Leviticus 24-25

Lev 24-25

Tonight, what stuck out to me is the great need for justice! God is a god of justice! And, we should expect him to act on our behalf! We need to live rightly, and be holy as God is holy. We need to recognize who our Father God is! He is not some golden calf, no he is not. God is the Creator of the Universe, and the potter while we are nothing, but clay.

In chapter 24, we are given the great example of God acting righteously as our judge. We are given the illustration that our actions do have definite consequences. God instructs the Israelite community to stone a man for blasphemy and profaning God's name. Even now, we are still given consequences for our actions. Because of what Jesus did on the cross, we may not face some of the same consequences as they did, but we are definitely not exempted from answering for our actions! Our actions have very real consequences. We need to recognize who our Father God is. We are not the rest of the world. We have been called as God's children, and are set apart. Because we are set apart, we need to live differently than the rest of the world does. For the Israelites, they often followed the Egyptian ways which resulted in dire consequences. Today, we are no different. We follow the world, and it leads us astray. We miss God's big blessings, and special intimacy with Him.

The contrast between the Old Testament and New Testament is Jesus paid it all. Jesus is how God redeemed all of humanity, and made us right with him. Instead of an "eye for an eye", we are instructed by Jesus to give them our other cheek if they are slapping one cheek. (Matt. 5: 39) Jesus is the fulfillment of the law!

In chapter 25, it is all about freedom that only God can provide. It reminds me of John 8:32. Only Jesus can set me free. God was making a way to allow the Israelites to enjoy freedom that only he could provide. Slaves gone free. Israelities given chances to be back in their homeland that they once had sold. It is about stepping outside of our selfish lives, and giving ourselves to our fellow brothers that are in need. It is about setting no boundaries between the rich man and the poor man, because each is given an equal amount.