HOLY YOU!—selections from Leviticus 18-19
(To begin, I went into the audience, to ask, “When you think of a ‘holy person,’ what do you think of?”)
Are you holy? Do you even want to be holy?
Maybe you think of a holy person as someone who never smiles, or has an attitude of being “holier than thou.” I don’t want to be that guy!
Some of us grew up with legalistic standards of holiness: “Good Christians don’t dance, drink, smoke, or chew—or run around with those who do.” In reaction, we might want to be a “cool Christian,” who discusses theology over a beer, and says grace at mealtime, holding a cell phone so that people will think we are talking on the phone, and are not to be interrupted.
Others think of a holy person as one who is super-spiritual. She prays an hour a day, and gets text messages from God. Since none of us can measure up to that, we might assume that we are not the holy type.
YOU ARE HOLY.
What does it mean to be holy? The literal meaning is “set apart,” which in the Bible is, “set apart as special to God.”
In the Old Testament, priests were set apart as holy; only they could go into the tabernacle, the Holy Place. They did have a special role, but the entire nation of Israel was set apart as holy. God said in Leviticus 20:26, “You are to be holy to me because I, the Lord, am holy, and I have set you apart from the nations to be my own.”
Were the Israelites holy because they were better than most people? No! In Deuteronomy 7:7-8, Moses said, “The Lord did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because the Lord loved you and kept the oath he swore to your forefathers that he brought you out with a mighty hand and redeemed you from the land of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt.” The people of Israel were holy, special to God, because he loved them and redeemed them from slavery.
Are Christians holy because they are better than most people, or “holier than thou”? No! In 1 Corinthians, Paul writes to a church struggling with scandal and sin. He begins his letter with this greeting: “To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified [set apart as holy] in Christ Jesus and called to be holy…”
You, church, are holy! God has loved you and redeemed you from slavery to sin, and set you apart as his own. Each of us is holy, set apart as a child of God.
You are a child of God. What is the most important lesson to teach your children? The most important thing is that they are special. They are special, not because they got an A on a spelling test, or scored the winning goal, but because God put them in your family, and you are special family, known and loved by God, set apart for service to God. 1 Corinthians 7:14 says, “The unbelieving husband has been sanctified through his wife, and the unbelieving wife has been sanctified through her believing husband. Otherwise your children would be unclean, but as it is, they are holy.”
Do you believe YOU are special to God? Do you believe that God has loved you and redeemed you, and set you apart as holy to him? What does that mean for you? God tells us, very specifically:
BE HOLY.
Leviticus has a recurring theme:
Leviticus 11:44-45 “I am the Lord your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. I am the Lord who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy.”
Leviticus 19:2 “Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: ‘Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.’”
Leviticus 20:7 “Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the Lord your God.”
Since the most holy God had loved them and redeemed them, setting them apart as special, it made sense that they would try to live up to who they were as God’s holy people.
For us, the case for being holy is even more compelling. 1 Peter 1:15-19 says, “Just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: "Be holy, because I am holy." …For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.”
Jesus Christ gave his life to make you holy! Be holy!
HOW can we be holy? Two words: SEPARATED and DEDICATED.
1. We must be SEPARATED from anything that would defile us.
Read Leviticus 18:1-5.
Your child comes home from school, saying, “But all the kids are doing it, and their parents are OK with it.” What do you say? “Our family is different. You are not like all the other kids; you are special to us, and to God.”
Or you, as an adult, look around and see what other people are doing, and you think, “Maybe I’m missing out by not joining others in some of those activities. Other people are doing those things, and they seem to be OK.”
Some actions are obviously unclean. Yet in our culture, the boundaries have shifted, so that that few things are off limits. Chapter 18 is mostly about sexual activities: incest with in-laws, adultery, homosexual relations, and bestiality. Not only are these activities frowned upon by many people, but they are offensive to God. If cultural standards shift, God warns his holy people that these activities will destroy the culture itself, and lead to his judgment. Read Leviticus 18:24-30.
It is easy to get legalistic about morality, as if holiness is about dos and don’ts. Holiness is not about a list of rules; it is about honoring God, by not going along with the fads and prejudices of the people around us. The last part of chapter 19 has a list of commands, which would make holy people stand out from their culture. As we read them, we want to think about what will make us resist the pressure of our culture to conform: Read Leviticus 19:19-37.
(Note to preacher: As you read, you might make some comments about individual commands. For example, “Are you checking the label on your clothes, to see whether they are woven from cotton or polyester?” “This passage is why some people are against tattoos. Verse 28 implies that the tats had religious significance. Also, the previous verse would put Super Cuts out of business.” “Verse 32 is about respect, which stands out in today’s culture. A holy person represents God.” This passage says that a holy person cares for justice for others: the slave girl, the alien, and the consumer in the marketplace who might be cheated. What might God say to his holy people today about justice?”)
The point of these commands is that holiness is not limited to ten commandments, or even hundreds of commandments. Holiness is how we stand out from the world, as we reflect the holiness of God. We don’t just go with the flow; we get our cues from God.
2. We must be DEDICATED to God.
The “holy things” of the tabernacle were an object lesson. The tabernacle and its contents, the incense and offerings, and the priests were set apart for God, separated from contamination and dedicated to the service of God. They were not to be misused; they were totally committed to the glory of God.
Our bodies, our minds, and our actions are holy, and they must be dedicated to God. Romans 12:1 says, “I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.”
How much of our lives are holy to the Lord? We might think of religious activities, such as worship and offerings and acts of service to the church. We might think of “spiritual” activities, like Bible study and prayer. However, Leviticus doesn’t allow us to put our lives into compartments, with some areas of life holy, and others not so much.
In Leviticus, holiness affects business, relationships, and social justice. It is about how one treats a starving family, a blind man, and a day laborer. Read Leviticus 19:1-18.
Perhaps you noticed that this list of commandments involves keeping not just the letter, but the spirit of The Ten Commandments. It is not enough to not lie; one must not deceive or defraud. It is not enough to refrain from murder; one must not endanger a neighbor, or hate a brother, and one must care enough to rebuke a neighbor frankly. It sounds a lot like what Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount, which was probably no accident. When Jesus was asked about the greatest commandment, he said it was to love God with one’s entire being. Then he referred to the text we just read: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus had definitely read this chapter!
ARE YOU HOLY? BE HOLY!
A holy person dedicates their life—every part of their life—to God.
“Be holy, because I, the LORD your God, am holy.”
God has redeemed you, and set you apart, for his glory.
Separate yourself from sin and evil, and dedicate yourself to serve him with your whole life.
