I shared in the last devotional about the privilege of Priesthood that Abihu and his brother enjoyed. In a similar way, the Bible calls us royal priesthood.
Each privilege has an associated responsibility with it. Abihu and his brother were not exempt from this, neither are we exempt from the high price of our calling!
Nadab and Abihu had died before the Lord when they offered profane fire before the Lord in the Wilderness of Sinai; and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar ministered as priests in the presence of Aaron their father. Numbers 3:4
Abihu had done nothing to deserve the priesthood, but he and his brother enjoyed the blessing of being Aaron’s sons. Abihu and Nadab saw God, His greatness, and His magnificence (see Exodus 24:9-13). However, they chose to disobey Him. They took their positions for granted and became sloppy and casual. They may have assumed since their priestly position came from the fact that they were sons of Aaron that their privilege was here to remain!
My children have the privilege of having a car and driving it. They could not afford to purchase their car neither can they afford all the maintenance associated with having a car. Our main requirement is that they need to drive it responsibly. Getting causal and sloppy can jeopardize the safety of the passengers in addition to putting other people in harm’s way. They can keep the privilege of driving the car as long as they take the responsibility of driving seriously.
God gives us privileges because we belong to Him, but we are required to follow His instructions in order to maintain our privileges. We can’t afford to take a privilege for granted!
Abihu and Nadab had the same privilege that Joshua enjoyed, but these two took their position for granted & disobeyed God. Not only did they lose their lives, but they also lost the opportunity to leave a natural and a spiritual legacy.
God has given us the privilege of being His royal priesthood. That’s something that can’t be done on a part-time basis, but it is a 24/7 calling. This calling should impact every aspect of our lives. Those of us who are married, we need to consider our spouses a gift from the Lord and work towards maintaining our marriages strong and united. We also can’t take our jobs for granted. We are called to do our best as unto the Lord regardless of who is watching. Ultimately it is the Lord who gave us that job, and we represent Him to a lost world by serving our boss! In ministering to others, we can’t afford to forget that God has entrusted His people to us. We are to love them and give our best as unto the Lord.
Let’s consider some of the privileges the Lord has blessed us with and remind ourselves of His requirements for the privilege!