Remember how we noted that the Levites who were designated to help Aaron and his sons at the temple were like a sacrificial offering to God?
What does a sacrifice do?
It buys back the life of what has been damaged and ruined by the sin of the world. It redeems something and it is offered in the place of that something that it is redeeming.
To “redeem” means to “buy back.”
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to our ongoing, every-Thursday Bible Study called COME AS A CHILD. Today we are continuing to look at the scriptures found in Numbers 2 and 3.
We are so glad you joined us! If you wish to review last week’s lesson; you may find it here: http://REDEMPTION OF THE FIRST BORN – COME AS A CHILD LESSON 252
REDEEMING THE LOST
A sacrifice redeems, pays the price, or buys back what one has lost.
In Exodus 13:1-2 the command is given from God to “set aside the first-born.”
HOW UNLEAVENED BREAD TIES IN WITH REDEMPTION
The days of Unleavened Bread happen during the Hebraic month of Abib. This feast was commanded by God to Moses for the people to keep in Exodus 34: 18-20:
The Feast of Unleavened Bread you shall keep. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, in the appointed time of the month of Abib; for in the month of Abib you came out from Egypt. All that open the womb are Mine, and every male firstling among your livestock, whether of ox or sheep. But the firstling of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb. And if you will not redeem him, then you shall break his neck. All the firstborn of your sons you shall redeem. And none shall appear before Me empty-handed.
NO ONE SHOULD APPEAR EMPTY-HANDED
God says that every first-born son should be redeemed; and none were to appear before Him empty-handed.
Of course, God is talking about the money they were to pay for the redemption price.
If you should come to the feast of Unleavened Bread without anything to redeem your first-born son, you would be appearing before God empty handed.
That is not a good thing!
WHEN GOD SUBSTITUTED THE TRIBE OF LEVI
Let’s talk about this a little more. The sons of the tribe of Levi were to be the substitutions for the first born of each family.
Every “first-thing” belongs to God.
It did then; and it still does now.
If a family wanted to redeem their first born child instead of offering him to God’s service in the tabernacle; they could pay five shekels of silver and that child would be released from service in the temple until he was 20 years old; which is the age that a young man would be able to leave his home and parents and go to war.
At that point; he can also redeem himself. Until that time, each parent who had paid the redemption price for their first-born son would have him living in the home to help out with the chores of the home.
ON THE EIGHTH DAY FIRST-BORN SONS WERE DEDICATED TO GOD
Exodus 22:29-30 says: You shall not delay to offer the first of your ripe produce and your juices [the outflow of your presses, RSV]. The firstborn of your sons you shall give to Me. Likewise you shall do with your oxen and your sheep. It shall be with its mother seven days; on the eighth day you shall give it to Me.
Understand that the “first” of EVERYTHING belonged to God. You would take the FIRST of all that you had to the tabernacle or temple and go to the altar and offer it up to God.
BEFORE anything could be redeemed; a person would acknowledge that God owned it to start with.
The Redemption price was just a way to temporarily get to keep what belonged to God for a certain amount of time.
ALL COMES FROM GOD AND ALL GOES BACK TO GOD
Eventually; it ALL goes back to Him.
Every first-born son belonged to God.
The Father of the first-born son would acknowledge this by going to the altar when that son was eight days old and he would hold his son up to God as if to say; He is yours!
It was as if that Father was saying; I know that all is yours; and I acknowledge that everything you have given me is on temporary loan. Even my first-born son is on loan. You have loaned him to me for a certain time if I pledge to redeem him.
THE PRICE OF REDEMPTION
The redemption price for the first-born was paid after the offering up to God on the eighth day after his birth.
Eventually, every son will grow up. If that now-grown man wanted to avoid going off to war; he could again, redeem his time by paying the redemption price for a first-born grown son; five shekels of silver.
It was required that each man, once he reached the age of accountability to do this.
The silver given for this redemption was then melted into bases that held up the boards which supported the coverings of the tabernacle.
These silver bases were buried into the ground so that nothing could cause them to topple or sway. They held firmly together, each piece supporting their portion of the weight.
INVISIBLE SUPPORT
The silver bases were dependable and sturdy, and no one even knew they were there, but if one base was removed or taken out of place; the whole building would eventually suffer and maybe even fall.
These bases were of great importance to the worship of the congregation.
These were paid for by redemption. Without redemption; we all fall.
EVERYTHING DEPENDS UPON REDEMPTION
Everything that happened in worship depended upon redemption!
On the same day that the first-born son was redeemed, or bought back from God on a temporary basis; he was also circumcised.
All of these commands had been in place for a long time. The first-born sons were to be put into the service of God and to be devoted to God.
Then came the time when God decided that the tribe of Levi could substitute in the place of the first-born sons.
THE LEVITES BECOME A SUBSTITUTE
Numbers 3:12-13 says: Now behold, I Myself have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of every firstborn who opens the womb among the children of Israel. Therefore the Levites shall be mine, because all the firstborn are Mine. On the day that I struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I sanctified to Myself all the firstborn in Israel, both man and beast. They shall be Mine: I am the Lord.
This was the change that God was bringing about in the wilderness to prepare the people before they reached the promised land.
THIS NUMBERING WAS DIFFERENT THAN BEFORE
Numbers 3:41-43 says: Number all the firstborn males of the children of Israel, from a month old and above, and take the number of their names. And you shall take the Levites for Me—I am the Lord—instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the livestock of the children of Israel.”
And all the firstborn males . . . were twenty-two thousand two hundred and seventy-three.
So here we see there were 22,000 Levite males exchanged for the first-born of all the tribes of Israel.
For every first-born son OVER this number; 5 shekels of silver must be paid for a redemption price.
It seems that there were only 22,000 Levites and 22,273 first-born sons of Israel at the time. There were 273 that could not be redeemed by a Levite. These had to pay the sanctuary redemption price.
THE DAY GOD FOLLOWED HIS OWN LAWS
We shall note in later history that God is not exempt from His own laws.
When Messiah was born, He was circumcised on the eighth day as a first-born son in the home of Mary and Joseph.
He was dedicated to God on the 40th day at the altar in the Temple right after the 40 days of Mary’s purification had become complete.
The sacrifices of two turtle doves were given for Mary’s purification, and the two young pigeons were sacrificed by Mary and Joseph as an offering that was required for ALL new born babies; not only the first-born.
THERE WAS NO LAMB
However, on the day that Jesus’ life was given in service to God, the sacrifice of the lamb (usually given for the first-born’s redemption) was omitted!
He was not to be redeemed from the service to God either by the sacrifice of a lamb or by substitution of the by-now-corrupt Levitical priesthood.
The redemption price could legally be paid to any Levite in good standing. Such a man was Simeon.
Simeon was given the child to hold in his arms and instantly he knew no redemption price would be paid.
(Usually (after the Temple was completed) the redemption price would have gone to the man (who must be a Levite) offering the child to God – in this case; Simeon.)
The five shekels to redeem the life of Jesus would not be paid.
He would become the sacrifice instead of being redeemed.
He would become the Redeemer.
He was the first-born son of The Kingdom of God. He became a type of first-fruit offering; the first of many who would be redeemed and rise from the dead into new life in God’s Kingdom.
WHICH SERVANT WAS SIMEON SPEAKING ABOUT IN HIS PRAYER?
Simeon lifted Christ up before God and thanked God for Him.
He then said this prayer: “Lord, now let your servant depart in peace, according to your word, for my eyes have seen your salvation which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel. ”
Simeon had been told in a vision that he would not die until he had seen the Messiah.
Now he could die in peace; knowing that the promise of God had been fulfilled and salvation would be made possible to all people.
Many think the aged Simeon was speaking of this fact when he said “Lord, now let your servant depart in peace.” However; he could just as easily have been speaking to the fact that Jesus’ life was officially now dedicated to God and he would not require the redemption price; but that he would be the Redeemer!
He came as The Suffering Servant.
When he prayed that word “servant” was Simeon actually referring to himself; or to The Messiah?
It was the official day The Messiah was being declared as God’s Servant.
THE SUBSTITUTE RECEIVES SALVATION
Simeon was a Levite. One who could have served as a substitute Levite in the place of baby Jesus as first-born was not called on to do so.
Simeon, in holding Jesus; was released from all requirements of servant-hood and given the precious gift of salvation.
The Christ was revealed unto him. His eyes were opened and he believed.
Maybe Simeon had both thoughts in his mind as he prayed that day and gave thanks to God. I know the five shekels would have meant little of nothing compared to the honor of holding the Son of God in his arms and the knowing that salvation was now possible; Simeon being aged and close to the time of death.
Hope had been revealed!
And every year around the time of the redemption of the first-born and the time to bring first-fruit offerings to God; we ponder all of these things again.
TEACH YOUR CHILDREN
And God knows that our children will ask us about this!
It is actually one of the questions asked by a child in the Seder meal at Passover.
They will ask: “What is this? What do these rules about the firstborn mean?”
Parents following God’s instructions will tell their children that God says, “you shall set apart to the Lord all that open the womb, that is, every firstling that comes from an animal which you have; the males shall be the Lord’s” (verse 12).
The firstborn of all clean, male animals (cattle, sheep, goats, etc.) were God’s, and they were to be sacrificed to Him.
Amazingly, these animals appear to represent the Egyptian firstborn, and thus represent a sin offering for us.
Exodus 13:13 says: “And all the firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem.”
The Israelites were to redeem or “buy back” the firstborn of their children by offering a lamb in its place.
THE CHURCH IS NOW LIKE THE FIRST BORN SON
These firstborn children represent you and me!
The first-born of Israel were shadows of the spiritually first-born into new life.
These are the people of God’s church today who say they are “new-born or born again!”
The redeeming lamb represents Jesus Christ.
He stands in our place.
He is our redemption sacrifice.
WHEN YOUR CHILDREN ASK YOU….
When our children come and ask us the question we should say: Long ago when Pharaoh was stubborn about letting God’s people go, the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of men and the firstborn of animals. Therefore they sacrificed to the Lord all males that opened the womb, but all the firstborn of their sons they redeemed.
The firstborn animals are representative of Egypt’s firstborn.
Then we come to know that Jesus was killed as our Passover lamb.
He died to redeem our sins.
He has redeemed us from the curse of the law that we might receive the promise of God’s Spirit through faith.
By becoming sin in our place; Jesus has become the first-born into The Kingdom of God.
He is our first-fruit sacrifice; the one that allows us to participate and become a part of the harvest too.
THE FIRST-BORN AMONG MANY BRETHREN
We see how Romans 8:29 is fulfilled; “for whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren.”
Hebrews 1:6 again speaks of the “first-born.” It says; “But when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says, “Let all the angels of God worship him.”
Revelation 1:5 tells us that Jesus Christ is the first-born from the dead and the ruler of all the kings of the earth. He loved us and washed us from our sins with his own blood.
He became the first-born son who redeemed us!
THE FIRST BORN CHILDREN OF GOD
Hebrews 12:22 speaks of a heavenly Jerusalem with firstborn children who belong to God.
As the Church today; we are now God’s first-born children and we celebrate this fact in everything that we do; especially in the Passover Seder that we hold every spring.
We come before the throne of God and offer ourselves in His service. This is our first-fruits sacrifice and no man is to come empty –handed!
IT ALL STARTED WITH COUNTING THE PEOPLE
The process was all set in place way back in the times of The Book of Numbers when God told Moses to count the Levites in a different way than he counted the army.
In that day our redemption was already planned and plotted out.
With the wilderness tabernacle; God was symbolically showing us He already had a plan.
Our part?
To follow that plan.
To Listen.
To pay attention.
To obey.
To follow.
To be true.
God has this. He has planned it all from the very foundations of the earth. He knows what we need and He has provided a Lamb.
Praise God!
On the third day – that day of Early First-Fruits; that lamb was risen!
He is risen.
He is risen indeed!
On the third day from Passover; in the Seven Days of Unleavened Bread; God has provided a Lamb and the First-born of many has risen from the dead.
The impossible has been made possible by the blood of The Lamb.
The counting has begun!
The First among many brethren has risen!
Death has been conquered and eternal life has been provided.
In the counting of our own times; let us make every day count.
On the day of Early First Fruits – the counting of the Omer begins. On the day of The Resurrection of Christ the counting of mankind’s days in the wilderness began.
There is a Promised Land and God is making His people ready!