Walking Billboards for Jesus

The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them: You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy. Leviticus 19:1-2

Leviticus – the third book in the Bible, that many try to speed read on their way through their “Read the Bible in a year” plan. However, if and when we slow down in our reading we realize that “Be holy, for I am Holy” is at the heart of Leviticus. We come face to face with the holiness of God.  If your church still has hymnals, pick up one and let the words of this great hymn, “Holy, Holy, Holy” speak to your heart in a new and fresh way.

Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty!

Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee:

Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty!

God in three Persons, blessed Trinity!

Leviticus is not normally read as good news and most certainly not in the context of how the world now determines what is a modern, culturally acceptable worldview. However, J. A. Motyer looks at Leviticus differently. He writes, “Leviticus is good news. It is good news for sinners who seek pardon, for priests who need empowering, for women who are vulnerable, for the unclean who covet cleansing, for the poor who yearn for freedom, for the marginalized who seek dignity, for animals that demand protection, for families that require strengthening, for communities that want fortifying and for creation that stands in need of care. All these issues, and more, are addressed in a positive way in Leviticus.”

Spend some time meditating upon chapters 18 and 19 in Leviticus. Try reading these verses as one who seeks God, treating life as holy, and allowing God to have control of your life. At the heart of each requirement is the holiness of God in the life of his people, a people set apart from the world. Culture no longer determines the standards, only God does.

As you read these two chapters, mentally or literally, create two columns. At the top of the columns, title one “God’s values” and the other “Human Values.”  It doesn’t take long to realize God’s values and human values are worlds apart.

Augustine wrote that “The LORD himself not only shows us the evil we are to avoid and the good we are to do (which is all that the letter of the law can do) but also helps us to avoid evil and to do good things that are impossible without the spirit of grace. If grace is lacking, the law is there simply to make culprits and to slay; for this reason, the Apostle said; “The letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Corinthians 3:6)”

Unfortunately, chapters 18 and 19 are not a Golden Corral buffet of principles. We don’t get to go through the line choosing what we like and leaving out the others. It can be so easy to pick a verse and sling it at someone, yet at the same time avoid verses we would prefer to overlook. The problem is that God didn’t give us a choice. Each requirement interlocks with each other forming a strong family, church, community, and culture.

Leviticus’ requirements set a people apart from the other nations. Jesus would take the law and empower it with grace. “Christ came provided with the Holy Spirit after a peculiar manner…that he might separate us from the world, and unite us in the hope of an eternal inheritance.”—John Calvin

Living a life set apart from the world requires God’s grace. Our focus shifts from the world to God. Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote that “Your life as a Christian should make non-believers question their disbelief in God.”

New Orleans Saints linebacker Demario Davis won the NFL 2021 Bart Starr Award for outstanding character, integrity, and leadership on and off the field. His wife, Tamela told the Christian Post, “Our primary mission has always been to be a walking billboard for Christ, so that others may be able to see and encounter Him through us and our experiences.”

Undoubtedly, Leviticus is a challenging book with some difficult passages, yet what a difference when our heartbeat is that of being holy. Take some time in prayer and reflect on where you are in light of God’s values. What will it take to restore and empower you to live a life set apart for God? Thomas Kelly wrote, “It is said of St. Francis not merely that he prayed, but that he became a prayer.”

Maybe in a world that is growing indifferent to God’s message, the best way we can reflect a different image is to become “walking billboards for Christ,” or as Jesus said, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” –Matthew 16:24

God is great!