Leviticus 8:1-9 – God's grace makes us fit for His service.

Leviticus 8:1 to 10:20 takes us into the consecration of the Aaronic priesthood. As we reflect on these Scriptures, we will be negligent if we fail to mention the incredible grace of God. Following the account of the instruction on the consecration of the Aaronic priest from Exodus 29, it reminds us that Aaron reneged on his duty while God was giving Moses the instruction on his ordination. He was participating in the building of the golden calf. The instruction in Exodus was interrupted when Moses was sent down to deal with the sin of Aaron and the people of God. Hence, we see the grace of God using Aaron despite his failure, this tells us how gracious God is. This wonderful grace of God should make us all the more want to live right for God. We must never take the grace of God for granted and make light of it.  

The consecration of the priest and the Tabernacle had to take place in order that the service to God could be conducted. God had already placed a call on Aaron and his family for the priesthood. So He instructed Moses to “...take Aaron and his sons with him, and the garments and the anointing oil and the bull of the sin offering, and the two rams and the basket of unleavened bread, and assemble all the congregation at the doorway of the tent of meeting.” In verse 6, we see the cleansing of the candidates for the ordination. Before Aaron and his sons could be used, they had to be washed and cleansed. Moses was the mediator and was to officiate the ceremony. Remember we have discovered that the emphasis of the book of Leviticus is on the Holiness of God. Thus, cleansing must play a prominent part for one coming before the Holy God, let alone one who wants to serve Him. This is the attitude you and I need to adopt in life, especially when we seek to come before Him. Outward washing signifies the inner purification of one’s life. Verses 7-9  deal with the investiture of the priestly garment. There was the tunic of the undergarment held in place by a sash. He would then wear a robe before putting on the ephod. For more details see Exodus 28:31-35. A breastplate was then placed over him and on it was placed the Urim and Thummin. Then the turban with the golden plate would be worn over his head. On the golden plate were inscribed these words - Holy to the Lord. We are told that Moses did everything as he was commanded. This tells us that on top of everything, obedience is the call of the day.  

Two things stand out for us. Firstly, we see the reality that God uses flawed man, and He still does so today. We can identify many other Bible characters whom God did not bypass but choose to use after they allowed Him to deal with their flaws. Indeed, God will deal with our flaws and when we repent and change, He will not bypass us for His work.  Secondly, we have a God who is rich in mercy and grace. Despite the horrible sin that Aaron had committed, God did not cast him aside but still ordained him to be the priest. That is grace. And grace is still how God chooses to deal with us as well. In Christ, He looked beyond our faults and saw our needs. We are blessed indeed!