The Attributes of God:

The Holiness of God and the Uncleanness of Humanity.  Leviticus 11-15 “For I am the Lord your God; consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy.”                   How do you teach people when there are no books or written material for instruction?  You teach by using analogies and lessons that are connected to their world.  You teach by symbols and equivalences so that they can understand and communicate the lessons to others through these illustrations. The theme of Leviticus is the holiness of God.  God is intrinsically holy and pure and cannot be associated with sin and corruption.  Yet, when we look at our world, we see that everything and everyone is tainted by sin.  Sin and its stain is so extensive that there is not a single aspect of our lives, our character, or our actions that is untouched by its corruptive effect....

The Sacrifice of Christ. Leviticus 6-10 “The fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it.  It shall not go out, but the priests shall burn wood on it every morning; and he shall lay out the burnt offering on it, and offer up in smoke eth fat portions of the peace offerings on it.”                   To understand how Leviticus points us to Christ, we need to understand the significance of the sacrifices but also the role of the priests.  Both pointed us to the person and ministry of Christ.  The sacrificial system points us to the significance of His death, but in the priesthood, we discover the importance of His ministry on our behalf.                     In Leviticus, we discover five different types of sacrifices that the people were to offer up to God: The burnt off...

The Requirements of a Holy God Leviticus 1-5 “The Lord said to Moses: “When a person commits a violation and sins unintentionally in regard to any of the lord’s holy things, he is to bring to the Lord as a penalty a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value in silver, according to the sanctuary shekel.”                   How can sinful people approach a holy God who is untainted by sin?  The Book of Leviticus is more than an outdated list of offerings and sacrifices that seem unconnected to the modern world.  The book of Leviticus is a signpost, a book of rituals and sacrifices designed to reveal the severity of sin and its judgment and how grace and salvation may be realized.  Perhaps more than any other book in the Old Testament, Leviticus serves as a primer of the person and work of Christ.  The gospels answer the question, “Who is the...

Preparing for the Presence of God Exodus 36-40 “Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.”                   Let’s be honest: God's detailed description of the intricate building of the Tabernacle will never be quoted as a person’s favorite life verse.  We quickly scan over the details, looking for something that excites us, but get lost in the in-depth description.  However, important lessons must be learned, and sometimes we miss the forest for the trees.  We get so lost in the details that we fail to grasp the vital truth it teaches.  In the description of the building requirements of the Tabernacle, we discover three invaluable life principles that we need to implement in our lives.                   First, God equip...

The Grace and Justice of God Exodus 31-35 “The Lord, The Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished, visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth generations.”                   Actions and attitudes matter.  How we respond to God and how faithful we are to live in obedience and enormous implications for ourselves and our relationship with God and future generations.                    Before the dust had settled from God chiseling the law in stone tablets, the people were already breaking the covenant.  When God declared that He was making a cove...

The Holiness of God. Exodus 26-30 “I will consecrate the tent of meeting and the altar; I will also consecrate Aaron and his sons to minister as priests to me.  I will dwell among the sons of Israel and will be their God.”                   When reading through the Bible, many passages capture our attention and challenge our faith.  However, if we are honest, some passages seem confusing, disconnected from our lives today, and (if we are honest) challenging to relate to our lives.  The description of the requirements for the building of the Tabernacle is one such passage.  As we read through the requirements, it challenges the attention of even the most ardent reader.  However, examining the passage closer reveals that it teaches us some important truths about God.  The description of the Tabernacle was more than just the building plans, i...