"THE THIRD BOOK CALLED LEVITICUS— Leviticus stands as the third book of the Pentateuch, the Five Books of Moses or the Torah ('teaching, law') of Judaism. The book is known as Vayikra in the Hebrew canon, a title taken from the opening verse of the first chapter, meaning 'and he called' (i. e., 'The Lord called Moses’.” (Brazos Theological Commentary)
Are you called of God? This book is might just be for you. "But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light." (1 Peter 2:9) "Without the shedding of blood, there is no remission of sins- (Leviticus 17:11 Hebrews 9:22) and no peace.
This book is also described "by such designations as 'the law of the priests,' 'the book of the priests,' and 'the law of the offerings.' These later characterized the general contents of the book, recognizing it as a work intended principally for the Hebrew priesthood. The Septuagint Greek version of the Old Testament entitled the book ‘Leuitikon' or ‘Leueitikon', I.e., ‘relating to the Levites...Leviticus enlarges upon matters involving the ordering of worship at the divine sanctuary mentioned only briefly in Exodus…. Leviticus narrates the way in which the priests are to care for the sanctuary and throne room of the Great King…" (R. K. Harrison)
"LEVITICUS AND THE CHRISTIAN-- The laws in Leviticus were given many years before Christ and seem very remote from Christian living at the onset of the 21st century. However, though our circumstances are very different, the basic religious message of Leviticus still is vital and valid today. It is in terms of the sacrifices mentioned in Leviticus that the NT understands the death of Christ. Jesus was the true burnt offering, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). Jesus was the perfect sin offering whose blood cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:7). His death has, of course, made animal sacrifices obsolete, but these old Levitical sacrifices show us what Jesus achieved for us. In other ways the theology of Leviticus still applies to the Christian. Christians are still called to be holy because God is holy (1 Peter 1:16). As those who ate sacrifices while they were unclean were warned in Leviticus that they would be cut off, so Paul warned the Corinthians that those who partook of the Lord's Supper unworthily would face judgment (1 Corinthians 11:27- 32). Leviticus insists that the priests must be examples of perfect holiness in their behavior; so Christian ministers are expected to be models of Christian virtue (1 Timothy 3:1- 13). The practical exhortations to care for the poor, the blind, and the deaf; to be fair and honest; and to be faithful in marriage are just as applicable now as they were 3,000 years ago. Our Lord summed up the whole Law and the Prophets with a quotation from Deuteronomy 6:5, 'You must love the LORD your God with all your heart,' and another from Leviticus 19:18, 'Love your neighbor as yourself' (NLT; cf. Matthew22:37- 40).
By studying and meditating on Leviticus, the modern Christian can learn much about the character of God and his will for holy living." (Tyndale Bible Dictionary)
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