Fear No Fear

(All scripture from Lexham English Bible, Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software)

God starts out with a statement that frames this whole reading. “Speak to all the community of the Israelites, and say to them, ‘You must be holy, because I, Yahweh your God, am holy” (Leviticus 19:2). Only the Lord God Almighty was holy, so learning from the pagans was pointless. Copying them was futile. All it would do is take the people further from holiness. In the same way, only holding to the statues of immorality/morality of the last chapter wasn’t enough. That was ONE aspect of holiness, but God is interested in EVERYTHING that effects us, not just our sexual morality. They were to separate themselves not just in sexual practises, but in all areas of life (here you can see the ten commandments reiterated and expanded to include not just the command but the application of the command). It goes on to deal with priests and then to the High Priest. As there was a Holy of Holies, a Holy Place, and a Courtyard; there was also a High Priest, a Priest, and a People. All degrees of holiness based on how much they were to reflect God Almighty to the world. The higher the ‘rank’, the more strict the restrictions. Not to keep things away, but to model God’s morality. God’s holiness. Even as the New Covenant does away with the system of rules and punishments (Jesus having taken the punishment for us), it retains the idea of repentance and forgiveness of individuals sins/wrong doings as we seek to pursue the level of holiness that as priests God calls us to – in other words, the culture may change, but the objective morality of the Lord stays the same. All of Leviticus, but especially this segment, is a call to worship God truly in our hearts as we seek to become more like Him.

Be holy. Honour your parents. Rest in God on the Sabbath. Don’t worship idols (remember coveting is idolatry). Offer peace offerings of your own free will, whether as a gift or as a gift with a vow. Don’t eat of the peace offering on the third day (Jesus, who is our peace – Ephesians 2:14, rose on the third day). Make sure the poor are provided for with a portion of your bounty. Don’t steal or lie or deal falsely with ANYONE. Don’t swear oaths by God’s name and be false about it (Jesus said no oaths are better than oaths, because we should be known for honesty and not need an oath to back us up into believability – Matthew 5:33-37). Don’t cheat a neighbour OR rob him. Don’t abuse the deaf or blind – it’s the opposite of reverencing the Lord who has a heart for everyone.

Here is one that is so foreign to our modern society: don’t be partial to the poor. Does that mean ignore them or take advantage of them? No. It also says don’t honour the rich. In our judgments and policies, we should do what is objectively right. Not favour the poor, and not favour the rich. Their financial status should not have ANY influence on what we know is right. We don’t tell tales or make memes to mock others. We don’t intentionally tell partial truths to stir things up.

Another one that is foreign to us, but CLOSE to God’s heart: don’t hurt someone by not telling them the truth. Jesus said many things that people took poorly. But He was telling them in a loving way and telling them the truth in love. They needed to hear it. Those that responded got free. Those that did not, stayed burdened. When we fail to speak the truth, we are being selfish. We’re fearing the shame of rejection or the pain of persecution for the telling of what is true. That’s wrong in God’s eyes. As wrong as taking vengeance or holding a grudge. We are called to love our neighbours more than we love ourselves. To be a servant of truth by being truthful because we love them and want the best for them.

They were commanded not to mix breeds, mix cloth, or mixing seeds. To keep types to themselves as a symbol of purity. As a symbol of what Jesus does for us. He preserves His bride holy to Himself. In the Old Covenant there was a difference between types. A difference between bond and free. When that was violated, trespass offerings had to be brought to have atonement made – but in Jesus ALL our atonement is made. This is the same principle as being patient in order to fully trust in the Lord to provide for us. When the Israelites went into a land it wasn’t until the fifth year that they took produce for themselves from their trees. The first three years they were left wild. The fourth year the harvest was given away (to the Lord as an offering or to others in the community). In the fifth year they could partake themselves, and the Lord would make the produce bountifully. Trust the Lord, and the Lord made things fruitful.

They were to AVOID all pagan religious practices. No eating blood, no divination or astrology. No mediums, no familiar spirits (seances, ouija boards, magic 8 balls, or anything that either IS demonic or PRETENDS to it – keep your minds on God and not evil practise). No disfiguring beards or weird hairstyles as worship to pagan gods, and no cutting in the flesh OR tattoos in the flesh to honour the dead – or maybe as part of death worship vs honour (either way it is dicey). Our bodies were holy to God and they were called to keep that in mind. Harlotry was an abomination. Anyone who made their daughter a prostitute was in danger of letting the land turn to debauchery. The Sabbaths and the sanctuary (we ARE the sanctuary – 1 Corinthians 3:17) were to be revered and kept apart for God. Why? Because God was holy and everything to do with Him was also to be kept holy. He deserves the respectful treatment.

Respect the elderly and stand when they are around – be polite to them and give up your place for them. It is reverence to the Lord. Don’t mistreat strangers – or be racist. Treat strangers living among you in the same way you treat yourselves. Don’t change your prices or use a system that favours yourself. Let everyone pay the same and let that price be nice. Everyone deserves the best. We are prospering because of the Lord not on the backs of others or at their expense.

“Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying” (Leviticus 20:1)

It is easy to think of these as rules made for an ancient people. As ways of living that they thought of to preserve their way of life, or their beliefs. Or of rules based on things they learned or absorbed by other cultures that they were influenced by. Everything that God called them to was God’s idea, and not humanity’s. Not a single word in the whole of the Bible is written by humanity other than a few clearly labelled opinions – and those opinions were based on interpretations of previous scripture. This is the inspired Word of GOD – not the wisdom of humanity. We need to remember that God’s rules are God’s rules. Period. He made all of everything. He has the right to say how it should go and how we should act.

Don’t kill your kids. Especially don’t kill your kids (physically or symbolically) in service to ANY idol of ANY kind – but especially the kid-killing deity prominent in Canaan. This defiles the sanctuary (proper place of worship) and defiles the Holy name of the Lord (which He put on His people – Numbers 6:24-26). This is punished by death. It’s a cancer. It’s murder of family.

If you know someone who did this, but hide the knowledge, you’re just as guilty. Punishment by death. It’s a cancer. It’s murder of community.

If you turns to mediums and familiar spirits when you’re to be trusting in God for everything (including information), it is punishable by death. It’s a cancer. It’s murder of community, who are supposed to be devoted together to God. Also, if you WERE a medium or if you had a familiar spirit, you were to be put to death. Before Messiah Jesus, you could not be delivered from demon possession. The only way you could be released from that bondage and keep that bondage from spreading, was death. It was a cancer. It was murder of community.

If you as an adult curse your parents (either one), it is punishable by death. It’s a cancer. It’s a murder of family.

If you commit adultery with a neighbour’s wife (a neighbour being ANY member of the community), it’s punishable by death. It’s a cancer. It’s a murder of family AND of community.

If you commit incest (see Leviticus 18 again for a full list of what is counted as incest), it’s punishable by death that you brought on yourself. It’s a cancer. It’s a murder of family.

If you perform the act of sex as a male with a male, it’s punishable by death. You brought it upon yourself. It’s a cancer. It’s a murder of family.

If a male or a female mates with an animal, it’s punishable by death for all involved (including the animals). It’s a cancer. It’s a murder of family.

If you have sex during menstruation (remember the statues against disrespecting blood in Leviticus 17), it’s punishable by death. It’s a cancer. It’s a murder of family. Wait, you may say. How so? It’s just menstruation. Well, other than the whole blood is sacred and special thing, there is at least one other reason. Did you know that a woman CAN get pregnant even during menstruation? It’s VERY rare, but possible. Any resulting fetus would be expelled during the rest of the menstruation, which would kill it. Killing babies is murder and life begins at conception. God is serious about life.

The people were to be holy. To separate the clean from the unclean in behaviour, attitude, and diet. They were to be separate from all the ungodly and unclean behaviour they saw around them. It kept them pure and kept the land clean. If they went against that, they would be unclean and the land would vomit them out. They would be expelled. God was pleading with them to keep themselves from these very few things. There were in total only 613 commandments in the entire law – including laws just for priests. How many THOUSANDS of things could they DO? How many countless joys and pleasures could they indulge in? Yet, we get all banged up about the few things God points out are unclean and abominations from His point of view. A fallen world, fallen pleasures, and fallen appetites might taste/feel/seem good, but they ultimately lead to pain, joylessness, and death. We can numb ourselves to the pain and joylessness. Death will catch up with you, though. It is so much better to hold to God’s morality – especially in the New Covenant where we have the tools and the Way to achieve them in word, thought, and deed in, through, and for Messiah Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21).

Now the priests. They were a type and shadow of Jesus, who is our High Priest. They were a type and shadow of what we can be in the New Covenant. As such, they were held to a higher standard of separateness than the average Israelite. As we see, ALL Levites could eat the holy bread but not all could be priests. God does not withhold a relationship with any of them, but only the purest could be priests. Even more, the High Priest was held to the TIGHTEST of restrictions, being the HIGHEST shadow of Jesus. When you are given responsibility, you are given restrictions. The more responsibility, the more restrictions. It is an important chapter (Chapter 21), because while we are not barred from imperfections and while we also no longer offer physical sacrifices or need to keep to a specific type of mate (because we ARE the mate of Jesus); we are all as New Covenant believers a nation of priests – first the Jew and then the Gentile. We are ALL called to hold to this level of a standard of holiness. It is inspiring that we can spiritually achieve this in Jesus and that Holy Spirit helps us along the way guiding and correcting our every step, word, and thought – if we will listen to His voice.

Death defiles us because it is representative of sin. Death was NEVER a plan. We were meant to live WITHOUT dying EVER. Therefore, a priest could not ceremonially mourn or touch a dead body – unless it was for the closest of his relatives. Otherwise, as a priest and a visible representation of God who is LIFE, he could not get involved. They were not to do ANY of the pagan practises regarding death. Unlike pagan priests, Yahweh’s priests were priests of LIFE. They did not do death. They were not to take women to wife who were defiled (raped), prostitutes, or divorcees (Ezekiel 44:22 expanded this to only allow widows who had been married to priests, so ordinary widows were also exempt). They were to represent God (Jesus) who was holy and as such had a holy family (Jesus’ spotless Bride: the church). It was symbolic and restrictive, but they were priests and not ordinary citizens. They offered the holy bread to God, and they were to be consecrated and set apart because of this. In addition, the priests children were to be kept holy in their practises. They were not exempt because of who their father was – we all need a personal relationship with God (He only has children, not grandchildren).

The High Priest had to hold to all of that. PLUS, he could go near NO dead body – even a close relative. He was not to stop his service in the sanctuary for ANY reason until it was complete. God first, rest of community (including family) second. He was not to wed ANYONE except a virgin – no exceptions. It had to be a virgin of his own tribe. He was to be holy and his offspring were to be holy. Pure in bloodline and kept to high standards because he was High Priest (this was really the first time the title High Priest was applied. I’ve used it in other chapters, but there it was usually just Aaron. This section is the first that looked beyond that one immediate family to future generations).

Levites who had defects (blind, lame, marred face, elongated limbs, dwarfs, overly skinny/sickly, broken feet or hands, hunchbacks, defective eyes, eczema/scabs, or damaged testicles) could not be a priest. They could partake of the holy bread with their priest families, but not serve to offer sacrifices themselves. Again, this is to uphold the idea of PURITY in service to Yahweh because Yahweh was TOTALLY and ABSOLUTELY pure. Thank the Lord that in Jesus this is all done away with. None of us are exempt from service to God. In Jesus we are all restored and made pure (spiritually first, and then physically as we accept healing – 3 John 2).

God told Moses to tell Aaron and all the people these statues. And he did. Moses was obedient, even though some of them may not have been received well. He was obedient anyway. We too should NOT be ashamed to speak God’s Truth when He tells us to.

Summary

Key Players: God

Key Themes: Holiness

Key Verse(s): Leviticus 19:2; 20:26; 21:24