Be Holy as I am Holy - Maintaining Ceremonial Cleanness (Leviticus 11-16)

The priest's main duty was to lead the people in holiness by maintaining the clean / unclean distinctions given by God to Moses. To be unclean was to be unfit to approach the tabernacle for worship and sacrifice. Thus, the people, in order to maintain a relationship with the holy, were to seek to remain clean. When they became unclean - through infection, bodily discharges, touching the dead, eating the wrong thing, or sexual emissions - they were to seek to become clean again through the proper ritual. In this way, the holy - that which had to do with worship of God through tabernacle, sacrifice, and priesthood - would remain undefiled. The clean/unclean laws are not necessarily about sin, but about erecting and maintaining a boundary around the holy that prevents worship of Yahweh to descend to that of the surrounding nations. Worship of Yahweh was distinct, and the clean laws protected this distinction. Though this material may seem repetitious, trivial, and even strange, it is absolutely necessary to understand the Jesus' ministry.<

[Mp3]