Blessing Follows Obedience
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Leviticus is an overwhelming book to read. Some of it is pretty explicit even. I admit I’ve struggled my way through these verses on our 90-day journey of reading the Bible cover to cover. But one thing is clear: blessing follows obedience.
However, in the midst of all the laws, rules, regulations, and consequences there was a chapter that sprang out at me with beauty and grace.
God’s Heart Is Always To Bless His Children
God’s Heart Is Always To Bless His ChildrenLeviticus 26 emphasizes the fact that blessing follows obedience. God promises the children of Israel fertile fields, seasonal rains, harvests, victories in war, and over-abundant provision if they but keep His commands.
And then my personal favorite part:
“I will live among you, and I will not despise you. I will walk among you; I will be your God, and you will be my people.” ~Leviticus 26:11-12, NLT
Sweet friend, do you see it? It’s the reality of the Garden that was destroyed by sin, and the manifestation of redemption promised in Revelation 21:3. God will be among us.
In the middle of what seems like a hopeless amount of rules, God reminds us of His heart.
God’s Heart is Always for Relationship with His Children
In the midst of it all, God reminds us of His heart.
These are the decrees, regulations, and instructions that the Lord gave through Moses on Mount Sinai as evidence of the relationship between Himself and the Israelites. ~Leviticus 26:45, NLT (emphasis mine)
All of these rules, the regulations, and the ritualistic standards have purpose. They keep His children safe, they keep them preserved, and they allow for a holy God to have relationship with an unholy people.
The standards for cleanliness kept the nation of Israel well when many others fell victims to plagues. They allowed them to have victories that would not otherwise have been theirs. The rules and regulations highlighted the great need for a Savior and readied hearts for the Messiah.
And more than anything, they were a stop-gap measure to meet the need for redemption until the Final Redeemer, the Great Rescuer named Jesus, could come and complete His work. God still found a way to be in relationship with His people, even if it wasn’t the full one He longed for.
That time would come.
God’s Heart is Always for Blessing to Follow Obedience
Throughout Scripture, God emphasizes that obedience to His laws will yield blessing. Following Him into blessing protects us from man pitfalls we might otherwise encounter.
Deuteronomy 28:2 promises that we will be overtaken by blessings if we obey His voice.
1 Samuel 15:22 reminds us that God prizes obedience, even over sacrifice.
Leviticus 18:5 and Ezekiel 18:21 remind us that life is the reward of obedience.
Luke 11:28 is simple in its admonition: Hear God’s Word, do it, and you will be blessed.
God’s Heart is Always for You
The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is also your God, too, my sweet friend. He is wholly and completely in love with you and He desires for you to be His.
The entirety of Scripture points to Jesus, and the entirety of Scripture points to Jesus as the manifestation of God’s great love for you. John 3:16 sums it all up perfectly: “for God so loved.”
Don’t for one moment lose focus when you read the Word. It is one giant love letter to you. It shows the problem of sin, the solution for sin, and God desire for fellowship with you, for relationship with you, for eternity with you.
