The Purity Laws - What In the World?!

Come Out And Be Clean

“If a woman conceives and bears a male child she shall be unclean seven days.” Leviticus 12:2

If a person has a swelling on their skin and it is leprosy, “When the priest has examined him, he shall pronounce him unclean.” Leviticus 13:3
“When any man has a discharge from his body, his discharge in unclean.” Leviticus 15:1

Leviticus chapters 11-15 are commonly referred to as the Purity Laws. What in the world is this all about? This has to be the strangest portion of scripture around? Could there really be a point?

Of course, and it is a powerful one, and one that is applicable for us today.

I must be getting older because I remember things in my childhood that are so different from today. My parents used to just let me and my brother roam the neighborhood. They would tell us when to be home and if we weren’t back by then, it was trouble. But, then we did what we wanted. Most of the time it involved sports.
One Saturday we were out with a bunch of friends and made it to the local soccer field. It started pouring down rain, and we happened to have a football. We had all the ingredients for a great time. We played football for a little while in the mud, but that quickly changed to a sliding match in the mud. It ended when one of our friends slid on a rock and sliced up his knee.

So it was time to go home and we made it back to the house and were about to go inside when mom saw us. We were covered head to toe with mud. We were absolutely filthy. There was no way my mom was going to allow us dirty boys into her clean house.

Clean and unclean. That is what this section of Leviticus is about. There are a lot of details in these chapters but they are all pointing to this vivid lesson of clean and unclean. It is about separation. They were to be a clean people, not unclean. They were to separate themselves from the unclean, they were to separate themselves from the world around them.

That Saturday afternoon as me and my brother were walking home, anyone who saw us knew that we were dirty. It was plain to see, there was no mistake, the mud was clearly visible. The point of this distinction in Leviticus is similar. . If you are one of God’s people, if you belong to the Lord Jesus Christ, if He is your Lord, you will display a distinction from the world around you. He has made us clean, and we need to display that in our lives.

"For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. You shall not defile yourselves with any swarming thing that crawls on the ground. For I am the Lord who brought you up out of the land of Egypt to be your God. You shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.”" (Leviticus 11:44-45, ESV)

Strange Fire

" Now Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it and laid incense on it and offered unauthorized fire before the Lord, which he had not commanded them. And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord." (Leviticus 10:1-2, ESV)


Last week I preached on this chapter from Leviticus. These words of scripture continued to follow me around all week long.

Nadab and Abihu offered strange, unauthorized fire before the Lord. They falsly assumed that they could do things their own way. They rebelled against the clear commands of God and paid a price.

In my studies I came across a message by Rev. Henry Law. The title of his work is The Gospel in Leviticus. Let me leave you a quote to chew on from Rev. Law.

Reader, now view your censer; now say, what are its contents. Surely you hold some 'offering' in your hands. Surely some confidence keeps conscience still. What is it? God has sent forth His Son—the only way—the only truth—the only life—the only ransom-price—the one atonement, for all sin. Is He the rock, on which you rest? Is He the center of your hopes? Is He the one foundation of your trust? Is He your only argument for mercy? One sun illuminates the world. One ark delivered from the flood. One Joseph fed in times of famine. One brazen-serpent healed the poison's sting. One fire came down for tabernacle-use. One Savior saves the saved. One Christ is first and last to merit life. God sends, anoints, accepts, proclaims Him. If you plead Him in real faith, you cannot fail. To grasp another savior, is to grasp a straw.

Some Nadabs and Abihus come with streaming eyes. Sin has brought loss. Some worldly prospect has been crushed. Thus Esau weeps. Conscience sometimes is quick to see the misery of guilt. Saul's flowing tears own this. So, also, the Gospel's melody will often melt a heart. It falls, as tender dew upon a moistening soil. Feelings relax, as ice beneath the sun. In these relaxing moments, Satan whispers, 'there is merit here.' The mourning spirit fondly hopes, that 'mourning' can buy peace with God. The tearful eye sees virtue in its drops. Thus signs of penitence are offered, as a ransom-price. Doubtless, no heart loves Christ, which hates not self, and bitterly bewails its grievous state. Doubtless the arms of penitence twine tightly round the cross. But seas of grief cannot wash out soul-stains. Sorrow, when brought as pardon's price, is but strange fire. And all unauthorized fire calls vengeance down.


The class of formalists may not be overlooked. They crowd God's courts. Each attitude—each look—is studied reverence. Their lips drop holiest words. Their hands touch holiest symbols. Their souls seem rapt to heaven on devotion's wing. If services discharged—if rites observed—if outward show were Christ, their cup of safety would be full. But these are only means. In their right place, they are most salutary helps—but decked as saviors—they impose; mislead; destroy. To use them, as meek handmaids of the Lord, is piety's delight; to trust in them, as reconciliation's price, is superstition's blind conceit. Then they become strange fire. These worshipers reject the substance, and repose on signs. But ritual services have in themselves no saving power. Such planks span not the gaping gulf. Such ladders reach not to the throne of God. Their office is to lead to Christ; and witness of His love. They are the channels of His precious grace. But they wash out no sin; they satisfy no wrath; they stay no vengeance; they have no key of heaven; they snatch not from the grasp of Satan; they are no plea for pardon; they hold no title-deeds of glory's kingdom. Christ is Salvation—Christ alone. Such is the work, which God commissioned Him to work. He undertook it. And He gloriously achieved. The mighty truth is ever true, "I have finished the work, which You gave Me to do." They, then, who now present another sacrifice, like Nadab and Abihu sin—like Nadab and Abihu die.

Bring Me Near

I have just started preaching through the book of Leviticus and have found it a true blessing in my own life. I have been studying it for a couple of months already and the depth's of its riches continue to unveil themselves.

Studying and preaching Leviticus is no easy task. I am probably messing it up some, but the challenge is rewarding.

It has caused me to think on many topics. I have found myself pondering on the elements of the tabernacle, the relevance of scripture, and the substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ.

When I first got saved a couple of Christian friends had an influence on my life. One area that Eric and Jason influence me was music. They listened to Christian music and I began to enjoy it as well. The hot group at the time was a Christian rock group called "Petra". I still like them. They did an album of praise songs. And there was one that I thought about while studying Leviticus.

The songs lyrics say this:

Take me past the outer courts

Into your holy place

Past the brazen altar

Lord, I want to see Your face.

Take me by the crowds of people

I hunger and thirst for Your righteousness

And it's only found one place.

Take me in to the Holy of holies

Take me in by the blood of the Lamb

Take me in to the Holy of holies

Take the coal, cleanse my lips

Here I am.

The tabernacle is a visual reminder of our sin, our separation from God, and His grace to bridge that separation. But the only way for them to get close to God was through blood. And even then, only the high priest could enter the holy of holies.

I wonder if a regular Hebrew guy ever desired to go into the Holy of holies to be in the presence of God? Did it frustrate them that there was not a way for them to draw nearer to God?

That is why Jesus came. His blood was a perfect blood. The blood of a goat was insufficient, but the blood of the Lamb of God was fully sufficient. It was so sufficient that I don't have to stop at the outer court, and I don't have to pause by the brazen altar. His blood offers me access to the Holy of holies.

Lord Jesus, thank You for Your blood. Draw me even nearer. May I never be complacent but always seek Your face.

Ephesians 2:13

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.