If I ever start complaining too much about worship today, all I need to do is reread Leviticus. I don’t know about you, but I would be so busy following all the worship laws that I wouldn’t have time to do much else. Why? Two words: sacrificial system. If I had to head down to the tabernacle or temple every time I had a sin described in Leviticus, I would be buying sheep by the Costco super value size packs. As I stood in line waiting to offer my sin sacrifice, I would probably sin some more as I had bad thoughts about the old person in line in front of me taking way too long to transfer his guilt over to that goat. I would then just end up getting back in line again. I wonder if they had frequent sacrifice miles?
What Leviticus is trying to impress upon us is what an unholy person has to do to worship a holy God. How does a person stained with sin and guilt approach the throne of God (the mercy seat), enter His dwelling (tabernacle), and offer praise and thanksgiving? There must be a penalty and judgment for the sin, and unless the worshiper wanted to die personally, he needed to bring a substitution to offer in his place. God isn’t being mean or making people simply jump through hoops, it is the consequence of our rebellion against Him starting in Genesis 3. We have only ourselves to blame for the complicated ceremonial procedures. Consider how even the design and rules of worship communicate how small the access is to God.
Only Hebrew men are allowed to come into the inner court of God. Only Hebrew men over 25 and of the tribe of Levi have a chance to go any further. Only those of the specific line of Aaron, inside the tribe of Levi, have a chance to go into the holy place. Only one day a year, on the day of atonement in Lev. 16, does just one man, the high priest, have a chance to enter the holy of holies. If he fails to follow the exact letter of the law, the other priests will end up pulling him out dead on the end of a rope. From the opening of the outer tent wall, to the holy place, to the holy of holies, the entry way to God is smaller and less accessible. The bronze laver reminded them that they need to be purified to approach God. The altar was a daily reminder of their unworthiness and sin as they worshiped God.
The author of Hebrews understood well how blessed he was to be living in the new covenant of Jesus. Hebrews 10:19-23 says, “ Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” Imagine how a Jew might feel understanding the significance of what Jesus did. For over 1,400 years, his people have been in the old covenant, following the hundreds of laws governing worship. Even with those laws, there was a constant reminder of their separation from God. Most Jews would never see the Holy Place, and almost none would ever see where God dwelt in the holy of holies.
They couldn’t even eat without thinking through the laws of Leviticus. Slip up and have that pulled pork sandwich, and you can’t go in and worship until you have offered a sacrifice of cleansing. Get that tattoo of Dagon your girlfriend talks you into, busted again, no worship until it is dealt with. Leviticus 11 – 15 lists all the ways a person could become unclean and be barred from worship. Now, these Messianic Jews realize that Jesus has opened a new way. One in which He is the sacrifice, and they no longer need to kill sheep after sheep to approach God. He declares all foods clean to the apostle Peter, and you can finally have the pork ribs after church. Yet, the real shocker is that Jesus has opened the way for the average person to access the very throne of grace. It went from only one person once a year to all who have faith in Jesus and are covered by His sacrifice on the cross!
I will be honest with you here (does that mean I haven’t been honest in the rest of this post?). I will sing hymns with or without music, wear robes, eat tasteless wafers, sit in uncomfortable wooden pews, stand up or sit down, raise my hands or cross myself, play the guitar or organ, do that same chorus over and over that just goes, “La, la, la, la, la”, read responsively or sing prophetically, and all that stuff we do in worship today and STILL be eternally grateful for what Jesus has done for us to allow us access to God in our worship through Him instead of the sacrificial system and old covenant laws. It just puts things in perspective for me. Hebrews 4:14-16 says, “ Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Amen.
The Bible Nerd 