Articles
Person Of The Week: Aaron
God has a perfect knowledge of each of us -- our strengths, weaknesses and where we might best serve His plans. Aaron, the older brother of Moses, did not have the leadership qualities of his younger brother. But Moses didn’t have the communication skills of his older brother. So when Moses balked at the rescue plan for Israel, God gave him Aaron as his spokesman.
While Moses became the lawgiver, Aaron became the first high priest. This role was a great privilege for him and his descendants, but it brought hardship, too. Two of his sons were stricken dead by God for violating His laws of priestly service. He and his other two sons were forbidden to publicly mourn this act of divine punishment (Lev. 10:1-7).
Aaron’s weakness yielded to the people’s insistence on a tangible “god,” and he fashioned the golden calf at the very foot of Mt. Sinai. Along with his sister, Aaron also challenged Moses’ leadership on a matter of his marriage choice. Aaron certainly made mistakes, but his weakness is the very quality needed for a high priest to identify with those he represents before God (Heb. 5:1-3). Thus he is a prototype for Jesus, whose suffering in this life qualify Him as our great High Priest (Heb. 2:17-18; 5:7-9).
