Let God Be Magnified

Everyone –

As I was reading Leviticus this morning, I came to the realization that three times in Scripture God offers the sacrifice for his children. Usually the children of Israel had to come to the temple and offer their sacrifice before the Lord in order to atone for sin, as a burnt offering, fellowship offering, etc. But in these three cases God does all the work and we receive the benefit:

1. Adam and Eve

- Genesis 3 shows how Adam and Eve eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (“..she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.” vs 6b)

- they sinned by doing what God told Adam not to do (Genesis 2:16,17. note: Eve hadn’t been created yet)

- according to Hebrews 9:22 there is no remission of sins without the shedding of blood for the life is in the blood (Leviticus 17:14)

- so the question has to be asked: How did they atone for their sin?

- Answer: God provided, see Genesis 3:21

- an animal was slaughtered, sin was atoned for, and the result was the garments of skin for clothing (since they knew they were naked, Genesis 3:10,11)

- note: God has mercy even amidst our sins as He made clothing for them to cover their shame (see Romans 5:8 where it starts, “While we were yet sinners….”)

2. Abraham and Isaac

- Genesis 22 tells of the story of Abraham offering up Isaac as a sacrifice for God

- he did this because God asked him to: Genesis 22:1,2

- as a reminder, a burnt offering was offered to the Lord and nothing of it remained as it was totally consumed by the fire (Leviticus 1)

- note: this a picture, a type, of the sacrifice that God gave for us when He willingly offered up His Son, Jesus, in our place

- just as Abraham was going to offer up Isaac, God stops him, and reveals a ram caught in a thicket (verse 13)

- just as Abraham said, “God will provide” (verse 8) He did and substituted the ram for the Isaac. The grace!

- the goat was a totally acceptably burnt offering before the Lord (Leviticus 1:10)

- the burnt offering was a type of our Lord Jesus in that it represented total devotion to God (all is burnt up; it was totally consumed by fire)

3. Jesus on the Cross

- “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” John 1:29

- Leviticus 16 talks of the Day of Atonement for Israel

- Once a year, the High priest would go into the temple and offer a sacrifice before the Lord, confess the sins of Israel, and their sins would be forgiven and atoned for

- in this case, it is a type of which Christ is the subject. Jesus is typified by the goat that is sacrificed for their sins

- however, as a priest does this year over year our Jesus, as High priest, only had to do this once because His sacrifice was altogether sufficient and permanent (see Hebrews 9:11-14, 24-28; 10:1-14)

- Christ atoned for our sins on the hill of Calvary

- but what about the picture of Christ as a the Lamb?

- Revelation 5 is a picture of the throne room in Heaven wherein we see Christ: “And I saw between the throne (with the four living creatures) and the elders a Lamb standing, as if slain…” verse 6

- we see that Peter in his letter shows Jesus as “a lamb unblemished and spotless” who “was foreknown before the foundation of the world” (1 Peter 1:18-21)

- and again, in Revelation 13:8 we see Jesus as the Lamb who was slain

-all of this is to show us a picture of the type that God had already established: the Passover Lamb

- Exodus 12 tells the story: Israel is in Egypt and Moses is there telling Pharaoh to let his people go into the wilderness so that they may worship God. Pharaoh’s heart is hardened and he refuses. God, in turn, sends all these plagues upon Pharaoh and he still refuses to submit to God (sound like the book of Revelation? See Revelation 9:20,21) Anyway, the last plague that God is sending on the people is to kill all the firstborn in Israel, people and cattle included.

- Why? See Exodus 9:7

- God instructs Moses to have the people of Israel do the following:

a. gather a lamb for each person (Exodus 12:2)

b. unblemished, male, a year old (verse 5)

cool note: the “lamb” could either be from the sheep or the goats (remember the Day of Atonement used a goat)

c. kill the lamb at twilight (verse 6)

d. put the blood on the doorposts (verse 7)

- why?

“The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live; and when I see the blood I will pass over you, and not plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.” – Exodus 12:13. See also verse 21-28

- in the end, God provided and we benefited. But it must be by faith. For if you doubt that Jesus is who He says He is, then you call God a liar. And to call God a liar is to turn your back on Him. And although God is full of Grace and Mercy, when you turn your back on Him you close the door. That is why in Hebrews 3:7-13 there is always “Today” to come to the Lord.

When is the best time to plant a tree? Yesterday. The next best time? Today. Come to God today through Jesus Christ while it is still today. For tomorrow may never come and it will be too late.

“Isaac spoke to his Abraham his father and said, ‘My father!’ And he said, ‘Here I am, my son.’ And he said, ‘Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?’ Abraham said, ‘God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burn offering, my son.’ So the two of them walked on together.” – Genesis 22:8

Take care

Eriek