​Day 57- February 26

​Day 57- February 26
Scriptures: Leviticus 16-18, 1 John 1
 
Now Leviticus gets a little exciting. These three chapters are some of the most important and relevant scriptures to our modern context and culture.
 
Why do Christians believe abortion is wrong? Well, there are bunch of reasons, but here in Leviticus 18:21, “Do not give any of your children to be sacrificed to Molek, for you must not profane the name of your God. I am the Lord.”
 
Molech was a Canaanite deity, whom children were burned in sacrifice. Leviticus forbids this practice, and praise God for it!
 
A question arises out of the book of Leviticus. Here in chapters 16-18, we run into a variety of laws, some that we still adhere to today, some that we advocate for, and some others that are fulfilled and no longer obeyed. 
 
The atonement practices of the Levitical priesthood have been fulfilled in Christ’s sacrifice. The book of Hebrews is a helpful place to go to understand this more fully. The restriction of eating blood and the restrictions on inappropriate sexual relationships, outside of marriage, are explicitly forbidden. And we adhere to that still. We see that as an important safeguard. It is illegal to marry your sister! While sexual ethics is waning culturally, in the church, many still advocate that homosexuality is a sin, and that comes from this chapter, among others.
 
We need to follow the ABC’s in the law. And what I mean by that is, “A” laws are for ALL Times, always. The “B” laws are Boundary specific and “C” laws are Context specific.
 
Always laws are like the Ten Commandments. Boundary laws are pretty specific to a people who were within a specific region of the world, for example laws about harvesting. And Context laws, were something like the garments that they wore. Context might also be those that involve the sacrifice of animals for the forgiveness of sins or other rules surrounding the offering. When the Israelites were traveling in the wilderness, the Tabernacle went with them, and those laws were context specific. When you are here, do this! That’s a context law.
 
Is Leviticus 18 and the sexual ethics laws an “A” law, “B” law or a “C” law? I would argue that it is an “A.” and in good measure, a “C” law. It’s for all time. And it does hold to a certain context as well, “when you are in the land of Canaan, don’t do as they have done!”
 
As we come to these texts, why do we uphold some and drop the others? Why aren’t we more consistent?
 
I argue that we are consistent. We are pro-life, because God is pro-life. The restricted nature of the sexual immorality laid out in Leviticus 18 is about protecting human life. And restricting the eating of blood (17), well that is also revealing a pro-life stance. The life is in the blood! 
 
This is not a condemnation on those who eat their steaks “rare.” The way in which animals are slaughtered, actually involves the draining of all of the blood out of the animal. What we see as red juice, isn’t blood, but something else called “weep.” It has to do with the freezing process. You can Google it. 
 
I’ve digressed some, but it is to say that our culture is deeply influenced by these three chapters of Leviticus. 
 
Leviticus 16 is all about the atonement. There is the scapegoat that is sent out of the village, bearing the sins of the people. It is Christ, in His atoning sacrifice, sent outside of the village. He takes our sins. He sets us free! That’s one connection to 1 John 1. 
 
Leviticus 17, it is the lifeblood of Christ, that is poured out for us. His blood, is our life! The blood of Jesus is our life, another connection to 1 John 1!
 
Leviticus 18, comes as this strong rebuke on a world that was filled with sexual immorality. God longs for the very best for His people. And sexual immorality, sexual relations with kinsfolk, well it stands to destroy life. God will vomit them out of the land.
 
We tend to transpose these verses onto the nation we reside. Understandably so. We know the brokenness and hurt that comes to families with sexual immorality, broken homes, child sacrifice and more.
 
John’s words are what we truly need hear and offer another strong connection for us.
 
1 John 1:5–10 –  “This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. 8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.”
 
We are ready to declare all who aren’t as righteous as us as sinners and condemn them because of what we read in Leviticus 17 and 18. We see those who profane the name of God, promote child sacrifice, and explore the wildest of sexuality and we find our footing to judge and cast them to hell.
 
John calls us to remember, “If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.”
 
I am unfaithful. I am just as much as sinner as the next person. I deceive myself if I claim to be without sin.
 
But as we confess our sins, as we confess that we have fallen short, Jesus remains faithful. The faithfulness of Jesus purifies all of us. He is the scapegoat. He purifies us through the life in his blood. We have fellowship together and are brought together, through Jesus. 
 
We can beat the drum of sin, the brokenness of the world around us and fall into the culture wars once more. But if that is your heart, it can be mine, certainly. We then must read, and reread 1 John 1, over and over again. 
 
“If anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father- Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world.”
 
I cheated, that’s from chapter 2. But the divisions are all made up anyways.
 
God Bless,
Jordan
 
 
P.S.
I know I opened probably a can of worms with this one. If you want to dig in deeper, I’d love to talk it through!