Leviticus 19:1-8

Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. Every one of you shall reverence his mother and his father, and you shall keep My sabbaths; I am the Lord your God. Do not turn to idols or make for yourselves molten gods; I am the Lord your God. Now when you offer a sacrifice of peace offerings to the Lord, you shall offer it so that you may be accepted. It shall be eaten the same day you offer it, and the next day; but what remains until the third day shall be burned with fire. So if it is eaten at all on the third day, it is an offense; it will not be accepted. Everyone who eats it will bear his iniquity, for he has profaned the holy thing of the Lord; and that person shall be cut off from his people.”^[1]

In these first eight verses Moses is instructed to tell the people they are to be holy even as the Lord their God is holy. To be holy is not to be perfect but rather to be separate, separate from all the nations that surrounded them. This holiness is then manifested in four different ways. The first is how one relates to their parents demonstrating that holiness begins in the home. The second is that of keeping the Sabbath as a first spiritual priority, recognizing the need to have a day of rest after six days of work, and to have a day set aside to draw nearer to God and discover why we work at all. The third is a prohibition of idolatry, the exercise of worshiping that which literally strikes the eye. Finally, the fourth addresses the proper way of offering sacrifices. These four manifestations of holiness indicate that holiness touches every aspect of an individual’s life.

Jesus came that we might have abundant life. This life cannot be lived limping between multiple opinions. Believers cannot serve God and mammon, or to say it another way, they cannot have their cake and eat it too. Separation, holiness, entails forsaking the ways of the non-believing nations to be wholly devoted to the Lord. That difference will be evidenced in our families, in our singular allegiance, our worship, and even in the offerings we bring, and how we bring them. How marvelous a privilege it is to have the opportunity to reflect on our personal holiness. Are we as devoted to the Lord as we should be and as we profess to be? Is our worship pure and holy or merely ritualistic? Are our motives right and pure in the offerings we bring before the Lord or are we selfish and stingy? Can people see in the totality of our lives to whom we belong and the integrity of what we espouse? More importantly, how do we stand in the presence of our Savior and Lord, who hears all, sees all and knows all? For it is to Him that we all must one day give an account.

Dear Lord, all our righteousness is as filthy rags in your presence. We are not as holy as we represent ourselves to be. We run after the things this world has to offer. We worship that which strikes our eyes as pleasurable. We offer that which is tainted by wrong motives. Forgive us of our defection from the truth of Your Word and Your path. Like David before us “create in us clean hearts and renew a right spirit within us. Do not cast us away from Your presence or take Your Holy Spirit from us. Restore to us the joy of Your salvation and sustain us with a willing spirit” (Psalm 51:10-12). Amen.

^[1] New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), Le 19:1–8.