This is a Greek word meaning, as I understand it, “relating to the Levities”. I will be looking at things in a slightly different way this time.
Chapter One
1 ¶ And the LORD called unto Moses, and spake unto him out of the tabernacle of the congregation, saying,
“And the LORD called unto Moses”;
Genesis 22:11 And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I.
Genesis 22:15 And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time,
In both of these, the appearance of the LORD, his visible image, who is Christ, spoke to Abraham out of heaven.
(2Corinthians 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
Colossians 1:15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
Hebrews 1:3 Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;)
Exodus 19:3 And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel;
Here, God has come down to the mountain and here, Christ is calling to Moses directly and while physically present, not through His angel. In the first verse of Leviticus, however, God is actually in the tabernacle of the congregation. It is not His appearance or angel.
The phrase “tabernacle of the congregation” as such is used in 127 verses in the Bible. This tabernacle was explained in great detail and repeatedly in Exodus. This was a very important place where the priests met with God, relaying His commands to the people.
As Christians, we are a royal priesthood;
1Peter 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:
And our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit;
1Corinthians 6:19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
We have the Spirit of Christ residing in us;
Romans 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
You also have God’s word, as in words, in you if you are His;
1John 2:14 I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one.
So, you don’t need to go anywhere in particular to meet with God, not a temple or a “church” building or a step to a platform on which the pulpit sits, if you have God’s Spirit dwelling in you. There are many more verses that talk of Jesus and the Father dwelling with you.
How can you experience the blessing having the word of God dwelling in you if the reading of it, the study of it, and the memorizing of it are not in your daily life as preeminent? Why should it lie dormant as a seed waiting to be germinated in your heart because of your hardheartedness and stubborn rebellion against God, oh you who call yourself by His name?
2 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.
Once again we have voluntary offerings being brought here.
Exodus 25:2 Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering: of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering.
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.
Don’t give God your worst, but give Him your best. If you have a donation to make to a church, don’t give something that is broken or about to be thrown out. Give something good. This is a lasting principle. I know of many people who give castoff items to charity and feel very good about themselves. While a person living without will appreciate your old clothing, don’t mistakenly assume you have done some righteous act before God. You have simply given your trash. Big deal. Give of your best.
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.
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.
6 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 other sacrifices we are called to;
Psalm 4:5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the LORD.
And notice things that have a sweet savour unto the Lord;
Revelation 5:8 And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
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.
Again, this offering must be “without blemish” to be accepted. This principle goes further. I was compelled after I began actually believing the King James Bible was THE word of God to stop wearing casual clothing to church. No one ordered me to wear anything in particular but my submission to the word of God made it apparent in my spirit that I wasn’t giving God my best. It only seemed natural to wear my best. Your best may not be a suit and tie but you know what your best is.
11 And he shall kill it on the side of the altar northward before the LORD: and the priests, Aaron’s sons, shall sprinkle his blood round about upon the altar.
The Lord’s dwelling place is in the northern part of the sky. He comes from the north.
Psalm 75:6 ¶ For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south.7 But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.
Psalm 48:2 Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.
Isaiah 14:13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
Here, from a literal perspective, it is clear that the “sides of the north” is above the stars of God.
12 And he shall cut it into his pieces, with his head and his fat: and the priest shall lay them in order on the wood that is on the fire which is upon the altar:
Notice another principle. That God has a certain order in which He wants things done.
1Corinthians14:33 For God is not the author of confusion, but of peace, as in all churches of the saints.
1Corinthians 14:40 Let all things be done decently and in order.
Therefore, the Holy Spirit is not the cause of riotous, raucous, emotional worship services.
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.
14 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.
These are voluntary offerings. Why animal sacrifices? Animals of all kinds were created after an exemplar in the spiritual world. Read carefully the first chapter of Genesis again and note the after creating the first animals AFTER their kind, God created man in His image. If you can put the fundamentalist’s fixation on the propagation of the religious theory of evolution out of your head you can read the verses as they stand and not try to twist them to attack something that is nothing more than a vapor, a mass delusion. The first creatures were made after something that already existed, their “kind”, their type, already in existence, by the words as written.
God wanted something more than these sacrifices, however.
Hosea 6:6 For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
No comments:
Post a Comment