#Jesus22 - Daily DevotionalsSample

I don't know how many times I have read and reread these scriptures in Leviticus. Somehow they didn't speak to me. Rules on purification, white spots, leprosy, washing, shaving hair... these are admittedly not the topics that touch me in my Bible reading. But I have discovered that it is worth digging deeper. There's more to it than realizing that washing hands is still useful today.

A man went to the priest. The priest declared him unclean. The danger of a serious illness for the person himself, but also for his environment, became a reality. What was the reaction to this? Leprosy was considered incurable unless God performed a miracle. I could have understood it well if the affected person had walked away sulking and waited somewhere for fate to strike. Nothing could be done about the disease itself. But God demands a different reaction here. The person is given an active role. Clean yourself! Wash yourself, shave your hair, or in other words, do something.

How do we deal with sin? Don't we often take a passive attitude? We pray "Lord forgive me!" or "Lord free me from this or that thing!", and then we wait to see what happens. Of course we can and should ask for forgiveness. But what is the next step? Are we also ready to clean ourselves, to remove sick areas, or does it just remain a request? The forgiveness of our guilt is promised to us. We receive it by trusting in Jesus Christ. He died for us to reconcile us with God the Father. We cannot contribute anything to this. But Jesus invites us to participate in the purification process. In the first part of the Bible, we can read a lot about purification rituals. After Jesus' substitutionary death and resurrection for us, this process consists mainly of three steps that we can take: recognize/confess/take action. We recognize where sin has taken hold in our lives. We confess this to God and sometimes to people and experience forgiveness. Now it's a matter of changing our behavior. This is not easy. We need practice, prayer, and support to stay in this new freedom.

ACTION STEP

At which of the three points (recognize, confess, take action) are you right now? What step could you take today? Ask God to show you what you should do today.