Devotional thoughts tagged as: 'Leviticus'
A Safety Net For Society
In the Books of Deuteronomy and Leviticus the Hebrews put a safety net under the entire society so all could survive. The first line of defence was the family. Their laws created an unbending stricture on family life. This was because the family was the glue which held the community together.
I would encourage you to skim through Deuteronomy and Leviticus and think about some of the safety nets we have in our own society today. Is the family really the glue which holds the community together?
Honoring Parents — The Fifth Commandment
The fifth commandment shifts the focus of the first 4 commandments away from God toward human relationships and responsibilities. Additional passages about parents can be found in Exodus 21:15, Exodus 21:17, and Leviticus 20:9.
This commandment points to the blessing of being in harmony with the divine order. In the family we learn about commitments to make and how to make them. We learn by observing our elders. Early Christians believed that whoever did not honor their family members had denied their faith and became whose than an unbeliever. (I Timothy 5:8)
How will your children treat you when you are old? They will likely do what you did to your parents.