Leviticus 21:16-24 (ESV)
And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to Aaron, saying, None of your offspring throughout their generations who has a blemish may approach to offer the bread of his God. For no one who has a blemish shall draw near, a man blind or lame, or one who has a mutilated face or a limb too long, or a man who has an injured foot or an injured hand, or a hunchback or a dwarf or a man with a defect in his sight or an itching disease or scabs or crushed testicles. No man of the offspring of Aaron the priest who has a blemish shall come near to offer the LORD’S food offerings; since he has a blemish, he shall not come near to offer the bread of his God. He may eat the bread of his God, both of the most holy and of the holy things, but he shall not go through the veil or approach the altar, because he has a blemish, that he may not profane my sanctuaries, for I am the LORD who sanctifies them.” So Moses spoke to Aaron and to his sons and to all the people of Israel.
This is a very interesting section of Leviticus. This passage makes it sound like holiness and wholeness are equivalent to God. The instructions are quite plan, actually. No one with a physical deformity is to be considered for a full service experience as a priest. They can do some things, but not other things. God is not condemning those who are not whole physically, but is rather stressing the high standard He has for those who do serve Him in some capacities. There is nothing that carries over from the Old Testament to the New Testament in this regard. The Body of Christ is not limited based upon the physical shape of the believer. We do not know the full mind of God regarding the above, other than the full knowledge that God ends every command in this section with, for I am the Lord who sanctifies you. There is not a separate holiness based upon wholeness of body. But God does have the sovereign right to deny those who do or do not serve for Him. In this case He outlines that. In the cases in the New Testament there is no such limit on service. God is not telling us that those who are less whole physically can’t serve Him in fullness. God is telling us that the limits of our service are based upon His sovereign design and decree.
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