Day #49

Sermon - Audio
Lev 16-18 - Audio
Lev 16-18 - Daily Reading

Daily Insights - Please Comment

16

+ If you recall, Nadab and Abihu were killed for entering the tabernacle with wrong motives/manners. The same fate was not wanted for Aaron, so there would be an appointed time and place for him to come.

+ Aaron must come in the typical fashion as others have...specific clothes, clean, washed, with sacrifices.

+ No one is certain over this "Azazel"= goat. what is certain is that it is sent out in order to take sin away from Israel. - ESVSB- Explanations of this goat go from being a demon or a type of Christ....needless to say there is a wide range of thoughts.

+v4-10 = Twisted Scripture - Seventh-Day Adventist's use these verses as a passage pointing to Satan as the scapegoat who takes away the sins of God's people. They say this occurs during the millennium when Satan is sentenced to roam the desolate earth while the saints are in heaven. This doctrine makes Christ and Satan co-redeemers...We see that this is not true in many parts of the scriptures (ex - Ps 103:12, Colossians 1:15-23, many more) - ASB-

+ v21,22 - This is a picture of the transferring of their sins to a goat. This goat would then be excommunicated from the people. It is believed that the people even made sure that it died by throwing it off a cliff, so it would not return back to the camp.

+ v29-34 - The people are told to fast, do not work, and treat this time (Day of Atonement) as the Sabbath. The Jewish people still celebrate and observe this day today. It is a very important time for them. However, as Christians we believe that Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of Yom Kippur, and is the final atonement for sin. Read Hebrews 9 for some more thoughts on Christ as our once and for all sacrifice.

***Larry will discuss this further in his message tomorrow***

17

+ 17:1–9 If a person slaughters an animal either in the camp or outside the camp (v. 3) and does not bring the blood to the sanctuary (v. 4), that act is tantamount to human murder (though not identical to it). The immediate purpose for the prohibition is to prevent the people’s idolatry in worshiping the goat demons (v. 7). Anyone who violates the prohibition is to be cut off from his people (v. 9). -ESVSB-

+ Chapter #17 - #26 begin as many scholars would call it, "The Holiness Code." These things are especially concerned with the holiness of God.

+ In Genesis 9:4 we see the same command, "But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood." The blood is a representation of life.

18

+ v1-5 = God makes sure that the people know that they will look different than the rest of the world. He states again that they "shall follow my rules and keep my statues and walk in them." The other people in the world lived by their own rules and standards that were created. The people of Israel are to live by Gods.

+ v6-9 = The idea is that it is only lawful for people in marriage to be unashamed of their nakedness together. This may be another sign back to the restoration process. God's cleaning things up!

+ v6-18 = Discharges yesterday and incest today...it's been quite the Friday and Saturday.

v 19 = Men were not permitted to have sex with woman during her menstruation.

v 20 = Adultery is now called out. It's interesting to see the phrase "unclean with her." You not only affect yourself, but the other person with this. It's not much different today as adultery breaks/effects everything around us.

v21 = "This refers to the cult of Molech (2 Kings 23:10; Jer. 32:35). The precise nature of the offering of children to this pagan god is uncertain. It may be that they are being given to the cult of Molech to train to be temple prostitutes, and that is why this passage is listed in a section dealing with sexual prohibitions. On the other hand, Roman authors describe the practice of sacrificing babies by fire in Carthage (a north African city founded by Phoenicians, who were part of Canaan), and thus this may indeed refer to this horrific custom." -ESVSB-

v 22 = Homosexuality is an abomination (something disgusting (morally)). See Romans 1:24-32, 1 Kings 14:24, 15:12, and 22:46 for more thoughts on this. It's important to remember that hatred is not any "better" than homosexuality. People claiming they were "born with these tendencies" are expected not to indulge in their sin, just like all Christians can't in any other one of our fleshly desires. Hating homosexuals is indulging in a sin as well...remember that. Homosexuals need the gospel just as much as all of us.

v 23 = Beastielity is wrong...enough said.

+ The following verses make me wonder how bad things really were. Can you imagine all of the above things being acceptable within a society?

+ The nature and priority of covenant is stated again at the end of chapter 18, "the persons who do them shall be cut off from among their people." Covenant is a privilege, not a right.