Leviticus is often the point where people get hung up when reading through the Bible. I hope you'll join me in reading through Leviticus, one chapter a day, and searching for what God would say to YOU as you read. Hebrews 4:12 tells us, "For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart." And 2 Timothy 3:16-17 says, "16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work." Leviticus has much to teach us about who God is, who we are, and how God desires for us to live.
Leviticus 1 introduces the sacrificial system. Up to this point, followers of Yahweh have given offerings as they felt led, without any formal structure or specific expectations. We see offerings being given by Noah, by Abraham, and by many others. But this is the first scene where God prescribes rules for various types of offerings.
The first question that arises in my modern mindset is why would a loving God direct them to kill animals as atonement for their sin or as a fellowship offering? Why not allow them to only have grain offerings or recite some kind of penance for their sin? That seems to resonate better with the modern notion of a God who is all love and no judgement.
But the Bible is clear from Genesis 3 that the price of sin is great. The first sacrifice was the one God made in order to clothe Adam and Eve after they had sinned. There was a price paid, in blood, for their sin. So the sacrifices made by the Israelites in the desert, like those made by Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, were intended to bring to mind the high cost of sin.
After the fall, Adam and Eve's sons, Cain and Abel, also brought sacrifices. While some have suggested that Abel's sacrifice was accepted because it was a blood sacrifice, and Cain's was rejected because it was not, further study shows God's awareness of the heart attitude behind each offering. Both in Genesis and in Leviticus, as well as today, what we offer to the Lord is not a bribe intended to convince God to forgive us (and allow us to continue sinning without consequence as long as we provide regular offerings).
The sacrifice is intended to represent our repentance for sin, our recognition of sin's devastating impact on our relationship with God, and our sincere desire to put to death anything that comes between us and the Lord. Christ's sacrifice covers all of that so that now, instead of bringing a lamb, we look to the Lamb and consider the cost of our sin.
The first question that arises in my modern mindset is why would a loving God direct them to kill animals as atonement for their sin or as a fellowship offering? Why not allow them to only have grain offerings or recite some kind of penance for their sin? That seems to resonate better with the modern notion of a God who is all love and no judgement.
But the Bible is clear from Genesis 3 that the price of sin is great. The first sacrifice was the one God made in order to clothe Adam and Eve after they had sinned. There was a price paid, in blood, for their sin. So the sacrifices made by the Israelites in the desert, like those made by Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, were intended to bring to mind the high cost of sin.
After the fall, Adam and Eve's sons, Cain and Abel, also brought sacrifices. While some have suggested that Abel's sacrifice was accepted because it was a blood sacrifice, and Cain's was rejected because it was not, further study shows God's awareness of the heart attitude behind each offering. Both in Genesis and in Leviticus, as well as today, what we offer to the Lord is not a bribe intended to convince God to forgive us (and allow us to continue sinning without consequence as long as we provide regular offerings).
The sacrifice is intended to represent our repentance for sin, our recognition of sin's devastating impact on our relationship with God, and our sincere desire to put to death anything that comes between us and the Lord. Christ's sacrifice covers all of that so that now, instead of bringing a lamb, we look to the Lamb and consider the cost of our sin.
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