Day 631: Leviticus 17- Real Relationship

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to Aaron and his sons and to all the people of Israel and say to them, This is the thing that the Lord has commanded. 3 If any one of the house of Israel kills an ox or a lamb or a goat in the camp, or kills it outside the camp, 4 and does not bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting to offer it as a gift to the Lord in front of the tabernacle of the Lord, bloodguilt shall be imputed to that man. He has shed blood, and that man shall be cut off from among his people. 5 This is to the end that the people of Israel may bring their sacrifices that they sacrifice in the open field, that they may bring them to the Lord, to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and sacrifice them as sacrifices of peace offerings to the Lord. 6 And the priest shall throw the blood on the altar of the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting and burn the fat for a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 7 So they shall no more sacrifice their sacrifices to goat demons, after whom they whore. This shall be a statute forever for them throughout their generations.
8 “And you shall say to them, Any one of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who sojourn among them, who offers a burnt offering or sacrifice 9 and does not bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting to offer it to the Lord, that man shall be cut off from his people.
Laws Against Eating Blood10 “If any one of the house of Israel or of the strangers who sojourn among them eats any blood, I will set my face against that person who eats blood and will cut him off from among his people. 11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life. 12 Therefore I have said to the people of Israel, No person among you shall eat blood, neither shall any stranger who sojourns among you eat blood.
13 “Any one also of the people of Israel, or of the strangers who sojourn among them, who takes in hunting any beast or bird that may be eaten shall pour out its blood and cover it with earth. 14 For the life of every creature is its blood: its blood is its life.[b]Therefore I have said to the people of Israel, You shall not eat the blood of any creature, for the life of every creature is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off.15 And every person who eats what dies of itself or what is torn by beasts, whether he is a native or a sojourner, shall wash his clothes and bathe himself in water and be unclean until the evening; then he shall be clean. 16 But if he does not wash them or bathe his flesh, he shall bear his iniquity.”
 
Meditation
God desires real relationship. This reality is centered on the cross, the bloody sacrifice of Jesus, in which He bore our sins to give us salvation. Christians are justified by Christ’s blood, forgiven sinners and enemies are transformed into family (Romans 5:8-10). The OT sacrificial laws are precursors to the cross, pictures of God’s passion for personal relationship.
 
Israel’s holy God provided a path for personal relationship by revealing the proper place for sacrifice, the proper use of blood, the priority of addressing ritual impurity, and the application of these laws to sojourners. The specifics may be foreign to us! But the heartbeat behind the direction is the same: God wants personal relationship with His people and proper sacrifice is central to reconciliation.
 
God did not abandon His people who rebelled in the wilderness. From love He provided a path of personal relationship through sacrifice. God does not abandon people today who reject Him and His word. God demonstrates His love through the bearing of sin on the cross and offering redemption to all who believe.
 
The same consequence will come for anyone who rejects God’s provision of sacrifice, both then and now: “You shall bear your iniquity…” (16). To bear our own iniquity is to be cut off from personal relationship with a Holy God and to personally pay the penalty for our sin. God’s love offers life, that we may cast our iniquities on the cross, to not be cut off, but to be welcomed in personal relationship by grace and love.
 
Richly Dwelling
-Do you live as if you bear your own iniquity or do you cast your burden of sin onto Christ and the cross?
 
-Why is God’s provision of proper sacrifice for sins a profound demonstration of His love for His people- for you?
 
-How can you live more freely in the love of Christ, forgiven and free from the burden of paying for personal sin?
 
Key Verse
16 But if he does not wash them or bathe his flesh, he shall bear his iniquity.”