Leviticus

Leviticus 20: Set apart to be the LORD's

Begin in prayer

Before we read Leviticus 20, where God warns against Molech, mediums, cursing parents, and defiling the home, and calls Israel to be holy because He sanctifies them, let us bow our heads. Ask the Lord to sanctify us through faith in Jesus.

Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.

Proverbs 14:34

Father in heaven, please open our eyes as we read Your Word. Show us how seriously You judge sin, and thank You that You Yourself are the LORD who sanctifies Your people through Jesus' blood. Make us more like Jesus. And please bless our family as we worship You together. In Jesus' name, Amen.

See where we're going

In Leviticus 20 the LORD gives the penalties in Israel's law for the sins forbidden in chapters 18 and 19. Anyone in Israel who gives his offspring to the idol Molech must be put to death, defiling God's sanctuary and profaning His holy name. Even if the people hide their eyes, the LORD Himself will set His face against that man and against anyone who turns to mediums. In verses 7 and 8 God commands Israel to be holy, declaring that He is the LORD who sanctifies them. Verses 9 to 21 set penalties for cursing father or mother and for sins that break marriage and family boundaries. Finally, God calls Israel to keep His statutes because He separated them from the nations to be His own.

As you read Leviticus 20, look for the answers:

Reflect together

Key truth

God judges sin, and through Christ He alone makes holy the people He sets apart.

Where chapter 18 stated the prohibitions, Leviticus 20 states the penalties in Israel's national law. Giving a child to Molech profaned God's name, and even if people hid their eyes, God Himself would judge (verses 2 to 5). Turning to mediums, cursing parents, and breaking marriage or family boundaries all brought severe penalties (verses 6 and 9 to 21). Those civil death penalties belonged to Israel as a nation and expired with that nation, yet they show how grave these moral sins are. Notice the gospel jewel right in the middle of the chapter. In verse 7 God says, “Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be holy,” and in verse 8 He adds, “I am Yahweh who sanctifies you.” Sinners cannot make themselves holy, so Christ suffered our death penalty on the cross to sanctify His people (Hebrews 10 verse 10).

How does Leviticus 20 show us that God judges sin, and through Christ He alone makes holy the people He sets apart?

God sets His face against Molech worship and mediums, even when men look away.

Anyone who gave his offspring to Molech profaned God's holy name and faced death under Israel's law (verses 2 and 3). If the people hid their eyes, God said, “then I will set my face against that man” (verses 4 and 5). He said the same against anyone turning to “mediums, and to the wizards” instead of to God (verses 6 and 27).

The LORD who commands holiness is the LORD who sanctifies His people.

In verse 7 God commands, “Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be holy; for I am Yahweh your God.” Immediately verse 8 reveals where holiness comes from, “I am Yahweh who sanctifies you.” Israel's civil penalties ended with that nation, yet they show we deserve death and need Christ (Hebrews 10 verse 10).

God separated His people from the nations so that they should belong to Him.

God promised Israel “a land flowing with milk and honey” and warned them not to copy the nations (verses 22 to 24). Even the daily distinction between clean and unclean animals reminded them that God had separated them (verse 25). In verse 26 God says that He is holy and has “set you apart from the peoples, that you should be mine.”

Memorise

You shall be holy to me; for I, Yahweh, am holy, and have set you apart from the peoples, that you should be mine.

Leviticus 20:26

Looking to Jesus in my life

Ask yourself in your heart, am I trusting the Lord Jesus to forgive my sins and make me holy?

In Leviticus 20, the LORD shows how seriously He judges sin. Even if people hide their eyes, God sees every sin against children, parents, marriage, and His holy name. Yet right in the middle of these heavy judgments, God says in verse 8, “I am Yahweh who sanctifies you.” And in verse 26 God says He has “set you apart from the peoples, that you should be mine.”

When we read the death penalties of Leviticus 20, they show us what our sins deserve before a holy God. Whether we have dishonored our parents, harbored impure desires, or turned away from God's Word, our guilt is upon us, and we can never sanctify ourselves. That is why God sent His sinless Son, Jesus Christ. On the cross, Jesus took the death penalty that His people deserved and died in their place. On the third day God raised Him from the dead, and by one offering He fully sanctifies all who come to Him.

Do not hide your eyes from your sin. Turn from your sin and put your trust in Jesus today. Everyone who trusts Him is forgiven, made holy by God's grace, and set apart to belong to the Lord forever.

Parent's note

Tell your children that our sins against parents and God's law deserve death, and only Jesus can forgive and sanctify us. Please do not tell them they are saved just because they grew up in a Christian home. Call each child to turn from sin and trust Jesus, and pray that God would give them a new heart.

Pray together

Now please close your time together in prayer. Thank God that He is the Lord who sanctifies sinners through the death and resurrection of Jesus, and bring the heart question to Him. Every child can pray, so let each one say a short prayer if they want to.

who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given to us in Christ Jesus before times eternal,

2 Timothy 1:9

Heavenly Father, we confess that You see every sin even when people hide their eyes, and that we cannot make ourselves holy by our own works. Thank You that Jesus bore the penalty of our sins on the cross so that You might forgive and sanctify us by Your grace. Please give each of us faith in Jesus, and set our family apart to belong to You. Amen.