00 Introduction to Leviticus

00 Introduction to Leviticus

2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. Thus, we cannot leave off the study of Leviticus.

Leviticus is the sequel to the Exodus.

In Genesis we see man ruined

In Exodus we see man redeemed

In Leviticus we see man worshiping God (McGee)

Listen to the transition from Exodus to Leviticus:

“For the cloud of the LORD was upon the tabernacle by day, and fire was on it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel, throughout all their journeys.” (Exodus 40:38) “And the LORD called unto Moses, and spake unto him out of the tabernacle of the congregation, saying…” (Leviticus 1:1)

The Book of Leviticus picks up where Exodus leaves off. The children of Israel are still camped out at the base of Mount Sinai and will be throughout the Book of Leviticus.

The Tabernacle has been completed and must now be put to use.

LEVITICUS, Third book of the Pentateuch (5 books).

· Portrays the rituals that priests must regulate and perform to maintain God’s presence with His people.

· Primarily concerned with sacrifice and regulations for maintaining holiness.

· Referred to as the “priests’ law,” “priests’ book,” and “the law of the offerings” in the Mishnah.

What we are dealing with is a group of just freed slaves who have little if any idea of self-government, religion, or even how to survive, therefore GOD intends to instruct them.

Brief Outline Summary:

· Chapters 1–7 outline the offerings required of both the laity and the priesthood.

· Chapters 8–10 describe the consecration of Aaron and his sons to the priesthood.

· Chapters 11–16 are the prescriptions for various types of uncleanness.

· The final 10 chapters are God’s guidelines to His people for practical holiness. Various feasts were instituted in the people’s worship of God, convened and practiced according to God’s laws.

· Blessings or curses would accompany either the keeping or neglect of God’s commandments (chapter 26).

· Vows to the Lord are covered in chapter 27.

LEVITICUS begins with the word “And”; therefore, it is a continuation of Exodus, The book focuses on the most important quality of fellowship with the holy God.

Remember, The people could not approach God when He spoke from a mountain, but they could approach God when He spoke from the tabernacle.

Holiness is the key quality to approach God (Lev. 19:2). The word holy occurs 94 times in the 27 chapters and 859 verses of the book.

God had a temple for His people in the OT, but in the NT God has a people for His temple

· I Corinthians 3:16-17; Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? 17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

· 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.

o When you purchase or build a house you next get a certificate of occupancy. Christ has purchased you – have you given Him a certificate of occupancy?

o How do I do that? Through total surrender.

· The temple is the meeting ground for fellowship. Holiness is the most important attribute of God and it is the priority for a believer to fellowship with the holy God.

o 1 Thess. 4:1-8

o 1 Peter 1:13-16

o Spiritually, Exodus typifies justification and Leviticus typifies sanctification or holiness (Ex. 13:2 Sanctify unto me all the firstborn).

o True holiness is only attained through spiritual discernment under the guidance of the Holy Ghost: through sanctification.

§ John 16:13-14 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. Sanctification, process of holiness.

§ John 17:17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.

o Holiness requires discretion and proper judgmentbetween the holy and the profane (Lev. 10: 10; Il :47; Prov. 2:11; Isa. 5:20; John 7:24; I Cor. The only absolute standard for holiness is the Bible

§ John 12:48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day. Proper judgment

At least four important themes appear in this book that directly relate to the Book of Exodus, its recording of the Sinai covenant, and the erection of the tabernacle.

· The first concept is the presence of God in Israelite worship, as repeatedly the ceremonies take place "before the LORD," and the food offerings make "a sweet savor unto the LORD" (e.g., 1:9, 13, 17; 2:9; 3:5). This concept extends to all times, even in the mundane duties of life.

o SO, WE WILL TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT THAT

· Second, the concept of holiness is the motto of Leviticus: "Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I am the LORD your God.” Leviticus 20:7 — for example,

o sanctify, holiness—OCCUR 152 times in Leviticus or about 20 percent of the total occurrences in the Old Testament. (SANCTIFY being to set yourself apart unto holiness)

o Unclean (tamé)), and its cognates occur 132 times, or more than 50 percent of the total Old Testament occurrences.

o Clean (tahör) and related terms occur 74 times, or about85 percent of the total Old Testament occurrences.

o Profane (ehilel) occurs 14 times in Leviticus out of 66 references in the Old Testament. In addition to these statistics,' the language of sacrifice pervades the book.

o The word sacrifice occurs about 40 times

o Priest is found about 190 times

o Blood about 85 times

o Atonement about 45 times.

o SO, WE WILL TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT THAT AS WELL

· The third major concept emphasized is the role of sacrifice as Hebrews 9:22 says, “Almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission."

o The first 17 chapters in Leviticus are devoted to explaining the Occasions (or and the correct procedures to be followed in sacrifice.

o SO, WE WILL TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT THAT AS WELL

· The fourth area is that of the idea of the covenant. At the heart of Exodus (chg. 19—26) is the Sinai covenant. All that follows in Exodus is a working out of the covenant, Leviticus explains how covenant worship should be conducted (chs. 1—17), then how the covenant people should behave (chs. 18—25), and closes with a section of blessings and curses, which is entirely appropriate to a covenant document (ch. 26): Indeed, the last verse of chapter 26 connects all that precedes with Sinai, where the covenant was concluded. "These are the statutes and judgments and laws, which the LORD made between him and the children of Israel in mount Sinai by the hand of Moses" (26:46).

o SO, WE WILL TAKE A CLOSER LOOK AT THAT AS WELL

This is just a brief overview of a few of the things we will looking at as we go through the book of Leviticus. Probably won’t go through chapter by chapter, verse by verse but we will go through it.

Read the Book, take notes, ask questions.