Pentecost 21A
10-24-20
A Gentle Reminder!
Leviticus 19:1-2, 15-18!
"Have you ever needed a gentle reminder? Have you ever needed to be reminded of
things? Reminded of how to behave. Reminded of things you promised. Reminded of what you
said you’d do. Have you ever needed a gentle reminder? Being in a marriage, I get gentle
reminders all the time. I said I’d do the dishes. I said I’d pick up my clothes or fold the laundry.
Sometimes I need those gentle reminders to get me to do the things I said I’d do. You get
gentle reminders at work. Gentle reminders to get a project done on time, to get a report filed
when needed, to follow the safety protocols. Gentle reminders. They are there so that we can
remember what we are supposed to be doing. They are given to us not to be mean, not
necessarily to shame or scold us, but to politely push us back on the path we said we’d be on.
They are given to politely correct our behavior. Gentle reminders. !
"Well, we see in the Leviticus today some gentle reminders for the people of God. I think
they worth hearing today because just like in life, just like in our relationships, we need gentle
reminders in our faith life as well. We need gentle reminders to live according to God’s word,
according to his will, according to his plan. We need gentle reminders of his Law, the perfection
it demands of us. You will notice there is not any striking or smiting in this passage from
Leviticus, just a gentle reminder of how God’s people are supposed to live. Now, before we get
into what those standards are for us, I want to gently remind you what the book of Leviticus is
all about. It’s the third book in the Torah and it follows the book of Exodus. Exodus is the story
of God’s people escaping slavery in Egypt to head toward the Promised Land. Their journey
through the wilderness brings them to Mount Sinai where we hear the Law of God given. At
Mount Sinai is where we are given the Ten Commandments. It is where we are given the
specifics on the Tabernacle, God’s house, should look. There are these new laws that are given
that demand God’s people to live another way, a different way than the rest of the world. These
laws make them holy, set apart kind of people from the cultures that surround them. !
"At the end of Exodus, Moses tries to enter into the Tabernacle, the place where God
dwells, but he can’t. He can’t because he’s not holy. He can’t because he isn’t perfect. It’s a
gentle reminder of the separation between him and God that he cannot enter into his presence.
So the book of Leviticus is filled with laws and rituals and ceremonies that gently remind the
people of God’s holiness and also make them holy and clean before God so that they can
approach him. The book of Leviticus is a reminder of God’s law, given at Sinai. The book of
Leviticus is a gentle reminder of what perfection looks like. It is a constant reminder of how far
we fall short of that standard. So our reading comes from that push to be holy. It is a gentle
reminder of how we are to behave. People skip over Leviticus all the time because they think it
is dated and not fit for the 21st century but those skeptics would be wrong. Today’s reading is
a pretty socially conscious message for today. It reminds us to care for the poor. It reminds us
that we should be righting the wrongs that persist in the structures of power. It reminds us to
defend the lives and livelihoods of the weak. It reminds us to love others like we love ourselves. !
"So today’s reading is centered on this reminder to love, to care, to step outside of your
own skin and recognize the needs of your neighbor. It’s a reminder that life isn’t all about you.
It’s a gentle reminder that God calls us to care for other people. It’s a gentle reminder that other
people need us. These words are written because we need the reminder. We need the reminder
to look beyond ourselves because we often have our blinders on in life. We have our own
agenda, our own schedules that keep us from really seeing the needs of others. So when God
interrupts our lives with his word, he gently reminds us that there are other people besides me.
There are other people in the world that need love. There are other people that need love and
consideration. There are wrongs that need to be righted. There are injustices that need our
attention. And if only you would love these folks like you love yourself then things would go
well. Life would look different. The world would be a lot better place. It’s a gentle reminder to
be a holy people set apart to care for the world. It’s a gentle reminder for us and we need it
because we are selfish. We need it because we are about self preservation, looking out for
number one. We care mainly about ourselves. Our default mode is “what about me?”. God
