Friday, March 20, 2020

Leviticus 3 - The Law of Peace Offerings

Summary https://marksbiblejourney.blogspot.com
"God tells Moses to instruct the Israelites about how to bring a fellowship sacrifice of an animal from the herd or flock to the Lord.  Also, God tells Moses that the Israelites must not eat any fat or any blood.  The fat belongs to the Lord."

Leviticus 3 Amplified Bible (AMP)
The Law of Peace Offerings

3 ‘If a man’s offering is a sacrifice of peace offerings, if he offers an animal from the herd, whether male or female, he shall offer it without blemish before the Lord. 
  • PRINCE OF PEACE. In the time of Moses, a peace offering can be made by offering an animal that is without blemish from the herd. That perfectly symbolizes the ultimate peace offering, the Lamb without blemish or sin, that is Lord Jesus Christ. He reconciled and grant us peace to the Heavenly Father when He paid the penalty of all our sins on the cross. Everything truly point to Lord Jesus Christ 😍
2 He shall lay his hand on the head of his offering [transferring symbolically his guilt to the sacrifice] and kill it at the doorway of the Tent of Meeting; and Aaron’s sons the priests shall sprinkle the blood around on the altar. 3 From the sacrifice of the peace offerings, an offering by fire to the Lord, he shall present the fat that covers the entrails, and all the fat which is on the entrails, 4 and the two kidneys with the fat that is on them at the loins, and the [a]lobe of the liver which he shall remove with the kidneys. 5 Aaron’s sons shall offer it up in smoke on the altar [placing it] on the burnt offering which is on the wood that is on the fire. It is an offering by fire, a sweet and soothing aroma to the Lord. 6 If his peace offering to the Lord is an animal from the flock, male or female, he shall offer the animal without blemish. 7 If he offers a lamb as his offering, then he shall present it before the Lord, 8 and he shall lay his hand on the head of his offering and kill it before the Tent of Meeting, and Aaron’s sons shall sprinkle its blood around on the altar. 9 From the sacrifice of peace offerings he shall bring as an offering by fire to the Lord, its fat, the entire fat tail which he shall remove close to the backbone, and the fat that covers the entrails, and all the fat which is on the entrails, 10 and the two kidneys with the fat that is on them at the loins, and the lobe of the liver, which he shall remove with the kidneys. 11 The priest shall offer it up in smoke on the altar as food, an offering by fire to the Lord.
  • BEAUTIFUL EXCHANGE. The guilt did not literally transferred to the animal being offered, but it's a picture or a symbol of what Lord Jesus will do for us on the cross. It is the most beautiful exchange. Our guilt, our shame, our darkness, our sins, being carried and taken by the Lord Jesus Christ-- and replaced with God's great love, peace, joy, grace and forgiveness.

12 ‘If his offering is a goat, he shall present it before the Lord, 13 and he shall lay his hand on its head [transferring symbolically his guilt to the sacrifice], and kill it before the Tent of Meeting; and the sons of Aaron shall sprinkle its blood around on the altar. 14 Then he shall present from it as his offering, an offering by fire to the Lord: the fat that covers the entrails, and all the fat that is on the entrails, 15 and the two kidneys with the fat that is on them at the loins, and the lobe of the liver which he shall remove with the kidneys. 16 The priest shall offer them up in smoke on the altar as food. It is an offering by fire, a sweet and soothing aroma; all the fat is the Lord’s. 17 It is a permanent statute for your generations wherever you may be, that you shall not eat any fat or any blood.’” Footnotes: Leviticus 3:4 Or appendage on and so throughout.
  • FINISHED ONCE AND FOR ALL. The laws given by God in Exodus and Leviticus shall be repeatedly made or followed by the Israelites to be able to keep their right standing with God. Praise God for Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who have put an end to partial forgiveness and sacrifices through the offering, and who have finished our salvation once and for all. I am blessed to have lived at the time wherein it is already finished by the Lord Jesus Christ, He has won, He has defeated forever the sin problem and death. Through Him, we have forgiveness, atonement, redemption and eternal life, and even a personal relationship with Him while still living in earth. 
 

Hebrews 10:1-18
One Sacrifice of Christ Is Sufficient

10 For since the Law has only a shadow [just a pale representation] of the good things to come—not the very image of those things—it can never, by offering the same sacrifices continually year after year, make perfect those who approach [its altars]. 2 For if it were otherwise, would not these sacrifices have stopped being offered? For the worshipers, having once [for all time] been cleansed, would no longer have a consciousness of sin. 3 But [as it is] these [continual] sacrifices bring a fresh reminder of sins [to be atoned for] year after year, 4 for it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. 5 Therefore, when Christ enters into the world, He says,

“Sacrifice and offering You have not desired,
But [instead] You have prepared a body for Me [to offer];
6 In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You have taken no delight.
7 “Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come
To do Your will, O God—
[To fulfill] what is written of Me in the scroll of the book.’”


8 After saying [in the citation] above, “You have neither desired, nor have You taken delight in sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin” (which are offered according to the Law) 9 then He said, “Behold, I have come to do Your will.” [And so] He does away with the first [covenant as a means of atoning for sin based on animal sacrifices] so that He may inaugurate and establish the second [covenant by means of obedience]. 10 And in accordance with this will [of God] we [who believe in the message of salvation] have been sanctified [that is, set apart as holy for God and His purposes] through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed) once for all.

11 Every priest stands [at his altar of service] ministering daily, offering the same sacrifices over and over, which are never able to strip away sins [that envelop and cover us]; 12 whereas Christ, having offered the one sacrifice [the all-sufficient sacrifice of Himself] for sins for all time, sat down [signifying the completion of atonement for sin] at the right hand of God [the position of honor], 13 waiting from that time onward until his enemies are made a footstool for His feet. 14 For by the one offering He has perfected forever and completely cleansed those who are being sanctified [bringing each believer to spiritual completion and maturity]. 15 And the Holy Spirit also adds His testimony to us [in confirmation of this]; for after having said,

16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them
After those days, says the Lord:
I will imprint My laws upon their heart,
And on their mind I will inscribe them [producing an inward change],”


He then says,
17 “And their sins and their lawless acts
I will remember no more [no longer holding their sins against them].”

18 Now where there is [absolute] forgiveness and complete cancellation of the penalty of these things, there is no longer any offering [to be made to atone] for sin."


After reading, I always check out the Study Guide Commentary from David Guzik (very helpful!):  

In the peace offering, the blood of the animal was offered to God along with the fat (which was considered to be the prime portion).

i. There was no mention made of what to do with meat portions of the animal. This was because the meat portion was to be shared, with a part given to the priests and part given to the one who brought the offering who ate it as part of a fellowship meal with God.
ii. This was not an offering to make peace with God (this was the purpose of the sin offering of chapter four), but an offering to enjoy peace with God. The whole reason Jesus made peace between the Father and the believer is so that the peace could be enjoyed.
iii. The greatest peace offering ever made happened when Solomon dedicated the temple, offering 22,000 cattle and 120,000 sheep (1 Kings 8:63). That must have been history's greatest barbecue. Hezekiah gave a festival where 2,000 bulls and 17,000 sheep were given for peace offerings (2 Chronicles 30:24).

b. Its fat and the whole fat tail which he shall remove close to the backbone: This offering of the whole fat tail was significant. That portion of the animal was considered a delicacy and could weigh as much as 60 pounds (27 kilograms).

 a. You shall eat neither fat nor blood: There was a spiritual significance to this command relevant to the peace offering. We enjoy peace with God by giving Him the best (represented by the fat) and by giving Him our lives (represented by the blood).
i. Even as it was impossible to remove all the blood from an animal, so was it impossible to remove all the fat from meat - this speaks of removing as much as one can practically.

b. You shall eat neither fat nor blood: There was a practical significance to this command. The prohibition of eating fat was good for Israel from the standpoint of blood-cholesterol and heart disease. It was especially good because tapeworms were often found in the fatty tissues and by obeying this command, the ancient Israelites avoided these dangerous parasites.


Reference and credits to https://www.blueletterbible.org/Comm/guzik_david/StudyGuide2017-Lev/Lev-3.cfm ©2013 David Guzik        

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