Today’s Reading, Leviticus 11-13
Focal Scripture: Leviticus 11:47 “in order to distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between the animals that may be eaten and those that may not be eaten.””
Clean and unclean seems like a pretty obvious definition. However, in the biblical context it is a little more nuanced than just a physical appearance. When we first hear these words the first place your mind is probably headed is a persons physical appearance. If you are unclean you would imagine a person’s dirty. You might even believe that the way the present themselves is not appropriate for the setting. If a person is clean they look nice and probably even smell good as well.
In today’s reading however, we see cleanliness explained from three different perspectives. The three perspectives are food, child birth and skin diseases. The Lord is very detailed in what is considered clean and unclean. It might seem ridiculous but it has a major impact on the Jewish people and even on us today.
What are those impacts? First, cleanliness matters because the Israelites were supposed to be different than the people that surrounded them. Their counterparts ate food that was sacrificed and given to false gods. The Lord was making it clear that his people would not be like everyone else. The impact for us personally should be just the same. We can’t live and be like the world. It must be obvious we belong to the Lord. So what sets you apart from the lost people in your life? It should be your relationship with the Lord and how you live. It should be obvious for all to see.
The other reason the Lord focused on cleanliness and uncleanliness is to show he is the God of life. Almost everything that made people unclean had to do with death. It had to do with sacrifice and dead animals. It had to do with proper procedures in the handling of sickness, blood and bodies. When you handled death it made you unclean. However, when you handled life it brought you into the presence of the Lord.
So the challenge we have to give ourselves today is to find out if we are living a life of cleanliness or uncleanliness. This does not mean perfection, but it does mean a life separate from others. It is time that the world sees we are different because of what Christ has done for us in our lives. It is time we live in a way that draws people to the Lord. Get rid of anything that can make you unclean and pursue holiness at all costs.
Tomorrow, I plan on reading Leviticus 14-15
