READING: Leviticus 19-20, Matthew 27:51-66
“Be holy because I, Yahweh your God, am holy.”
Leviticus 19:2
It’s hard to miss this phrase that runs throughout today’s reading: “I am Yahweh your God.” That phrase occurs in Leviticus 19:3, 4, 10, 25, 31, 34, 36; 20:7, 24 – nine times. Similar phrases occur in Leviticus 19:2, 12, 14, 16, 18, 28, 30, 32, 37; 20:8, 26 – eleven more times. Needless to say, these words matter. The God of the Bible is a personal, holy God who demands His followers to live differently than the world.
This God was not just another idol to be added to the idols of the people in the land. No, He was the holy One who had a right to demand allegiance and obedience. He was “set apart” in His holiness, and He expected His people to be unique – so different from the world that others would recognize their uniqueness. His people were to, in His words, “keep all My statutes and all My ordinances and do them” (Lev. 19:37). They were to revere Him, reject idolatry, and treat others differently, always remembering that He was the God who brought them out of Egypt.
The contemporary applications of these truths are so many that we could write multiple devotions. Because God is a holy God who chooses to be my God, I must make choices that reflect that relationship. I must treat my parents with reverence. I must reject all my idols; that is, I must not have anything above God in my life. I must walk in godliness, rejecting lying, stealing, hatred, and injustice. My sex life must follow the clear commands of God rather than the compromised standards of the world. If God truly is the Lord my God, my life must be marked by holiness.
Indeed, the words, “I am the Lord,” ought to be enough to make me change.
ACTION STEPS:
- Think about ways that your relationship with God makes your life genuinely different than the world.
- If you determine that your life is not that different, repent of your sin. The Lord wants you to follow Him.
PRAYER: “God, You are the Lord. Make me holy as You are holy.”
TOMORROW'S READING: Leviticus 21-22, Matthew 28