We come to the Book of Leviticus. The people are camped at the foot of Mt. Sinai where they will stay as God leads them to Him. They have been enslaved in Egypt, a land of idol worship, and will be entering in the future into the Promised Land. God is teaching them to be different from the nations surrounding them. Why? God is Holy. We are not. Leviticus 1 goes into great detail about how offerings will be made to God from the people. In the commentary below it said: Animal sacrifice accomplished two purposes: (1) the animal symbolically took the sinner’s place and paid the penalty for sin, and (2) the animal’s death represented one life given so that another life could be saved. One life given so another could be saved. Who is the “another”? You and me.

We think we are so removed from the Children of Israel who lived thousands of years ago. Are we really? When will we realize we are lost without the wisdom and love of God who created all that we see including us? When will we humble ourselves and realize our great need for a Savior? A Savior who died for us so that we could live healed? Do you ever consider how much we need healing? This morning in prayer I told God it feels like this life we are living today, steeped in sins, in hate, in intolerance, in pride, in lies not only to others but to ourselves…is yet one more example of rebellion against You, our Creator. We want to do what we want to do. I am so very grateful we no longer need to offer animal sacrifices for sins that we, not the animals, commit. The animals couldn’t take away sin. Neither can we. The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation. Exodus 34:6-7. When we choose sin, we choose the results of those sins and we and our children suffer that punishment. How many more generations of humanity will choose sins? Please, Lord, how long?

“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? As for everyone who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice, I will show you what they are like. They are like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.” Luke 6:46-49.

Floods come. Have they come to you? When I take God’s hand and spend time with Him, He reminds me He is with me now. The problems of this world recede into the perspective of eternity. They don’t go away, they keep swirling around ceaselessly and I can’t stop them. But with Him, there is peace. There is His love more precious than all of creation. The Lord, the Lord is the Rock, the solid foundation dug deep in my heart, mind and soul who leads me to His truth. He has never lied to me or to you. Never. He knows the world we live in and the floods that keep coming. He knows how destructive the floods are. Do we, really? I will proclaim the name of the Lord. Oh, praise the greatness of our God! He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he. Deuteronomy 32:3-4. Take His hand and experience His love and peace because floods will come but will never shake the Rock that is God.