March 23, 2025
Background Scripture: Leviticus 1- 17; 6:8-13
Lesson Passage: Leviticus 1:3 - 17
God spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai and gave the initial guidelines of the Law. After the construction of the tabernacle and its furnishings, God's shekinah glory filled the Holy of Holies inside the tabernacle. It was in the Holy of Holies where God's presence dwelt above the mercy seat. Israel beheld God's visible presence (a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night) in the middle of Israel's encampment in the desert. God met with Moses inside the tabernacle to give additional guidelines concerning the Law. In today's lesson, God summoned Moses to the tabernacle and gave him guidelines concerning burnt offerings. Three different types of animals were accepted for the burnt offering: either a male bull without blemish from the herd, a male sheep or goat from the flock, or a pair of turtledoves or pigeons. This variety of sacrificial animals would allow all worshipers, regardless of economic status, the opportunity to offer a freewill burnt offering to Godi The requirement of a male would keep the herd or flock from becoming depleted as the females would sustain the herd or flock with only a few breeding males. On the other hand, a male without blemish made it extremely valuable to the owner seeing that an unblemished male could improve the overall quality of the herd or flock. Their faith was that God would sustain the quality of their herd or flock because they had sacrificed their best. The worshiper who brought the animal to be sacrificed placed his hands on the animal's head as an act of identifying with it. The laying on of hands implied that the animal was taking the person's place prior to it being killed. With that gesture, God accepted the sacrifice on behalf of the worshiper. This was important because these offerings often involved atonement for sin and restoration of the person's relationship with God. It was more than simply killing an animal and burning its carcass. The person's faith, confession, and devotion to God were all part of the ceremony. Otherwise, it was an empty gesture with no spiritual meaning. One may think that laying hands on the animal's head and killing it in one's stead would always be a moving and solemn experience. However, human history shows that we can develop a callousness towards anything we see, or do, repeatedly. The worshiper needs a prayerful mindset before the act of sacrificing occurs. It was even more so for the burnt offering. The reason being that the animal for the burnt offering was not brought as an act of obedience or under compulsion, but rather as a freewill offering. The entire sacrifice had to be totally consumed by fire on the altar. When everything was done as prescribed by God, the sincere act of worship was a pleasant experience for God, a sweet aroma. Many profess a desire to do what pleases God. Only God knows what pleases Him. Therefore, it behooves us to pay close attention to anything God describes as a pleasant experience. God described His experience metaphorically by comparing it to the human sense of smell. Our sense of smell can provide extremely bad experiences and extremely good experiences. Sweetness describes a pleasant experience with respect to the sense of smell. Any sin harms a person's relationship with God because He is holy. Mankind was created to serve in partnership with God. Sin creates separation between God and the sinner. God prescribed the burnt offering to restore the relationship. The proper and complete restoration of the divine-human relationship is a pleasant experience for God. The burnt offering is the means God has provided for His people to be reconciled with Him. Therefore, God calls it a sweet savor offering when presented properly. Today, Christians should recognize Jesus' crucifixion as the only offering that satisfies God. Although gruesome, Jesus' crucifixion on Calvary reconciled mankind to God. For that reason, it pleased the Lord to bruise Him as a sweet aroma.
Robert C. Hudson
March 8, 2025