Notes on Leviticus 1-7
The offerings
The altar is the place where sinner and Savior meet. When Adam and Eve sinned they tried to cover themselves with leaves but God made clothes of animal skins for them to cover their shame. Something in God’s kingdom had to die so that Adam and Eve’s sin would be atoned for.
In order for sinful man to find forgiveness for his sin God institutes the offerings and the priesthood. The first offering is the burnt offering. This offering is a full surrender to God and a commitment to God. As the offering is burned it gives off an aroma pleasing to the Lord. I believe we get a New Testament view of this in Luke 15:1-5, where there is a lost sheep. When a lost soul is found there is great rejoicing in Heaven because the one who is found repents and makes a complete surrender to the Lord, an aroma pleasing to the Lord.
The next offerings in Chapter 2 of Leviticus fall into the category of giving thanks for what God had provided. Again in Luke 15:6-10 we see a woman looking for a lost coin. When we recognize that God is in control and is our provider then we will loosen our grip on what we have. Our thinking will go from, everything I have is mine because I worked hard for it, to recognizing that God is the source of everything I have. Heaven rejoices when a sinner repents and that repentance is an aroma pleasing to the Lord.
The next offerings are offerings for sin. I want to deal with these along with the guilt offering. The guilt offering is serious as it appears the guilt is a result of rebellion. There is only one group of people that offer a guilt offering, that results in an aroma pleasing to the Lord. These are the common people. God will hold us accountable for what we know, not for what we don’t know. Rebellion carries with it the idea that the one who is rebellious knows better. Such was the case with the two sons in the balance of Luke 15. But, just as the tabernacle is in full view of the world around them these two boys know the difference between right and wrong. The oldest boy is with the father working but he is not really with the father heart and soul. No pleasing aroma before the Lord. We don’t know if the older brother went in and joined the party, but what we do know is that the father was out with him urging him to give up his rebellion and bitterness and repent. For those who are like him they must make peace with God. The burnt offering and the peace offering must come first.
Pastor Dave