him or as if by him as he brought that symbol of God’s presence into ancient Jerusalem.  In Solomon’s time, the singers might have sung this psalm as the Ark solemnly entered its resting place in that newly finished and beautiful temple. 

The Ark itself was a glorious thing to behold, covered in gold, with golden cherubim on the top forming the mercy seat.  It’s funny, though, the gold was just a covering.  The Ark was made out of wood.  As impressive and potent as this container was, it was never more than a means of conveying to us the truth about ourselves.    

God does not dwell in temples.  His presence is not confined to ornate, golden boxes.  We have this treasure, Paul says, in earthen vessels – jars of clay (2 Corinthians 4:7).  By His Spirit, the Lord makes His home in the hearts of men.  Though unimaginable power is His, He will not force His way into our lives.  He will stand at the door of a person’s heart and knock (Revelation 3:20).  He waits.  All anyone has to do is lift the bar on the gate, the latch on the door. 

If the presence of God upon the inanimate, symbolic Ark was awe-inspiring, how much more deserving of respect and even reverence is His presence in the hearts of living men and women?  Be wise; be careful.        

Playing With Fire

Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu each took his own firepan, put fire in it, placed incense on it, and presented unauthorized fire before the LORD, which He had not commanded them to do. Then flames leaped from the LORD’s presence and burned them to death before the LORD. – Leviticus 10:1-2

This is one of those Old Testament stories many of us find disturbing and perhaps a little bizarre. What does “unauthorized fire” involve? Some translations use profane instead of unauthorized. The firepan held coals or embers. They were supposed to take coals from off the altar of burnt offering, then sprinkle incense over them to create an aromatic smoke, representing prayer offered to turn away the Lord’s judgment upon sin. Instead, the priests took coals, perhaps from a cooking fire or some other source on which to offer the incense. No big deal, right? Apparently it was a very big deal. Additionally, I have been told, the phrase “which He had not commanded them to do” is somewhat idiomatic and the meaning is closer to “which He had strictly forbidden them to do”.

If their punishment seems a little harsh, it should be kept in mind that these were the priests who entered into the sanctuary before the Lord – a position of both high privilege and high responsibility, and not something to be taken lightly. Reading further in Leviticus 10 we find a suggestion that Nadab and Abihu may have been drunk and acted recklessly, perhaps even attempting to enter the Holy of Holies counter to the Lord’s command. In any case, God required that His symbols not be treated lightly, without respect and understanding.

Like the wayward priests, many of us give little thought to the foundation of prayer. Under the prior covenants, the basis of prayer was the altar, the place of sacrifice where man acknowledged that the flesh was dead and nothing more than fuel for the fire. The old nature is symbolically consumed in the fire of the Spirit, and prayers rise as smoke from that fire. In fact I suspect that if I am indwelt by the Spirit of God, I can no more refrain from praying than fire can fail to produce smoke. The more of my old life I am feeding to the flames, the more intense will be my prayers.

The basis of prayer today is not a temple altar on which dead animals are offered, but the Cross. Christ’s offering of Himself produces, we might say, the coals that burn in our hearts, on which our prayers are offered before the Lord.

As Nadab and Abihu learned, prayers offered apart from the life-giving Spirit are dead and worthless. Yet there is no need to offer “strange fire” to God. When Jesus instructed us on prayer, He cautioned: don’t be like the hypocrites, praying to be seen or to impress others. Instead we should pray in private, recognizing the presence of our Father and relying on Him alone. We are not to babble like the idolaters. We’re not flattering some weak, fickle human monarch. Our heavenly Father cares for us. He permeates our lives by His Spirit. He is aware of our needs and waits only for us to express our dependence upon Him and our willingness to be shaped by and in His will.

When Elijah challenged the prophets of Baal, he said, “The god who answers by fire, let Him be God.” Yes, it is a dangerous proposition. It’s playing with fire.