Pastor’s Bible Reading Schedule: Leviticus 11-12
Devotional Thought:
God gave the dietary code to the children of Israel to remind them that they belonged to Him and were to be distinctly different from the rest of the world. I do believe that God has the health of His children in mind, but that certainly could not be the reason, because He changes the standard under the new covenant. Thirty-two times in Leviticus 11, you find the word unclean, and ten times you find the word abomination. What God says is unclean must be an abomination in our eyes. “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil…” (Isaiah 5:20) God outlines for the Israelites what is clean and what is unclean. He identifies the land animals, sea animals, birds, and insects and separates them. Israel had to decide they would create an appetite for what was acceptable and mortify an appetite for that which was unacceptable. So it is with Christians today! We must nurture and develop an appetite for that which God has commanded and we must learn to starve the appetites of our flesh that are unacceptable to God. Unfortunately, we have too many Christians nurturing the appetites of their flesh and confusing the world as to whom they belong. There is not a measurable difference between the saved and unsaved. Christians have bought the lie that we are to make the unsaved world feel more comfortable so we have become more like them. Churches have lowered standards in order to accommodate the world and it has done much damage to the cause of Christ. Can I just say as well, that it is equally confusing to the world for Christians to add to what God has said His standard is. It is one thing for me to know my weaknesses and build protective walls to help me stay pure and holy in my personal walk with the Lord. It is quite another thing to now insist those protective walls are now the standard for every other Christian. The last half of the chapter deals with touching anything unclean. God was very particular as to how the Israelites were to dispose of things, prepare things, and avoid things. It’s easy to see hygienic reasons behind these regulations, and no doubt obeying them helped the Jews avoid sickness. But the main reason for these laws was to teach the people to appreciate holiness and shun whatever was deemed unclean. God is no less particular today. Though the rules have changed, the principles have not. God wants to protect His children from sinful contamination and unholy lifestyles. The Bible clearly teaches that what we look at is what we begin to long for. What we long for we begin to live like. Eve looked at the fruit until she desired it. Her desire led her to take and eat the fruit. He behavior led to her hiding when confronted with the presence of God. Hebrews 12 teaches us to look unto Jesus. We must long to know Him and the more we look at Him the more we will long to be like Him. The more we live like Him, the more we desire to be in fellowship with Him. The more we walk in fellowship with Him, the more we desire to be with Him, in His presence. Do you live in such a way that it accelerates your desire to be in His presence?
Personal Requests:
• Lord, please help me to hate what you hate and love what you love. Please help me to build the appetites that please you.
• Lord, please help me to live my life in a way that helps the unsaved world to have the right opinion of you. Please help me to see them through your eyes and love them to Jesus.
• Lord, please help me to discern that which is bad for me. Please help me to refrain from looking at things that would cause me to create appetites that would rival my appetites for you.
• Lord, thank you for being such a loving God that you have given directives that are meant to help me and never to hurt me. Even when I do not understand, please help me to obey.