The Joy of Leviticus !

Dry, opaque, uninterestingIrrelevant, forbidding, dispensableOught not to be in the BibleAll those baby lambs!!!

Not an easy book

IrreplaceableBest book in the Bible

What if we looked at it from a movie rating standard?

Graphic violence Descriptions of bodily functions that produce squeamishness

Unreserved discussions about sex

Familial IntrigueFire out of Heaven consuming people

Holy Blood and Holy Fire!

Way into the Presence of the Holy One

Living in His presence How to bring everything in life to Him

What it means to be actually holy

Daily Passionate Love for GodAn Absolute, Complete and Abundant Salvation

Why do we tighten?

Don’t want to work Thinking takes effortWe don’t like regulations of any

kind…reallyI don’t want to go to hell but stay

away from my everyday, “normal” life.

He really doesn’t care about all that stuff anyway.

The “Grinch” that stole the OT

Marcion of Sinope 85-160AD

Dealing with our Marcionism

OT is wrong, just a legalistic albatross

OT is a sub-Christian book OT has an angry, vengeful God and

the NT gives us the nice and sweet God so we will lop off the OT…unless I like the passage

OT is just an appendix - dispensable OT is just too far back there to

understand OT doesn’t give me immediate pay-

back

OT and NT

Didn’t Jesus replace all that OT stuff?

It was all fuzzy and NT corrected it

All I need is the NT – OT is unnecessary

OT is not the prequel to the NT NT is not a revised, corrected edition of the OT

NT is the final chapter of God’s Message of Love

Matt 5:17 – up front, at the start, “I did not come to do away with

the Law but to fulfill it!”II Tim 3:16 “All Scriptures” – OT –

are God-breathedHundreds of references/allusions to

the OT Look, this is what the OT was

pointing to!

Jesus, the Law and Judaism

Jesus is what the OT is all aboutWe want to know everything about Him.

Only true source we have to understand what led up to His life.

Bad “law” Mt 5-7, Rom 6, Gal etc. ALWAYS means

the judaistic interpretation of the OT.

The “fencing” of the Moral Law

NT assumes the OT

NT builds upon all of the OTExpects that we are already alert

and prepared - “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”

Faith and salvation don’t begin in Bethlehem

Jesus and all NT authors loved the OT

Jesus to the Pharisees – You don’t know your Bible. If you did you would see it is about me!

Jn 5:39-40

Just before Leviticus:Law as Grace

Stuck in bondage and personal sin Deliverer is prepared and arrives Glorious, wonder-filled undeserved

deliverance Unbelievable provision Only request – believe – act like I

(really) AM Ex 19 relationship of love sealed by

covenant Covenantal expressions (Ex 2o-24)

follow the beginning of the relationship

Comparable to a house without a foundation

Not “imported” but “pointed to”

Jesus is what the OT is aboutNT = Fulfillment of the Christian FaithNT without OT is without a foundationRaises questions that need answers

In itself OT is incompleteOT = Foundation of the Christian Faith

Christian Book with two parts:The OT is NOT a Jewish Book

The Theme of the Pentateuch

Genesis

Exodus Leviticus Central Book

Numbers

Deuteronomy

BeginningsChosen

RedemptionDelivered

WorshipSet Apart

WanderingsDirected

Covenant AnewMade Ready

PreparedSovereign

RedeemedMerciful

TaughtHoly

TestedJust

RetaughtLoving

Creator“Let there be”

Redeemer‘Let My people go’

SanctifierBe Holy

SustainerGo in

RewarderListen and Obey

Canaan Egypt and Sinai Sinai Wilderness Moab

The Need for it

Accomplishment of it

The Fruit of it

The Fall from it

The Restoration of it

Relation of Exodus and Leviticus

Way out of Bondage Way of Holiness

Camped at Sinai Laws for WorshipLed by His Presence Living in His

PresenceRedeemed Lives Offering

Acceptable LivesVictor MediatorDelivered Cleansed through

sacrificePillar/Cloud/Glory Altar and Glory

Flow of Leviticus

1-16 The Way of Approach 17-27 The Way of Holiness

The Way to God The Walk with God

Godward Manward

Overview of the Book

Becoming Holy Remaining Holy Way to God Walk with GodCuring Unholiness Preventing UnholinessPast Future

The Atoning God The Lord of a Holy Nation

Offerings Priests Purity Atone People Priests Feasts Bless/Curse

1-7 8-10 11-15 16 17-20 21-22 23-25 26-27

Major Recurring terms and themes

Holy, Holiness, sanctify all forms 150 times

20% of OT usages

most in 19-27RitualsPriesthood“make atonement”“Lord called unto Moses” 56 times

The “Beautiful” Message of Leviticus

What does God want most of all?“Be holy as I am holy!”

Exodus is over –now I want to get really intimate

I want a people who love me and look like me!

A vital part of our story

After chapters of regulationsEx 40:34-35Leviticus starts here!Time in relation to deliverance

Ex 19-Num 10 = 10-11 months

Leviticus at Sinai – about a month?

The Dynamic of the Book

Leviticus = Greek for “of the Levites” “And He called” 20 of 27 chapters start “Yahweh said to

Moses” Most direct words by God in any book

Ex. from Sinai - Lev. from the tabernacle Directions on intimacy with the Holy One Specific instructions that pertain to Israel’s

life, which point to the person and work of Jesus and us.

Three Kinds of Sacrifice

A. Gifts and Tributes1. Tributary (First Fruits and Offerings)2. Vows3. Thanksgiving (grateful for favor)4. Freewill Offerings (heart impulse)

B. Communion and Covenant (fellowship)

C. Expiation or Propitiation (forgiveness)Means of restoring relat. and averting wrath