The divine revelation of God is clear on the non-negotiable requirement of spiritual purity as the foundation for a relationship with the Almighty. The spiritual battle is a conflict between purification and contamination. Impurity is a spiritual force drawn to defile sacred people and spaces.
Jacob Milgrom states in his comments on Leviticus in the Anchor Yale Bible, “To my knowledge, all versions and translations, old and new, render the ḥaṭṭāʾt sacrifice as “sin offering.” This translation is inaccurate on all grounds: contextually, morphologically, and etymologically. He goes on to say, “it carries no other meaning than “to cleanse, expurgate, decontaminate,” “ḥaṭṭāʾt is literally the language of purification.”
This is why the altar has to be “decontaminated” it has been rendered impure by the impure deeds of the people.
YHWH says in Malachi 1:7, You are presenting defiled food upon My altar. The people reply, How have we defiled You? Because you say, The table of the LORD is to be despised.
In the same way, when we are rendered impure, we need purifying, sanctifying, and consecration. This process transforms us into a “sacred vessel” requiring purity and sanctification.
The Master says “sanctify them in Your Truth, Your Word is the Truth.” – John 17:17
From the beginning, the forces of evil work to cause man to become impure. We see cherubim stationed at the entrance of the garden to protect against the impure approach.
The end goal of the adversary is the abomination of desolation, or causing that which is pure to become impure.
The adversary also attempts this impurity by what man partakes of or puts into his body.
Milgrom goes on to say, “for both Israel and her neighbors, impurity was a physical substance, an aerial miasma (an infection ) that possessed magnetic attraction for the realm of the sacred. Impurity is the implacable foe (an enemy with no mercy) of holiness wherever it exists; it assaults the sacred realm even from afar.”… … “In the Ancient Near East, impurity was feared because it was considered demonic.”
Impurity is like this magnet always looking for that which is becoming pure so that it can contaminate it.
Spiritual readiness and cleansing are preconditions for receiving divine revelation. If Aaron had to cleanse himself in order to approach God to receive revelation from the Urim and Thummim, how can we serve as a priesthood if we do not take the steps to spiritually ready and cleanse ourselves? Do we expect to receive divine revelation when we are in an impure state? The first 10 chapters of Leviticus give us a great insight into this purification.
By striving to understand and interpret the ancient rituals as timeless models for believers, we gain a greater understanding of what our Master accomplished on the stake and the importance of sanctification and purification we received through His offering.
It is through our struggles with the adversary and his accompanying impurities, that we are challenged to overcome and to be sanctified by The Blood of The Lamb. As we strive for a life of purity before Our Creator we can truly enjoy the fruit and reward of our labor.
A friend recently shared this thought with us – a man and a woman are considered married after completing vows before witnesses and an officiant. The true bonding of an everlasting relationship occurs when adversity enters with the goal of causing impurities in the relationship. When both parties strive together and overcome that which came to contaminate, the foundation of an eternal bond has been formed. With each triumph over the forces of evil, the bond becomes stronger.
Adversities and impurities that contaminate our lives delay our prophetic destiny. This delay can only be resolved by the protocol of purification and sanctification declared by divine justice, The Living Word of God.
Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting! Psalm 139
In His Service,
Mark and Polly Webb
BYNA Elders
