Leviticus 11 describes the dietary laws and I'm so thankful I happened to be visiting my daughter and her husband, who had a copy of Dr. Mark Rooker's commentary on Leviticus, as I was studying this chapter. The dietary laws are some of the most challenging to understand, with many different possible explanations offered. But as Dr. Rooker contends, many of these explanations have difficulties that are not easily resolved.
In the end, these dietary laws are less about the specific symbolism, behavior, or physical characteristics of the animals, and more about God. They illustrate that God is God and we are not. Just as in the Garden of Eden God decreed that Adam and Eve were not to eat fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, not because there was anything wrong with it, but simply because God set a rule for them to follow. The Israelites were to be set apart from the populations around them, but also, and more importantly, the laws God provided were intended to allow them to fellowship with God. In essence, all of the Levitical laws illustrated a reversal of the fall in order to restore the fellowship with God that was broken when Adam and Eve violated God's only rule for them.
We can get so caught up with trying to understand why God tells us something and lose sight of the most important thing -- that God told us so. I know I always balked if my parents told me to do something "because they said so," but the reality is that God created the universe, He created us, and sometimes we need to obey simply because "He said so." God is not obligated to provide an explanation for His rules for us. He is not required to even have a reason for the rules He gives us.
There are times when, as a Mom, I've had to tell my kids "no" to something for reasons that were beyond their understanding. I wanted them to trust that I love them and always have their best interest in mind. In the same way, God desires a relationship with us that includes trusting Him. Trusting that He loves us and trusting that the rules He provides are for our good even when we aren't able to understand how or why.
In the end, these dietary laws are less about the specific symbolism, behavior, or physical characteristics of the animals, and more about God. They illustrate that God is God and we are not. Just as in the Garden of Eden God decreed that Adam and Eve were not to eat fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, not because there was anything wrong with it, but simply because God set a rule for them to follow. The Israelites were to be set apart from the populations around them, but also, and more importantly, the laws God provided were intended to allow them to fellowship with God. In essence, all of the Levitical laws illustrated a reversal of the fall in order to restore the fellowship with God that was broken when Adam and Eve violated God's only rule for them.
We can get so caught up with trying to understand why God tells us something and lose sight of the most important thing -- that God told us so. I know I always balked if my parents told me to do something "because they said so," but the reality is that God created the universe, He created us, and sometimes we need to obey simply because "He said so." God is not obligated to provide an explanation for His rules for us. He is not required to even have a reason for the rules He gives us.
There are times when, as a Mom, I've had to tell my kids "no" to something for reasons that were beyond their understanding. I wanted them to trust that I love them and always have their best interest in mind. In the same way, God desires a relationship with us that includes trusting Him. Trusting that He loves us and trusting that the rules He provides are for our good even when we aren't able to understand how or why.
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