Who smells that?

The journey continues and it continues to be a bit odd. Leviticus is great! Also, Leviticus is weird with a capitol “W.”

There’s no question that the over all call of Leviticus is one to holiness. Be holy as I am holy is repeated over and over again. There are all sorts of great things within the last few chapters I’ve read but there are also a pile of things that seem strange to my modern mind.

Not that these things are not important they’re just a bit odd. They cause me to chuckle a bit. I feel a little like Bevis when I read some of these things. Here are couple examples:

" 'If a man has sexual relations with an animal, he must be put to death, and you must kill the animal.

Leviticus 20:15

Do you think the animal was ever like…

“Dude, I didn’t ask for this! That guy snuck up on me!”

The LORD said to Moses, "Say to Aaron: 'For the generations to come none of your descendants who has a defect may come near to offer the food of his God. No man who has any defect may come near: no man who is blind or lame, disfigured or deformed; no man with a crippled foot or hand, or who is hunchbacked or dwarfed, or who has any eye defect, or who has festering or running sores or damaged testicles.

Leviticus 21:16-20

Who checks the testicles? How would you like that job?

The animals brought for sacrifices had to be checked too!

You must not offer to the LORD an animal whose testicles are bruised, crushed, torn or cut. You must not do this in your own land, and you must not accept such animals from the hand of a foreigner and offer them as the food of your God.

Leviticus 22:24-25

After awhile I stop being as immature.

I end up hitting this verse:

On the day you wave the sheaf, you must sacrifice as a burnt offering to the LORD a lamb a year old without defect, together with its grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil—an offering made to the LORD by fire, a pleasing aroma—and its drink offering of a quarter of a hin of wine. Leviticus 23:12-13

The bit about the aroma being pleasing to the LORD reminds me of Paul’s words…

For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing.

2 Corinthians 2:15

I start zeroing in on the principles behind all of this and I’m reminded that Leviticus is about setting a people apart and filling them up in such a way that they can reflect God back to the world. Build the aroma and then share it. It looks a little different today but God still practices this principle. He always had…just then I smell something that my wife did (no I’m not going grade school on you again, no fart jokes here.) Sheri has cut several lilac flowers from our yard and placed them around the house. I’m not sure if you’ve smelled lilacs but if you have you almost certainly know that it’s an easy thing to turn that scent into praise for God.

Father, thank you for setting us apart, make us a pleasing aroma to the world.