If you are following along in our readings, you will be aware that our Old Testament readings in Leviticus have been a little strange. We've had long lists of animals that could be eaten and those that could not. We have had extensive discourses on the identification and treatment of skin diseases and mildew. And, in today's reading, we are given detailed information on how to respond to certain bodily discharges.
By the grace of God we no longer live under these kinds of Mosaic laws, but they are not without their purpose. There are eternal principles that lie behind the individual laws of God that may seem strange to us. We need to understand those eternal principles even as we live in the light of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
I'd like to look back over the last few chapters of Leviticus (starting in chapter 11 and continuing through today's readings) and make some key points that we ought to keep front and center in our minds and hearts.
1) God's law is for the good of God's people.
There are some laws that were given simply to recognize the right of God as Lord over all. Some laws were designed to address pagan religious practices (the commands about tattoos come to mind here). But many of the laws that God gave were for their protection and blessing, even though sometimes they did not see it. Remember in a recent reading when Jesus said that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. We need time to worship God, yes, but we also need rest time.
Many of the dietary laws in chapter 11, and the laws about cleansing from skin diseases, mildew and bodily discharges had a very practical purpose - to help keep Israel healthy in addition to keeping them holy.
God's restrictions in our lives can seem harsh in our incomplete understanding, but we know that what God commands is in reality a great blessing.
2) God's people must live clean lives.
Among many peoples of the day there did not exist the kind of standards that God gave Israel. They did not understand about germs and viruses and bacteria as we do today. So God called Israel to live by different standards. This is true in morality and in theology, but it is also true in such simple things as personal hygiene. The Israelites had to care about things no one else did. They were to keep themselves clean in ways the rest of the world did not understand or practice.
We understand now that this world has a lot of threats to our well-being, things that will make us sick if we allow them to invade our bodies.
We must understand that morally and spiritually this world, with its loyalty to the "god of this age" and its subservience to the Enemy's lies, is a cesspool of spiritual bacteria. We as Christians must be careful to live to please the Father, live to reflect the Son, live by the power of the Spirit, and live to avoid the spiritual sickness of this world.
This is not to advocate separation from sinners. God calls us to serve the lost as Jesus did. But we are called to love God and not this world.
3) God's people are holy to him.
The key principle behind all of these chapters is spelled out in Leviticus 11:44-47. "Be holy, because I am holy." God is set apart from this world. He created it, but he is also holy and perfect in his sovereignty over it. Those of us who are redeemed by Christ's death are called to live holy lives, as God is holy.
Defining holiness requires more space than I have here. But boiled to the bone, holiness is being set apart for the service of God. We belong to him, purchased by Jesus' blood. We are not of this world anymore and should not love it or serve it. We are born into an eternal family and should seek heavenly reward, should please the Father in heaven and live in devotion to him. Holiness is not living by a long list of rules, but it is living for the glory of God alone.
Leviticus 11-15 will never be a favorite text for preachers. But it ought to always be a reminder to us that holiness matters to God!
Father, may I be holy as you are holy.
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