Leviticus contains the laws that Israel should keep. The sacrifices showed that sinfulness deserves death, and points to the death of Christ. Look out for laws preventing the spread of infection and food poisoning, preserving the fertility of the land, ensuring fair land ownership and honest trade, and looking after the poor, the disabled and foreigners.
Numbers starts with the count made of the Israelites leaving Egypt. In chapter 14 they refuse to enter the land God had promised them. Consequently God condemned them to wander in the wilderness for 40 years until, when counted again at the end of the book, all those in the first count had died. Hebrews 4 presents this as a warning that unbelief would also exclude us from God’s kingdom.
Many of the Psalms of thanksgiving and praise we read this month start with the Hebrew word ‘Hallelujah’, translated ‘Praise the LORD’ or ‘Praise YAH’ (Yah is the shortened form of God’s name, Yahweh, usually shown in English Bibles as ‘the LORD’). Psalm 110 is one of the most quoted passages in the New Testament. It speaks of the relationship between God (the LORD) and Jesus (my Lord), Jesus’ ascension to heaven to sit at God’s right hand, his eternal priesthood, and his return to the earth as judge and king.
The book of Proverbs contrasts the wisdom of God, which promises life, with the foolishness of human thinking which leads to death. Wisdom must be sought out and treasured, and is found in the word of God.
Corinthians emphasises the importance of keeping to the beliefs and behaviour taught in the original gospel message and not being persuaded by other teachings (e.g. 2 Cor. 11:2-4). The gospel hope of resurrection (rising out of death) at the return of Christ is powerfully explained in 1 Corinthians 15.
Luke gives some information not found in the other gospels. Jesus’ miraculous birth, and the genealogy through Mary traced right back to Adam, make it clear that Jesus was a man, with the same nature as Adam, and yet also the Son of God who resisted all the temptations that our human nature brings. Jesus’ use of ‘Son of Man’ to describe himself emphasises this point.