Leviticus 19:1-8: a reflection

1The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2“Speak to all the congregation of the children of Israel, and tell them, ‘You shall be holy; for I, the LORD your God, am holy. 3“‘Each one of you shall respect his mother and his father. You shall keep my Sabbaths. I am the LORD your God. 4“‘Don’t turn to idols, nor make molten gods for yourselves. I am the LORD your God. 5“‘When you offer a sacrifice of peace offerings to the LORD, you shall offer it so that you may be accepted. 6It shall be eaten the same day you offer it, and on the next day. If anything remains until the third day, it shall be burned with fire. 7If it is eaten at all on the third day, it is an abomination. It will not be accepted; 8but everyone who eats it shall bear his iniquity, because he has profaned the holy thing of the LORD, and that soul shall be cut off from his people.

God gives Israel a command that grounds all the others: You shall be holy; for I, the LORD your God, am holy. The call to holiness, to be set apart, pure, devoted to God, is rooted not in an arbitrary rule but in who God himself is. Because God is holy, his people are to be holy; their lives are to reflect the character of the God they belong to. The reason for holiness is God's own holiness, which his people are to mirror.

Notice the ground of the call to holiness: God's own character. Be holy, God says, for I am holy. He does not merely command holiness as an arbitrary demand; he roots it in who he himself is. His people belong to him, bear his name; and so they are to reflect his character, to be holy as he is holy. Holiness is not an arbitrary rule but a reflection of God's own nature in the lives of those who belong to him. Because God is holy, his people are to be holy too.

That grounding of holiness in God's own character gives it meaning, for it means our holiness is about reflecting the God we belong to. We can think of holiness as a set of arbitrary restrictions; but it is really about reflecting the character of the holy God whose we are. As his people, bearing his name, we are to mirror his holiness in our lives, that our lives point to what he is like. Consider that your call to holiness is not an arbitrary set of rules, but a call to reflect the character of the holy God you belong to. Be holy, not because of an arbitrary demand, but because you belong to a holy God whose character you are to reflect; let your life mirror his holiness, that others might see in you something of what he is like. God's people are to be holy because he is holy; let your holiness be a reflection of the God whose you are, as God called Israel to be holy because he, the LORD their God, is holy.

Lord, you give Israel a command that grounds all the others: you shall be holy, for I, the LORD your God, am holy. The call to holiness is rooted not in an arbitrary rule but in who you yourself are. Because you are holy, your people are to be holy; their lives are to reflect the character of the God they belong to. Show me the ground of the call to holiness: your own character. You do not merely command holiness as an arbitrary demand; you root it in who you yourself are. Your people belong to you, bear your name; and so they are to reflect your character, to be holy as you are holy. Holiness is not an arbitrary rule but a reflection of your own nature in the lives of those who belong to you. That grounding gives holiness meaning, for it means my holiness is about reflecting the God I belong to. I can think of holiness as a set of arbitrary restrictions; but it is really about reflecting the character of the holy God whose I am. As your person, bearing your name, I am to mirror your holiness in my life. Help me consider that my call to holiness is not an arbitrary set of rules, but a call to reflect your character. Help me be holy, not because of an arbitrary demand, but because I belong to a holy God whose character I am to reflect; let my life mirror your holiness, Lord, that others might see in me something of what you are like.