If I were hungry, I would not tell you; for the world is Mine, and all its fullness. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? Offer to God thanksgiving, and pay your vows to the Most High. (Psalm 50:12-14)
I think it is fair to say that many believers have struggled somewhat with the issue of animal sacrifices and their role in the Sanctuary. Specifically, it is challenging to understand how and why the slaughter and burning of an animal, along with its blood, invited the Presence of God. I would argue this lack of comprehension on our part is one of the reasons it is easy for some to dismiss the importance of the so-called Old Testament and its relevance to our walk. Because we now have the benefit of Messiah’s sacrifice, we are not compelled to consider just what God was trying to say through those sacrifices. In other words, if He commanded it, there must have been — indeed, must be — a reason for it.
Is it possible the reasons are so profound that it escapes our comprehension? Did God need those sacrifices? Has He a bloodlust? In the verses above, we hear Him give a resounding, “No!” Why would He? First of all, everything in this world belongs to Him: As it is written, “The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness; the world and those who dwell therein” (Psalm 24:1). David also said that the Lord has no desire for sacrifices and burnt offerings. Secondly, God is about life, not death; as Messiah said, “God is not the God of the dead, but of the living” (Matthew 22:32). So then, if He has no need of these sacrifices and is not a proponent of death, why were animal sacrifices such a necessity in His Sanctuary? The answer is entwined with the fact that He is holy.
Remember, the purpose of the Sanctuary was to provide a place in which God could reside in the midst of His people. The problem presented by this was the fact that the people were fallen beings, and in need or reconciliation. Before the people could approach a Holy God, sin and uncleanness had to be addressed and, in His Wisdom, He determined that blood had to be shed if there was to be reconciliation. As the writer of Hebrews said, “Almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22). But instead of requiring the blood of guilty men, He extended mercy and allowed that an innocent animal be permitted to be sacrificed in our stead.
In the end the message was this: it costs a great deal if one wishes to approach a holy God. In the days of the Sanctuary, if someone’s heart was inclined to do so, they were obliged to obtain from the flocks or herds a perfect sacrifice to offer unto the Lord. It effect, it was a declaration and representation of their willingness to offer themselves as a living sacrifice. Thankfully, God did not desire their death in the most literal way; He wanted a commitment from them to die to their own will and desire. Still blood, wherein exists the life of all flesh, had to be shed — that’s where the Messiah stepped in. And so acknowledging these truths we should, as the psalmist said, willfully and without hesitation, “Offer to God thanksgiving” for the gift He has bestowed upon us through the Messiah.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
Recent Comments