1. The corrupt cultures of Canaan & Egypt (18)

God forbids his people to indulge in sexual immorality (ch. 18). God is holy. His people must also be holy. The things he prohibits reveal how corrupt the Canaanite culture was. God's people cannot conform to worldly culture. If sexual immorality is rampant, nations, families and individuals will die. Those who obey God's laws will live (5). Immorality defiles the land (25); God promised that the land would vomit out those who defile it. Sexual immorality destroys; love builds up.

2. Love your neighbor as yourself (19)

'I am the Lord' is repeated 15 times in chapter 19. The chapter begins with, 'Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.' (2) It ends with, 'I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt.' (36) We belong to God twice: He made us; he redeemed us. He is the Lord. He commands us to love and obey him and to love each other. His laws tell us how. The Ten Commandments are basic.

Application: Lord, help me to love others; help me not to conform to the world.
One Word: Don't live like the Canaanites