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Christianity Today, August, 2008 |

The Christian Vision Project

The 30-Day Leviticus Challenge

One church's experiment in living the most arcane book of the Bible.

Daniel Harrell | posted 7/25/2008 10:27AM

In a region where evangelical Christianity has been hard to find for much of the last century, Park Street Church is a durable exception. Its white steeple rises above the Boston Common, an icon of New ...

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Laura

Posted: July 31, 2008 9:51 PM

Interesting experiment, sounds like the participants learned a great deal. Just a bit of concern: the article made the comment that "its [the laws] purpose was to show saved people how to live a saved life." In the New Testament the purpose of the law is explained: it was to show us our NEED for salvation--the fact that we cannot live a sinless life, Rom 5:20, to show us what sin is, Rom 7:7, and bring us to Christ, Gal 3:24. The Law was our schoolmaster to bring us to salvation, but now under grace we are Sons (or Daughters) and we do what pleases the Father because we love Him, not out of duty or obligation to a Law. The law may help us to better understand what pleases the Father, but its "purpose" is not to show a saved person how to live. This may seem like a bone I am picking at... but this sort of "truth" that is not based on scripture can cause a deception that leads to defeated christian living. A challenge for us all to know and speak only the Truth of God's precious Word.

esla	Posted: July 31, 2008 9:31 AM


This is so interesting. There is no life like the Christian life. I love them both... the christian life and the levitical project.

Sherri

Posted: July 30, 2008 7:58 PM

I thought this article, and the whole experiment, very interesting indeed. Granted, nobody followed any sort of authority for interpretation (at least a basic modern Jewish standard would have been far more realistic), but even so it's more than most believers attempt. However, I do take exception to the comment above that "if you didn't follow it all, you didn't follow it at all." If I gave my children instructions and they discovered that under the circumstances only half of them were possible, I would be more pleased with their best efforts to accomplish what they could than if they simply gave up and said oh well, if we can't do all of it why do any of it? Besides, there is a difference between picking and choosing what we're willing to keep and what we're able to keep. Animal sacrifice is only lawfully done by priests in the Temple, which we don't have. Stoning adulterers assumes the law of the Lord is also the law of the land. Ancient Israel in exile couldn't do those either.

Matt S

Posted: July 30, 2008 11:33 AM


God has been working in my heart about it what it means to have a Holy Fear of Him and to live in responce to who He is. I am exscepting this challenge for myself I know I will find it liberating.

Johann

Posted: July 30, 2008 8:17 AM


Oh brother- yet another gimmick in the entertainment industry known as the evangelical church.

Free to do what...

Posted: July 30, 2008 8:07 AM

A great article and experiment! It is through Christ that we are saved and are set free from sin, free to live a Spirit filled life. After all Christ himself said "if you love me keep my commandments" (Jn 14:15). David a man after God's own heart "delights in the law" (Ps 119:70). I am puzzled why the tendency is to avoid the law as if it was a "skin-infection"... People commented how we have freedom in Christ - I ask freedom to do what - sin???

Dave N.

Posted: July 29, 2008 5:12 PM


Wow, talk about Reformed theology taken to an extreme. Better to have spent 30 days pondering the book of Galatians and the role of Israelite law in the life of the Christian (none). This quasi-Dominionist response to the Hebrew Bible is the essence of a great deal of confusion in the church today.

Serious Disciple

Posted: July 29, 2008 12:33 PM

Thank you, Christianity Today. This is a good place to start. Leviticus is the first Book of the Bible that Jesus would have memorized begining at age five. Jesus, because He was without sin, lived in perfect obedience to God's Torah and, as Christians, we are His Disciples. This quote says it all, Daniel Harrell writes, "The Law's purpose was never to save anybody. Rather, its purpose was to show saved people how to live a saved life." Thanks be to God. May The Holy Spirit lead us all to the solution for "the Interpretive Challenge." I love Leviticus, too. Amen and Amen.

Mark Eaton

Posted: July 29, 2008 7:25 AM

I agree with Rebbe. Jeshua would be puzzled by this article. As are many Jews who follow the letter of the Law. We can pick and choose which law not to follow such as Sabbath on Saturday and have no outwardly consequence. What if there were consequences? What if God struck us dead for disobedience? Or what if we were stoned for disobedience? I believe there are inward consequences at work in this present dispensation of grace. If we disobey small insignificant laws it makes it easier to disobey the larger ones. Soon our lives are more disobedience than obedience. The point of this exercise should have been how to live a consecrated and holy life. We can do that without living Leviticus literally by living Leviticus spiritually. Do we consecrate our Sabbath (Sunday) to prayer and reflection on God or do we cut the grass, watch sports, and entertain ourselves? The letter of the Law never saves, but the heart of the Law is the heart of God. Try to please Him, and you will follow the Law.

Lynn	Posted: July 28, 2008 7:07 PM


Usually when I read Leviticus as part of my read through the Bible discipline, I'm overwhelmed by God's holiness and my own lack thereof. The interpretation part seems to be the key. What does holiness look like? Can I, a 51 year old woman wear blue jeans, what about cotton/poly blends?

a jew

Posted: July 28, 2008 5:49 PM


and that's why we don't believe in jesus. you guys are nasty. the article is a good one.

rebbe

Posted: July 28, 2008 12:33 PM

"the anointing Spirit of Pentecost rendered obsolete the need for a special priesthood." But we have a special priesthood - the distance between the pew and the pulpit is greater than that between the El-Lazar (Lazarus) and the rich man. "We often conclude that because the Law was written to Old Testament Israelites, and because "Jesus fulfilled the Law,' " Yeshua "fulfilled" the Torah in showing us how to observe it. A very rabbinic thing to do. And He had some particularly interesting comments that followed His statement "I have not come to do away with the Torah" regarding anyone who would say otherwise. Our church-fathers skewing of the scriptures to accommodate Platonic philosophy and distance themselves from the persecution of the Jews by Rome has left us the poorer in many cases. I think the "tens of thousands" of Jewish believers who (a decade later after Shauvot (Pentecost)) were fervent to observe Torah would be puzzled by this article. Very possibly so is Jesus.

Doug	Posted: July 27, 2008 9:29 PM

I disagree with the author's statement that the purpose of Leviticus was to teach people how to live saved. Paul says the Law is our teacher to bring us to Christ: It's purpose is to show us how UN-saved and sinful we are. It's also worth noting that the command to abstain from blood in Acts is recorded as an ecclesiastical decision, but the Bible doesn't tell us whether it was a correct decision or not.

Matthew

Posted: July 27, 2008 5:12 PM


The gospel is what? "Nothing less than divine institution of true worship of God"... What? The Gospel is the good new of Christ and Him Crucifed! I so want to curse right now. Why do people have to constantly make the Gospel into anything they want it to be, other than what it actually is? Why?

cyberlizard

Posted: July 27, 2008 3:13 AM

first let me say, according to colossians the Law was NOT nailed to the cross. get back into the greek. neither did paul speak against the Law as he had timothy snipped (we need to re-read paul). but that aside this article is great, people have learned the need to live holy lives, and have come to find out that the law (torah) is usefulnot only for teaching stuff like types and shadows, but also for training in righteousness (there is more to righteousness than imputed/forensic). Anything that humbles a person, makes God's grace more apparent can only be described as a good thing. I enjoyed the article as did my wife. The idea of writing down our sins or using the commands as a basis for sins benchmark is a good and worthwhile practice. to many people simply go on about types and shadows - i ask who and what cast the shadow, and i ask are shadows a dirty word (i think only if you think in a greco-platonic way). Shadows are good, reality is coming!

subscriber

Posted: July 27, 2008 1:45 AM


Apostate article. I'd rate the article a big fat zero, but it isn't an option.

Robert L

Posted: July 26, 2008 4:36 PM

In regards to Leviticus, which inicidentally, is the heart of Torah, which is the Messiah in the flesh, I would say to you naysayers on the relevance of this exercise, Pro 28:9 He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination. The church has turned their ears from His laws and if you do so too, your prayers will be as is written... Repent now before it is too late!!

JFerg

Posted: July 26, 2008 3:24 PM

Sure, following a set of laws can lead to legalism. Sure, the law was nailed to a tree. But wouldn't most of you who so oppose this article agree that we live in a world today of cheap grace? This congregation did not do this experiment in order as a means to gain salvation; they attempted this to more fully grasp the significance of salvation. I didn't catch a hint of the legalism Paul was preaching against in Romans and Galatians. I believe that if more people were to attempt this, they would realize more and more the beauty of that old rugged cross. I think there would be more weeping over our grace, as people would more fully understand the depths of God's love for us.

Diane Tarazi

Posted: July 26, 2008 1:43 PM


Well, first I'd like to read the article and print it. Havn't found the next page yet or print friendly button for the article. I'm most interested int joining the study on Leviticus & resent being tantalized, having to "pasword" each page & not simply getting the article. Thus I can't even critique it! Pastor Diane

Adam	Posted: July 26, 2008 12:00 PM

Don't be so quick to be cynical about an attempt to revive the church or the lives of a few members of the body. It is plain to see that the church has lost a little something and to search the WORD in an attempt to find that something (which I must say is GOD Himself) is simply admirable. If we could all find something that would remind of us of just how much God has done through the sacrifice of Christ I bvelieve we would find that revival that has been searched for for such a long time. That revival will only happen when change occurs and that change will only occur when we realize our need foir God. Adam

Scott McCarty

Posted: July 26, 2008 11:02 AM

A very interesting article explaining how reacting some of Leviticus seemed to have awakened the congregation to some typological spiritual truths. BUT all of the Law was nailed to the Cross according to Col. 2:14, so "playing with" Léviticus can be a dangerous activity. Paul said in Galatians 3:10 and 5:3-4 that the Law is a unity and that one has to obey all 613 commandements, all or nothing. The danger of the Law today is legalism and Seventh-Day Adventism. The pastor would do better to preach-teach Romains and Galatians, then he would see a real revival of New Testament Christian living. It is interesting that the Christians of the primitive church didn't go around reacting Leviticus, for they had found liberty from Léviticus !

Mike P.

Posted: July 26, 2008 6:07 AM

Interesting article. I think it's great a church is taking action, so that's a positive. The problem I see in the article is it shows, as always, we as Christians can't seem to agree on anything. The experiment here appears to be beneficial in growth, but when it comes down to it, what do we know about what Leviticus teaches us for our daily lives? Everyone had their own interpretations. It sounds like most went back to the way things were before the experiment (as far as still obeying the laws).

Jim Sparks

Posted: July 26, 2008 12:32 AM

The problem is, although this group professed to "live according to Leviticus", the reality is they did not. They were selective in which bits they would follow, and how they would follow. This is not "Leviticus". Leviticus gives strict rules, guidelines, and structures which must be followed. It is not a buffet where you can pick and choose what you like and ignore the rest, it is instead a meal with your mother and father where you eat everything that they put on your plate - or else. How many men separated themselves from their wives during her period? How many blasphemers were stoned? How many people with skin rashes were put in isolation? How many animals were sacrificed? The fact is, if you didn't follow it all - you didn't follow it at all. Now, having said that, this isn't to say that taking Leviticus or any other part of the Bible seriously is a bad thing. But let's stop boasting about what we haven't actually done.

Amy	Posted: July 25, 2008 11:32 PM


I hate to sound like a wet blanket, or a disobedient Christian, but this whole exercise sounds sort of like what Paul warned against in Romans, Galatians, Colossians, etc. about why do we need to go back to the law when we have freedom in Christ?

Deb	Posted: July 25, 2008 8:56 PM


I hate to admit I was ready to be appalled, but instead I was surprised! Nice work....I guess we are always learning about the gospel.....we never get it figured out...

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