Leviticus 2:1

The Bible says in Leviticus 2:1-3, “And when any will offer a meat offering unto the LORD, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon:[2] And he shall bring it to Aaron's sons the priests: and he shall take thereout his handful of the flour thereof, and of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof; and the priest shall burn the memorial of it upon the altar, to be an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD:[3] And the remnant of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his sons': it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the LORD made by fire.” We see that this offering was not a “meat” offering as translated in the King James Version because this offering was something from a normal “meal” made of “fine flour.” It would have been a type of bread that was used in the common meals of the day. For example the same Hebrew word is translated as “fine meal” and is used in Genesis 18:6, “And Abraham hastened into the tent unto Sarah, and said, Make ready quickly three measures of fine meal, knead it, and make cakes upon the hearth.” By describing an offering that could be made of these flour food items that would have been prepared as a mundane task almost every day, God is saying that he accepts even our mundane tasks as service to Him. Everything can be made as a service to the Lord Jesus, even the common tasks that you must do each day, whether that is working in the kitchen, or working in the garden, or going to the office.

In these offerings were put “oil” and “frankincense.” In the Bible oil symbolizes the Holy Spirit, and so God is saying that even in your daily tasks you can be led by the Spirit. Frankincense is an incense of a sweet-smelling fragrance, and this is to emphasize the fact that God is pleased when we dedicate to Him our daily tasks. How else will we serve Him with our whole heart?

Notice that in verse three says that “the remnant of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his sons'.” Only a hand full of the offering was burnt on the altar. The rest was given to the priests and Levites for their food. The Levites did not have an inheritance of land in Israel, and so the rest of the Israelites supported them by means of many of the offerings that were made to God. The people gave to God, and God used what was given to take care of the priests and Levites. It takes money and material supply to have a church and a pastor. Someone has to supply the needs of a pastor and a church property. In some cases the pastor supplies it himself. There were times when Paul supplied his own needs as a tentmaker. It says in First Timothy 5:18 quoting from Deuteronomy, “For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward.”

The same offering could be brought not just as flour, but also when that flour was cooked and then brought as a sacrifice. The Bible says in Leviticus 2:4-12, “And if thou bring an oblation of a meat offering baken in the oven, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil.[5] And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in a pan, it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mingled with oil.[6] Thou shalt part it in pieces, and pour oil thereon: it is a meat offering.[7] And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in the fryingpan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil.[8] And thou shalt bring the meat offering that is made of these things unto the LORD: and when it is presented unto the priest, he shall bring it unto the altar.[9] And the priest shall take from the meat offering a memorial thereof, and shall burn it upon the altar: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.[10] And that which is left of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his sons': it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the LORD made by fire.[11] No meat offering, which ye shall bring unto the LORD, shall be made with leaven: for ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in any offering of the LORD made by fire.[12] As for the oblation of the firstfruits, ye shall offer them unto the LORD: but they shall not be burnt on the altar for a sweet savour.” Especially notice that these cooked flour cakes were to be made without “leaven.” In the Bible leaven is symbolic of sin. God is saying basically that we should not offer to God anything that is mixed with sin. Get an honest job, and make your money from a decent profession, and offer from that money what you give to God for the furtherance of the Gospel of Christ. Once again from these offerings most was taken by Aaron and his sons for their own needs and their own food. Just a reminder: Aaron and his sons took what was necessary for their subsistence and not for their enrichment. Aaron and his sons were not given their own portion of land. They would be too busy in the tabernacle to till the land and take care of it. If you want to live the American dream and gain great substance, then get a secular job and make most of your money from that. That is the advice that I would give a young preacher who would have as a goal to be a pastor or missionary: get a secular skill as well as learning more about the Bible. Then you can use your secular skill to make more money instead of seeing a Christian leadership role as your only source of money. That just might help keep you on the right track materially speaking. You want to have compassion on the spiritual needs of those who come to your church, and not view them as a source of finances. The Apostle Paul was a tent-maker.

The Bible says in Leviticus 2:13, “And every oblation of thy meat- offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat-offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt.” This is an interesting Bible verse because Jesus referred to it in the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus said in Mark 9:49-50, “For every one shall be salted with fire, and every sacrifice shall be salted with salt.[50] Salt is good: but if the salt have lost his saltness, wherewith will ye season it? Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.” In the context of Mark chapter 9 Jesus is talking about the “fire” of hell, and the fire of judgment. It is not pleasant to be judged, but God is Judge and He will do His work. Everyone will be judged: the lost will be judged to determine how great will be their punishments in hell, and the saved will be judged to determine what rewards they will gain or lose. There is also judgment in this life as the Lord decides what will be the consequences of our decisions. What does judgment really do? Among other things such as establishing what is right and good for a situation and a person, judgment puts God’s stamp of approval on the final outcome to that person and what that person becomes. Judgment adds fire, so that what remains after the fire is what is supposed to remain forever. Judgment will be added to every life and thus fire will be added to every life. It has to be that way if you are to become both now and forever what God wants you to be whether for good or for bad.

Something else needs to be added to every life that is offered to God: salt. Hopefully, you understand your responsibility to offer yourself to Jesus as a sacrifice. Remember this verse in Leviticus that said that salt had to be added to the sacrifices. That was God’s will. If you are to become the kind of sacrifice that God wants, then you must have salt added to your being. Why is salt so important? Think of what salt symbolizes. Salt symbolizes cleansing. Real salt kills bacteria. Evil bacteria cannot live where salt is found: nothing can live where enough salt is found. That is why the Dead Sea is dead: salt. Put salt on sores and on wounds, and gargle with salt and you will find that salt has healing powers. Make sure that you are purged from your sins by faith in Jesus. Salt is also a preservative. That is why salt is added to so many foods: to preserve them. Your life will have a preserving influence on the people and community around you if you have the salt of God’s Spirit and God’s Word and God’s Son as part of your life. Salt is also used as a seasoning. Food is much more attractive and desirable if it is seasoned. Have you ever eaten anything that had no seasoning? A Christian’s life should attract others to Christ. If Jesus has saved you and changed your life, people will see that and be attracted to Christ. It is no wonder that Jesus said in Mark 9:50, “Have salt in yourselves, and have peace one with another.” That is also why Jesus said in Matthew 5:13, “Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.”

The Bible says in Leviticus 2:14-16, “And if thou offer a meat offering of thy firstfruits unto the LORD, thou shalt offer for the meat offering of thy firstfruits green ears of corn dried by the fire, even corn beaten out of full ears.[15] And thou shalt put oil upon it, and lay frankincense thereon: it is a meat offering.[16] And the priest shall burn the memorial of it, part of the beaten corn thereof, and part of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof: it is an offering made by fire unto the LORD.” The key word in these verses is “firstfruits.” In other words the first bill that you pay is what you have decided to give to the LORD. If you wait until you spend all of your money for the month on everything that you would like to buy, you may not have anything left over to give to the Lord. Our responsibility is to put God first in all things, including our finances. Notice once again that only a small part of the offering was actually burnt up: the “memorial.” Most of the offering went to Aaron and his sons and their families. In effect this is what was to happen: an Israelite put God first and gave of his or her substance to the Lord. What was given as an offering of “firstfruits unto the LORD” went to the human beings who worked in the tabernacle: Aaron and his sons and eventually all of the priest and Levites.

The Bible says in Leviticus 3:1-17, “And if his oblation be a sacrifice of peace offering, if he offer it of the herd; whether it be a male or female, he shall offer it without blemish before the LORD.[2] And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and kill it at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron's sons the priests shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about.[3] And he shall offer of the sacrifice of the peace offering an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,[4] And the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away.[5] And Aaron's sons shall burn it on the altar upon the burnt sacrifice, which is upon the wood that is on the fire: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.[6] And if his offering for a sacrifice of peace offering unto the LORD be of the flock; male or female, he shall offer it without blemish.[7] If he offer a lamb for his offering, then shall he offer it before the LORD.[8] And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and kill it before the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron's sons shall sprinkle the blood thereof round about upon the altar.[9] And he shall offer of the sacrifice of the peace offering an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat thereof, and the whole rump, it shall he take off hard by the backbone; and the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,[10] And the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away.[11] And the priest shall burn it upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire unto the LORD.[12] And if his offering be a goat, then he shall offer it before the LORD.[13] And he shall lay his hand upon the head of it, and kill it before the tabernacle of the congregation: and the sons of Aaron shall sprinkle the blood thereof upon the altar round about.[14] And he shall offer thereof his offering, even an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,[15] And the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away.[16] And the priest shall burn them upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire for a sweet savour: all the fat is the LORD's.[17] It shall be a perpetual statute for your generations throughout all your dwellings, that ye eat neither fat nor blood.” The animal sacrifices described here in Leviticus chapter three are called a “peace offering.” The sacrifice of Jesus gives us peace with God as stated in Romans 5:1: “…we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Jesus is called the Prince of Peace in Isaiah 9:6 because only Jesus can give peace. People are at war with God as they resist the truth. They are proud and not surrendered, and therefore they are fighting against the Spirit. Verse 17 is a good example that many of the laws and requirements of the Old Testament had practical and health-related purposes. It says, “ye eat neither fat nor blood.” If you want to be healthy avoid “fat.” Doctors tell us that same thing today. Many diseases are carried in the blood. Of course, this requirement is the source of “kosher” meat preparation that is still observed by Jews today.

Just think about the description of the work that the priests had to do with these animal sacrifices. They not only killed the animals and cut them up, they also took out all the organs and cleaned them and prepared them. The only thing that I have seen in this life like that is a slaughter-house where animals are killed to get the meat to put in grocery stores. Think of all the violence going on in the world, and depending upon where you are at any moment, this world can be like a slaughter-house. War is certainly like that. And then think about the fact that Jesus is God’s sacrifice. Jesus came into this world to be a sacrifice in dying on the cross. Jesus came into the world, knowing that He was coming to a slaughter-house. What a Savior! We owe Him everything. That is why we will get to go to heaven when we believe on Him with saving faith. Jesus suffered the bloody death so that we could go to heaven and not suffer for our sins.

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