Leviticus. What a challenge it was for them to live in a way that reflected God's ultimate purpose for His kingdom. When someone violated God's pattern, the judgment was often swift. As I reflect on the harsh response to someone cursing God, I am reminded how easy it is for God's Name to become nothing more than a lame expression in a culture. It's that way for our culture now. God wanted them to be an example and He didn't want it watered down. Therefore, He quickly removed the first offender.
You know the expression, "The rich get richer and the poor get poorer." God's plan for His people was a system that rewarded hard work but didn't permanently create a class of people who had all the economic advantages.
Monday, February 21, 2011
February 21, Day 52
Sunday, February 20, 2011
February 20, Day 51
Leviticus. God designated times for celebration and times for solemnly seeking Him. The celebrations gave them time to reflect on God's goodness and to look forward with faith. They also reminded them of how God was powerful to deliver their people in times past. They were scheduled around the farming industry because this was an agrarian society. What does it say to you and me who, because of labor-saving devices, have come to believe we must squeeze every drop of activity out of every day?
I was particularly struck by the Day of Atonement. Those who didn't deny themselves (fasting, focusing upon God) would be cut off from the people. Can you imagine the reaction if a church removed someone for playing video games on a fast day? While we live in an era of grace, we miss much of God's best if we gorge ourselves with the things we want day after day.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
February 19, Day 50
Leviticus. You will note that the statues mentioned today all have at least two things in common. First, they are sins against God; violations of His holiness. Second, they are sins against other humans, each destructive in its own way. Consequently, they all break what Jesus described as the Great Commandment ("You shall love God with all your heart, soul, strength and mind.") and the second greatest one ("You shall love your neighbor as yourself.")
As I read these again, I could sort of remember a time when many of the moral commands concerned sins that seemed so foreign to our culture. Now they seem so common. I pray that God will turn us around!
Friday, February 18, 2011
February 18, Day 49
Leviticus. The description of The Day of Atonement is vivid. The High Priest had to symbolically cleanse himself, then his family. Then he offered sacrifice for the people. This was the only day of the year that ANYONE could go behind the veil into the Holy of Holies (or "Most Holy Place") which represented the presence of God. After the sacrifice, the High Priest laid his hands on Azazel, the scape goat, and symbolically placed the sins of the people upon its head. Then the goat was released to carry the sins away. This was called the remission of sins.
Here we are, several thousand years later, looking back on the cross. It's the place where Jesus paid our sin price with His own blood. "It is the blood, given in exchange for a life, that makes purification possible." (Leviticus 17:11 NLT) When we receive Him, God carries our sins away. We don't have to be a "High Priest" to enter God's throne room and we aren't limited to one day a year. Wow!
When Israel was enslaved to Egypt, they were dealing with the difficulty of the slavery. Their slave status left them as societal outcasts who were seen as "different". It meant that they were not so tempted to worship the gods of the Egyptians. That all changed, however, when they were free from slavery and on their own. They were surrounded by pagan people with a variety of pagan worship acts, including child sacrifice and sexual immorality. Their very freedom exposed them to a great temptation to follow after the false gods. The warnings in Leviticus 18 reflect this.
How does this relate to us? To you?
Thursday, February 17, 2011
February 17, Day 48
Leviticus. When people were healed from their skin diseases, it was critical to make sure they were really well. Shaving off all their hair made it possible to see outbreaks that otherwise might have been missed. Failure to discover and quarantine people with such diseases could have led to an epidemic.
Another thing that struck me was the ceremonial cleansing. It included blood (reminder of Christ), oil (reminder of the Holy Spirit) and sacrifice (reminder of our need to give Him our lives.
As I read this passage, I suddenly remembered a problem several years ago. It turned out that the Yuma High School buildings had developed serious mold. It was big news at the time because it took millions to clean up. Why spend the money? Because of the illness it would have otherwise caused!
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
February 16, Day 47
Leviticus. Today's passage contains some of the dietary laws God gave His people to keep them physically healthy. Some research has shown the benefits of these. A great book on the food subject is called The Maker's Diet. Hmmm. I wonder if kosher markets are selling locusts and beans instead of pork and beans.
Leprosy and similar diseases were a constant danger. An outbreak could virtually consume this nation and God gave instructions on what to watch out for. In their system, the priests were the ones to determine if something was a contagious skin disease or not. Lepers became social outcasts. But Jesus had compassion for them. We must similarly care for those our culture has cast away.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
February 15, Day 46
Leviticus. The Priests were ordained, including washing (symbolizing the righteousness of Christ), oil (symbol of the Holy Spirit) and blood (symbolizing the ultimate sacrifice for sins). Their blood sacrifice is what we read about a couple of days ago. Then they took seven days with the Lord before they began to minister. They prepared and God showed up! It's significant also that God showed His acceptance of what they were doing. I believe this was the first time that the glory of the Lord appeared and it wasn't directly related to Moses being there.
We don't really know what Aaron's family was like before they left Egypt. We know that Aaron stood with his brother Moses in the presence of Pharaoh. What we do know is that Aaron caved in and built a golden calf while Moses was up on the mountain with God. Now we read that Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abihu, weren't taking their priestly role seriously. Their drunkenness and disobedience of God's law violated God's holiness and God took action. Notice the insecurity of Aaron at the end of the chapter. I think I would have been insecure, too.
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