Hebrews 5:8
Although he was a son, he learned obedience through
what he suffered.
There is an expression in
English: “The devil is in the details.” It is funny that the enemy is given
this attribute. Hasatan השטן, the Adversary doesn’t know anything. All does
is copy God. He only tries to be a counterfeit in order to deceive us. God is
the one really into details as is revealed in this week’s reading sections. In
one place we have Aaron ’s sons, Nadab
and Abihu, who perish for offering unauthorized incense, and in the other
one Uzzah who dies for touching the Holy Ark while not being authorized,
probably because of not being in a ritually clean state. (Lev. 10:1-2; 2 Sam.
6:6-7). These two stories are very similar and that is why they are read
together. Their similarity lies in the lesson that they teach.
Both stories happen at a time
of spiritual ecstasy and jubilation. In the incident with Nadab and Abihu, it
was the eighth day of the dedication. Fire had just come from heaven and the
people saw the glory of Adonai. Can you imagine the jubilation and the
spiritual ecstasy? We can easily picture the joy, the shouts, the dancing, the
clapping of the hands (Lev. 9:23-24). It was the same when David was bringing the Ark
into Jerusalem .
We are told of musicians, of dancing, of joy, and merry-ing (2 Sam. 6:5). In
both cases tragedy strikes for what could be considered in our eyes, a breach
in protocol.
These two events teach us a
very important lesson, a lesson often forgotten and ignored by people of faith
today. They teach us that religion without the instruction and the parameters
of Torah is unacceptable to Hashem. Hashem teaches us how to come to him, how
to worship him, and how to honor him. He also told us how not to (Leviticus).
Oh, but that goes against our natural instinct and desire for spontaneity. Do you
mean that we won’t to be able to follow the leadings of our hearts? We
will have to only act in obedience to commands? "Oh, but that wouldn't be
natural!" We say. "Where is the spontaneity?" We ask. You mean
that it's not just the heart and the intent that counts? Form and format is
also important in the eyes of the Almyghty. Really though, when we ask these
questions we doubt his ways. It is nothing more than pride acting out in the
form of an inability to submit to instructions and wanting things our own way.
We understand that even in
this world we cannot approach a high dignitary such as a King or a President
without going through protocol hoops. If one were to just barge in the Oval
Office in the White House without permission and unannounced he would surely be
arrested. If he resisted he might even get shot at. The difference is that in
the case of an earthly dignitary, they try to protect the dignitary; in the
case of Hashem, the protection is for us.
We simply cannot approach God
on our terms and it is his prerogative. Why can't we just obey? But no; people always
want to find new ways to approach Hashem. They even borrow ways from the pagans
in manifestations that are not from him. The simplicity in which he told us to
do things is not enough; we must tweak it and give it our own imprint. It is pride,
and the pride of man leads to destruction.
May we learn to be in the
details as he is in the details. Obedience is not a small thing: in obeying God
we emulate the Master. Even he had to learn obedience through the things which
he suffered (Heb. 5:8).
For P. Gabriel Lumbroso's devotional UNDER THE FIG TREE in Kindle edition click here.
