“These are the commandments that the Lord commanded Moses for the people of Israel on Mount Sinai.”
-Leviticus 27:34
Thus ends this book of laws and commandments. Leviticus 27:34 is the last verse in Leviticus, and as I reflect on it, I am so overwhelmed by the goodness of God in giving His commandments. I was thinking just this morning about God’s grace in giving His word. It’s what He later says in Deuteronomy 4. I mean, what nation has a God like this who gives laws and commands for our good, who does not leave us in the dark on how to experience good, how to experience life?
God is gracious in giving us His Word. His commandments are just and right. His commands are for our good.
Leviticus 27:34 Reminds Us Commandments Are Good
Oh, when you see the book of Leviticus, don’t see a book. I hope that your conclusion after even walking through some of these podcast episodes in the book of Leviticus that you don’t walk away thinking, “Oh, these commands from God are hard and they’re stiff and they’re not helpful,” that you would see, “No, these are good and they’re gracious and they’re wonderful.” Yes, they’re serious, but they’re serious because God is serious about our good. Oh, God help us to see this.
You and I have been given commands from God for our good. The laws of God are not for our bad, they’re for us to experience life that God has spoken to us, that He’s graciously given us these commands, not so that we have to obey them, because we want to obey them, because we know that in obeying them we have life, true life. God, we praise you for your goodness toward us. We praise you for your word. God, we praise you for your laws. We love them in a Psalm 119 kind of way.
Leviticus 27:34 Leads Us to Want to Meditate on God’s Laws
We love your laws. We wanna meditate on them. God, we pray that that would be the desire of our hearts more and more and more and more. Help us not to be a people- I pray this in my own life, I pray this for people who are listening right now. God, help us not to dread your commands, to certainly ignore your commands through not opening up, reading, listening to your word. Help us to love them. God, help us to meditate on them like they’re life to us, like they are our delight in a Psalm 1 kind of way.
God’s Plans Are Best
God, help us to exalt your commands, desire them, and obey them. They’re so good. God, you know what is best for our lives. You know what is best for our families. God, you know what is best for our churches. You know what is best for our plans and dreams and ambitions in this world. Overall, you know what is best. You are all-wise and you have not hidden that which is wisdom from us. You’ve given it to us in your word. You have provided commands, rules, statutes for us. We thank you and we pray. Help us to have a right perspective of them and help us to do them just as this was the command over and over again to your people in the Old Testament. “Hear these commands and do them. Hear these commands and do them.”
God, we pray you’d help us to do them. Help us as we read commands, even specific instructions in the New Testament, new covenant. Help us to do them and in the process to experience life with you in them. Thank you for your word, for the book of Leviticus and for your laws. Lord, help us to glorify you through obedience to your word, to your laws. For our good and for your glory, we pray these things in Jesus’ name. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
