Atonement for Sin, Thanksgiving, and Supplication Before God Are Not Outdated

Burnt offerings, grain offerings, sin offerings, guilt offerings, ordination offerings and peace offerings… it can be overwhelming for those of us who grew up without studying these to comprehend all the details and symbolism. On a small scale, it truly mirrors learning the full gospel of Yeshua… none who are new to it can master all of it all at once. We start with the basics and continue to build on that with more Bible study and prayer. With time, help from others who know more than we do, and revelation from the Holy Spirit, we can grow closer and closer to our Lord and Creator, more fully understanding all that He has for us.

Burnt offerings, sin offerings, and guilt offerings represent atonement for sin. Grain offerings were a freewill offering to our Creator. Ordination offerings were part of ordination process for priests. Peace offerings could be associated with recognizing fulfillment of a vow, a fellowship meal with Jehovah and with other believers, supplication and thanksgiving. These concepts are not “outdated”. They are relevant still today.

Each of these had specific instructions which the Lord laid out for His people to follow. While we no longer need to conduct these formal offerings now that Jesus has become the sacrifice for our sins, we can still learn about God’s relationship with His people by studying these offerings.

We are to come humbly before God as individuals and congregations or communities… asking forgiveness for and repenting from our sin. Our sin is ugly. It is not ok. A price must be paid. We must come before our Father on His terms rather than our own.

God invites us to bring freewill offerings just in thanks or recognition of Him as our Creator and Lord. While it may not be an animal or grain, perhaps today it would be the choice to serve others in His name… to help them even when perhaps we don’t feel like it. We offer our time and talent and our praise to Him.

Of course He also wants us to come humbly before Him in thanksgiving and supplication. Let us take time in all these situations to seek to honor our Creator.

Leviticus 7

The Priest’s Part in the Offerings

      1‘Now this is the law of the guilt offering; it is most holy. 2‘In the place where they slay the burnt offering they are to slay the guilt offering, and he shall sprinkle its blood around on the altar. 3‘Then he shall offer from it all its fat: the fat tail and the fat that covers the entrails, 4and the two kidneys with the fat that is on them, which is on the loins, and the lobe on the liver he shall remove with the kidneys. 5‘The priest shall offer them up in smoke on the altar as an offering by fire to the LORD; it is a guilt offering. 6‘Every male among the priests may eat of it. It shall be eaten in a holy place; it is most holy. 7‘The guilt offering is like the sin offering, there is one law for them; the priest who makes atonement with it shall have it. 8‘Also the priest who presents any man’s burnt offering, that priest shall have for himself the skin of the burnt offering which he has presented. 9‘Likewise, every grain offering that is baked in the oven and everything prepared in a pan or on a griddle shall belong to the priest who presents it. 10‘Every grain offering, mixed with oil or dry, shall belong to all the sons of Aaron, to all alike.

      11‘Now this is the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings which shall be presented to the LORD. 12‘If he offers it by way of thanksgiving, then along with the sacrifice of thanksgiving he shall offer unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers spread with oil, and cakes of well stirred fine flour mixed with oil. 13‘With the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving, he shall present his offering with cakes of leavened bread. 14‘Of this he shall present one of every offering as a contribution to the LORD; it shall belong to the priest who sprinkles the blood of the peace offerings.

      15‘Now as for the flesh of the sacrifice of his thanksgiving peace offerings, it shall be eaten on the day of his offering; he shall not leave any of it over until morning. 16‘But if the sacrifice of his offering is a votive or a freewill offering, it shall be eaten on the day that he offers his sacrifice, and on the next day what is left of it may be eaten; 17but what is left over from the flesh of the sacrifice on the third day shall be burned with fire. 18‘So if any of the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings should ever be eaten on the third day, he who offers it will not be accepted, and it will not be reckoned to his benefit. It shall be an offensive thing, and the person who eats of it will bear his own iniquity.

      19‘Also the flesh that touches anything unclean shall not be eaten; it shall be burned with fire. As for other flesh, anyone who is clean may eat such flesh. 20‘But the person who eats the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings which belong to the LORD, in his uncleanness, that person shall be cut off from his people. 21‘When anyone touches anything unclean, whether human uncleanness, or an unclean animal, or any unclean detestable thing, and eats of the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings which belong to the LORD, that person shall be cut off from his people.’”

      22Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 23“Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘You shall not eat any fat from an ox, a sheep or a goat. 24‘Also the fat of an animal which dies and the fat of an animal torn by beasts may be put to any other use, but you must certainly not eat it. 25‘For whoever eats the fat of the animal from which an offering by fire is offered to the LORD, even the person who eats shall be cut off from his people. 26‘You are not to eat any blood, either of bird or animal, in any of your dwellings. 27‘Any person who eats any blood, even that person shall be cut off from his people.’”

      28Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 29“Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘He who offers the sacrifice of his peace offerings to the LORD shall bring his offering to the LORD from the sacrifice of his peace offerings. 30‘His own hands are to bring offerings by fire to the LORD. He shall bring the fat with the breast, that the breast may be presented as a wave offering before the LORD. 31‘The priest shall offer up the fat in smoke on the altar, but the breast shall belong to Aaron and his sons. 32‘You shall give the right thigh to the priest as a contribution from the sacrifices of your peace offerings. 33‘The one among the sons of Aaron who offers the blood of the peace offerings and the fat, the right thigh shall be his as his portion. 34‘For I have taken the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the contribution from the sons of Israel from the sacrifices of their peace offerings, and have given them to Aaron the priest and to his sons as their due forever from the sons of Israel.

      35‘This is that which is consecrated to Aaron and that which is consecrated to his sons from the offerings by fire to the LORD, in that day when he presented them to serve as priests to the LORD. 36‘These the LORD had commanded to be given them from the sons of Israel in the day that He anointed them. It is their due forever throughout their generations.’”

      37This is the law of the burnt offering, the grain offering and the sin offering and the guilt offering and the ordination offering and the sacrifice of peace offerings, 38which the LORD commanded Moses at Mount Sinai in the day that He commanded the sons of Israel to present their offerings to the LORD in the wilderness of Sinai.

Let us remember to come before God humbly in repentance asking forgiveness for our sin, in thanksgiving for our blessings, and in supplication as we ask for His help and presence in our lives. Let us come before Him on His terms rather than our own. Make the Lord a focal point and a “main thing” in your life. Praise Him! Serve Him through obedience to His word.

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