Leviticus Studies
Sermons and studies from the book of Leviticus, as preached from the pulpit of Brackenhurst Baptist Church.
The Day (Leviticus 16:1–34)
Many cultures around the world have a particular day around which the rest of the year pretty much revolves. For some, it may be a day of independence, or...
Promise-Keepers (Leviticus 27:1-34)
The conclusion of the book of Leviticus is apropos because, like so much of the book, it is enigmatic. Once again we find ourselves scratching our heads and wondering, what is this all about? You can be encouraged that the majority of commentators likewise confess...
Grace Expectations (Leviticus 26:14-46)
The apostle Paul said that it was by God’s grace that he was made strong (2 Corinthians 12). Grace is a powerful force in this world and nowhere is it more powerfully displayed than in the gospel of God (Romans 1:16). The gospel has given hope to millions over the...
Great Expectations (Leviticus 26:1-13)
William Carey, long time nineteenth century missionary in India, is well known for many things—one of which is his conviction that the believer is to “expect great things from God” and to therefore “attempt great things for God.” Carey expected, and attempted. And...
Redeeming the Poor (Leviticus 25:35-55)
Leviticus 25 is a profound chapter. The Jubilee law indeed “is probably the most radical social and economic idea in all the Bible.”[1. Derek Tidball, The Message of Leviticus: Free to Be Holy (Leicester: Inter-Varsity Press, 2005), 299.] And it is so because it is...
Redemptive Living (Leviticus 25:1-55)
God’s people are called to be holy, to be different—theologically, morally, spiritually (religiously), economically, etc. In a word, we are called to be different ethically. And one way in which our ethics are manifested is in how we treat others. We are called to be...
Debt Relief (Leviticus 25:1-55)
After some rather sobering studies on the matter of church discipline in Leviticus 24, chapter 25 comes as a sigh of relief. In it, God reveals His laws concerning the Sabbatical year as well as the Year of Jubilee, with its attendant regulations concerning debt...
Hearts to Stone (Leviticus 24:10-23)
In recent years I have become increasingly appreciative and convinced of the adage, “Getting old is not for sissies.” As I have watched some the challenges that old age brings—be they physical, emotional, relational or financial—I have learned that courage and...
Guarding the Sacred (Leviticus 24:10-23)
Just when things seemed to be going well for Israel, there was trouble in the camp. Trouble in the camp: Perhaps that could be the title of this passage. For the second time in Leviticus—the historical record of the giving of the laws of worship and holiness—the...
Congregational Contributions (Leviticus 24:1-9)
Ephesians 4 makes it abundantly clear that every born again church member is expected by Christ to make meaningful contributions to the work of ministry in building up the local church. The leaders of the congregation are to equip the church members to do works of...
Pentecost Sunday (Leviticus 23:15-22)
As a congregation we have sought over the years to be faithful to the teaching of Scripture and to adjust our beliefs and our behaviour as we have seen the need for reformation in the light of God’s revelation. Over the past couple of decades, as our doctrinal...
Rest for the Restless (Leviticus 23:1-44)
On 9 May 2013 we had a wonderful gathering for the first of what we trust will become an annual Ascension Day service and celebration. We came from our workaday world in our workaday clothes to corporately worship our risen and ascended Lord. Those who participated, I...
Holy Hands, Humbled Hearts (Leviticus 22:1-33)
An experienced pastor once said with reference to shepherding the flock of God, “My assignment is to prepare the sheep for sacrifice.” Well said! The flock of God is called to be a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is our reasonable service (Romans...
Holy Leaders (Leviticus 21:1-24)
Recently, while at a Roman Catholic Church for a funeral, I noticed a sign posted in the auditorium that read, He has the most important calling in the world. He also has the most powerful enemy trying to stop him from doing his work. Will you help him in his...
Crime and Punishment (Leviticus 20:1-27)
On Monday, 15 April 2013, in the city of Boston in the United States, two bombs exploded, killing three people and injuring more than 180. Moral outrage was the response from around the world. President Barack Obama said that the perpetrators would be found and would...
Practically Holy (Leviticus 19:19-37)
Gordon Wenham notes of our present text that “this section proceeds from the sublime to the ridiculous! At least that is how the transition from love of neighbour (v. 18) to prohibitions on mixed breeding (v. 19; cf. Deut. 22:9-11) strikes the modern reader. But in...
The Pursuit of Holiness (Leviticus 19:1-18)
Leviticus 19 has been called the Old Testament Sermon on the Mount. When Jesus spoke those words (Matthew 5—7) He was laying out for His disciples His rules for those who would be subjects of His kingdom. Those whom Christ saves are to display a life that is different...
Disorder in the Family (Leviticus 18:6-30)
As we have learned, Leviticus 18 begins a three-chapter section that is often referred to as the Holiness Code. It was God’s prescribed code of conduct for His covenanted people. It follows on the heels of atonement (chapters 16—17) because sanctification—the process...
Following Orders (Leviticus 18:1-5)
I recently read about a pastor of a large conservative church who was fired a week after he read and preached from Leviticus 18. He was unceremoniously shown the door because it was said that such a use of the pulpit was too “negative.” Why would professing believers...
The Price of Worship (Leviticus 17:10-16)
The story is told of a telephone operator in a small town who, every Monday morning for years, received a telephone call from the same man asking for the exact time. One day, the operator summoned up the courage to ask him the reason behind the regular phone calls....
Guarding the Gospel (Leviticus 17:1-9)
The local church has been entrusted with the God-given responsibility to guard the gospel. Paul reminded Timothy of this when he wrote, “These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly; but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought...
A Serious Holiday (Leviticus 16:1-34)
I have recently enjoyed some blessed holiday time with my family. We travelled together to the coast to have some fun in the sun. I slept later than normal, did more recreational reading than is my norm, ate more food than I should have, and pretty much loafed for a...
The Facts of Life (Leviticus 15:1-33)
If ever there was a chapter which could call forth a cringe factor in a preacher, it is Leviticus 15, which deals with very natural—some might call them “earthy”—issues. These 33 verses discuss, in a very structured form, the discharge of bodily fluids—both by males...
Fixing a Broken Home (Leviticus 14:33-57)
In his excellent and helpful commentary on Leviticus Allen Ross suggests, “In an ordinary routine of expounding the Book of Leviticus the expositor will probably want to combine Lev. 13-14 rather than treat them separately.” He then states his rationale for such...
Fixing a Broken World (Leviticus 14:1-32)
Over our last few studies we have begun to appreciate the reality that the world is broken as the result of sin. When sin entered the world it did not do so alone; it was attended by death (Romans 5:12). It is this which is behind the disease, defilement, destruction,...
Living in a Broken World (Leviticus 13-14)
Early one recent Monday morning I took my wife to the Linksfield Hospital for some x-rays. While she was having various procedures I waited in the coffee shop, pulled out my laptop and began to work on this sermon. It had occurred to me on the way to the hospital that...
Cleanse Me, O God (Leviticus 13:1-59)
If my responsibility previously was to present biblical obstetrics, it is now my assignment to discourse on biblical dermatology. Leviticus is an amazing book that reminds us, contrary to much popular thinking, that the physical and the spiritual are not mutually...
A Mother’s Sacrifice (Leviticus 12:1-8)
A long ago time ago I began to appreciate how people from different cultures express their emotions and how cultural personalities vary from nation to nation. For instance, we often think of Greeks and Italians as being demonstrative in their speech, and how some...
The Blessing of Boundaries (Leviticus 11:1-47)
As we are learning, week by week, the book of Leviticus contains far more than initially meets the eye. As we dig into the text we are confronted each week with new revelation of our glorious God and His intention for those whom He has chosen to save. Leviticus 11,...
From Triumph to Tragedy (Leviticus 10:1-20)
In what is, in my estimation, one of the most important books written in the past 50 years, David Wells notes that, in the modern church, “God has been drained of glory, divested of majesty, and denuded of authority.” Wells argues that the fundamental problem of the...