Free as a Bird

…release the live bird in the open fields” Leviticus 14:7

One bird went free. The other one gave his life to cleanse a person from contagious skin diseases like leprosy. Deep within the Jewish ritual that marked a person free from eczema, psoriasis, or just teenage acne, there is this startling statement: …release the live bird in the open fields” Leviticus 14:7

Skin diseases were a serious thing in ancient Israel. They made you unclean, untouchable, isolated, ostracized. You had to warn other people to stay away from you because you were potentially contagious. Skin diseases made you an outsider. Those feelings of ostracism, isolation, and unworthy of love still hang around our lives. And, many of those feelings are tied to our appearance. We feel defective when our skin looks weird. Even though there is no spiritual stigma attached to eczema, psoriasis, or acne, we want to cover up. And, sadly, many without a skin disease still feel isolated, unworthy, unclean.

God had a solution for those feelings. One bird goes free. The person who had suffered from a skin condition but was now better had to bring two birds. The priest took one bird and killed it over a pot of clean water, and then washed the other bird in the bloody water along with cedar wood, scarlet yarn, and hyssop. This would mark the person free from any contagious condition.

And, the bloody bird went free.

I don’t know if this is the source of the saying, “As free as a bird.” However, I do know that the symbolism in the Scripture really points to the fact that I’m the free bird. I’m as free as a bird because Jesus, the other bird, died for me. It is Jesus who is God’s solution to free us from our feelings of uncleanness, isolation, and ostracism. EPH 2:14 For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility… Jesus died to take away our isolation and put us into a place where we will be loved, accepted, and forgiven. It is called the Body of Christ. He died to show we are accepted in the beloved (Ephesians 1:6 KJV). His death, His blood, marks us as belonging to Him.

I’m free as a bird.