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Introduction: chapters 1-9
Chapter 1-5 contains the five different types of sacrifices.
Chapter 1 contains the instructions for the Burnt Offering - a type of Christ
dying for our sins.
Chapter 2 contains the instructions for the meat (meal) offering - a type of
thanksgiving offering - a freewill offering given to express a thankful heart.
Chapter 3 contains the instructions for the peace offering.
Chapter 4 contains the instructions for the sin through ignorance offering.
Chapter 5 contains the instructions for the trespass offering.
Chapter 6 and 7 contain the additional information concerning the above five
sacrifices.
Chapter 8 contains information concerning the dedication and consecration of
the priests.
Chapter 9 contains information as to the actual establishing and beginning of
worship of God through the sacrifices.
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CHAPTER 1 - THE BURNT OFFERING
(An offering of Salvation)
I. This chapter is divided into three parts.
A. Verse 3-9 - the offering of a bullock. (verse 3, of the herd.)
B. Verse 10-13 - the offering of a sheep or a goat. (verse 10, of the
flock.)
C. Verse 14-17 - the offering of a fowl.
II. Here is a burnt offering for people of all wealth stations. From the
very richest to the very poorest. Christ died for all people, regardless of
their wealth.
III. The procedure for the burnt offering is the same in all cases. All the
wealthy people and poor people must come to Christ in exactly the same manner,
by grace through faith - as a little child.
IV. The types of the offering explained.
A. Verse 3 - If his offering be a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him
offer a male without blemish: he shall offer it of his own voluntary will at
the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the LORD.
1. "male without blemish" - because Christ was a male without
blemish. Some people wonder whether God is a male or a female - He is
Spirit. This sacrifice does not typify God, but Christ as He came to die for
our sins.
2. "offer it of his own voluntary will" - Hardshells believe
that we are saved apart from our wills. Freewillers believe that we are
saved because we will to do so. The truth is that God works with our wills
and makes us willing in the day of judgment. Nobody is saved apart from him
wanting to be saved, and we know, of course, that God causes that person to
be miserable in his sinful condition and seek the blessed peace that only
Christ can give.
3. "At the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the
Lord" - This is not talking about "in church", but before the
Lord, or where the Lord is. A lost person must present himself as a lost
person to God Himself. Nothing else will do. He can be saved at work, at
home, or at play, but he must go before God with his sinfulness.
B. Verse 4 And he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt
offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him.
1. "Put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering". This
identifies the worshipper with the offering. The one that is lost must be
identified with Christ who is our saviour.
2. "and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him"
- without the proper identifying with Jesus, no one can ever be saved. We
ought to also note that the animal that dies does not pay for sinful nature
of the worshipper. This is only a type. The worshipper is not saved because
he offers these animal sacrifices. But because he is saved, he offers the
sacrifice. This shows that the worshipper is looking forward to one who is
to come who will fully pay the sin debt.
C. Verse 5 And he shall kill the bullock before the LORD: and the
priests, Aaron's sons, shall bring the blood, and sprinkle the blood round
about upon the altar that is by the door of the tabernacle of the
congregation.
1. Verse 11 - shall kill it on the north side of the altar - Christ was
crucified on the north side of Jerusalem.
2. "He shall kill before the LORD". Aaron's sons do not kill
the animal. The worshipper does this. Each person that is saved must realize
that it was their sins that put Christ on the cross. It was their sins that
caused Christ to die. It wasn't somebody's else's sins. This is a very
personal thing, nobody can offer an animal for anybody else. Nobody can be
saved for anybody else, we must all be saved individually, we must all stand
before God and be judged.
3. "Aaron's sons sprinkle the blood". Aaron and his sons (the
tribe of Levi) are a type of the priesthood of Christ. It was Christ that
brought His blood before God in the perfect tabernacle in the heavens (Heb.
9). So the chosen priesthood (the Levities) bring the blood before the Lord.
4. "sprinkle the blood on the brazen altar". The altar is a
type of the cross of Calvary. This is picturing that the blood of Jesus
would stain the cross.
a. The altar is not called the Brazen altar, but "the altar that
is by the door of the tabernacle of the congregation." Why?
b. There must be a "learning through hearing" of religious
affairs. The Jew must learn where the Brazen altar is, and what it is for.
Today, a person must have some religious knowledge before they can be
saved. They must know they are lost, and that Jesus is the only way to be
saved. Knowledge does not save, but the exercise of knowledge does.
D. Verse 6, And he shall flay the burnt offering, and cut it into his
pieces.
1. "he shall flay the burnt offering".
a. "he" is referring to the giver of the sacrifice, not the
priest. See verse 4.
b. "flay" means to peel, skin, strip. This is a picture of
what our sinfulness has caused Christ to do for us.
2. "cut up the burnt offering" - This pictures that Christ
would be "cut up". This didn't happen literally, but spiritually.
Our sins caused Christ to be "poured out". (Ps. 22:14,15)
E. Verse 7, And the sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire upon the
altar, and lay the wood in order upon the fire:
1. "fire on the altar" - They didn't strike a match to do
this, or rub two sticks together. Lev. 9:14 - God Himself sent holy fire
from heaven to begin the fire which would never go out.
2. "Put wood on the fire" - Man's responsibility is not to
start the fire, but he does have a responsibility to keep the fire going.
This is done by grace, as he strives to be pleasing to God, continually
witness of the goodness of God in the land of the living.
F. Verse 8,9, And the priests, Aaron's sons, shall lay the parts, the
head, and the fat, in order upon the wood that is on the fire which is upon
the altar: But his inwards and his legs shall he wash in water: and the
priest shall burn all on the altar, to be a burnt sacrifice, an offering
made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.
1. The priests, not the giver of the sacrifice puts the parts on the
altar.
a. Our sinfulness has killed Christ and "poured Him out before
all".
b. As the giver of the sacrifice looks down on the slain animal, he
realizes what his sinfulness has done to God.
c. The priesthood, who stands in the place of Christ, now goes to work,
as the giver of the sacrifice steps back to observe.
2. The body (the cut up parts, the head, and the fat) is burned without
being washed - (compare to v. 9) - There is no need to try to cleanse the
body for it is full of sin and must be replaced with an immortal body that
cannot sin.
3. The inward parts are washed - The inward parts of men need to be
washed by the water of the word. Not like the Pharisees who cleaned up the
outside, but left the inside full of dead men's bones. The inward parts also
typified the wholesomeness of the sacrifice. When the inward parts are
healthy (this is proved by a visual inspection) the whole body is healthy.
When the spirit of man is toward God, the whole life will be toward God.
This will be reflected in the body. Let us work out our salvation with fear
and trembling.
4. The burnt offering is a sweet savour unto the Lord - A burning body is
not a pleasant scent to men, but it is to God, especially in this worship.
The thought of a blood offering is not pleasing to men, but it is to God,
especially when it is the blood of His only begotten son. Most religions
teach that salvation is accomplished by the works of men: whether it is
joining the church, being baptized, going to church, teaching Sunday School,
preaching, healing, speaking in tongues, witness, working on the church
building, or a host of other things. But only the blood of Jesus Christ can
cleanse our sinful hearts from sin.
V. The offering of a sheep or a goat, and the offering of a fowl follows
exactly the same principle as the offering of a bullock. It is the same
sacrifice for a less wealthy person.
A. The offering of a sheep. Verse 10-13, And if his offering be of the
flocks, namely, of the sheep, or of the goats, for a burnt sacrifice; he
shall bring it a male without blemish. {11} And he shall kill it on the side
of the altar northward before the LORD: and the priests, Aaron's sons, shall
sprinkle his blood round about upon the altar. {12} And he shall cut it into
his pieces, with his head and his fat: and the priest shall lay them in
order on the wood that is on the fire which is upon the altar: {13} But he
shall wash the inwards and the legs with water: and the priest shall bring
it all, and burn it upon the altar: it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering
made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.
1. This is the offering of a person of "middle income".
2. There are no difference between the sacrifice of the bullock and the
sheep.
B. The offering of a fowl. Verse 14-17, And if the burnt sacrifice for
his offering to the LORD be of fowls, then he shall bring his offering of
turtledoves, or of young pigeons. {15} And the priest shall bring it unto
the altar, and wring off his head, and burn it on the altar; and the blood
thereof shall be wrung out at the side of the altar: {16} And he shall pluck
away his crop with his feathers, and cast it beside the altar on the east
part, by the place of the ashes: {17} And he shall cleave it with the wings
thereof, but shall not divide it asunder: and the priest shall burn it upon
the altar, upon the wood that is upon the fire: it is a burnt sacrifice, an
offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.
1. This is the offering of a person of "low income".
2. He shall cleave (separate) the wings, but not cut the bird into.
a. It must be remembered that the sacrifices are a type of Christ.
b. The bird not being cut up (like the other offering) shows us the
frailty of human struggles for righteousness.
3. he shall pluck away the crop with the feathers, and cast them on the
east side of the altar with the ashes.
a. The crop is a saclike enlargement of a bird's gullet, with thick
muscular walls in which food is softened for digestion; sometimes called a
craw. The craw or the source of strength for the flesh, therefore it is
discarded.
b. The feathers are removed because it is like the skin. It is an
outward covering.
c. They are cast on the east side of the altar for they are waste and
are to be destroyed, not offered as a sacrifice.
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