Week 8, February 15–21: Leviticus 4–22; Psalms 11–17

• Sun      Feb 15 Lev. 4–5          Ps. 11
• Mon     Feb 16 Lev. 6–8          Ps. 12
• Tue      Feb 17 Lev. 9–11        Ps. 13
• Wed     Feb 18 Lev. 12–14      Ps. 14
• Thu      Feb 19 Lev. 15–17      Ps. 15
• Fri        Feb 20 Lev. 18–19      Ps. 16
• Sat       Feb 21 Lev. 20–22      Ps. 17

After reading Exodus we continue on through the Pentateuch and into Leviticus. As we do so, it is important to remember we are continuing the story from Genesis and Exodus. Leviticus is part three of the five-part book of Moses, the Pentateuch, the Torah. The whole book of Leviticus takes place over about one month (see Exod. 40:17; Num. 1:1) while Israel is still at Mt. Sinai. Keeping in mind the broader narrative context of Leviticus helps put the book in perspective, and it helps us understand what it meant for the people of Israel and what it means for us today.

Exodus finished with the completion of the tabernacle’s construction. The tabernacle was the tent where God would dwell. In fact, God is everywhere. There is no part of the universe where he is not present; and yet, the tabernacle was the dwelling place designed to house a concentrated display of God’s holy, glorious presence among his people.

The tent’s construction has been completed, all according to the plans the Lord instructed Moses to follow (Exod. 40:16–33). A cloud came down and covered the tent, and God’s glory filled the tabernacle (Exod. 40:34). However, even Moses was not able to enter the tent because God’s glorious presence dwelt there (Exod. 40:33). This is the dilemma we are left to ponder at the end of Exodus.

A major aim of Leviticus is to address this problem. It begins with the Lord speaking to Moses from the tent of meeting. Leviticus is full of the Lord’s instructions to Moses, the priests, and the Israelites, teaching them how they are to live with the presence of a holy God in their midst. In many ways, it is all about giving an answer to the question of Psalms 15:1 and 24:3

O LORD, who shall sojourn in your tent? Who shall dwell on your holy hill? (Ps. 15:1

Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? (Ps. 24:3)

Leviticus is probably not everyone’s favorite book to read. Its relevance to us and to our lives as Christians is sometimes difficulty to see. It includes detailed descriptions and instructions, many of which are obscure and confusing. I knew of an old Scottish Bible teacher who would say, “Beware Leviticus!” Many well-intentioned Bible read thru plans have stalled out at this point. But Leviticus is God’s inspired word to us just as much as Psalms or Philippians. It is true and it is profitable for us to read. We can trust that God has something to say to us in Leviticus.

 Here are a few principles that can help guide us as we read through Leviticus and the other parts of the Pentateuch that contain a lot of laws. These are three ways OT laws are important for us today:

First, they show us who God is. Leviticus is about holiness. It shows what it means that the Lord is holy. God’s commandments are grounded in God’s perfect and glorious character. When the people are told to be holy, the reason is because the Lord is holy (Lev. 11:44–45). When we read the laws in Leviticus and the rest of the Pentateuch, we come to know our holy, righteous God more fully. We are not just trying to learn about God, but we are seeking to grow in relationship with him. To do that, we need to know who he is. He is worthy of our worship and he is worthy of our time and attention as we seek to know him by reading his word.

Second, the laws of the Torah show us what God desires from his people. The Lord has not changed. He is the same God who gave Moses and the Israelites the laws of Leviticus. He gave them those laws so they would live lives that honor their God and flourish as they walk with him. He gave them laws because he loved them. We are in a New Covenant relationship with the same God. We are not accountable to all the laws of the Mosaic covenant, the laws God gave Israel at Mt. Sinai. Nevertheless, the principles underlying those laws are eternal truths that are still instructive for us today. They help us see what it looks like to live a life of wisdom and blessing before God and in community with his people. Jesus sums up the whole law by quoting from Leviticus and Deuteronomy. The law, says Jesus, is all about loving God and loving our neighbor. (Matt. 22:34–40; quoting Deut. 6:5; Lev. 19:18) So while we are not required to keep all the laws precisely as they were given to Israel, we are still called by God to live and love in line with the timeless principles they reflect.

Third, biblical laws show us we need help. Probably the most important takeaway from reading Leviticus and the Pentateuch is to see that we—all humans—are in desperate need of something or someone outside ourselves to achieve the righteousness and holiness God’s character requires. Reading Leviticus should leave us with a healthy sense of helplessness. These laws are impossible to keep. They certainly were for the Israelites. We see this clearly when they break the laws right from the start, even as they were receiving them at Mt. Sinai. This is why there are such elaborate procedures and a whole priestly system to make offerings and sacrifices for sins, known sins and even unknown sins. The blood of animals brought temporary, provisional atonement for their sins, and it anticipated the once-for-all atonement that would be achieved through Christ at the cross.

Leviticus is the word of God. It is Christian Scripture for us. It helps us see who the Lord is, and it helps us understand his loving heart for his people and how he wants us to live in relationship with him and others. And Leviticus helps us recognize our need for his grace and for the atoning work he accomplished in Christ. Without Leviticus, we would be missing a key part of the picture that helps us grasp how beautiful the good news of the gospel really is. Leviticus points powerfully to our Great High Priest and to the Perfect Lamb of God.

For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the LORD from all your sins. (Lev. 16:30)

But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. (Heb. 9:11–12)