Day 31: Letting Go and the Purpose of Confrontation

Today we read Exodus 6-7, Leviticus 5, and Psalms 47. In this story, we read how God uses symbols, like a staff and snake, that convey important messages and meaning in that culture. In other words, God speaks to us in our language to help us understand. We also learn that the purpose of confrontation is not to just be freed from or make a point, it is to be free for our real purpose, to worship God, to be a blessing to others as God’s Image and Name Bearers in the world. Our work and the way we rule and subdue is further clarified in Leviticus as we understand our four fold purpose as a kingdom of priests is to put God on display, help others navigate their way to God, pray for and intercede for the world, and give generously. But this all comes after atonement. We have to let go and allow God to free us. He covers the cost of our sin debt. In these stories we talk about what it means when confronted, do we, like Pharaoh, blame shift or harden our hearts, even as God gives us chance after chance. God relentlessly and mercifully seeks to make a way to cover us, atone for us and restore us to a close physical relationship with Him where he can dwell with us and redeem us to our Genesis 2 purpose. So far, Leviticus reminds me of how I felt reading Genesis 3, where I was devastated at our choice to sin, but hopeful at God’s promise in 3:15 that a wounded victor will defeat the advisory and when I recall the cost of our sin, “death,” I begin to get a sense of that cost here in Leviticus. We get a glimpse, as the reader, of the innocence and blood that was and will be required, ultimately through Jesus conquering death that will atone for us. Letting go and confrontation are sometimes something we cannot avoid and we need to think carefully about our response to them.

Resources:

Dr. Tim Mackie and John Collins, https://bibleproject.com/explore/video/exodus-1-18/ 

Dr. Tim Mackie and John Collins (2017) Torah Leviticus Q&R, Episode 5, Bible Project. Podcast: https://bibleproject.com/podcast/leviticus-qr/ 

Dr. Carmen Imes, Exodus Class - Exodus 1-40, (14 hours) Bible Project. https://bibleproject.com/classroom/overview/exodus-overview/ 

Credits:

Podcast music by Stockaudios from Pixabay. Speaker, Dr. Rachel Bodell. Podcast Sound Engineer, Alan Darling. Podcast Artwork, Will Gerard.