The relationship God desires to have with His people, who He has created in him own image, is intimate, loving, and personal.  God wants His created to know Him.   God wants our undivided attention which is obvious by all the sin filled distractions that are detailed in Leviticus to be avoided at all costs!

God is not in heaven making up impossible rules for us to follow just to annoy us. God is not one who enjoys opportunities to punish us for disobeying his rules, His Word tells us.  When we pause to think about God, who He really is, and what He does, from His vantage point of relentlessly loving us; our perspective changes. God loves His created—individually and as a people group—and wants them/us to survive and even thrive in an imperfect world filled with other people groups who culturally seek self-satisfaction, self-produced power over the weak, while living life arrogantly without God.

God wants those who love Him back to be different and act differently.  There must be a distinction between those who love God and those who do not.

God is not soft on the sin that engulfs and enslaves His people.  His laws are given to protect His people in ways that provide health spiritually, mentally, physically, and emotionally.  His compassion for His people never stops, fails, or gives up.  If He did, we would not be reading this today!

Leviticus 20

Punishments for Sin

The Lord said to Moses, ² “Say to the Israelites: ‘Any Israelite or any foreigner residing in Israel who sacrifices any of his children to Molek is to be put to death. The members of the community are to stone him. ³ I myself will set my face against him and will cut him off from his people; for by sacrificing his children to Molek, he has defiled my sanctuary and profaned my holy name. ⁴ If the members of the community close their eyes when that man sacrifices one of his children to Molek and if they fail to put him to death, ⁵ I myself will set my face against him and his family and will cut them off from their people together with all who follow him in prostituting themselves to Molek.

⁶ “‘I will set my face against anyone who turns to mediums and spiritists to prostitute themselves by following them, and I will cut them off from their people.

⁷ “‘Consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am the Lord your God. ⁸ Keep my decrees and follow them. I am the Lord, who makes you holy.

⁹ “‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death. Because they have cursed their father or mother, their blood will be on their own head.

¹⁰ “‘If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress are to be put to death.

¹¹ “‘If a man has sexual relations with his father’s wife, he has dishonored his father. Both the man and the woman are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.

¹² “‘If a man has sexual relations with his daughter-in-law, both of them are to be put to death. What they have done is a perversion; their blood will be on their own heads.

¹³ “‘If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.

¹⁴ “‘If a man marries both a woman and her mother, it is wicked. Both he and they must be burned in the fire, so that no wickedness will be among you.

¹⁵ “‘If a man has sexual relations with an animal, he is to be put to death, and you must kill the animal.

¹⁶ “‘If a woman approaches an animal to have sexual relations with it, kill both the woman and the animal. They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads.

¹⁷ “‘If a man marries his sister, the daughter of either his father or his mother, and they have sexual relations, it is a disgrace. They are to be publicly removed from their people. He has dishonored his sister and will be held responsible.

¹⁸ “‘If a man has sexual relations with a woman during her monthly period, he has exposed the source of her flow, and she has also uncovered it. Both of them are to be cut off from their people.

¹⁹ “‘Do not have sexual relations with the sister of either your mother or your father, for that would dishonor a close relative; both of you would be held responsible.

²⁰ “‘If a man has sexual relations with his aunt, he has dishonored his uncle. They will be held responsible; they will die childless.

²¹ “‘If a man marries his brother’s wife, it is an act of impurity; he has dishonored his brother. They will be childless.

²² “‘Keep all my decrees and laws and follow them, so that the land where I am bringing you to live may not vomit you out. ²³ You must not live according to the customs of the nations I am going to drive out before you. Because they did all these things, I abhorred them. ²⁴ But I said to you, “You will possess their land; I will give it to you as an inheritance, a land flowing with milk and honey.” I am the Lord your God, who has set you apart from the nations.

²⁵ “‘You must therefore make a distinction between clean and unclean animals and between unclean and clean birds. Do not defile yourselves by any animal or bird or anything that moves along the ground—those that I have set apart as unclean for you. ²⁶ You are to be holy to me because I, the Lord, am holy, and I have set you apart from the nations to be my own.

²⁷ “‘A man or woman who is a medium or spiritist among you must be put to death. You are to stone them; their blood will be on their own heads.’”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

God was leading the Israelites from one pagan culture (Egypt) to another (Canaan). God wanted the people to follow his guidelines for sexual practices. He wanted them to abhor the sexual sins of the pagan cultures along with the horrific practice of sacrificing their own children to a god of sin.

Research says—

“Molech was the god of the Ammonites. His metal image was heated red hot and little children were placed in his arms and burned to death (see 2 Kings 23:10; 2 Chronicles 33:6; Jeremiah 32:35). People who practiced such idolatry were inhumane, and their presence in the camp defiled God’s sanctuary and profaned His holy name. Idolaters were not tolerated because they influenced others and led people away from the worship of the true God.” –Wiersbe Study Bible

Although the sacrificing of children and the sexual abuse detailed seems barbaric to us; our sins of being unfaithful to our wives or husbands, sacrificing our children by not telling them of Jesus’ saving grace and teaching them to trust and obey God by words and our actions carry the same consequences.  The disgusting trafficking of innocent children around the world is at an all-time high today! These beloved children of God are prostituted to the highest bidder and robbed of all innocence unless rescued.

Divorce which affects everyone in the family is at an all-time high—even in “Christian” communities.  One out of three marriages will succumb to divorce—which is “emotionally worse than death” as stated by those we’ve counseled who suffer the destruction of intimacy with the one you imagined you would spend your life with “until death do us part.”  Abuse of a mate is a different story, of course, and protection must be sought.  But today’s casual perspective by those seeking to be married will often say; “Ah, if it doesn’t work out, I’ll just find another.”  This is distasteful to God who wants His best for all who belong to Him.

God’s moral law is the revelation of His holy will for humanity; individuals and nations can’t despise God’s law and escape judgment or consequences.

While law can be a light that exposes evil and a guard that restrains evil, it can never change the human heart. Only the gospel of Jesus Christ can do that.  All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” writes Paul.  Paul also confessed, “of whom I am the “chief sinner”!  Paul told his story of redemption and life transformation, from one who persecuted new believers to one who was relentless committed to Jesus, with every breath he took!  Jesus came into his life and changed his heart, renewed his mind, and transformed his behaviors!  (See Romans 3:23 and 1 Timothy 1:15)

Jesus does that for all who come to Him in repentance of sin with a sincere heart that desires what God wants for each one of us—freedom from sin’s bondage, joy and peace of knowing God, the promised gift of His Holy Spirit who lives in us giving us the power to change, along with the bonus of eternal life. 

“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11

The prophet, Jeremiah who believed, obeyed, and proclaimed what God told him to say then is still often quoted today as a verse from God that reminds us of the hope provided to us by Jesus who defeated death and gave us a future!

The foundation of all these laws and decrees from God was later taught and demonstrated by God’s Son himself when He walked the earth to “fulfill” every part of the Law—even unto death on the cross.  Jesus, who knew no sin, became sin as he carried all the sins of the world to that cross to save us; taking the punishment we deserve.  Because of Jesus’ sacrifice; We are a redeemed people!  And what does He ask of us?  To love God and each other like He loves us.

“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” –Jesus, Matthew 22:36-40

Lord, I believe and ask today that all who believe be filled with your love, your purpose and plan, your compassionate mercy and grace, with your power to transform; as we love you and others like You love us—with all that is in us.

In Jesus Name, I pray, for our good and His glory, Amen