Leviticus 20 starts out with a horrifying thought: sacrificing your children to appease another god. Unfortunately, in the Israelites time child sacrifice was a common practice, especially to the Ammonite God Molech. While the practice may sicken us today, the ancient people believed that this was the greatest sacrifice they could give to appease the gods. God absolutely forbids the practice and commands that anyone who sacrifices a child in this way should be stoned to death. Unlike the other gods, God is a loving God and is not so petty as to need to be “appeased,” particularly in so gruesome a manner! God is also the Creator and giver of life, and He specifically forbids murder in the Law (Ex. 20:13) so why would He ever condone child sacrifice? Additionally, as we learned in Leviticus 19, God is a caring God and He looks out for the the helpless and the less fortunate, and who is more helpless than a child? Finally, as we today especially know, God is unselfish, to the degree that He sacrificed Himself to save us (Is. 53:4-5), so asking us to sacrifice our children to Him goes against His very character.
God also makes it clear that if we need something, we should come to Him, not consult a medium or fortune teller. While we may be interested in the future, if it is truly something we need to know about, God will tell us, but turning to the occult for answers only harms us. I suspect some of the demon-possessed people that Jesus healed may have tried to consult the spirits for something, and by opening themselves to that evil they gave the devil a foothold into their lives. Another example of the dangers of consulting a spirit for advice comes from the story of King Saul, when he is do desperate for advice he turns to a witch (I Sam. 28). Shortly after that meeting, Saul is killed.
God also reiterates the consequences of sexual sins (vv. 10-21). These acts, while acceptable in the pagan societies in Canaan (sex goddesses, temple prostitutes, etc.), God had no tolerance for them. He know the destructive effect they have on married couples and the damage they can do to families. Plus there is the disease that sexual promiscuity can bring. God was building a nation that was to make a positive influence on the world (not just a short-term “feel good” influence). He was protecting the Israelites from the debauchery they would encounter upon entering Canaan, so He commanded them to stay away from that lifestyle.
As we’ve seen throughout Leviticus, God have many rules for His people, but He had a reason for all of them! He wasn’t trying to prevent them from being happy (as the Serpent asserted to Eve in the Garden), He was trying to protect them from the things that could destroy their lives. Look at it this way: You understand God’s physical laws ("what goes up must come down”), it goes without saying. But many times we are confused by how God’s spiritual laws work. He tells us not to do this or that, not because He’s being mean, but because He is trying to keep us from self-destructing (which, let’s face it, is our nature).
encounter: The next time you’re tempted by a forbidden physical or emotional pleasure, keep in mind that while it may feel good in the short-term, the long-term consequences could be suffering and separation from the God who is forever trying to help you.
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