5 May 2020
Text: Lev 10:1-20
In the name of +
Jesus. Amen.
Christ is
risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
Nadab
and Abihu were sons of Aaron. The
ministered in the tabernacle before the Lord. And for those who think worship is an “anything
goes” kind of thing, the harsh lesson of Nadab and Abihu should give pause. God established a particular way of burning
incense before the Lord. Nadab and Abihu
chose to do things their own way, and “offered unauthorized fire before the Lord,
which He had not commanded them.” As a
result, they lost their lives. The Old Testament
priesthood was given specific instructions regarding worship. The Lord’s preferences – not their own, nor
the preferences of the people – determined how God would be worshiped in His
holy sanctuary.
Of
course, today there is no tabernacle or temple, no Aaronic priesthood, no blood
sacrifices, no orders concerning incense, and no one-size-fits-all rules for
rubrics in Christian worship. And yet, one
thing did not change between the Old and New Covenants: authority.
Jesus
did not ordain every Christian to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing…
and teaching.” He called those
particular disciples whom he “sent” (Greek: “apostello”) into the preaching
vocation. And just as Aaron and the Old Testament
priests who followed him were ordained by the laying on of hands, we see the
same pattern in the New Testament, as Paul speaks of a similar laying on of
hands upon Timothy and Titus, as they were ordained into the pastoral ministry,
given authority, and sent.
Jesus
said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me” before He
delegated His authority to baptize and preach to the sent ones (apostles). Jesus said, “As the Father has sent Me, I am
sending you,” and He breathed on these men whom He sent, saying, “Receive the Holy
Spirit. If you forgive the sins of
anyone, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from anyone, it is
withheld.”
In
this pandemic, we are hearing stories of lay people taking bread and wine and
saying the words of institution over them, thinking that they are celebrating
the Lord’s Supper. This is the spirit of
Nadab and Abihu. For as St. Paul says
that belief comes by hearing, and hearing comes from “someone preaching,” he then
asks, “And how are they to preach unless they are sent?” Jesus does not send everyone into the
ministry of Word and Sacrament, just as God did not authorize Nadab and Abihu
to conduct worship apart from His institution.
Authority
is important. Parents have authority
over only their own children. Legislators
have authority only over their own jurisdictions. Police only have the authority granted to
them by the law. And the Lord works
through various callings and vocations in both church and society. Pastors are men under authority. And so are lay people. We are all servants of our Lord Jesus Christ
in our own various callings.
Unless
we are called and sent into the healing vocation, we must not practice
medicine. By the Lord’s calling, we are
authorized to “be fruitful and multiply” only with our spouse. If we have the calling and the authority to
preach and administer sacraments, if we have been sent to do so, we must do so.
And if not, we must not. Let us thank God for sending people into
various vocations through which He works to give us our daily bread and sustain
us even to everlasting life! Amen.
Christ is
risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
In the name of the Father
and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
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