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Leviticus 18:21 - Partial restoration of creation order

Dear Friends,

Some times we forget that Moses wrote Genesis.  Obviously, he did not have first hand knowledge of the events of creation.  But God did and revealed them to Moses.  The "story arc" is clear to Moses despite the millenia of history between Genesis and Leviticus.  The plan for ultimate restoration is hazy, but God is at work repairing some of the damage.

Blessings,

Jeff

What is the prohibition on child sacrifice doing in the list of prohibited sexual relations?

Be fruitful and multiply - First commandment in Genesis.  God made the world to be inhabited.   Having children is how this  was to happen.  So child sacrifice was a direct violation of this first command to Adam and Eve.

Marriage is one man and one woman is the creation order. Seems simple enough.  I can imagine men thinking, Yeah but God didn't say which woman.  I will do the one woman thing if she is my sister, or aunt or …..  So God gives all these examples of unlawful unions.  To this day, man still is kicking against restrictions to sexual expression.  

The creation order is where people flourish.  Sin broke the creation order.  Laws cannot restore creation order, but they do put some restraint on the result of the fall and promote flourishing.   Ultimate restoration is the new heaven and the new earth.

Instruction - God's expectation - God's design of sex within marriage to produce a fruitful world is how man can flourish.  Anything outside of this is ultimately harmful.  God's love for the world is expressed in providing limitations for any other sexual relations.

Thanksgiving - God is autonomous.  He is the creator and has the right to make the rules.  He gave sexual identity to Adam and Eve.

Confession - People are not autonomous.  We do not get to make the rules to suit our desires.  Biological reality cannot be redefined.

Petition - a broken world needs to see flourishing in the context of Biblical norms.  Violating morality is a symptom of unbelief.  People need to be saved and then Spirit will address the moral issues.  Compassionate response to people struggling with gender issues so that they may see God's plan for them beginning with salvation.

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