‘HOLINESS’ is NOT an OPTION but a REQUIREMENT!
February
6 Bible Reading: Leviticus Chapters 19-21
‘HOLINESS’ is NOT an OPTION but a REQUIREMENT!
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
"Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say to them:
'You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. Consecrate yourselves
therefore, and be holy, for I am the Lord your God…And you shall keep My
statutes, and perform them: I am the Lord who sanctifies you’…Therefore you
shall consecrate him (priest), for he offers the bread of your God. He shall be
holy to you, for I the Lord, who sanctify you, am holy." (Leviticus
19:1-2; 20:7-8; 21:8)
The key
verses selected (above) comes from each of the three chapters that we have read
today, where God details various moral and ceremonial laws regarding the conduct of the people (Lev. 19), the penalties for breaking these laws
(Lev. 20) and the regulations for conduct
of the priests (Lev. 21). A dominant theme of Leviticus is that of holiness, both of God (inherent to His nature and person), and also of His people (acquired through maintaining
discipline in life).
God was
leading the children of Israel from one pagan culture (Egypt) to another pagan
culture (Canaan), both of which followed many despicable and unholy religious/social
practices. It is not surprising that God wanted to stress again and again to
the Israelites the importance of maintaining a holy and sanctified life for the
simple reason that ‘God is holy’. Holiness is the essence of God and so
God demanded and reiterated time and again that His children should also be
holy. The basis of all holiness is found in the words “I the Lord your God am holy” (v. 2).
Israel’s
fundamental calling was to be a “holy
nation” (Ex. 19:6). They were to be “separated
from sin” and “to cling unto the
Lord”. Israel was required to be holy because God is holy. God’s holiness
served as the model for the entire Israelite congregation. True holiness
manifests itself in more than ritual and sexual behavior. Indeed, it pervades
all of life both vertically (toward
God) and horizontally (toward
others). God’s holiness and subsequently human holiness must provide the bases
for all human behavior.
Let us
understand that holiness originates from
God and emerges in our relationship with parents and children. We too must
imitate God in holiness by practicing numerous duties that reflect Him. It
affects the way we worship and treat the poor, the stranger, a neighbor, women,
animals, the soil, and the aged. Just as these are all mingled together, so
Peter exhorts Christians, "As He who
called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is
written, "Be holy, for I am holy." (1 Peter 1:15-16)
I have read
somewhere that God the Father’s passion,
God the Son’s pattern and God’s the
Spirit’s presence are all sufficient
for us to pursue holiness in all areas of our lives. God the Father proclaims “Be Holy”, God the Son presents
the model “Be Holy as I am Holy”,
and God the Holy Spirit promises to help
us: “I will make you Holy”. Does the
fact that we serve a ‘holy’ God make
any practical difference in our day-to-day lives?
