Leviticus 16-21

Leviticus 16-18

In chapter 16, atonement is made once a year for all the Israelites. The sins of the community of Israel is put on the goat, and it is sent into the wilderness. This is a lasting ordinance that is to happen once a year, every year to bring the Israelites and make them clean in the Lord's sight. I am so thankful that Jesus has become my atonement. Even though I am not Jewish, he has made me clean. He has put all my sins on Jesus, my Savior! I am made clean forever. Though I am not holy, I am made holy through what Jesus has done on the cross. Though I am not clean by any means, Jesus has made me clean through what he did on the cross.

In chapter 17, the Israelites will be held accountable if they chose to misuse what God has given them. They are not to eat the blood of animals or to sacrifice it in the field, rather they are to bring it to the Holy Place and allow it to be used to become clean to God. God did not have to give them a method of being temporary clean in his sight. He did not have to give them instruments of worshiping him. I may not eat blood or do animal offerings to make me right in God's eyes, but I still do have things to learn from this passage. It talked about doing what is pleasing in God's sight. This is key throughout the Leviticus for me. I know that I can learn how to worship God in a way that pleases Him, and it is through these scriptures. I do not have to give sin offerings to atone for my sinfulness, because Jesus Christ has paid it all greatly. There is no need for sin offerings, but I can learn about how to worship God in ways that please him. I can learn how to be holy as God is holy!

In chapter 18,  God is our Lord and we should not be defiled by the things of this world. The Israelites allowed themselves to be defiled by what they learned and practiced in Egypt. We would be well to learn how not to live our lives based on the bad examples of these nations. Nations are defiled and corrupted because of their evil practices. We are different! We must not follow them! We are called to be set apart. We are to be holy, as God is to be holy!

Leviticus 19-21

In chapter 19, we are God's children. We are called to be holy, just as God is holy. God has freed us. He has set us free, just as he freed the Israelites from the land of Egypt and the oppression they faced with the Pharaoh! We need to consider the lives we live, and carefully decide how to live our lives for Him. We need to love others, just as we would want to be treated. We need to be honest, and realize how God is and his greatness!

In chapter 20, God punishes people for their actions. We are constantly seeing the passage being lived out of: 

"Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the LORD your God." (Lev 20:7) We each are held responsible for our actions. We will each reap what we sow. Each one of our actions will have a consequence. It will either draw us closer to God or further away from God. Even now, our actions will draw us closer to God. Or, it is take us away from our intimacy with God our Creator. The question is: How can I act in such a way, where I am unhindered and constantly getting closer with the Lord, my God?

In chapter 21, there are additional requirements for the priests that lead the congregation of Israel. They are to be an example, but they are also instruments of God. They are how God seems to be working among the people. They have important jobs, such as announcing people as ceremonially clean, sin offerings, burnt offerings, wave offerings. They have many important tasks that make them set apart from the Jews'--giving them additional rules to live by.