"If a person acts unfaithfully and sins unintentionally against the Lord's holy things, then he shall bring his guilt offering to the Lord: a ram without defect from the flock, according to your valuation in silver by shekels, in terms of the shekel of the sanctuary, for a guilt offering.
Leviticus 5:15 (NASB)
We certainly are entering some foreign territory as we continue our journey this week. The sacrificial system we are about to learn encounter is not something we in the western world are really familiar with. We have a tendency to hurry on through this portion of the journey, as we constantly mutter, “Thank God for Jesus, our sacrifice!” We have a tendency to think that every sacrifice is a picture of Christ, and therefore, we fail to identify with some of the truths that are hidden in these instructions. Although it is true that Christ is our ultimate sacrifice, there are some instructions in the New Covenant that would encourage us to take a bit more time in this wilderness.
I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Romans 12:1
For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered not threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. I Peter 2:21-24 (emphasis mine)
There are some important clues to leading an overcoming life that are found in the sacrificial laws. I urge you to slow down just a bit and observe what it taking place around us. This week we are instructed to examine our lives on a regular basis. Sometimes we sin intentionally, while other times, we sin out of ignorance or omission. Either way, WE SIN! And no matter the reason, there are certain things that must be done.
1. Identify the sin – This is why it is so important to continually read through the Word throughout our lives. It is this Bible that reveals to me the things that God hates, and how to walk in His ways.
2. Take responsibility for our actions – When we realize we have sinned, don’t try to justify our wrong. When we do that, we give ourselves license to continue in our waywardness.
3. Confess our sin – Just as the Israelites had to lay their hands on the sacrifice they brought and confess their sins, so we are told to confess our. John told us, “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (I John 1:8-9)
4. Die! – We’ve got to come to the place where we no longer want that sin to live in us. No more excuses! No more giving it a right to exist in us. I’m sure there was nothing pretty or fun about this part of sacrificing!
5. Separation – The next step is to separate what belongs to God, what belongs to godly men (the priests) and what should be burned away.
6. Leave forgiven! – This may be the toughest part of all! I’ve met so many people who have had sin in their lives. They have confessed their sin. They no longer do the things they did in the past. But they continue to wrestle with the guilt of what they had done. You will notice that one of the sacrifices is called “the guilt offering.” Jesus not only came to take away our sin, He is there to remove our guilt! It seems rather foolish to give Him our sin while we hang on to our guilt. Perhaps we need to come to Him again, not with the sin, but with the guilt it has left us with.
Perhaps this basic outline will help us to understand the sacrifices we will read about this week. This sacrificial system was to help the worshipers deal with sin on a daily basis. May it encourage us to do the same.
***
This week I am not giving you a list of questions; I am giving you a chart that will help you categorize the main sacrifices. You may want to add other columns, but this will at least get you started. You may want to put this table on a separate page on a landscape format. It will give you more room to write in each cell.
Offering Reasons Acceptable Sacrifice What’s placed on the altar Burn outside camp?
Leviticus 5:15 (NASB)
We certainly are entering some foreign territory as we continue our journey this week. The sacrificial system we are about to learn encounter is not something we in the western world are really familiar with. We have a tendency to hurry on through this portion of the journey, as we constantly mutter, “Thank God for Jesus, our sacrifice!” We have a tendency to think that every sacrifice is a picture of Christ, and therefore, we fail to identify with some of the truths that are hidden in these instructions. Although it is true that Christ is our ultimate sacrifice, there are some instructions in the New Covenant that would encourage us to take a bit more time in this wilderness.
I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Romans 12:1
For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps, who committed no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; and while being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered not threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously; and He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness; for by His wounds you were healed. I Peter 2:21-24 (emphasis mine)
There are some important clues to leading an overcoming life that are found in the sacrificial laws. I urge you to slow down just a bit and observe what it taking place around us. This week we are instructed to examine our lives on a regular basis. Sometimes we sin intentionally, while other times, we sin out of ignorance or omission. Either way, WE SIN! And no matter the reason, there are certain things that must be done.
1. Identify the sin – This is why it is so important to continually read through the Word throughout our lives. It is this Bible that reveals to me the things that God hates, and how to walk in His ways.
2. Take responsibility for our actions – When we realize we have sinned, don’t try to justify our wrong. When we do that, we give ourselves license to continue in our waywardness.
3. Confess our sin – Just as the Israelites had to lay their hands on the sacrifice they brought and confess their sins, so we are told to confess our. John told us, “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (I John 1:8-9)
4. Die! – We’ve got to come to the place where we no longer want that sin to live in us. No more excuses! No more giving it a right to exist in us. I’m sure there was nothing pretty or fun about this part of sacrificing!
5. Separation – The next step is to separate what belongs to God, what belongs to godly men (the priests) and what should be burned away.
6. Leave forgiven! – This may be the toughest part of all! I’ve met so many people who have had sin in their lives. They have confessed their sin. They no longer do the things they did in the past. But they continue to wrestle with the guilt of what they had done. You will notice that one of the sacrifices is called “the guilt offering.” Jesus not only came to take away our sin, He is there to remove our guilt! It seems rather foolish to give Him our sin while we hang on to our guilt. Perhaps we need to come to Him again, not with the sin, but with the guilt it has left us with.
Perhaps this basic outline will help us to understand the sacrifices we will read about this week. This sacrificial system was to help the worshipers deal with sin on a daily basis. May it encourage us to do the same.
***
This week I am not giving you a list of questions; I am giving you a chart that will help you categorize the main sacrifices. You may want to add other columns, but this will at least get you started. You may want to put this table on a separate page on a landscape format. It will give you more room to write in each cell.
(The table did no upload properly. I will deal with that on Monday also. For those who are registered, you will get a copy of the table emailed to you. Below are the headings on the table and then the list of the sacrifices. Oh the joys of being on the road!!!)
Offering Reasons Acceptable Sacrifice What’s placed on the altar Burn outside camp?
Special Instructions Priestly Portion Where was it to be eaten?
Burnt Offering
Grain Offering
Peace Offering
Sin Offering
Guilt Offering
Grain Offering
Peace Offering
Sin Offering
Guilt Offering
3 comments:
Shirley,
is there a difference between the tent of meeting (Ex. 33.7-11) and the tabernacle? If yes, were they existing parallel or was the tent of meeting before the tabernacle was built? Is there a parallel meaning between the tent of meeting and the tent of David?
Okay, here's my understanding of the tent of meetings. I haven't found anything that contradicts it. We will stay teachable. We may find some other puzzle pieces as we journey through the Word.
In Exodus 33:7 we read "Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, a good distance from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting. And everyone who sought the LORD would go out to the tent of meeting which was outside the camp." It is my understanding that the tent of meetings was complete in its construction before the rest of the articles of the Tabernacle were finished. It had not been consecrated as part of the Tabernacle yet, and so Moses would set it up a distance from the camp and used it as a meeting place with God. This also explains how Joshua was able to stay in the tent after Moses would leave. Once the priesthood was set in order, Joshua would no longer be able to do that since he was not a Levite. Moses would still be allowed to go in, but not Joshua.
The tent David pitched for the ark was not an elaborate tent like the Tabernacle. I'm sure it special, but not elaborate. The Tabernacle existed parallel to David's tent. As you know, David did many things that weren't fully understood at the time. He did many things that were prophetic, whether he understood them or not. The removal of the Ark, the presence of God, was a visual prophecy that God was removing His presence from the old system. His presence would abide in a simple tent, Jesus, the descendant of David, dwelling in a temple of flesh.
Hope that helped!
Post a Comment