Before we begin this book, let’s remember why we are reading it in the first place. Between here and Numbers many stalwart Bible readers stumble and fall…
Read Leviticus 1-4
Okay, you caught me. I am writing this to remind myself as much as anyone else. Keeping that confession in mind, let me jot down a few reasons why I want to stay focused as I read this book:
1. It’s about the process of forgiving sins, and being forgiven is important
2. It’s about the people (Levites) who oversaw the process, and I am a minister…that should make this personal
3. It’s going to reveal something about God, and about holiness….both things that I want to discover more about
4. It’s going to help me understand parts of the New Testament better
There are probably more, but that’s enough to keep me going. Are you ready?
I noticed that the sacrifice is different for each person who is offering it. It begins with a bull, then steps down to a ram, then a sheep. At first the offerings are specifically male, but later they can be female as well. Until you get to the personal sin offering, and then it has to be a female sheep. That’s interesting to me. Jesus is the “Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world” John 1:29 So, was Jesus represented by a female sheep in the sacrificial process? In one way it would seem so, but then there is the young bull that takes away sin for a nation, and Jesus did that as well. I guess we can’t draw any broad conclusions based on gender here.
I will have to do some research on the difference between a sin offering and a burnt offering. Apparently they are different, since each one is a different animal.
It seems to me that a priest could have a pretty good idea of what you had in mind by the type of sacrifice that you were bringing. For instance, if you were carrying a grain offering he knew that you weren’t there to confess sins. And if you had a female sheep, you weren’t there as a leader asking for forgiveness. The sheep was okay in some instances, but inappropriate for others.
I wonder if there are times when we are asked to offer different things as sacrifices today? I’m thinking that there are times when the appropriate sacrifice is the investment of my time or talents, other times it may be singing praises, another way might be giving tithes and offerings…but none of those are the appropriate offering for the forgiveness of my sins. In order for my sins to be forgiven a very specific sacrifice must be made, I must confess my sins and acknowledge the sacrifice of Jesus (my sacrificial lamb) as the payment for sins.
Thinking of that, when Jesus is represented by the female sheep it’s a nod to the sacrifice of the common man. Jesus didn’t come to lay his life down just for the leader, or just for the nation. He did it for me personally. An ordinary, common man.
Thank you Jesus for your wonderful gift, and for the depth and dimension that your Word gives! It helps me understand your character better, and I love you for that.
Faithfully,
PR