GOD LOVES OUR OFFERINGS
Is it already becoming apparent to you that God loves for us to bring offerings?
We can see this fact right from the start of the book of Leviticus, even in the first two chapters. Most people stall a bit and don’t mention offerings right out of the gate; but this book of Leviticus doesn’t hold back the intention of making this act a strong point of worship.
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to our every Thursday, ongoing, chronological bible study called COME AS A CHILD. Today we cross over to Lesson 200! Can you believe we have been at this process for 200 lessons? It has been a five year journey just to get to this point. I wonder how many Thursdays it will take us to complete the whole bible? Time will tell. We won’t worry about that too long because we like to operate on God’s time and I can assure you God is never in a hurry.
If you missed last week’s lesson you can read it here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/burnt-offerings/. Today we dive into Leviticus Chapter Two. Our last lesson was specifically about burnt offerings; this one continues with more on the subject of offerings, but we will also discuss the details of grain offerings.
WHEN DID OFFERINGS BEGIN?
Some people automatically assume that offerings originated here in this time of the tabernacle in the wilderness. They did not. Offerings actually began at a much earlier in time in history.
We all know the story of Cain and Abel and their offerings. They most likely were taught to make offerings from their parents; Adam and Eve. The first burnt offering recorded in the bible (beyond Adam and Eve’s story and the Cain and Abel stories) took place way back in the book of Genesis; Chapter 8. This offering was made by Noah right after the flood waters had subsided.
Noah offered burnt offerings from all of the clean animals that had survived in the ark after the flood. (Remember there were more than two of all the clean animals saved inside the ark.) If you wish to refresh your memory and review what we studied about Noah previously, you may review one of our previous lessons about Noah’s sacrifice here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/noah-rainbow-promise/.
Later; past Noah but before The Israelites in the Wilderness Tabernacle, we hear the story of Abraham being willing to offer up his son Isaac as a burnt offering to God. God spared Isaac and provided a ram in his place. If you would like to review a short fictional story that I wrote which is full of the details of this story and based on truths that have been passed down through the sages over thousands of years; you may read it here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/isaac-abraham-sacrifice/
As we studied the book of Exodus, we heard about Jethro, (Moses’s Father-in-law), who also offered burnt offerings to God.
After Jethro; we hear of Moses approaching Pharaoh to let the people go. Moses was requesting that they be able to take their livestock with them as they left Egypt to worship in the dessert because they would be using the livestock as offerings to God when they worshiped.
Then; at the time of the second giving of the law from God at Sinai; (the second time; after they had learned their lesson from worshiping the golden calf) the Israelites as a whole offered up burnt offerings to God. This was before the tabernacle ever existed.
When we come to the time of the tabernacle, we learn that burnt offerings were to be made every day; in the morning and in the evening. An additional offering was to be made every Sabbath. (These times of the burnt offering have often been suggested as types and shadows of prayer times in our modern-day worship. Have you ever considered that all of your prayers are like a sacrifice before God?)
The first thing one would see with their eyes as they entered the area of the tabernacle through the entrance gate with their offering would be the altar for the burnt offerings. It makes sense that the burnt offering would be considered as the very first step of worship; even before entrance into the tabernacle is possible. One’s soul must always be atoned in order to enter into a holy place.
We have previously studied how this altar for the burnt offerings was built and constructed. The construction was very important and symbolic in nature. If you wish to review that lesson you may read it here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/offerings/.
LAYOUT OF THE OUTER COURT
So one would enter the outer court (https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/courtyard/) and see the altar for burnt offerings first and the order of worship evolves from there.
It would be easy for the person bringing the offering to this point to imagine themselves being burned on that very altar; if not for the animal that would be substituted in their place. I wonder how many of them actually considered this as they brought their sacrifices to be examined by the priests.
To the left of the burnt altar was the ash heap.
Between the altar and the tabernacle was the bronze laver.
The bronze laver was where Aaron’s sons washed their hands before ministering at the altar. We have already studied the construction of this bronze laver. If you wish to review that lesson; you may find it here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/bronze-laver-mirrors/.
After you came to the bronze laver the next thing would be the door to the tabernacle.
Men needed to offer a sacrifice first, in order to be ready to approach God through the door to the tabernacle. That was one reason the altar and the laver were placed strategically before the entrance door to the tabernacle.
So; you brought the offering and you washed properly before approaching the the door that would lead to The Presence of God. Here is where you may review what we have studied about this door to the tabernacle: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/christ-door/ https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/seeking-gods-face-in-the-tent-of-meeting-come-as-a-child-lesson-181/
THE GRAIN OFFERINGS
Then there were the grain offerings to consider.
A question that immediately comes to mind is: how does a burnt offering differ from a grain offering?
The surprising answer is that they are the same; only the burnt offering is the one that is burnt on the altar ONLY for God (a portion) and the rest of the offering that is left after that is for a food offering. The food offerings were to be eaten by the priests and the people they distributed them to. This applied whether the offering was of meat or grain. God’s portion was to be offered first as the burnt offering, then the people would be given what was left after that.
A portion of EVERY offering was ONLY for God. The burnt offerings were ONLY for God. If God accepted them; they would be completely consumed by the fire.
The grain offerings, (after a small portion was taken out and used as a burnt offering,) were shared among the priest and the people as food offerings.
Offerings were to be of the very best quality.
The grain offering of the best of one’s best would contain the finest flour, the purest olive oil and the sweetest incense.
When the grain offerings were brought forth; the priest (Aaron’s sons) would take a handful of the flour and oil together with the incense and burn them as a memorial portion on the altar. This was God’s portion and this portion was considered to be a burnt offering. This portion of the offering was called a burnt offering; and it would need to have an aroma that would be pleasing to the LORD in order to be consumed by the fire.
In other words your offering couldn’t stink! It needed to be fresh. The flour and the oil could not be rancid or old. It could never be a “left-over” from the previous year’s crop. You didn’t give to God whatever you had not desired to use for yourself. This offering and any other offering always needed to be the best, newest, finest and freshest available.
WHAT MADE THE LARGER PORTION OF THE GRAIN OFFERINGS A FOOD OFFERING?
After the portion was taken for the burnt offering; then the food offering (the rest of the grain offering) belonged to Aaron and his sons. Sometimes this was also shared among the people who came to worship. In other words; because the people brought offerings the priests did not go hungry. They had all they needed and then some.
The portion that wasn’t needed by the priest was distributed among those who did not have food of their own. The priest were to use it to take care of the community. You might say that the giving of grain offerings operated a lot like our ministries called “food banks” operate today. Also the offerings served as a type of payment to the priest who gave up their time to serve in the tabernacle.
God always takes care of His people. No service to God ever goes unrewarded; whether it be in this life or the next.
TYPES OF GRAIN OFFERINGS
You could bring a grain offering that had already been baked in the oven; an example of this would be baked bread. However; If you did this it was to consist of the finest flour. It could be either in the form of thick loaves made without yeast and with olive oil mixed in, or in the form of thin loaves made without yeast and brushed with olive oil. All of the baked bread for the grain offerings were to be a type of unleavened bread.
If the grain offering was prepared on a griddle, it was to be made of the finest flour mixed with oil and without yeast. Again; notice that the bread would be UNLEAVENED. No offering could contain yeast and be acceptable to God.
You could also make an offering of the finest flour inside a pan and pour pure olive oil over it.
You could also bring the crushed heads of the new grain that had been roasted in a fire as an offering. This too would be mixed with oil and incense and a portion taken out and burnt unto the LORD.
THE PRIEST WERE THERE TO BURN THE OFFERINGS TO THE LORD
You were to bring these offerings to present them to the priest who took them to the altar. They then took out a memorial portion and burned it at the altar and the rest of the grain offering belonged to Aaron and his sons.
Notice that the offering to God of the burnt portion is always FIRST. The priest never partook of the grain offerings until that portion that belonged to God had been offered on the burnt offering altar.
Notice that EVERY grain offering brought was to be made WITHOUT yeast. Yeast or honey were not to be burnt in the offerings presented to the LORD.
These were acceptable as first-fruit offerings to God.
All of the offerings were to be seasoned with salt. The salt was not to be left out of the first-fruit grain offerings. There were reasons for the use of salt. We have studied that in the past. If you wish to review that lesson you may click here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/salt/.
So you see there was a lot to remember about how God desired for the offerings to be brought to His altar. If the offering did not please God or was not presented properly; the fire did not consume it.
Have you considered the quality of the offerings you bring to God? Are they your best? Are they left-over scraps that haven’t been used up by the world around you? Are they fresh? This would mean that they were sincere and currently offered; not some rote motions that you go through from some feelings that you once carried around long ago. What is the state of your heart when you make your offerings to God? Are your prayers reaching heaven or are they not making it past the ceiling because of the condition of your sacrifices?
God desires our best offerings. Once offered He will use them to feed his servants and to provide for His community.
Bring all that belongs to God into His storehouse and experience the blessing of a heart that is right before God. There is a true peace that comes from this act of worship that truly passes all understanding. It is one of those things that you have to experience to believe. If you haven’t truly considered your offerings and sacrifices before God in a long time why not stop today and offer up a prayer for God to help you change.
I surely have to do this often and frequently. The world can drag us away into places we do not need to go and we can get negligent of our duties before our Maker. He waits patiently. He made us and He knows us; but there comes a time when we must submit and change.
He is always right there waiting when we do. He stands to receive our offerings today just as He did back in those days of the wilderness tabernacle. The difference is that the door has been opened wide through the blood of Christ and the veil of the temple has been ripped into so that we may go into that very Holy Place of the Presence.
The first requirement to enter is to bring that perfect sacrifice.
Come to the table of the Redeemed and be filled today.