Lev 21:1-24 (NLT)
1 The LORD said to Moses, “Give the following instructions to the priests, the descendants of Aaron. “A priest must not make himself ceremonially unclean by touching the dead body of a relative.
2 The only exceptions are his closest relatives—his mother or father, son or daughter, brother,
3 or his virgin sister who depends on him because she has no husband.
4 But a priest must not defile himself and make himself unclean for someone who is related to him only by marriage.
5 “The priests must not shave their heads or trim their beards or cut their bodies.
6 They must be set apart as holy to their God and must never bring shame on the name of God. They must be holy, for they are the ones who present the special gifts to the LORD, gifts of food for their God.
7 “Priests may not marry a woman defiled by prostitution, and they may not marry a woman who is divorced from her husband, for the priests are set apart as holy to their God.
8 You must treat them as holy because they offer up food to your God. You must consider them holy because I, the LORD, am holy, and I make you holy.
9 “If a priest’s daughter defiles herself by becoming a prostitute, she also defiles her father’s holiness, and she must be burned to death.
10 “The high priest has the highest rank of all the priests. The anointing oil has been poured on his head, and he has been ordained to wear the priestly garments. He must never leave his hair uncombed or tear his clothing.
11 He must not defile himself by going near a dead body. He may not make himself ceremonially unclean even for his father or mother.
12 He must not defile the sanctuary of his God by leaving it to attend to a dead person, for he has been made holy by the anointing oil of his God. I am the LORD.
13 “The high priest may marry only a virgin.
14 He may not marry a widow, a woman who is divorced, or a woman who has defiled herself by prostitution. She must be a virgin from his own clan,
15 so that he will not dishonor his descendants among his clan, for I am the LORD who makes him holy.”
16 Then the LORD said to Moses,
17 “Give the following instructions to Aaron: In all future generations, none of your descendants who has any defect will qualify to offer food to his God.
18 No one who has a defect qualifies, whether he is blind, lame, disfigured, deformed,
19 or has a broken foot or arm,
20 or is hunchbacked or dwarfed, or has a defective eye, or skin sores or scabs, or damaged testicles.
21 No descendant of Aaron who has a defect may approach the altar to present special gifts to the LORD. Since he has a defect, he may not approach the altar to offer food to his God.
22 However, he may eat from the food offered to God, including the holy offerings and the most holy offerings.
23 Yet because of his physical defect, he may not enter the room behind the inner curtain or approach the altar, for this would defile my holy places. I am the LORD who makes them holy.”
24 So Moses gave these instructions to Aaron and his sons and to all the Israelites.
How great is the blessing we have in redemption through His blood—a redemption that qualifies us beyond our failures and blemishes. Through the Spirit, He makes us holy by the washing and renewing power of that blood, not only so we can partake of His goodness, but so we can serve Him in holiness.
Yet, even though this grace and favor are given freely, their fruit must be evident as proof of their work in us. It is not enough to claim right standing or holiness as a mere position in His presence while disregarding what holiness actually looks like in daily life.
In the old temple, a priest’s state of holiness was directly affected by what he touched. His readiness to serve the Holy One depended on his conduct. Any disregard for this— even in matters involving those closest to him—could disqualify him from service.
Today, we no longer live under those same stringent requirements to gain favor or access to God’s presence. We are invited to come boldly to the throne of grace. Yet, an encounter with His presence must still have a visible effect on our choices and behavior. Our lives should make it clear that we have truly been there.
To claim holiness while living in ways that disregard the standards of the Holy One is self-deception. Such a life cannot fully serve as His temple. The gift we have received is not a superficial covering for ungodly pursuits, but a complete transformation of our desires and direction—continually shaped by the presence we now have access to.
The holiness that results is not an unbearable burden. Instead, it is an empowerment that enables us to soar in freedom, reflecting the beauty of the holiness we have beheld at His throne.