An Expression of
Holiness
Today we are going to see that what we call “Missions” is
actually an outward expression of holiness, according to the Scriptures. Let’s dig into God’s word as we mine for the
treasure of the truth together!
Chapter 19 in the Jewish Bible is titled “Kedoshim” or
Holiness. It means that these moral and
ceremonial laws were an expression of God’s holiness. Also notice this is written in the future
tense – “when you harvest.” Israel had
not yet been given the land – so this is an instruction for a time that had not
yet come. The entire book of Leviticus,
meaning “And He Called” is given in one location: Mt. Sinai. This text gives us four actions that the Israelites
were commanded not to take:
q 2 in
the field – do not reap the corners of the field and gather the gleanings;
q 2 in
the vineyard – do not glean the vineyard and gather every grape.
These were commandments to moral living, whereby harvesters
(or reapers) were called to leave behind food and fruit for the poor and the
stranger. The “needy” could then come
and gather what was left for them.
So when the worker of the field reaped the harvest, he would
grab stalks of grain with one hand and cut them off with a sickle in the other
hand. Whatever stalks fell to the ground
during this harvesting, the worker was forbidden to pick up. This meant the corners of the land were
available to the poor and stranger, and any grain that had fallen to the
ground. They had to come and get the
food. It was not given to them.
The other two provisions from the vineyard were instructed the Israelites to leave some of the grapes behind as well as not picking up the grapes that fell to the ground.
Now that we have an understanding of these terms and
instructions, let’s consider the population to be served: the poor and the stranger. A poor person was considered one without
enough money to buy a field; sickly; widowed or abandoned. A stranger in the Old Testament is usually
referred to as the Hebrew word “ger.” A
ger is anyone outside of Israel, who has no intention of becoming part of
Israel. Gentiles were the first gers on
the Biblical scene.
This passage ends with the Lord declaring, I am the
Lord your God. This ties the instruction
back to its giver – God, and to the expression of holiness. An impartation of holiness requires an
outward expression of it. This passage is about caring for those in need.
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