Observation: Throughout this section of Leviticus, God outlines special provisions for the priests, the descendants of Aaron who will be part of the special lineage of Levi and thus be the ones who present offerings, organize the special items within the holy of holies, and generally "run things" in the tabernacle and temple. Not only do they have special jobs to do, but they have unique rules for everything from who may eat their provision of the food, to whom they may marry, to how they care for their hair.
Jesus "fulfilled" the law. In his time, the priests were still set apart as special people for special tasks, and through that designation received special honor among the people. If the priests understood that the Messiah was someone who would disrupt the priesthood - either by abolishing it, or by becoming THE 'high priest' or even 'the high priest in the order of Melchizedek' - then this would certainly motivate their opposition to someone claiming to be Messiah.
However, I wonder how much of the priestly laws they were really observing at the time. It is already clear how often the Jews observed extreme implementations of some laws, while ignoring others, and certainly ignoring their purpose of the heart of the Lord within the law. How true was this of priests? In the gospels, we see the high priest up at night angry, interacting with Pilot, lying about Jesus, and attending the crucifixion. At best these seem to imply that he is walking close to the line on several of the behaviors ... nearing the point of dishevelment and uncleanliness, while purporting to defend the people from blaspheme (which, by the way, I don't think is in the law as the function of the high priest).
Application: The high priest may have been defending his livelihood, but he was also following some learned tradition of the law. However, over 1,200 years had passed since the writing of the law, and as time passed strict adherence would have been difficult (I mean ... the priest's family can't eat 10 percent of EVERYTHING sacrificed by a nation of people). The instructions would morph over time.
We are now 2,000 years after Jesus. How much have we morphed the word and instructions of Jesus? Should we have done so? How much have we changed his true words in order to accommodate reasonable changes in structures over time, and how much have we changed his true words in order to accommodate our own desires for ... ambiguity, comfort, and pleasure that are available in a different age?
Did the priests behave as they did because they wanted to twist the law in a manner that incorporated new, worldly values and opportunities?
Do we behave as we do because we want to twist the teaching of Jesus in a manner that incorporates new, worldly values and opportunities?
All of us, myself included, need to be careful not to become priests ... people who obey some version of "instruction" that we think is close to what God told us to do, with reasonable accommodations for new world orders and structures, but that fail to align to God's heart. The answer to all of this is understanding the heart of the Lord. Jesus himself pointed out that the Lord desires mercy, not sacrifice. We know that no amount of sacrifice accomplishes what the Lord really wants us to do ... seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with him.
Prayer: Lord, may I be obedient today to exactly this, your heart, today and every day. May I truly love justice and mercy, seeking them in the world, being your instrument in providing them to others when and where you have me, and may I know how to do that because I am walking with you, head bowed, at all times. Amen.
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