LAWS FOR LIVING The Book of Leviticus Dr. Jon McNeff, Senior Pastor January 29, 2017 Note: The following are the pastor s notes used in preaching this message. This is not a complete, word-for-word transcription of what was preached. These notes serve as a companion to the complete message, which is available by listening to the audio version. Bible quotes are primarily from NASB and ESV, respectively. Laws we live by The one who dies with the most toys wins! You can t tell me what to do. Title like Genesis and Exodus, the title in Hebrew Bible it is the first word in the text wucharah lit. and He called Septuagint called it Levitikon means pertaining to the Levites could be divided into two parts 1) Leviticus 1-16 how to worship God; 2) Leviticus 17-27 how to live a holy life sound familiar? Written by Moses within a month or so after close of Exodus after Tabernacle had been erected they had escaped captivity in Egypt by God s miraculous hand now what? God had to start from scratch only religion they had known was Egyptian I. CHECK YOUR HEART Leviticus 1-7 Leviticus describes five offerings each has own characteristics also similarities all involve blood and pleasing aroma what is done with the blood and remaining flesh varies according to the sinner s standing before the Lord at the time of the offering Five major offerings in Leviticus 1:1-6:7 addressed to the people then in Leviticus 6:8-7:38 the same offerings are mentioned again addressed to the priests for instructions on how to administrate 1) The burnt offering (Leviticus 1:1 17) and (Leviticus 6:8 13) voluntary offering for atonement 2) The grain offering (Leviticus 2:1 16) and (Leviticus 6:14 23) voluntary offering of thanksgiving 3) The peace offering (Leviticus 3:1 17) (Leviticus 6:24 30) voluntary offering symbolizing fellowship with God 4) The sin offering (Leviticus 4:1 5:13) and (Leviticus 7:1 10) mandatory offering by one who sinned unintentionally or was unclean 5) The guilt offering (Leviticus 5:14 6:7) and (Leviticus 7:11 36) mandatory offering by one who cheated or desecrated something holy Why offerings? They check our heart Matthew 15:17-19 Do you not understand that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is eliminated? But the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders. You can keep all of the Law but the heart is the issue Hebrews 10:1 For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near. Hebrews 10:4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Why do you come to church? II. WORSHIP GOD Leviticus 8-17 A. Priests Leviticus 8:1-36 Aaron and sons ordained as priests offered sacrifices served as intermediary between God and people 1 Peter 2:9 no we are all priests! B. Tabernacle Leviticus 9:1-24 First service in tabernacle detailed explanation shows God is concerned with how He wants to be worshipped 1
C. False worship Cf. end of Leviticus 9 God brought the fire Leviticus 10:1-20 Aaron s sons devised their own service to duplicate what God had done God struck them dead similar to Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5 D. Purity Leviticus 11:1-43 Laws on cleanliness health reasons and ceremonial reasons for being unclean some couldn t be helped first regarding animals cattle, goats, and lambs vs. pigs, camels, etc. why? Leviticus 11:44 gives the reason For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. Israel was to obey even if they didn t understand why some were for health reasons they wouldn t understand protected them like parent who says, Don t eat that bug! But this also made them different from other cultures that s the essence of being holy = to cut, separate many want to be holy but don t want to be different! Also mentioned uncleanness issues with no fault: Childbearing mother Leviticus 12:1-8 Leprosy Leviticus 13:1-14:57 Bodily discharges Leviticus 15:1-33 E. Atonement Leviticus 16:1-34 Day of Atonement Leviticus 16:34 only one day a year when priest would go into the holy place inside the veil (Leviticus 16:2,3) to bring a sin offering (mandatory) and a burnt offering (voluntary) for the individual and national sins of the people both known and unknown also in Exodus 30:10; later in Leviticus 23:26 32; Numbers 29:7 11; Hebrews 9:1 28 Bull was offered for sin offering ram for burnt offering two goats one for sin offering the other as a scapegoat released in the wilderness picture of substitute and forgiveness like Jesus in New Testament The Handling and Meaning of Blood Leviticus 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement. Blood carries life-sustaining elements to all parts of the body represents the essence of life life is sacred to God The blood of a sacrificial animal is the life that takes the place of the death of the one offering the sacrifice New Testament references to the shedding of the blood of Jesus Christ are references to His death The shedding of blood is the shedding of life! The day of atonement was about covering imperfection it was about God s holiness covering our imperfection Holiness is not a spectator sport it is personally applied, but corporately lived sacrifices always brought to the tent of meeting mentioned 41 times in Leviticus Exodus 33 right after golden calf incident journey resumed Exodus 33:3 Go up to a land flowing with milk and honey; for I will not go up in your midst, because you are an obstinate people, and I might destroy you on the way. Panic! Moses intervened Exodus 33:15 If your presence isn t with us, don t lead us up from here. From then on everything the people did regarding God s presence revolved around the Tabernacle and later the Temple A church building is not the new Tabernacle but what went on there is the same God meets with His people in church no maverick Christians no just me and God the group of Christians in church is the visible 2
manifestation of His presence what would we do if He said, I m not going to show up anymore because of your disobedience? Church is His presence! III. BE HOLY Leviticus 18-22:33 A. A holy calling Holiness used 101 times in Leviticus means to be separate God wanted Israel to be different than pagan neighbors practical: 1) Leviticus 18:1-30 laws regarding sexual immorality practices that were done by pagan nations Leviticus 18:3-4 You shall not do what is done in the land of Egypt where you lived, nor are you to do what is done in the land of Canaan where I am bringing you; you shall not walk in their statutes. You are to perform My judgments and keep My statutes, to live in accord with them; I am the Lord your God. Used uncover nakedness to condemn incest with any blood relative polygamy adultery child sacrifice homosexuality sex with animals Leviticus 18:24-25 Do not defile yourselves by any of these things; for by all these the nations which I am casting out before you have become defiled. For the land has become defiled, therefore I have brought its punishment upon it, so the land has spewed out its inhabitants. 2) Leviticus 19:1-2 general principle Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. Sundry laws that exhibit holy living: don t glean your field (leave some for stranger); don t cheat or lie; don t rob or withhold payment; exercise justice the same to the poor or rich; don t slander; don t be jealous; don t take vengeance but love your neighbor; don t practice pagan customs like telling the future, cutting your hair or beard to imitate pagan rites; cutting yourself as they do in pagan rites to show grief or identification; tattoos that marred the human form; don t turn your daughter into a prostitute; honor the elderly and stranger; be honest in your business; sound strange? Issues I ve heard at NorthCreek Church immigration, demonic activity, mental illness, eating disorders, homosexuality, divorced and remarried, fraud, dating, and abuse that s the world we live in! But it s not holy living! Further calls for holiness: Punishment for disobedience (Leviticus 20:1 27) Holiness of the priests (Leviticus 21:1 24) Holiness of the offerings (Leviticus 22:1 33) B. A holy life Leviticus 23-25 detailed explanation 1. The Sabbath Leviticus 23:1-3 rest not Law! Set the principle Leviticus 23:3 For six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there is a sabbath of complete rest, a holy convocation. You shall not do any work; it is a sabbath to the Lord in all your dwellings. This is not a requirement to worship on Saturday often confused Christians speak of Sunday as a day of rest NO Sunday is the first day of the week in New Testament the essence of the Sabbath is to rest in our relationship with Jesus Christ Jesus did not say Come to Me and I will require you to go to church every Sunday. Matthew 11:28 Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Who is this? It s not the religious law-keepers! John 17:9 I ask on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world, but of those whom You have given Me; for they are Yours The ones who rest in Jesus are the ones who rest from the rigors of religion! No earthly religion offers this they all offer works! Not Jesus When Pharisees saw Jesus disciples rubbing some grain in their hands on the Sabbath in Luke 6:1 they went nuts! Jesus response Luke 6:5 The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath. YOU ARE TO FIND YOUR REST IN ME, NOT IN TAKING A NAP ONE DAY A WEEK! Hebrews 4:6 children of Israel in Old Testament failed to enter the rest of God because of disobedience Hebrews 4:9-10 So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His. Are you resting in Him? 3
2. The Passover Leviticus 23:4-8 deliverance to remember God s provision upon leaving slavery in Exodus the oldest child of each house was preserved through application of blood on top and sides of the door you have been delivered! You are not an addict not a victim of abuse! 3. First fruits Leviticus 23:9-14 promise Leviticus 23:10-11 you shall bring in the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. He shall wave the sheaf before the Lord for you to be accepted; on the day after the sabbath the priest shall wave it. First fruits = first of the harvest celebrate joy of God s provision from the earth and the promise of more to come! 4. Weeks Leviticus 23:15-22 thanksgiving seven weeks after first fruits (50 days) new grain offering of thanksgiving Pentecost in Acts 2:1 Jesus ascended back into heaven 50 days after the resurrection 5. Trumpets 23:23-25 celebration First of three final celebrations in seventh month (Tishri - Oct. /Nov.) First day the blast of trumpets signaled the end of the harvest and the coming of the Day of Atonement 6. Day of Atonement Leviticus 23:26-32 covering for sin on tenth day of seventh month details already given in Leviticus 16:1-28 no work humility covered all known and unknown sins both individual and national 7. Booths (Feast of Tabernacles) Leviticus 23:33-44 Leviticus 23:40 remembrance on 15 th of Tishri after crops brought in you shall take for yourselves the foliage of beautiful trees, palm branches and boughs of leafy trees and willows of the brook, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. theological camp-out like remembering your first apartment thanking God for how far He s brought you 8. Oil and bread Leviticus 24:1-9 daily living Aaron and his sons had two duties every day 1) maintenance of the oil in the gold lampstands; and 2) Preparation and replacement of the bread of His presence on the table of pure gold (Leviticus 24:6) shows God isn t only concerned with three great feasts He is concerned with daily holiness not just Sunday go to meetin time but Tuesday morning too! 9. Jubilee Leviticus 25:1-22 economic preservation sabbatical year for the land grow crops for six years then let fields go fallow rest for one year year of Jubilee every seven cycles of seven years (49 years) was year of Jubilee all debt was forgiven 10. Redemption 25:23-55 human dignity (Leviticus 25:23-38) all interest was forbidden v. principles of servitude Leviticus 25:39-40 If a countryman of yours becomes so poor with regard to you that he sells himself to you, you shall not subject him to a slave s service. He shall be with you as a hired man, as if he were a sojourner; he shall serve with you until the year of jubilee. Leviticus 25:42 For they are My servants whom I brought out from the land of Egypt; they are not to be sold in a slave sale. You shall not rule over him with severity, but are to revere your God. Slaves released debts forgiven land restored to original owner protected the poor even if they were incompetent or were victims of circumstances There is a connection between Law and holiness holiness sets the standard perfection the Law shows you how to achieve it problem people want to be holy but they don t want to keep the Law! But that s why we are saved by faith not by keeping the Law! Why? Hebrews 10:1 For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near. Luther The principal point of the law is to make men not better but worse; that is to say, it sheweth unto them their sin, that by the knowledge thereof they may be humbled, terrified, bruised and broken, and by this means may be driven to seek grace, and so to come to that blessed Seed, which is Christ. 1 1 John R. W. Stott, The Message of Galatians, (Downers Grove, Illinois: Inter-Varsity Press, 1973), 91. 4
IV. OBEY THE LAW; BLESSINGS AND CURSES Leviticus 26 A. Blessings Leviticus 26:1-13 Repetition of Ten Commandments don t worship idols Leviticus 26 3-12 walk in My statutes.... then I shall give you rains in their season, so that the land will yield its produce and the trees of the field will bear their fruit... your threshing will last for you until grape gathering... You will thus eat your food to the full and live securely in your land. I shall also grant peace in the land, so that you may lie down with no one making you tremble. I shall also eliminate harmful beasts from the land, and no sword will pass through your land... you will chase your enemies and they will fall before you by the sword.... So I will turn toward you and make you fruitful and multiply you, and I will confirm My covenant with you.... I will make My dwelling among you, and My soul will not reject you. I will also walk among you and be your God, and you shall be My people. B. Curses Leviticus 26:14-46 Leviticus 26:14-46 But if you do not obey Me and do not carry out all these commandments, if, instead, you reject My statutes, and if your soul abhors My ordinances so as not to carry out all My commandments, and so break My covenant, I, in turn, will do this to you: I will appoint over you a sudden terror, consumption and fever that will waste away the eyes and cause the soul to pine away; also, you will sow your seed uselessly, for your enemies will eat it up... you will be struck down before your enemies; and those who hate you will rule over you.... your land will not yield its produce and the trees of the land will not yield their fruit... I will let loose among you the beasts of the field, which will bereave you of your children and destroy your cattle and reduce your number so that your roads lie deserted.... then I will act with hostility against you; and I, even I, will strike you seven times for your sins....further, you will eat the flesh of your sons and the flesh of your daughters you will eat... (in Lamentations under Assyrian conquest) I then will destroy your high places, and cut down your incense altars, and heap your remains on the remains of your idols, for My soul shall abhor you....i will lay waste your cities as well and will make your sanctuaries desolate....i will make the land desolate so that your enemies who settle in it will be appalled over it.you, however, I will scatter among the nations and will draw out a sword after you, as your land becomes desolate and your cities become waste....but you will perish among the nations, and your enemies land will consume you....for the land will be abandoned by them, and will make up for its sabbaths while it is made desolate without them....yet in spite of this, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject them, nor will I so abhor them as to destroy them, breaking My covenant with them; for I am the Lord their God. But I will remember for them the covenant with their ancestors, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt in the sight of the nations, that I might be their God. I am the Lord. V. KEEP YOUR WORD - Leviticus 27 Leviticus 27:1-2 Again, the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, When a man makes a difficult vow, he shall be valued according to your valuation of persons belonging to the Lord. What vow is Moses talking about? The chapter proceeds to give instructions on placing relative values on people of various ages, animals, houses, land, your firstborn, and other things dedicated to serve God ends with instructions on tithing this was one of three tithes in Old Testament same as taxes to fund the worship in the Tabernacle God is saying, Keep your word. Follow through on your holy living by funding public worship. When you go to court Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? If you don t you are held in contempt of court What if we don t obey God s rules? We are in contempt of God 5
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION 1. What is the purpose of law? 2. What is the purpose of the offerings that were brought to the Lord in Leviticus 1-7? 3. Why were Nadab and Abihu killed in Leviticus 10:1-2? 4. What are the ramifications, both good and bad, of God s command in Leviticus 19:2? 5. What was the purpose of the feasts in Leviticus 23? 6. Which of these laws is most convicting to you? 6