Leviticus 1:1

The Bible says in Leviticus 1:1, “And the Lord called unto Moses, and spake unto him out of the tabernacle of the congregation, saying.” Until God used Moses to write the first five books of the Bible, there was no written Word, and so God spoke to certain individuals with an audible voice. Moses was one of those individuals. Now that we have the complete written Word of God, God usually does not speak to people with an audible voice, but God does “speak” through His written Word by touching our hearts by the Spirit of God. The Spirit of God gave the written Word, and the Spirit of God uses the written Word to touch hearts. If you are a believer, read the Word and go listen to the Word where it is preached. If you are a preacher, preach the Word. Do not preach denominational dogma: preach the Word. Do not preach your own wisdom: preach the Word.

Notice where God spoke to Moses: “out of the tabernacle of the congregation.” The word “tabernacle” means “tent.” At this time in their existence, going through the wilderness, the children of Israel lived in tents. God used the symbolism of the tabernacle to represent the presence of God. Eventually, the temple replaced the tabernacle in the Old Testament. In the New Testament there is no building that represents God’s presence. A church building does not represent God’s presence, except in one aspect: A church building is the gathering place for Christians. When Christians gather together, those Christians are “the congregation” of the Lord. God has a people made up of everyone who believes in the name of the Lord Jesus. One day we will all be gathered together as the family of God in the presence of Christ in heaven. But until that day comes at the rapture, God has pleasure in seeing His children gather together in church buildings. Any building where believers gather in the name of Jesus is a church building. Jesus described this gathering together of a congregation in Matthew 18:20, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” We live in a day when many people who call themselves Christians are not gathering with other Christians in congregations. They are big losers because they are not following the intent of Scripture, they are not gaining the preaching of the Word, and they are not using their gifts to help other Christians. What congregation are you a part of?

The Bible says in Leviticus 1:2-3, “Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, If any man of you bring an offering unto the LORD, ye shall bring your offering of the cattle, even of the herd, and of the flock.[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.” The word “if” is used in verse two and in verse three. And this is on the subject of giving an offering. It is a “voluntary” offering. The most important verse in the New Testament about giving also emphasizes the voluntary nature of true giving to the Lord. It says in Second Corinthians 9:7, “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.” God wants us to give out of love for Him, and not because of some requirement. The decision is yours. It is another example of the free will that God has given to us. You decide if you give and how much you give. Just remember this: “God loveth a cheerful giver.”

In the book of Leviticus 1:3 the children of Israel were told that their offering should be “a male without blemish.” Of course, this symbolizes that Jesus would be the free-will offering from the Father for all of our benefits and blessing. We needed an offering to be made for us because of our sins. The offering had to be “without blemish.” Jesus was that offering because He was without sin. What happened to the offering? It was killed in sacrifice. Jesus was killed on the cross of Calvary. No wonder God is pleased when we willingly give an offering to Him. Think about the offering that He made for us: His own Son to die on the cross.

The Bible says in Leviticus 1:4, “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.” This picture of putting one’s hand upon the head of the animal that was offered was to symbolize the transfer of the guilt from the sinner to the animal. The animal then received the consequence of the sins, and the human being did not. An innocent one suffered in the place of the guilty one. That is exactly what Jesus did for us when Jesus was on the cross of Calvary.

What was the punishment that the animal suffered? It says in Leviticus 1:5, “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.” The punishment was death. It says in Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Sin must be paid for, and the ultimate price for sin must be paid by someone. God’s holiness and justice requires that the proper penalty must be given out. That is why verse five says that the bullock shall be killed “before the Lord.” This was a sacrifice to satisfy God’s righteous indignation against sin. God hates sin. But God loves mankind, and so God created a means by which human beings can be forgiven of their sins. The punishment is still handed out, but through a substitute. Of course, we know that all of these millions of sacrifices that were done in the Old Testament were a symbolism of the work that Christ would do on the cross of Calvary. It is a wonderful salvation created by the love of God for every lost soul. One reason that the animal sacrifices of the Old Testament were done over and over through the centuries is that those sacrifices were not good enough. Jesus died on the cross once for all. What a great sacrifice was the Son of God. His one act of dying accomplished more than any other act ever done on this earth.

The Bible says in Leviticus 1:6-9, “And he shall flay the burnt offering, and cut it into his pieces.[7] And the sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire upon the altar, and lay the wood in order upon the fire:[8] 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:[9] 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.” Notice in verse 9 that every bit of this offering is burnt up. It says “the priest shall burn all.” Many of the sacrifices were used as food to feed the priests and Levites, but not this sacrifice. Remember that the person who gave this sacrifice had put his hand on the head of the sacrifice to symbolize that the person’s sins were transferred to this animal. The animal was then killed and totally burnt up. That burning up symbolized that the sins were totally taken away. No need to worry about sin if you had this sacrifice. No need to worry about sin if you have Jesus as your sacrifice. This sacrifice was a “sweet savour unto the LORD” because God wants to take away our sins. That is what pleases Him because He loves souls.

On the theme of being cleansed from sin, notice also that verse nine mentions that parts of the animal “shall he wash in water.” The parts that were washed were the intestines, the organs, and the legs. The washing of water also symbolizes the forgiveness of sins because water is the great cleansing agent. There is such a thing as physical cleansing and there is such a thing as spiritual cleansing. Jesus can give you the spiritual cleansing that you need. A leper came to Jesus and said to Him in Matthew 8:2, “Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.” Jesus answered, “I will, Be thou clean.”

The Bible says in Leviticus 1:10, “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.” Some people may not have enough money to purchase a bull for the offering. Therefore, they are allowed to bring a less expensive offering of a smaller animal. God honors less money because it is a matter of the heart and He knows what we have and what we are capable of giving financially speaking. Jesus honored a person who gave less than anyone else. It says in Luke 21:1-4, “And he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury. [2] And he saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites. [3] And he said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all; [4] For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had.”

In Leviticus 1:10 once again God says “if” anyone make this offering. It is a free-will offering. You can give or you choose to not give. The choice is yours. God gives you freedom. But if an Israelite did decide to make such an offering to God, it must be “a male without blemish.” Jesus was without sin. Jesus was the Son of God. And we see that God Himself is “a male.” Jesus was “without blemish.” Jesus left heaven and became a human through the womb of a female. He took upon Him the body of a male. And so Jesus used both male and female for His human existence. And then when Jesus lived on this earth as a male, Jesus was a male human in every sense that we are human except that Jesus was without sin. This fact qualified Him to be the sacrifice for the world.

The Bible says in Leviticus 1:11, “And he shall kill it on the side of the altar northward before the LORD; and the priests, Aaron’s sons, shall sprinkle the blood round about upon the altar.” Once again we see that the priests did “sprinkle” the blood. The blood is so very important because Jesus gave His blood. What the priests were doing was a ceremony and purely symbolic. The blood of animals cannot take away sin. Because of Jesus, we no longer have ceremonies, we no longer have sacrifices, and we no longer have priests. All of that was done away with once the law was done away with. And that happened at the crucifixion of Christ. The law and all of its sacrifices and ceremonies made up the Old Covenant. The sacrifice of Christ and the grace that comes through faith in Jesus Christ is the New Covenant.

The Bible says in Leviticus 1:12-13, “And he shall cut it into his pieces with his head and his fat; and the priests 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.” Once again we see the priests doing everything in these ceremonies. No wonder they hated Jesus when He came upon the scene. From a human standpoint many of the Jewish priests in the first century knew that Jesus was teaching things and doing things that were different from the Levitical priesthood. Jesus was the last priest. As it says about Jesus in Hebrews chapter 5:6 quoting from Psalms 110:4, “Thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchisedec.”

For those who are really low on finances and who cannot afford a bull or a lamb, God provides that they can give a bird. This offering is a dove or a pigeon to emphasize peace and to emphasize meekness. Jesus was meek. Jesus allowed human beings to do whatever they wished to Him, and the human beings tortured and killed Him. The Bible says in Leviticus 1:14-17, “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.”

___________________________________________________