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“You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.” 

As you begin to read I think you might say “Hey, these all fit into one of the 10 commandments”.

The first and last sections deal with a person’s relationship to God ( 3-8, 32-36), and the second and fourth with one’s relationship with others (9-18, 30- 31). The central section deals with man’s relationship to himself (19-29).  I once took a study on ” chiastics” to find patterns like this and it wasn’t for me (I never went past the first class,  I would rather be getting cavities filled) Did I just say that out loud?

As I read them in my Bible I tried to mark which of the 10 commandments it matched with. 

All of chapter 19 is important, and if this is your first time reading the Bible, look forward to your second time…because you will see things like 19:9 about leaving the edge of your field and say “Ohhhh that’s what Ruth was doing!”  HOWEVER, which command in all of Chapter 19 was the one most quoted by Jesus? (If your Bible has cross-references in the margin, you should see it immediately.  Write your guess in the comments.

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Let’s talk about the elephant in the room.

If you are looking for a black and white answer on whether it is ok to get a tattoo, you are not going to get one from me.  That’s your decision.   I find it funny that very few Americans read a Bible BUT most of us know a scripture in Leviticus.  People’s take on it varies:

• We are not under the law anymore, we’re under grace.
• This passage speaks of an ancient pagan Egyptian practice and not to modern tattooing practices.
• It’s okay if your tattoo honors the Lord, etc.

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If this is your first read-through take note of the end of the first section, it will explain WHY these commands are stated.  I know you read some of them and said “They need to be told not to do that??  I thought it was obvious!

Chapter 20:²² “‘Keep all my decrees and laws and follow them, so that the land where I am bringing you to live may not vomit you out. ²³ You must not live according to the customs of the nations I am going to drive out before you. Because they did all these things, I abhorred them. ²⁴ But I said to you, “You will possess their land; I will give it to you as an inheritance, a land flowing with milk and honey.” I am the Lord your God, who has set you apart from the nations.

If this is a repeat read through did you notice how many of these the Israelites will ignore??  I was reading it and thinking…yup they ignored that one too!  SMH!  Wait…I ignore some of them as well…not the gross ones though. I promise.

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Chapter 21 (continued tomorrow into Chapter 22) Rules for Priests:

These chapters tell us what the priest:

• must not do
• must not be
• must not offer

More importantly, they are to be set apart, Holy.  They are to properly represent God.  Always look for Jesus on every page.  Jesus completely fulfills all of the Tabernacle rituals so that we, as believers become His Priesthood.

1 Peter 2:

⁴ As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— ⁵ you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house  to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

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It’s weird how sometimes the more free time we have, we actually get behind.  Hashtag true story.  If you are behind, I made this for you:

If you get confused because you skipped a book you can refer to the printables. I added some today under ‘Leviticus’.

 

• Click here to read
• Click here to listen
• CLICK HERE FOR A VIDEO OF LEVITICUS 16 read with a video for visual

In Geneses 3 we began talking about Atonement.  The covering of sin only God makes through a substitute, a sacrifice.  God appointed a yearly sacrifice to cleanse all the sins and impurities, not covered by the other sacrifices, that the Israelites committed ignorantly.    Stop where you are and read Hebrews 9.  Click here if you are not near a Bible.

How do people read the New Testament without the Old Testament??

The Day of Atonement took place six months after the Passover. These two festivals were half a year apart.   As for modern-day applications for Jewish people, it is called Yom Kippur.  For Christians, it is one of the 3 Feasts not fulfilled yet.

Moses received instructions regarding the Day of Atonement, immediately after the judgment of Nadab and Abihu.  The high priest had to make elaborate preparations for entering the Holy of Holies, by cleansing himself both spiritually and physically. The offerings he made were a bull as a “sin offering” and a ram as a “burnt offering,” both to cover his own sins (He is a foreshadow of our High Priest-Jesus, but until then we all need atonement, even the High Priest)

If you watched the video at the top you may have picked up on the garments.  Did you expect him to be wearing this?

On the Day of Atonement, the High Priest wore white linen, like the servants of the day wore.  Why?  He comes as a servant!   (Mark 10:⁴⁵ For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”)

Then he “cast lots” (like rolling dice so the Lord made the decision, not the priest) to decide which of the “two goats” would die as a sin offering for the people, and which one would be sent as “the scapegoat” (the guilt of the sin) into the wilderness.  The sacrificed goat perished and the scapegoat took away the impurities and sins to the wilderness. The sacrificed goat is a picture of Jesus, the scapegoat frees us from the guilt of our sins.

(Now the only problem was that this goat sometimes wandered back into the Israelites’ camp, which nobody wanted to see because it was like having their sins come back on them. Supposedly, the person who led the goat into the wilderness often took the goat to a cliff and pushed it off. —the guilt never showed up again. 😂

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Leviticus Chapters 17—26 is called the Holiness Code.

“Be Holy because I am Holy”

“Holy is stated 52 times.  This section begins with people sacrificing to “goat idols,” which is similar to the golden calf incident in Exod. 32. The high priest was responsible for the golden calf apostasy, but the Israelites were personally responsible for the goat idol worship here.

The “goat idol” was a “god” that the Egyptians and other ancient Near Easterners worshiped. It was supposedly responsible for the fertility of the people, their herds, and their crops.  I am not going to go into details but people wonder why it specifically states not to have sex with animals…these were pagan rituals they brought with them from Egypt and existed in Canaan where they are headed.  These poor goats!

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“Blood” is life.

Since God forbade “eating blood” way before the Law given to Moses (Genesis 9:4), people today should also refrain from eating it (I am not talking about Outback Steakhouse).  In Moses day, the pagans superstitiously linked blood consumption with acquiring divine powers (who saw the “eating of the heart” episode on G.O.T.?)  Same concept.

The faithful worshiper of the living God must preserve the
sanctity of sacrificial blood, recognizing that life (signified by
blood) belongs to God.”

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CHAPTER 18. Chapter 18 has bookends.

 Begins with:  1-5  The Lord said to Moses, ² “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘I am the Lord your God. ³ You must not do as they do in Egypt, where you used to live, and you must not do as they do in the land of Canaan, where I am bringing you. Do not follow their practices. ⁴ You must obey my laws and be careful to follow my decrees. I am the Lord your God. ⁵ Keep my decrees and laws, for the person who obeys them will live by them. I am the Lord.

Ends with: 30: Keep my requirements and do not follow any of the detestable customs that were practiced before you came and do not defile yourselves with them. I am the Lord your God.’”

The Israelites moved from one idolatrous county and are heading to the next.  The culture of these nations was worldly desires as well as idol worship.  Speaking of, is anyone watching this season of American Idol?  So much talent this year!

I don’t think you will need help understanding most of these commands but I want to point out one. And NO I am not going to make any jokes about the state of Kentucky forgot to read chapter 18 😂

I know we read of these in shock like 18:23 BUT know that all of these adulterous acts were done when this was said…and unfortunately will be repeated.

18:21 the Molek or Molech (depending on your version).  Moloch was a statue with the head of a bull and arms out-stretched as a representation of him receiving the children being sacrificed. “Molech was a Canaanite god (actually translated ‘king’, often represented by a bronze image with a bull’s head and outstretched arms. The idol was usually hollow, and workers would build a fire in it.   The statue would get red hot from the fire.  When the arms changed colors from the heat (red), the pagans would lay their infant on the arms as an offering to their gods.  We have also uncovered documents that they would just put the baby into the fire (like a hot furnace)

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As we get deeper into the Bible, we can put  Baal, Ashtoreth, and Molech all in the same category.  I am often amazed that even as pagans we are are built with an innate natural instinct to know deep inside us that “someone” must be sacrificed…sad they missed this one for a Jesus.

2 chapters.

• Click here to read
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• Click here to listen to the song I sang after reading this.

If you don’t feel like reading this post (it is long), let me put the conclusion at the top:

What is that passage talking about? God is Holy. He is the all-knowing, all-present, creator of the Universe.  Those who are covered in sin, who are contaminated by the fall, cannot enjoy fellowship with God without repentance and being declared clean (not sinless). They cannot enjoy the blessing of the presence of God, and so, what has to happen? They have to be declared clean. By who? 😁

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Matthew 8- “When Jesus came down from the mountainside, large crowds followed him. A man with leprosy  came and knelt before him and said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.”  Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” Immediately he was cleansed of his leprosy. Then Jesus said to him, “See that you don’t tell anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”

We need to consider a few things when we read:

• This tabernacle is portable.  Why? Because it is the blueprint for the Temple, where God will dwell.  Canaan (The Promise Land) is the destination on the GPS (pillar of fire and the cloud will navigate that).  This is a pagan land, (like a modern-day High School 😂)  filled with pagan rituals that include blood, sacrifices,  and sex.  God will need to set His people apart.
• Leprosy and other skin diseases were often synonyms for Sin.  From the surface of the skin (rashes), to our deepest self (discharge that leaks out).  It will all be seen by the High Priest.
• Hygiene- still related to sin.  It can be contagious! Who you keep close will either contaminate you or you will infect them.  You can make an application to these chapters.
• The cleaning of items in the house.  What is the contaminate in your home that breeds sin?
  

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Now the geeky part of the blog:

I am including chapter 13 in this post since I really didn’t address it yesterday, but self-reflect for your own application.  This section of Leviticus talks about  four things:

1. symptoms
2. the priestly inspection
3. the basis of the priest’s diagnosis
4. the diagnosis itself and the consequences

The priest had the responsibility of distinguishing between the clean and the unclean, plus they had to teach the people the difference.  Leprosy as representing sin resulted in the leper’s separation both from God and from other people. In many respects, leprosy and sin were similar in both their character and consequences.

The priests were the public health officers, but they served in their priestly capacity.  Israel was a holy nation, and even her cleansing from sickness was done with a religious ceremony. Sickness was symbolic of sin, and even now it should not be forgotten that sickness and death are part of God’s curse on the sin of Adam.

Jesus meets them AS the sinner.  Then who makes the sacrifice, clothes them,  and washes them clean? The PRIEST. (Jesus)

Listen, I know this was a hard read but there are some really cool details.  Let’s break down one part so you can see how it all comes together: Ch 14-

• ³ The priest is to go outside the camp and examine them. (meets them as the sinner)
• scarlet yarn and hyssop be brought for the person to be cleansed.
  • The scarlet thread you get by now…but why Hyssop?  It was symbolic of the Passover (the blood was applied with Hyssop the night death would pass over them)
    • • Exodus 23 ²¹ Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go at once and select the animals for your families and slaughter the Passover lamb. ²² Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin and put some of the blood on the top and on both sides of the doorframe. None of you shall go out of the door of your house until morning. ²³ When the Lord goes through the land to strike down the Egyptians, he will see the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe and will pass over that doorway, and he will not permit the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down.
• ⁷ Seven times he shall sprinkle the one to be cleansed of the defiling disease, and then pronounce them clean. (Seven means completely)
• ⁸ “The person to be cleansed must wash their clothes, shave off all their hair and bathe with water; then they will be ceremonially clean.
  • • Ephesians 4:²² You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; ²³ to be made new in the attitude of your minds; ²⁴ and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
• After this they may come into the camp…They must wash their clothes and bathe themselves with water, and they will be clean.
  • • Galatians 3: ²⁶ So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, ²⁷ for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.

Ready??  This is so cool!

• ¹⁰ “On the eighth day….grain offering, and one log of oil. 
• ¹² “Then the priest is to take one of the male lambs and offer it as a guilt offering… as a wave offering.
• ¹³ He is to slaughter the lamb in the sanctuary area where the sin offering and the burnt offering are slaughtered. Like the sin offering, the guilt offering belongs to the priest; it is most holy.  (The two required sacrifices)
• ¹⁸ … the priest shall put on the head of the one to be cleansed and make atonement for them before the Lord.
•  ²⁰ …and make atonement for them, and they will be clean.

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If you look at these Chapters from God’s view, you can see He sees the obvious outward sin that even others can see (portrayed by our skin), in our home- mold (the things we watch, see, and participate in) and then the private “no one can see but me sin” (discharge).  If you took the time (if you have the stomach for it 🤮) you would see that some of the bodily discharge cleansings required a sin offering and some did not.  Remember they will be entering a land of pagan worship…some of their rituals will be promiscuous acts with each other as well as with animals.  I kid you not.  You can’t make this stuff up.  There will be infection and STDs.

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For the “Marinated in Jesus for years” reader 😂 : I leave you with this to read: Hebrews 10:19ff

¹⁹ Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have the confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, ²⁰ by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, ²¹ and since we have a great priest over the house of God, ²² let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water…

²⁶ If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, ²⁷ but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. ²⁸ Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. ²⁹ How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?

Close your eyes now and sit quietly.  Click here.

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NOW you know why I said this was the Leviticus graveyard!  But you will finish this book!

Leviticus divides the animal world into three kinds: unclean animals that cannot be eaten; clean animals that can be eaten; clean animals that can be eaten and also serve as animals for sacrifices.

I have researched commentaries and I have found various reasons:

• The reason the Israelites were to regard some animals as unclean, was that the pagans used them in their worship and associated them with their gods.
  • • We are to be set apart from the world. ⁴⁴ I am the Lord your God; consecrate yourselves and be holy, because I am holy. Do not make yourselves unclean by any creature that moves along the ground. ⁴⁵ I am the Lord, who brought you up out of Egypt to be your God; therefore be holy, because I am holy.
• Some scholars hold the view that the unclean animals were unfit to eat because they carried diseases or were unhealthful.  It amazes me that of course, God would know what would make them sick and what would keep them healthy.  Not sure why that amazes me…He created them.
• There is a symbolic view. This view sees the behavior and habits of the clean animals as illustrating how the Israelites were to behave. The unclean animals represented sinful people.

One article I read stated:

“Although God did not reveal the specific reasons some animals may be eaten and others must be avoided, we can make generalized conclusions based on the animals included in the two categories.  In listing the animals that should not be eaten, God forbids the consumption of scavengers and carrion eaters, which devour other animals for their food.

Animals such as pigs, bears, vultures, and raptors can eat (and thrive) on decaying flesh. Predatory animals such as wolves, lions, leopards, and cheetahs most often prey on the weakest (and at times the diseased) in animal herds.

When it comes to sea creatures, bottom dwellers such as lobsters and crabs scavenge for dead animals on the seafloor. Shellfish such as oysters, clams, and mussels similarly consume decaying organic matter that sinks to the seafloor, including sewage.

A common denominator of many of the animals God designates as unclean is that they routinely eat flesh that would sicken or kill human beings. When we eat such animals we partake of a food chain that includes things harmful to people.” 

Because God is holy, He required that His people make distinctions that separated them from unclean things.  This would account for the laws that required separation—morally, ethically, and even symbolically—from anything associated with pagan life and worship.

So what about today??  The NT teaches that the OT food laws are no longer binding on the Christian.  (Acts 11, but you need Acts 10 to get the full picture)

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Ch 12: Childbirth (only 8 verse chapter): So let’s clarify: there is moral uncleanness and ritual uncleanness.  Childbirth obviously falls into the second.  Childbirth was not fully understood, but there were so many “theories” that went with a woman’s ability to make a child.  Even though it was regarded as a miracle from God, the blood after childbirth was “magical” in pagan rituals (I can see this as an episode in Game of Thrones! Jaxon don’t watch that!), but also, the Israelites blood was symbolic of death and a menstrual cycle is no different.  There is also an aspect of hygiene for the woman as well as the camp.

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Chapter 13: Just when you thought the reading was tough we move to 59 verses regarding skin diseases!  If God dedicated 59 verses to it, it must be important.  Wait……nooooooo…….I peeked at tomorrow’s read.  Oh my stars. We will tackle more skin tomorrow.  Just get through this!  Because we are about to turn a corner into the “Standard” for Living a Holy Life and you are going to hang on every word and I am going to try to filter my humor the best I can. 😂

I will say: How awesome is God than in such ancient times He gives them the knowledge of medical testing, diagnosis, and cures.  Truly amazing for these times.

• First set of tests for skin disease vv. 2-8
• Second set of tests for skin disease vv. 9-17
• Third set of tests for skin disease in scars vv. 18-23
• Fourth set of tests for skin disease in burns vv. 24-28
• Fifth set of tests for skin disease in scalp or beard vv. 29-37
• A skin disease that is clean vv. 38-39
• Baldness and skin disease vv. 40-44
• Treatment of those diagnosed as unclean vv. 45-46
• Diagnosis and treatment of skin disease in clothing vv. 47-58
• Summary v. 59

This blog was dedicated to my loving husband. Lev 13:40-

“A man who has lost his hair and is bald is clean.  If he has lost his hair from the front of his scalp and has a bald forehead, he is clean”

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Read Leviticus from God’s perspective NOT ours!

Chapter 8:

The consecration ceremonies involved many of the sacrifices just described. The priesthood constituted the fulfillment of God’s commands recorded in Exodus 28—29 and 40. Almost every verse in chapter 8 is a quotation given in Exodus 29. Chapter 9 restates less detailed summaries of the laws in Leviticus 1—7.   If you have time go back and look for the pattern:  Underline the phrase:

 “as the Lord commanded him” occurs 16 times in this read!

Until now, Israel followed the custom common in the ancient Near East that the father of a family functioned as the priest for his family (we saw this at the beginning of Job, and through the Patriarchs). The Levites as a tribe now assumed this role for the families of Israel, under the leadership of Aaron and his sons. The nation as a whole lost the privilege of being a “kingdom of priests” at Mt. Sinai when they worshiped the golden calf. The main function of the priests in Israel was to guard and protect the holiness of God.

God specified certain garments for Aaron that distinguished him from everyone else.

 

The “anointing” of the tabernacle and the priests signified their sanctification, whereby God set them apart for holy purposes.

The number seven is referenced in the ritual.  Seven is the Covenant number meaning “complete” beginning with the seven days of creation.  The consecration/ordination lasted “seven days.” During this time, the priests were not to leave the tabernacle courtyard for 7 days and nights. Their role during their seven-day ordination was that of worshipers rather than priests.

When a sacrifice was made to the Lord, it was a “Heave” offering.   It means to be “lifted up”.  It is to God.  A “Wave” offering was motioned horizontally.  It was a “fellowship” offering usually followed by the eating of the sacrifice.  As Emily said yesterday, the communal aspect of the offerings.   This made me reflect on the 10 Commandments a little more.  The commandments just like the sacrifices reinforce not just how important our relationship to God is but to each other as well.

 

Nadab and Abihu!

The Bible did not explain Nadab and Abihu’s exact offense.  However, the “unauthorized fire” violated God’s will. It may have involved assuming the role of the high priest or an offering contrary to God’s commands ( most likely to included an “incense” offering because it involved the censers)   The incident took place on the eighth day.  The fire that consumed Nadab and Abihu was directly from the Lord.  Notice they were already dead and then fire came out of the presence of the Lord and consumed them! NOW when you look at these genealogies they make sense.

Aaron and his surviving sons were not to demonstrate any dissatisfaction with God’s judgment, but God permitted the people to mourn.  Eleazar and Ithamar replaced their older brothers.  Click here if you want to print the below.

Here are my reflections:

1. As I read this year,  I am going to take a closer look each time someone makes a sacrifice.  What kind is it, why are they doing it, is it a waive or a heave.  I think it will give me another layer of the text this year.
2. Will ANY priest nail it?  We can see already the answer is NO.  No human (priest) is going to hit the mark perfectly.  This will make the book of Hebrews highlighted in my eyes this year.  The ONLY priest that will rock this job will be Jesus.

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Graveyard?  Nope.  Chapter 16 will be the climax of the book.  You can make it…just gonna be a long week 😁.

Feb 13: Lev 1-4
Feb 14: Lev 5-7
Feb 15: Lev 8-10
Feb 16: Lev 11-13
Feb 17: Lev 14-15
Feb 18: Lev 16-18
Feb 19: Lev 19-21
Feb 20: Lev 22-23
Feb 21: Lev 24-25
Feb 22: Lev 26-27

Why did they name the popular denim pants Levi Jeans?  (this is where my brain goes?.

• Click here to read
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ljhortonhouse: You said last night you loved yesterday’s read.  Well, I think you will love this one even more.  Happy Valentines Day. ❤️

Guilt Offering: This is also called the trespass offering.  I actually “listened” to today’s read rather than read it.  Why?  Because it was boring (feeling a little guilty about saying that, ha…get it).  So when I listened to it I heard one word repeated: “Restitution”.  This act removed the guilt of certain sins that involved trespassing or “sinning”  against God. The Hebrew word ‘asham, translated as “guilt,” also means “reparation or restitution.” Guilt in the biblical sense is not just a feeling but a condition. There may be known transgressions that bring feelings of guilt, but there is also the condition of guilt before God, caused by sins known or unknown. Sometimes a hardened sinner has few feelings of guilt when he is the most guilty. (I call it rationalizing our sin!)  Ouch.

The trespass or guilt offering demonstrates the seriousness of violations against God (even accidental ones) and against others. An atoning sacrifice has to be made before God, and restitution has to be made to man.

OK, so now this chapter isn’t as boring as I thought.  I have to go make restitution because I am guilty of skimming and I need to reread. 😢

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I got to Chapters 6 and 7:  thought “didn’t we read this already?”  We were reading about how WE offer the sacrifice, this next section is about the priests’ requirements of the offering.  We need to stop and remember that this sacrificial system IS as important as the CROSS for us.  It really is worth taking the time to read it.  The one phrase I want you to go back and underline is:

“Say to Aaron and his sons: ‘These are the regulations for the sin…

Tomorrow you will find out why….😔

Levitical Graveyard…Nope!  You can make it through this book!

• You are going to make it. (Use the “listen to option if you need to)

Feb 13: Lev 1-4
Feb 14: Lev 5-7
Feb 15: Lev 8-10
Feb 16: Lev 11-13
Feb 17: Lev 14-15
Feb 18: Lev 16-18
Feb 19: Lev 19-21
Feb 20: Lev 22-23
Feb 21: Lev 24-25
Feb 22: Lev 26-27

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Sacrifices are going to be used throughout the entire Bible.  I am going to put a lot into this post today so that we ‘get it’ now and we will understand it going forward.  I very rarely tell you to read these posts (often they can be skipped).  This one I hope you read so that we have a better understanding of all 66 Books of the Bible. ✅. I also shy away from “application” of scriptures but I will sprinkle some in just to get us thinking.

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Leviticus deals with the progressive sanctification of the Israelites, not their justification.

Each of these five  offerings involved three objects:
1. The offerer (the person bringing the offering) YOU
2. The offering (the animal or other object being offered) YOUR SACRIFICE
3. The mediator (the priest) JESUS

We are going to talk about 5 different offerings in 5 chapters.  Is this relevant: Yes.  You are going to have to dig into your heart a little and think about how God wants you to apply this in your personal Worship.   I usually do not talk about the application (I leave that for the Holy Spirit), but I may a little to help us chew on these.

The first 3 offerings are voluntary:  Your choice.

Ch. 1 Burnt Offering: The Hebrew word for “burnt offering” actually means to “ascend,“ literally to “go up in smoke.” The smoke from the sacrifice ascended to God, “a soothing aroma to the LORD”.  Technically, any offering burned over an altar was a burnt offering, but in more specific terms, a burnt offering was the complete destruction of the animal (except for the hide) in an effort to renew the relationship between Holy God and sinful man. With the development of the law, God gave the Israelites specific instructions as to the types of burnt offerings and what they symbolized.

Offering MUST not have a defect (foreshadow of Jesus).  You brought according to what you could afford.

• bull
• sheep
• goat
• turtledove
• pigeon

⁴ You are to lay your hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on your behalf to make atonement for you. ⁵ You are to slaughter the young bull before the Lord

This was a personal experience. It was a sacrifice of general atonement—an acknowledgment of our sinful nature and a request for a renewed relationship with God.

What are you going to give up and bring before the Lord?  Put that stronghold on the Altar so you have a renewed relationship with the Lord.  Do you have to?  NO.   This is a VOLUNTARY offering.  It is up to you if you want to repent to have a closer relationship.  Cain and Abel gave a burnt offering, Noah gave a burnt offering after the flood, and Abraham was willing to give Isaac as a Burnt offering.  Since the beginning of time, humans knew that Sin must be covered at any cost!

The ultimate fulfillment of the burnt offering is in Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross. His physical life was completely consumed, He ascended to God, and His death covers us.  But most importantly, His sacrifice, once for all time, atoned for our sins and restored our relationship with God.

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Ch 2 Grain Offering-The “grain offering” was also an offering of worship that brought God pleasure.  This offering too is completely Voluntary.  It symbolizes the sacrifice, commitment,  and works, to God—as well as the worshiper’s willingness to keep the law.  “Anyone” could present this offering, a man or a woman.

Ephesians: 2:8-10 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast.  For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Very few instructions about what you bring freely (free-will offering) to the Lord is on purpose.  What do you bring or offer freely?  Time?  Money? Service? Teaching?  but whatever you do make sure it is without Yeast.  What does that mean?  Bring it with a pure heart, without a sinful intention.  Here is what that means to me (I could be wrong).  When you bring a free-will offering, let’s say an act of service: what is the real motive??  Is it to put a picture on social media “oh look at me”, is it for the praise or the pat on the back, is it so others can see what you bring to the table?  A REAL Grain offering in your life, thanking God for His Provisions, is between You and the Lord.

I am going to be straight up…I have done a terrible job teaching my kids the Bible.  My most ‘knowledgeable’ child (teenager) scored a 45 on the Exodus quiz 🤪 BUT the one scripture they do know is Matthew 6:1-4

6 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.

² “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. ³ But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, ⁴ so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.

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Ch 3 The Fellowship Offering (Peace offering): The “fellowship or Peace offering” is the third voluntary sacrifice of worship.

1. First, a peace offering could be given as a freewill offering, meaning that the worshiper was giving the peace offering as a way to say thank you to God.  It was basically just a way to praise God for His goodness.
2.  The second way a peace offering could be given was alongside a fulfilled vow. “I have no resentment; I am holding nothing back in the payment of my vow.”
3. The third purpose of a peace offering was to give thanksgiving for God’s deliverance in an hour of dire need.

None of these three reasons to sacrifice had anything to do with propitiation, with appeasing God, or with pacifying Him.  Here is an example I may or may not have done in my college days “God if you make the room stop spinning I will never drink again 🤮”.  (weird to think about since I was an atheist saying this….hey desperate times call for desperate measures).  But we still do it…”If you help me with this then I will….”

It is purely a fellowship offering.❤️

 

The next 2 offerings were NOT Voluntary.

The Sin Offering: The Hebrew phrase for “sin offering” literally means “fault offering.” The sin offering was made for sins committed in ignorance, or unintentional sins. The importance of this offering can be seen in the amount of space in the text that is devoted to explaining it: 35 verses.  Here is the deal, you can try as hard as you can, but you will sin!  You do not lose your Salvation BUT it does impede your fellowship with God.  The center of this book is the Day of Atonement.  It is an annual Sin Offering.  So we can talk more about this since it is already 7:00 and some of you are morning readers.

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