Feb 14 (Daily reading: Leviticus 5-7) On Valentine’s Day, we emphasize the theme of love. But to quote Oscar Thompson: “Where is love going if there is no relationship?” God told Moses that when we deceive and lie to our neighbor, we are guilty of acting “unfaithfully against the LORD” (6:1-7). Remember what Jesus said about our positive or negative actions toward others: “You did it for Me” or “You did not do it for Me” (Mt. 25:34-46). When we love and help one another, we are loving and helping Jesus, but when we sin against one another, we are sinning against the Lord! Love for one another can sometimes be demonstrated by what we do NOT do!
This is seen in another warning from God: “If a person acts unfaithfully and sins unintentionally against the LORD’S holy things…” (5:14). Would “the Lord’s holy things” include God’s commandments? God said, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Lev. 19:18). Loving our neighbor also means taking responsibility for unintended offenses. We must deal with the negative consequences of our actions, however unintended they may be. This would again demonstrate our love to others as a child of God.
God gave another warning about ignoring the misdeeds of others: “If he does not tell it, he bears guilt” (5:1, NKJV). We might be tempted to look the other way, out of “love” for an individual. But God revealed to Moses that we have a social responsibility in cases like this. Perhaps we should see ourselves as our “brother’s keeper” in both a positive and negative sense.
I end with what comes first: love for God! God prescribed a sacrifice that was called a peace offering. This was a voluntary sacrifice to express thankfulness (7:11-12). Loving God includes thanking Him every single day for His love, His grace, and His personalized blessings!
-Al Gary
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