Do you find the constant focus on sin in the study of Leviticus to be hard?
Me too; but it is also very significant, so it is worth wading through all of the hard information in order to grasp a better understanding of some of the things God is teaching us with the Wilderness Tabernacle.
I’ve been thinking about how much there actually is to grasp and understand as we have been studying through the different ways that the priests were to offer the different sacrifices.
What a lot to absorb!
What a lot to think about and take in.
So much was carried out that the priests had to remember.
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to our every-Thursday, COME AS A CHILD bible study where we try to look at the scriptures in chronological order through the eyes of a child who is learning all they can about their Father. Today we are in Leviticus, Chapter 7. If you missed our last lesson; you may review it here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/sin-offerings/
THEY ARE US!
Do you see a pattern of just who these ancient priests we study could represent?
They are us!
John 1:12 says “But as many as received him, to them he gave the power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.”
These ancient priests of Israel appear to represent all the born-again believers of Jesus Christ. We have all been called to a very special priesthood. The High Priest is Christ; but we are the ones who will serve and minister under Him in His future tabernacle when He comes again. As a matter of fact; our job begins right here while we wait on that day to arrive. We are to be serving Him every day. The temple we serve from is our very own body.
God was showing us a picture of things to come with those ancient priests of old.
FEASTING IN THE HOLY PLACE
Think about the requirements they were instructed to carry out. These priests were to eat the meat of the most holy offerings for atonement. The meat of this altar was to be eaten inside the Sanctuary. They were to eat them inside the tabernacle no further away from the altar than the tabernacle courtyards. The meat was not to leave the holy place where it had been offered. Do any scriptures come to mind as we think of this?
I think of John 6:53 which says “Then Jesus said unto them; Verily, verily I say unto you, except you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood you have no life in you.”
In other words; we are nothing at all. It is Christ existing inside of us that makes new life begin.
We know that the perfect sacrifice (whose blood was poured out at the most holy altar) was Jesus Christ. They were acting out the things to come. The priests were eating from the Sanctuary of God and symbolically receiving Christ into themselves, and in turn they were symbolically receiving atonement and eternal life. Food brings nourishment that brings life. Christ in us brings life. This was the picture God was painting; like a prophecy for us, though the priesthood of old. God was proclaiming “I have a plan for you. Can you see it?” He said this without words. He used the illustration of the priest working in the wilderness tabernacle to tell the story. They had not yet arrived into the time that we have been privileged to enter ourselves. These ancient priests were only a shadow of what was to come; like the sacrifices were a shadow of Christ to come.
DON’T BE AFRAID TO NOTICE THE DETAILS
Even before our eyes are opened to these amazing types and shadows; these OLD passages of the Torah written ALL through Leviticus can be so convicting; and so down to the nitty-gritty details. They are so descriptive that we really don’t even want to talk about them, and sometimes they feel a bit strange and scary at first. However; in the long run, it is extremely important that we do catch all the little details. These are the types and shadows of how we come to know that the Messiah will save us and bring us into His holy Kingdom in eternity.
MOST HOLY OFFERINGS
One detail that stands out to me in Chapter 7 is how the hide of the animals of the sacrifices for the guilt offerings were specifically said to belong to the priests offering the sacrifices for atonement. It is called, as we have heard many times before “most holy.”
We could point out here that some things were considered “most holy” and some things were only called “holy.” The words used when speaking of the guilt offerings were “most holy.”
KEEP THE COVERING
The priest who made the offering for atonement was to keep the hide of the animal that had been sacrificed.
At first I thought; this was a nice practice, the priest could sell the hides and have some money to live on. That was true; but that wasn’t the significance of this statement at all. It wasn’t about financial profit of the priests; it was about a much better profit – eternal life.
The skin of the sacrifice wasn’t given to every priest serving; only to the one who offered the holy sacrifice for atonement.
It belonged specifically to him and him alone.
He could do with it as he pleased.
This is symbolic in two ways. Remember how God made a covering for Adam and Eve by using the skin of an animal from the Garden? So many years later the blood of Jesus became the covering for the sins of all of Christianity.
Remember the statement of Christ saying that He laid His life down willingly? It was His decision to die for us.
THE BREAD OF HEAVEN
The officiating priests would all eat the meat offerings along with the grain offerings; which were three different types of bread. Here again we think of Christ. He gave His body for our sins and we know that He was the bread from Heaven. Mark 14:22 says “And as they did eat, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and gave to them, and said, Take, eat: this is my body.”
John 6:51 tells us “I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eats of this bread, he shall live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”
The whole picture of the offerings at the wilderness tabernacle declare the work of Christ.
OFFERINGS OF PRAISE AND THANKSGIVING
We can clearly see this in the scriptures of Leviticus 7 that speak of the guilt offerings; then we come to the place that speaks of the peace offerings; or the fellowship offerings. These were the offerings of praise and thanksgiving that were given to express how grateful the people were for what God had done for them.
The grain used consisted of 20 omers.
There were ten unleavened wafers anointed with oil and ten cakes mingled with oil and fine flour, and ten that were fried in oil; thirty all together.
LEAVENED BREAD
Then this time – some of the grain offerings contained leavened bread; which at first seemed very strange.
Why was the leavened bread included here?
So often we have seen where unleavened bread represented purity and leavening agents acted like sin.
This time the example is different.
The leavened bread represents how dough rises up. It was included because of resurrection. We know that it represents Christ rising from the grave and coming into eternity once again with God the Father. This bread actually paints a picture of Resurrection and Ascension of Christ into the Heavens.
Men like the taste of leavened bread. Because of Christ; humans have been given the power for resurrection too. This is what the leavened bread in this sacrifice symbolizes.
Nothing was to be held over until the next day.
All that remained was consumed.
Our Father is never wasteful; but He is generous and gives with abundance exactly what we need.