THE LORD SPOKE (February 15)

Daily Reflections from Scripture:

Old Testament: Leviticus 14

The key thought in the book of Leviticus is holiness - both the holiness of God and the holiness of man. God’s holiness is innate; it’s one of His attributes. Some would say the most important, because it is one of His “essential” attributes, but does He have any non-essential attributes? It is sometimes called a “communicable” attribute, for He says to man, “Be ye holy for I am holy.” (Lev. 11:44). Thus, man’s holiness is also emphasized in the book but his holiness is a learned attribute, or one that he must pursue. Since the fall, it doesn’t just come naturally though God has made man in such a way that there is a cord that resonates with God’s holiness. It’s part of what distinguishes us from the animals. It’s a component of “the image of God” in man.

The word “holy” appears more often in Leviticus than in any other book of the Bible. Spiritual holiness is symbolized by physical perfection. That’s why only perfect animals were acceptable for sacrifice (chapters 1-7), a priest could not have any deformity (chapters 8-10), and various human blemishes had to be dealt with ceremonially (chapters 12-15).

All may be signs of blemish (a lack of perfection) and may symbolize man’s spiritual defects, which break his spiritual wholeness. The person with visible skin disease must be banished from the camp, the place of God’s special presence, just as Adam and Eve were banished from the Garden of Eden. Such a person can return to the camp (and therefore to God’s presence) when he is pronounced whole again by the examining priests. Before he can reenter the camp, however, he has to offer the prescribed, perfect sacrifices (symbolizing the perfect, whole sacrifice of Christ). (The NIV Study Bible, p. 145)

The way to “be holy” is to bathe yourself in the Word of God so that you will begin to think God’s thoughts after Him. Then you will begin to reflect His attributes in the way you think and live. Copying Him is the highest form of worship!


New Testament: Luke 2

Don’t you wish you could have been there? You can almost imagine the scene and the sounds in the Temple court as ol’ Simeon held the Baby and lifted his voice to heaven.

Now he’s ready to die. Unlike any other individual on earth, the Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he would not die before seeing the Messiah. He had received a promise and now he was beholding (and holding!) the Promise. This was a man who walked with God. Three times in quick succession (vs. 25, 26, and 27) we’re told he maintained an intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit. Of him you could say, he communed with God. We’re told he was “righteous and devout” (2:25). Be sure to read that in the context of a Jewish man standing in the Temple courts in Jerusalem.

His song of praise is known as the Nunc Dimittis from the opening phrase in Latin, “You now dismiss....” Yup, old Simeon was ready to die. His prophetic dream had been fulfilled and he was holding the Lord’s Salvation in his arms. The Hebrew term for “salvation” is yeshuah: Jesus’ name in Hebrew is Yeshua. Remember? The angel had said, “You shall call his name Jesus for he shall save his people from their sins” (Mat. 1:21). If you’re not Jewish, you should be especially glad for Simeon’s words for he emphasizes that this Savior is not just for Israel but is to be “a light for revelation to the Gentiles” (2:32). That is where we get in the door too!

No wonder “the child’s father and mother marveled at what was said” (2:33). They’d heard some pretty amazing things over the last few months. One of the next sentences must have given them even more to ponder: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel...” (2:34). Usually we speak of the “rise and fall” of someone. But this One is so different. He begins with the fallen so He can raise them.

How about you? Will you fall before this Savior in order that He might raise you up?