Lessons from Leviticus
I realize that as I write this title with the word "Leviticus" in it that it doesn't exactly thrill the heart. I told some people about a week ago that reading through Leviticus through Deuteronomy was my least favorite portion of scripture. I am halfway through leviticus and my opinion hasn't changed any. It is about as fun as having your teeth pulled without pain medicine to read all about the sacrifices and leprosy and blood and gore. So, what possible lessons could you learn as a New Testament believer from this book of the law?
As I was reading through the sacrifices, I thought to myself if this was the requirement that the Lord still had today would many of us still want to be believers. What would the animals rights advocates think of those who brought bulls, goats and lambs to their place of worship and killed them. It makes it sound like God is a little blood thirsty here. Is there really enough animals on all the earth to make us truly clean before God?
I hit a coyote on the way home from work this last week. I'm not a big fan of coyotes since they tend to prey on cats and dogs and I have four cats. This happened about 2 miles from my house. Even though I don't like coyotes, I felt a little bad about hitting him. In that moment before I hit him I could see he was running for all he was worth for the side of the road. Unfortunately for him, he misjudged it by a second or two and now he is dead. Nobody is going to much care about one coyote, but what about hundreds of sheep, goats and bulls that had to be sacrifices annually according to Old Testament law? That fire literally never went out. How many of us would want to go through the strict requirements that this law holds for us?
One thing that I think this book teaches us is that there are consequences to sin. When you brought your sacrifice to the temple you had to place your hands on its head and then it was slaughtered. The animal was taking the punishment that you deserved for your sin. It was a regular reminded that sin has a big price. And we see that still today in the sins that people commit and the choices that people make. Sin always has consequences to it. It is a very ugly thing and yet people tend to minimize many sins today.
The other thing is emphasized in Leviticus 11:44-45. God was trying to teach the people about himself. He was telling the people that he is holy. He was teaching that in order to approach God one must follow His words and treat him as holy. Aaron got a very personal lesson about this through the sins of his sons. In Leviticus 10 it says that Nadab and Abihu decided they would offer up "strange fire before the Lord". The result of this was that fire came out from the Lord and destroyed them. Moses told Aaron that,
"By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy; And before all the people I will be honored."
Sounds harsh to many of us, but God was telling them and us that God is not tolerant of sin. We cannot come to him any way that we wish. That God takes obedience to His Word very seriously.
I am grateful that we still don't live in the Old Testament times where the sacrifice of bulls and goats are necessary. I am also glad that this sin debt that was impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away has been permanently paid for. Now, with God, I don't have to worry about sacrifices such as these. I do though still need to take obedience to his Word seriously. I still need to realize that God takes sin seriously and that he wants me to walk in obedience to his commands.
I hit a coyote on the way home from work this last week. I'm not a big fan of coyotes since they tend to prey on cats and dogs and I have four cats. This happened about 2 miles from my house. Even though I don't like coyotes, I felt a little bad about hitting him. In that moment before I hit him I could see he was running for all he was worth for the side of the road. Unfortunately for him, he misjudged it by a second or two and now he is dead. Nobody is going to much care about one coyote, but what about hundreds of sheep, goats and bulls that had to be sacrifices annually according to Old Testament law? That fire literally never went out. How many of us would want to go through the strict requirements that this law holds for us?
One thing that I think this book teaches us is that there are consequences to sin. When you brought your sacrifice to the temple you had to place your hands on its head and then it was slaughtered. The animal was taking the punishment that you deserved for your sin. It was a regular reminded that sin has a big price. And we see that still today in the sins that people commit and the choices that people make. Sin always has consequences to it. It is a very ugly thing and yet people tend to minimize many sins today.
The other thing is emphasized in Leviticus 11:44-45. God was trying to teach the people about himself. He was telling the people that he is holy. He was teaching that in order to approach God one must follow His words and treat him as holy. Aaron got a very personal lesson about this through the sins of his sons. In Leviticus 10 it says that Nadab and Abihu decided they would offer up "strange fire before the Lord". The result of this was that fire came out from the Lord and destroyed them. Moses told Aaron that,
"By those who come near Me I will be treated as holy; And before all the people I will be honored."
Sounds harsh to many of us, but God was telling them and us that God is not tolerant of sin. We cannot come to him any way that we wish. That God takes obedience to His Word very seriously.
I am grateful that we still don't live in the Old Testament times where the sacrifice of bulls and goats are necessary. I am also glad that this sin debt that was impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away has been permanently paid for. Now, with God, I don't have to worry about sacrifices such as these. I do though still need to take obedience to his Word seriously. I still need to realize that God takes sin seriously and that he wants me to walk in obedience to his commands.
