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Day 39, or February the 8th. Keep God's laws

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for everyone's sake. Our thoughts today are rooted

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in Leviticus chapter 18, verses 3 and 4. You

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must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used

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to live, and you must not do as they do in the

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land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not

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follow their practices. You must obey my laws

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and be careful to follow my decrees. I am the

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Lord your God. First, the big picture surrounding

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these verses. There is much detail about sexual

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cleanliness in Leviticus. Promiscuity was a real

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problem, and Moses did all he could to counteract

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it by telling the people that God didn't approve

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and demanded change. It's interesting that nowhere

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does God disapprove of sex. After all, it was

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his idea in the first place. However, when people

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simply do their own thing, it brings all sorts

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of problems and makes a God -given gift seem

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dirty and unwholesome. His people are to be distinctive

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and not the same as their heathen neighbours.

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The Canaanites were into tattoos and unusual

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hairstyles, so don't even look like them. Of

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course, this doesn't mean if you have the right

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hairdo and no tattoos, you're okay. I believe

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it means that we are to be God's people here

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on earth, and there are some aspects of modern

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life that are simply inappropriate. And now our

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action step for today. One of the most popular

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criticisms of the church today is that it's out

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of touch, and people see it as irrelevant because

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it's so old -fashioned and behind the times.

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My question is, who's moved? Would biblical teaching

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be more effective if it was regularly updated

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to suit modern trends in society? Sadly, some

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people would say yes, but I wouldn't. I've heard

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it said that the church should reflect the society

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in which it ministers. No, it shouldn't. It should

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reflect its Lord and Saviour and call for repentance

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and the need to progress to godly standards.

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Of course, let's be as contemporary and relevant

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as possible, but let's not distort the message

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itself. Are you one of God's special people,

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or do you appear just the same as everyone else?

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Time for a check -up.