"Seven times he shall sprinkle the one to be cleansed of the defiling disease, and then pronounce them clean. After that, he is to release the live bird in the open fields." Leviticus 14:7
Well I’m progressing through the Bible with a dear friend. When we hit Leviticus I was like -ughhh...until I got J Vernon McGees commentaries - whoa. One of the richest books in the Bible. But yesterday Lev chapter 14 dropped in deep. A few points:
A. The person diagnosed with possible leprosy had no idea if they would get better or worse; they had to wait for the verdict - imagine. I remember when I was trapped and had no clue or reason to believe the Lord would graciously heal me but he did - it was supernatural and no little pill existed. I said a prayer for years: God will you do for me what I cannot do for myself. He was not obligated. but one day He said ‘CLEAN’ and that, my friends, was a marker moment on November 23, 2009 at 7:01 p.m.
B. It could return - I was deeply moved that I can have an amazing experience of God but if I am not daily vigilant I could easily drop back into deep sin. The flesh is always there ready to erupt.
C. Leprosy was a disease that invaded from the inside - below the surface with maybe just a tiny sore visible - whoa. We can look rather ok but one tiny sore, one tiny sin can invade the whole body.
D. Leprosy invaded the walls of their homes. This part really got to me. What I do and say in my home- what I invite into my home has deep impact positive or negative. What I allow in my home touches the walls. I have a little prayer closet gazebo in my backyard. I’m quite protective of it- it is my space- I keep algae away and dirt and I suspect prayers are baked into the wood frame. Sometimes I think that my home is my space but in reality it is Gods space and a reflection of who I am- what is baked in the walls I hope is a walk with Him - most times it is worship music I play and it does something to my insides to keep me sane and whole and I think it penetrates the walls. Can you imagine in those days - the whole house had to be tore down to the ground!
And finally what really got to me is that the unclean will always infect the clean! And the clean can never correct the unclean - it is a supernatural work of God. All the instructions in Leviticus which I can so easily overlook were meant to keep folks alive and well! Additionally and in closing there is a little scarlet cord in Lev 14 which made me smile- even way back then God knew that same picture would rescue Rahab.
There were two birds offered- one for sacrifice of sin and one allowed to fly if the leper was healed. I fly free as a bird today but under the covering of the blood and my freedom I Hope is held in the palm of Gods hand and not a freedom where I can just run amuck.
The whole Bible has meaning and Leviticus has popped off the pages.
Much love,
Cari
What a powerful reminder to be mindful, and perhaps even trembling, of the first appearance of sin in our homes, and put it away, whatever it is. As you mentioned, Leviticus 14 goes as far as to say that if the leprosy (sin) has gotten into the house, the infected part must be taken out. If it remains in the house, the whole must be pulled down. In other words, the owner would be better off without a house, than live in one that was infected. Now, that is intense! Thank God for sending His son - the Lamb that was slain to redeem us to God with His blood!