Leviticus - Part 5: Holiness
Leviticus - Part 5: Holiness
Leviticus 11
Pastor Scott Skones
I want you to think this morning about the best meal that you’ve ever had. Or maybe your favorite food that you’ve ever tasted.
There are a few that come to mind for me. One time I was in Washington DC for a conference and I asked a local where the best food was and they gave me the name of a restaurant and their favorite dish. So I went that evening and ordered this pot full of mussels. It was incredible – one of my favorite meals.
Or in November we were on vacation and I ordered some amazing oysters. I tried to share, but I ended up eating them all by myself.
And then there used to be a restaurant I visited a few times in Minneapolis called Jerusalems. It was the best Middle Eastern food that I’ve ever had.
Now your palate might be different than mine, but I’m guessing you can come up with one or two meals that just stand out in your mind. Maybe it’s a meal cooked by a loved one who is no longer with us. Or a meal that is tied to a memory of some kind.
And this is nothing new – Food plays an important role, not only in our lives today but throughout scripture as well.
Think back to the Garden of Eden – what was at the core of the first act of rebellion against God? Food.
Or think when God delivers his people from slavery in Egypt, what does he put in place through which people would remember his salvation? A celebratory Passover meal.
When Jesus meets with his disciples on the night that he was betrayed, they share that Passover meal, and then he institutes a new meal that we know as Holy Communion.
And then we could fast forward to the end of the story. Scripture speaks of a grand celebration when Christ returns to bring to completion his redemptive work, making sin and death no more. What is that celebration referred to as? The marriage supper of the Lamb.
Food plays a central role in life and in the story of redemption.
Today’s passage is all about food – and specifically all about food regulations that were part of God’s law.
Our focus today will use Leviticus chapter 11 as the springboard and starting point, but will really cover the content of chapters 11-15. These chapters contain a series of clean and unclean, pure and impure regulations and rules.
If we are to begin to understand chapters 11-15, we have to go back to chapter 10. If you remember from last Sunday, God’s wrath was poured out against Nadab and Abihu because of their disobedience. In his instructions to the remaining priests following the incident, we find an interesting statement that really sets the context for the next 5 chapters in the book.
In verses 9-11, we read this: “This is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, 10 so that you can distinguish between the holy and the common, between the unclean and the clean, 11 and so you can teach the Israelites all the decrees the Lord has given them through Moses.”
The first 10 chapters of Leviticus have really been focused on the reality of sin and the need for sacrifices and offerings to atone for that sin. And here we are introduced to the notion of clean and unclean. And this distinction is going to be really important throughout the remainder of the book.
You might think of it this way – chapters 1-10 speak of the requirements for keeping the Tabernacle holy, while chapters 11-15 pertain to holiness in the daily lives of God’s people.
Well, we are going to read parts of Leviticus chapter 11, and then a brief overview of chapters 12-15 as we begin this morning. I invite you to stand as I read:
Leviticus 11:1:
The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Say to the Israelites: ‘Of all the animals that live on land, these are the ones you may eat: 3 You may eat any animal that has a divided hoof and that chews the cud.
4 “‘There are some that only chew the cud or only have a divided hoof, but you must not eat them. The camel, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is ceremonially unclean for you. 5 The hyrax, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is unclean for you. 6 The rabbit, though it chews the cud, does not have a divided hoof; it is unclean for you. 7 And the pig, though it has a divided hoof, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you. 8 You must not eat their meat or touch their carcasses; they are unclean for you.
9 “‘Of all the creatures living in the water of the seas and the streams you may eat any that have fins and scales. 10 But all creatures in the seas or streams that do not have fins and scales—whether among all the swarming things or among all the other living creatures in the water—you are to regard as unclean. 11 And since you are to regard them as unclean, you must not eat their meat; you must regard their carcasses as unclean. 12 Anything living in the water that does not have fins and scales is to be regarded as unclean by you.
13 “‘These are the birds you are to regard as unclean and not eat because they are unclean: the eagle, the vulture, the black vulture, 14 the red kite, any kind of black kite, 15 any kind of raven, 16 the horned owl, the screech owl, the gull, any kind of hawk, 17 the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, 18 the white owl, the desert owl, the osprey, 19 the stork, any kind of heron, the hoopoe and the bat.
20 “‘All flying insects that walk on all fours are to be regarded as unclean by you. 21 There are, however, some flying insects that walk on all fours that you may eat: those that have jointed legs for hopping on the ground. 22 Of these you may eat any kind of locust, katydid, cricket or grasshopper. 23 But all other flying insects that have four legs you are to regard as unclean.
24 “‘You will make yourselves unclean by these; whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean till evening. 25 Whoever picks up one of their carcasses must wash their clothes, and they will be unclean till evening.
And then skipping down to verse 44:
I am the Lord your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. Do not make yourselves unclean by any creature that moves along the ground. 45 I am the Lord, who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy.
46 “‘These are the regulations concerning animals, birds, every living thing that moves about in the water and every creature that moves along the ground. 47 You must distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between living creatures that may be eaten and those that may not be eaten.’”
Here ends the reading of God’s word. You may be seated.
Essentially, Leviticus breaks down animals into a handful of categories. Let’s recap:
Animals with a divided hoof and who chew their cud may be eaten. Others are unclean and may not be eaten
Only fish with fins and scales may be eaten.
Birds of prey and scavengers may not be eaten.
Hopping insects are good, but flying insects are off-limits.
Touching the carcass of an unclean animal makes a person unclean.
Other swarming animals, such as mice and lizards, are also unclean.
If an unclean animal touches a pot or other food-related item, the item must be destroyed or purified.
Clean animals become unclean when they die.
There’s your quick summary of chapter 11.
Cows are good, pigs are bad.
Grasshoppers are good, lizards are bad.
Ducks and chickens are good, owls and bats are bad.
It all makes perfect sense, right?
Now it’s important to point out that there are many different attempts at explaining why God drew the lines between clean and unclean where he did. But the reality is that every approach has its faults.
For example, some have argued that the distinctions are based on health and hygiene. And I think there is an argument to be made here – particularly with animals like the pig – or with shellfish, which are both unclean according to Leviticus 11. Pigs can cause trichinosis. And if you google it, the list of problems that can come your way from eating raw shellfish would be too long to fit in any sermon.
And so there may be a health and hygiene component to God’s commands here.
There’s also an argument to be made that God is dividing animals between clean and unclean based upon what we might call “wholeness” or “normality.”
The argument goes something like this: God created some animals to represent conformity to his will, and some animals to represent deviation from his will.
For example, the priests had to be free from physical deformity. The offerings had to be free from blemish.
The clean animals are those that conform to the rules and norms of their kids, while the unclean are those that deviate. It’s normal for fish to have scales and fins – and fish that don’t represent a deviation from the norm. They aren’t “whole.”
As the argument goes, God is signifying that to be “holy” or “clean” one must conform to the rules and characteristics that have been predetermined for the kind.
Again, I think there may be something to this argument, but I’m not fully convinced that it explains, in full, what we see in Leviticus.
And, remember, I noted earlier that we are actually looking today at chapters 11-15. And so there’s more depth to this discussion about clean/unclean that we find in the following chapters.
For example, Chapter 12 deals with purification after childbirth.
Chapter 13 gives far more detailed descriptions of skin diseases than you’ll ever care to hear. The end of chapter 13 switches gears to talk about mold. And then in chapter 14, we hear about the purification process for both skin diseases and mold contamination. And in chapter 15 we learn all about bodily discharges.
It’s an interesting section of Leviticus, to say the least.
I think it’s important that we clarify one thing right away – and that’s what is meant by clean and unclean.
We need to understand this: Unclean does not necessarily mean sinful.
This might be the most important realization that you take away from today when it comes to making sense of Leviticus. Just because the Law declared something unclean, doesn’t mean that it is sinful. It MIGHT be sinful but don’t think of the word unclean as synonymous with sinful.
What we find is that we have two categories: Holy & Common. And you can think of it like this – that within that “Common” category, we have “Clean and unclean.”
I put together a graphic to help us understand some of these words that we see in our text. It might help organize our thoughts a little.
You have Holy on the left. And then you have the two categories of common as you move right. Now I want to help us understand these categories a little bit. This is a little bit bland, I get it, but try to follow me because grasping this can be really helpful when it comes to understanding what the Old Testament is doing with this whole Holy vs Common and Clean vs Unclean dynamic.
Clean vs Unclean is not specifically about morality.
Clean means to be fit for the presence of God.
Holy means to be set apart for God.
For example, Priests had to be holy. For lay people, clean was sufficient.
But there’s another aspect of this dynamic that becomes clear as we look at all five chapters here. So consider this: Even our holiest acts are in need of purification.
We see this in Chapter 12. I didn’t read chapter 12, although if you haven’t recently, I’d encourage you to do so.
Chapter 12 speaks of the need for purification after childbirth. It’s a bit of a confusing section that says that when a woman gives birth, she is ceremonially unclean for 7 days if she has a son and 14 if she has a daughter. And then at the conclusion of that time of uncleanness, she enters a purification process that lasts 33 days for a male child and 66 days for a female child.
Now, the explanations for this are all over the board, and some have used it to try to further a narrative about how the Bible is misogynistic. But I would argue that the cleansing and purification process is actually a gift from the Lord in this case. It was a God-mandated maternity leave where she was relieved of many of her usual duties both in the home and in the community. She wouldn’t be responsible for many tasks that normally would have been expected of her. She didn’t engage in hospitality and may have been kept from preparing food and many of the other responsibilities. For 40 days if she had a boy, and 80 days if she had a girl.
And now some of you moms are thinking, “Where were these laws when I had my kids.”
But I want you to think about the implications of this. I think we would all agree that some of the most “holy moments’ of our lives are when our children are born. There is nothing that compares to that moment in time.
And even our holiest moments in life and holiest acts are unclean and in need of purification.
God is not being misogynistic here when he gives these regulations. He is making clear that even the very best that we produce – even the very gift of life that comes from him is in need of his cleansing and purifying work because of our sin.
Your best actions are unclean. Your most pure motives are tainted by sin.
Distinguishing between holy and common, clean and unclean, is an illustration of the holiness of God in relationship to the sinfulness of humanity.
So, while it is true that the category of “unclean” doesn’t mean that the act that led to it was disobeying God, the clean/unclean dynamic does represent the corruption and pollution of sin.
And so if we zoom out a little and look at chapters 11-15 as a whole – we might quickly realize that what God is doing here is showing us how all-encompassing sin is. Making it clear and obvious how pervasive sin is. This is what the Law does.
Whether it is skin diseases, childbirth, or the food that we eat, we are people in need of purification and redemption. God is making our need overwhelming – so that we will look forward in the story and see the answer for our need. More on that in a minute.
Ok, now we are going to talk about several things that this means for us today.
1 - God’s people must be distinct.
One of the things that we see most clearly is that God is calling his people to an other-worldly type of life. From the very beginning, he has called his people to be distinct – to be different from those around them.
But why was God doing this? Why was God organizing the life and world of his people to be so different, so distinct, so strange in the eyes of their neighbors? The food regulations, for example, made it far more difficult for Israel to fraternize with neighboring people. Non-Israelites were unclean.
But why did God set it up this way? The answer is pretty simple, and we can trace it all the way back to Abraham in Genesis – God calls his people to be distinct because he was preserving for himself a people through whom he was going to do something significant.
It’s the same reason that God orders the Israelites not to intermarry with other people groups. It wasn’t for racial reasons – it’s because God was keeping Israel distinct, separated, in order to preserve this vessel through whom he would save the world.
But there's an implication for us for today as well. God’s people today must be distinct. We do not allow ourselves to be beholden to this world.
Christians usually frame this in relation to being distinct morally. Being different than the world morally. And, of course, scripture speaks about this.
But it’s far more than just moral teaching. We are distinct in the way that we see important issues regarding the well-being of our neighbors, for example.
We are distinct politically. We are distinct socially. We are distinct economically. We are driven, motivated, and compelled by different things. We are motivated by the love of our neighbor, not by personal or economic gain. We are motivated by the desire for redemption, not by the desire to be right or comfortable. We are distinct.
Just like Israel, we have a specific purpose for being here. We are part of God’s mission of redeeming the world. Of sharing the hope of the Gospel with those God puts in our lives.
We must be focused on the reason we are here. And we must be distinct.
What else do we take away from this section of Leviticus?
2 - The law demands holiness.
We see this in verses 44 and following: I am the Lord your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. Do not make yourselves unclean by any creature that moves along the ground. 45 I am the Lord, who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy.
This is perhaps the greatest expression of the law. If we were to summarize the law in one statement it might be “be holy, because God is Holy.”
The Law both elevates the holiness of God and demands the holiness of those who are in relationship WITH God.
Jesus conveyed this same idea, worded just slightly differently, in the Sermon on the Mount when he commanded, “Be Perfect as your heavenly father is perfect.” That is the ultimate reality of God’s law. What does God’s law say to you? It says, “Be holy. Be perfect.”
And that brings us to the third thing that I want to highlight today:
3 - The law leaves us desperate for one who can make us holy.
When confronted with the command to “be holy” and “be perfect” we will quickly recognize how unholy and imperfect we are. If we are at all self-aware and cognizant of our sin, we can’t help but see that we are desperately lacking the ability to make ourselves holy. We are unable to become perfect on our own.
If you becoming holy depends on you, you have no hope. And this causes us to discover God’s purpose for the law. God has given us the law so that we would become convinced of our INABILITY to be holy and perfect. And that once we are convinced of that, that we might find ourselves desperate for one who can make us holy.
And that’s what we find in Jesus. Jesus fulfilled these laws perfectly. He followed the dietary restrictions perfectly. He obeyed God’s commands.
And in doing so, he brought these commands to their rightful and intended conclusion.
You see, Jesus turns this all upside down and inside out.
In Mark 7:14 we read: “Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. 15 Nothing outside a person can defile them by going into them. Rather, it is what comes out of a person that defiles them.”
And then in verse 19 Mark brings us great clarity when he says, “In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.”
I would encourage you to read Mark 7 this week as it’s sort of the New Testament conclusion to Leviticus 11. I’d also add Acts Chapter 10 to that reading list if you want to get the full picture of all food being declared clean and the official undoing of these ceremonial rules.
Jesus came, obeyed the law perfectly, and then declared that they had served their purpose.
And Jesus helps us discover something really important in this:
4 - We are made clean from the outside in, not from the inside out.
This is important for you to understand. The answer to your sin problem is found outside of yourself. You can’t solve your problem.
This was true for the Israelites in Leviticus and it’s true for us as well. They were dependent on a substitute – an animal being sacrificed in their place in order to be made clean. And the same is true today for you.
You might think of it this way. As parents, we spend most of our time worried about our kids being corrupted from the outside. We monitor what media they consume, what kinds of shows they watch, and who they are friends with. We try to shelter them from certain outside influences. And we should. Those are wise parenting decisions.
But the spiritual reality is that they are every bit as threatened by what is INSIDE of them. By their sinful nature. By their sin-sick hearts. By their own propensity for self-indulgence on one hand and self-righteousness on the other.
Our only hope for the holiness and perfection that the law demands is for us to receive it from another, from the outside. Jesus perfectly fulfilled the law in your place because you never could, and he offers you his righteousness by faith…faith alone.
Well, there’s one final takeaway that I want to draw to your attention – and it’s in the form of some imagery that this passage gives us. It’s found starting in verse 33. Listen to this:
Leviticus 11:33: Speaking of an unclean critter: If one of them falls into a clay pot, everything in it will be unclean, and you must break the pot. 34 Any food you are allowed to eat that has come into contact with water from any such pot is unclean, and any liquid that is drunk from such a pot is unclean. 35 Anything that one of their carcasses falls on becomes unclean; an oven or cooking pot must be broken up.
And here’s what we come to recognize:
5 - Jesus became that clay pot, which was broken for us, so that we might be clean and holy in the sight of God.
The law demanded that the clay pot, when it became unclean, be broken. And throughout his ministry, Jesus took the sin of the world upon himself. He allowed the unclean woman who had been bleeding to touch his garment. He allowed the unclean and sinful woman to anoint his feet with her tears and wipe them with her hair. He touched the dead girl and raised her back to life. He ate and drank with sinners and tax collectors. He spent time with the unclean Samaritan woman.
Jesus took all that was unclean onto himself – he came into contact with sinners – and he was broken – He took it all to the cross. Your sin, your inability to obey, your unholiness. Jesus took it to the cross and was broken. For you and for me.
Jesus is the clay pot, touched by the unclean, and broken for our redemption.
And he invites us today to confess our inability to be holy. Our sin. To confess that we are unclean. And he says “Come to me” I was broken for you. And by faith my holiness is yours. Thanks be to God.
This sermon is offered as a resource by Living Word Lutheran Brethren Fellowship in Dickinson, North Dakota. It has been lightly edited for the website, but the original tone remains unchanged, and no grammatical revisions or style adjustments have been made.