Bible Chapter: Leviticus 17 & 18

Because the Bible is practical, here are some statements to get you thinking.

1.  Write one or two key thoughts that come from today’s reading.
    Who deserves worship?  Only God deserves worship.  Some in Israel were making sacrifices to idols.  God said they must stop that and only offer sacrifices to Him.  We see a strong emphasis on the fact that life is in the blood.  The sacrifices were a substitute to take the punishment for sin.  The shedding of blood brought forgiveness.  The sacrifices also pointed forward to the time when Jesus would be the ultimate sacrifice for sin.  Some of their sacrifices where unbelievable, in that they were following the heathen practices of sacrificing children.  That must NEVER be.
    Another question from these chapters is this: Who sets the moral standards for our behavior?  God warned His people that they must reject the standards of the people around them and follow HIS standards.  That means that any sexual relationship or activity is limited only to a husband and wife.  Anything else is an abomination before God. Letting society set the standards leads to destruction.  I am observing in our world today that moral standards are becoming anything that anyone wants them to be.  The person who insists on biblical standards is attacked and ridiculed.  People think that by changing laws or getting a judge to declare something unconstitutional they have accomplished something.  The only thing they have accomplished is trying to change the unchangeable and opening themselves up for God’s judgement.

2.  What can I apply in my life from the reading?
    I must always remember that life is valuable.  It is not a matter of convenience.  Life must be respected since life was made in the image of God.  I must also stand strong on God’s moral principles.  They are not up for debate and discussion. They are not available to change according to the whims of the time.  What God established cannot be redefined.  God’s morality stands.  I have observed that the more our society throws away God’s moral standards, the more problems we have.  There is a direct correlation between the slippery slope of changing moral standards and the deterioration of society.  History tells us that.  Modern experience tells us that.  Sadly, there is a major blind spot in our society that doesn’t see that.  I must apply God’s way.

3.  How can I help someone?
    I want to help people see the value that God places on life.  I want to help them see that following God’s moral principles makes our lives better. They don’t keep something good from us, they keep something bad from us.  We are always better off to do things God’s way.