PERTAINING ONLY TO THE LEVITES?
In an age of smart phones, blue-tooth technology, and wireless communication networks; the laws concerning ritual purification, ceremonial washing, and animal sacrifices that governed the Levitical priesthood in the Bronze Age of 15th century B.C., conjure up an entirely alien world to the modern reader. At first glance, they offer precious little in the way of relevance in their daily lives, and even committed Christians who know and love their Bibles, find the book of Leviticus to be a puzzling enigma that is often not worth the time and effort to solve. Remarkably, some pastors and Bible teachers, who are passionate about teaching the whole council of God’s word even stumble when they come to this book, and they either simply pass through it quickly or avoid it altogether. At issue is not the interpretation of the text, which is quite simple actually, but rather the application of its message to the contemporary audience. They ask, “What does all this have to do with me in the year 2015, over 3,000 years after it was penned?” While it is true that the book of Leviticus can be challenging to read, it doesn’t only ‘pertain to the Levites’, as its title implies, but its message is highly relevant to all audiences, in every age.
I met a fellow pastor from a Lutheran church once while serving on jury duty. It was a horrible rape trial in which I was assigned as juror #6 and he was #12. We spoke often of the ministry during the two week ordeal and I’ll never forget the look on his face when I informed him one day that I was currently teaching a series of verse by verse messages through the book of Leviticus on Wednesday nights. His jaw almost hit the ground. “What?” he said, with a look of total shock and disbelief on his face. “Well, what are you saying about it?” he asked, “That they should keep the law, or practice the ordinances within it? Why would you teach that book?” I was equally shocked that a pastoral colleague could be so unaware of the valuable treasures that awaited his congregation by undertaking such a study in the form of the rich insights which are to be gained regarding the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross, and I began to share those with my co-laborer.
Much of the ceremonial and ritual content of Leviticus, while being foreign to our society, was not unheard of at the time of Moses. In-fact, “Highly structured priestly classes in charge of sanctuaries or temples are known in virtually all of the religious traditions concurrent with Hebrew faith…” (Hill and Walton, pg. 129) We tend to see the Levitical priesthood as establishing something completely new in history, as a part of them being called to be separate from the other nations but, “Ceremonial washing and anointing or purification rites before worship or service before the gods were common to both Mesopotamian and Egyptian religion.” (Hill and Walton, pg. 128) Indeed, man has always displayed tendencies which compel him to venerate deity in a similar fashion since the beginning of time. This is not an indictment of superstition against all of mankind, but rather the evidence of a worldwide expression of worship inherent in each of us, even to the present hour.
However, we must also acknowledge that while, “…sacrificial practices attest the universal need for humanity to placate the gods, the Hebrew sacrificial system was distinctive in that it was divinely revealed and was directed toward the goal of personal and community holiness.” (Hill and Walton, pg. 133) In addition, the Hebrews had the distinction of being able to trace their sacrificial system back to the very progenitors of the human race, Adam and Eve. All similarities aside, it was Adam and Eve who were shown in graphic detail, not only the first sacrifice, but the need for that sacrifice in order to atone for their own sins, as God Himself killed an animal to make, “…coats of skins, and clothed them.” (KJV, Gen 3:21) This established a pattern of atonement that can be seen throughout the entire Bible from this very early example onward, and Leviticus merely formalizes this into a systematic form of obedience and holiness, that began in the Garden of Eden, and was perfected on the cross of Calvary.
The Hebrew word for atonement refers to the, “…purging of holy objects from the effects of sin.” (Hill and Walton, pg. 134) and that is exactly what Christ has done for us, He has purged us from the effects of sin and made us holy in God’s sight. That is why the book of Leviticus becomes so relevant to every soul that has ever lived upon this earth, regardless of what century, because we all need to be purged from the effects of sin. As the Apostle Paul said, “…all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” (NKJV, Rom 3:23) and regardless of how irrelevant Leviticus may seem to our 21st century minds, we must understand these rituals because they help in furnishing, “…illustrations and a basis for understanding the redemptive work of Jesus Christ… the Messiah.” (Hill and Walton, pg. 136) As Christians, we need to diligently pursue a study of Scripture that consistently develops our knowledge and understanding of this subject, irrespective of how exciting or relevant we deem it to be.
Works Cited
Hill, Andrew and John Walton, A Survey of the Old Testament, Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010.
King James Version, Holy Bible, Thomas Nelson, Inc. Publisher, Gen 3:21
