Leviticus 11 - Clean and Unclean

Now we come to various food laws, with definitions of clean and unclean animals. The key distinctions were whether an animal chewed the cud and whether or not it had a divided hoof.

Sometimes people try to explain these rules on the basis of hygiene and food safety. These attempts are really not justified, and while some of the prohibitions had beneficial health effects, others did not. No, the reason for these laws is religious. Wenham says there were three main states: holy, clean and unclean. Being unclean did not necessarily mean sinful either, as one could become unclean through normal bodily functions, and normal, even good, acts. 

The chapter ends with an reminder that the people must be holy and are different from other nations, and an injunction that they must distinguish between clean and unclean.

Among the creatures of the sea the possession of fins and scales was the key point.  They were allowed to eat some kinds of insects such as locusts.

In Mark 7:19 we are told that Jesus declared all foods clean, so what is the point of all this? Maybe it was to show that every aspect of their life had to be lived for God. In Galatians Paul tells us that the Law was given to keep people in check until the fulfilment came. So it was kind of teaching infants what it means to live for God. It was not something one did occasionally and then got on the with the rest of your life, but something that pervaded all of ones life. Now we have true life, and it affects all that we do.

Leviticus 10 - The Lord's judgement

Aaron's two sons died. The reason for this is that they offered "unauthorized fire" to the Lord, Ex 30:9 is the key verse. Our natural reaction may be to say that this is too harsh or unfair, but we say that because we do not appreciate the holiness of the Lord. We need to do things His way, otherwise it just leads to trouble. The root of our rebellion was eating from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which means taking responsibility on ourselves for deciding what is right and what is wrong. Listen to debates on TV or newspapers or radio, listen to the news, listen to the arguments that your own heart and mind produce. They all come down to "I will decide what is right and wrong", at best we allow God to give advice, but God does not give advice, He gives commands.

Aaron and his two other sons had to obey Moses carefully, and they now seemed to appreciate the gravity of the situation. Again it may seem unfair that they were not allowed to mourn. As leaders we sometimes have to say no to our feelings, even to our "rights".

Notice that God then gives Aaron and his sons further instructions on how to perform their duties. Judgement had been executed, now it was time to move on. Sometimes God needs to discipline us, but we need to understand that it does not mean He is against us. Rather He wants us to learn from it and then to move on.

In the final few verses we see Moses showing some compassion. There is a time to implement rules strictly, and there is a time to be lenient. In this chapter we have seen incidences of both.

Leviticus 9 - The glory of the Lord

Aaron, and all the people were to make an offering to the Lord. The priest had a special function, but all the people were involved as well. In the same way we need to get involved in what Jesus has done. See also that the Lord was going to appear to them. The whole point of the sacrificial system was for the people to be able to meet with God. Through Christ this has now been completed. But note that the point is not just that our sins are forgiven. Rather it is that our sins are forgiven in order that we can have fellowship with God.

Aaron made offering first for himself. Jesus of course had no need to do this, for He was without sin. Then Aaron made offering for the people.

After the offerings had been made Moses and Aaron went into the tent, and when they came out they blessed the people. Then fire came down from heaven and consumed the sacrifice. The glory of the Lord was made real among the people.

The sacrifice we have, the blood of Jesus Christ, is far greater than all these animal sacrifices. So if these mere animal sacrifices led to the glory of the Lord appearing, how much more should we expect to know the presence and glory of God because of the blood of Jesus?

Leviticus 7:22-8:36 - Chewing the fat

The people were not allowed to eat the fat of various animals, nor the blood of any creature. The blood is very precious. This should help us to understand what a mind blowing thing it was when Jesus said we should drink the communion wine remembering His blood. All the sacrifices of the OT pointed towards the cross, but Jesus' sacrifice on the cross was many orders of magnitude greater than all the signs that had gone before.

When fellowship offerings were given a portion had to be given to the priests. Giving to the priests was part of offering. Churches can sometimes pay their pastors and leaders with a very grudging attitude. We should not be like this, but should give gladly, and ensure that our churches pay our leaders properly (I have no vested interest in this, by the way!).

Chapter 8 deals with the ordination of Aaron and his sons for the priesthood. Sacrifices were offered, and Aaron was clothed in special garments. In today's terms we need the cross, and we need to be clothed with the new life.

Some of the blood was put on Aaron. Now I know this would go against health and safety regulations, but the point is that there was an intimate identification of Aaron with the sacrifice.

Aaron was also anointed with oil, just as we need to be anointed with the Holy Spirit.

The priests had to serve the Lord day and night, seven days a week (note that on an unthinking literal interpretation of the Sabbath laws, this would break that rule). We are all priests now, and we should all be continually devoted to the Lord.

Leviticus 5:14-7:21 - Unintentional sins

Now we come to the guilt offering, and again there is an emphasis on unintentional sins. We very readily say "I didn't mean to", and often this may well be true. So why were offerings still needed, why are unintentional sins so important? The reason is that sin is more than what we do, it is what we are. Our very nature is corrupted, so we can sin without trying! We need both forgiveness and a new nature, which is why we need to be born again of the Holy Spirit. 

With guilt offerings, as well as the sacrifice, the person had to pay restitution.

Chapter 6 starts to talk about specific sins, deceiving or cheating someone. We can do this so easily, lies can slip out without thinking. Later the person realises what they have done. They must then seek forgiveness, and seek to put things right if possible.

The chapter then moves on to what had to be done with the various offerings. A key point is that it is God who decides how things are to be done. Our human nature is to think that we should decide how things should be done, and no one else has the right to tell us how to do things. If we want to get right with God we need to submit to Him, there needs to be a change of heart.

Leviticus 4:1-5:13 - Sin Offerings

The sin offering was for specific unintentional sin. Different sacrifices were required for different people. High priests brought a young bull, male goats for leaders, female goats or lambs for common people, doves or pigeons for poor people, and a tenth of an ephah of flour for the very poor. 

The system was designed so that everyone could make a sacrifice for their sin. The principle that applies now is that everyone's sin can be forgiven by believing in Jesus. Whoever you are, you are not excluded.

As with other sacrifices, there is a lot of detail about what to do with the blood and various internal organs. 

A young bull also had to be offered if the whole community was guilty of some unintentional sin. 

Sins of omission were important as well as sins of commission. Failing to speak up when they can about a public charge against someone is mentioned specifically.

What can we learn from all this, apart from being glad that we don't have to go through all this rigmarole any more? Unintentional sins matter, and we can become "contaminated" by everyday life. In the Lord's prayer we ask for forgiveness everyday.

Leviticus 2,3 - Grain and Fellowship Offerings

Again we have the emphasis on quality. Grain offerings were to be made of the finest flour. Whatever we offer to the Lord should be our best. That is why tithing has the important principle of giving the first tenth. We give to God first, not after we have decided how much we have left.

Part of the grain offering was burnt, and the other part was eaten by the priests. Burning signified offering to God. There is an important point here. Some of our offerings are obviously useful. Ie money given to the poor, missionaries, the church etc. But offering is not purely utilitarian. Ultimately we are offering to God.

It says that the part that belongs to Aaron and his sons is "most holy". So there is a vital balance here. What is given to the church (and used to pay pastors and other church workers) is as holy as any other part of offerings.

Fellowship offerings signified peace and fellowship. Peace with God is essential if we are to have fellowship with Him. Note also that fellowship with God is a crucial part of the goal of the gospel. There are similarities and differences between fellowship and burnt offerings. Indeed our fellowship is built upon the sacrifice of Jesus.