QT 9/17/2023 Lev 16:3-4, Community is God's great desire for his people

Leviticus 17:1–4 (ESV) —

1 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to Aaron and his sons and to all the people of Israel and say to them, This is the thing that the Lord has commanded. 3 If any one of the house of Israel kills an ox or a lamb or a goat in the camp, or kills it outside the camp, 4 and does not bring it to the entrance of the tent of meeting to offer it as a gift to the Lord in front of the tabernacle of the Lord, bloodguilt shall be imputed to that man. He has shed blood, and that man shall be cut off from among his people.

 

NOTE: The verses are specific to Israel and to those under the law. They discuss a situation where an individual instead of going to the temple to make his sacrifice, the individual does it at home. The command in the law is not applicable to those not under the law (New Covenant believers), but it does contain a principle that is also repeated in the New Testament. Worship is to be a community event. God wants his people to gather together for worship and not to perform the community acts of worship alone. In other words, attending church for worship is to be done together in the body of Christ and is not to be done alone. Under the law, the penalty was quite severe (bloodguilt and cut off from the people), and there is no reason to not believe that the principle is not important in the New Covenant as well.

 

PONDER:

1. Do I realize how important community worship is to God?

 

PRAYER: Father, our culture has individualized so many things, some of which were never intended to be individual acts. The gathering for worship is one of those things. It really is selfishness. Help us to see the importance of relationships and the part we play in encouraging others.