Bible Journaling: The Book of Leviticus

Leviticus

In this book of laws, we explore how the people of God were expected to live once they arrived in the promised land. This is seen as one of the most difficult books to Bible Journal about by many, right next to Revelation! - but we will discover what lies behind all the rules and regulations to uncover beautiful truths for us today. For a broader view of the book of Leviticus, we encourage you to watch this video:

Through the use of 3 steps we will: 
1. Look up  -  (information) -  encounter God through the Scripture 

2. Look in -  (revelation) - contemplate/reflect on our own lives 

3. Look out - (transformation) - respond with creative worship action 

Bible journaling tip #3:

Use colored pens to signify different things throughout your Bible. Example: If something points to Jesus, mark it in blue. If something speaks about heaven, mark it golden. This way you can build a whole index of themes. Some great key themes to consider are the following as set out by theologian and missiologist D.J. Bosch:

Christology (about Jesus), Ecclesiology (about church), Eschatology (about heaven / afterlife), Soteriology (about salvation), Anthropology (about people), and Culture (about life).

LOOK UP:
(information)  -  encounter God through the Scripture 

Author:

It is mostly agreed that this book was written by Moses. After the Israelites entered the promised land, they had questions about how to live in it. Leviticus could be read as a sort of manual for ‘How to live as the people of God’. 

Audience:

The hearers of this message were still wandering the wilderness and waiting to enter the promised land. They knew that God saved them from Egypt, the question was: for what? Have you experienced the grace of God in your life? It is clear to most believers what God has saved them from (sin, the world, brokenness) - but what has God saved you for? This is the question that was bugging the Israelites in this time, and the book of Leviticus was a sort of guideline to answer that question. Paul gives his answer to this question in Ephesians 4: “To live a life worthy of the calling you have received”.

History:

The name Leviticus means ‘a manual for Levites’ - Levites were members of the priestly tribe of Levi. The themes in this book include ritual, priests, purity, and atonement. Sacrifice is a big theme in this book. See if you can find ways that show how Jesus came to fulfil these sacrificial needs.

This post gives a good overview of what happens in the book as a whole.

Genre:

This book is in the genre of historical drama - it picks the story back up where Exodus ends and tells us about what happens next. Tim Mackey from The Bible Project explains the purpose of this book brilliantly: The first sentence in Leviticus is “God spoke to Moses from within the tent”. The first sentence in the next book, Numbers is “The Lord spoke to Moses IN the tent”. The book of Leviticus is HOW he was able to do that!

LOOK IN:
(revelation)  -  contemplate / reflect on our own lives

Key verse:

Inspiration:

Take a page and write on it “My Leviticus”. Now, write down some of the ways that God has set you apart for the calling you have received. Some things are not inherently sinful, but they can distract us from becoming who God made us to be.

For example:
- God called me to work with children. That means that I need to remain youthful and joyful. This means that I need to have limitations on exposure to films that are depressing or disturbing, because those will inhibit my ability to do what he called me to do.
- God called me to . . . That means that I need to remain . . . This means that I need to have limitations on . . .  because  . . .

LOOK OUT:
(transformation)  -  respond with creative worship action  

Drawing prompt:

When we think about a book full of rules, or the word limitations, it does not sound like fun at all. But these laws acted more like a trellis does to a plant: it provided safety, a place to lean on, and assurance of an abundant harvest. 

Draw an image of a plant growing on a trellis - write into it some rules / limitations that help you to live a life full of fruit in the Kingdom. What makes your life different from non-believers? How has God set you apart?

Bible Journey with JournalOwl:

Here are some questions / prompts provided by the JournalOwl community. 

• Give the three types of sacrifices that were used for burnt offerings, and the qualifications of each. (Leviticus 1:3), (Leviticus 1:10-14)
• Where was the burnt offering offered? (Leviticus 1:3-11)

Follow this link to dive into the book of Leviticus with an online Bible Study group. 

Writing prompt:

Write a poem about how God has set you apart and called you to be his own. Try to use words that you find throughout the book of Leviticus. 

Prayer:

God, I want to thank you for the book of Leviticus. Help me to understand this not only as a rule-book, but as a trellis that can support massive growth. Give me wisdom by your Spirit to understand these difficult parts too. Let my response to this text be worship unto you!