“Then he shall put his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on his behalf to make atonement for him.” Leviticus 1:4 NKJV
We all identify with something or someone in this world. And well, it’s usually something we like or something that offers us a positive feeling in return. After 29 years of marriage, part of my identity is found in my Margie. I love to be with her, be seen with her, and for people to know that she is a major part of my life. I identify with her and who she is. Also, for many of you that know me, you know I have a life-long passion for collecting Hot Wheels cars. In fact, just this past Saturday, I was at a weekly Hot Wheels collectors’ event here in Guadalajara and bought a nifty Hot Wheels logo sticker to put on the back of our car here. I clearly identify with Hot Wheels and those that collect them. The point is simple, as you mull over and determine what or who you identify with today. You will be happy to share it with others, talk about it openly, and even passionately explain why you identify with said thing or person. As the Bible so clearly states, “the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.” (Luke 6:45 NIV)
As we move into the third book of the Pentateuch (the name of the first 5 books of the Bible) we come to Leviticus. Now I’ll be the first to say, Leviticus has a rep (reputation.) It is a book of law. A lot of laws. Specifically, a lot of laws for the priestly tribe of Levi in whose job it was to fulfill all the priestly functions surrounding the newly constructed tabernacle of God. Leviticus brings back memories of my 2 business law classes I took for my undergraduate. I learned two things from those classes. 1) if you need to go to sleep quickly, pick up your 4-pound business law textbook and read one page and 2) don’t take these classes at 8am. Anyway, the book of Leviticus is more than likely not in your top ten most exciting books of the Bible, yet in a long law-filled kinda way, God sees it as necessary, relevant, and applicable to our lives, even today. So, we plow through, pray a lot for Godly insight, and dig hard and dig deep.
This morning, I got no farther than verse 4 of the very first chapter in Leviticus before coming across our powerful study verse above. Please allow me to set the stage. Thirteen of the last 16 chapters in Exodus deal with the plans and construction of the Tabernacle (tent) of God. By this time the Israelite nation had been out of Egyptian slavery for one year and God is getting ready to bring them into the promised land He has for them. But first, God is ready to abide with them and to do that He has them build Him a place to dwell in and a place to bring Him sacrifices to atone (to cover or to take away) for the sins of the people. Folks, sin, sacrifice, and atonement for that sin is the major theme of the Bible. And atonement is the major theme of the book of Leviticus with the word being used almost 50 times across its 27 chapters compared with 50 total times in the entirety of the rest of the Old Testament. Here’s the crux of God’s Word, all sin carries a cost and must be paid for. All. One single lie is a sin and must be atoned for before the Lord. Murdering someone is a sin and must be atoned for before the Lord. Looking lustfully at another, hating someone in your heart, or being prideful in yourself, are all equal sins that must be atoned for before the Lord. And part of the tabernacle was allowing the people to bring sacrifices to the Lord to atone for their sin against Him.
Imagine this scene. You, a shepherd, are wandering the desert with the Israelites and you sin against the Lord by lying to your neighbor and cheating him out of what you promised him. After many weeks, you cannot shake the guilty weight of your sin and realize you must pay for your sin. You collect your best young male lamb and take it to the tabernacle. Awaiting there is the altar of the Lord manned by one of the priests from the tribe of Levi. Then what takes place is beyond powerful in its action and symbolism. You press both your hands onto the head of that lamb and openly confess your sin before the Lord before taking a knife and slicing the animal in a way that sees its lifeblood drain. In this sacrificial process several important things are taking place.
The party convicted of their sin were openly confessing their sin before the Lord and in that confession admitting that they, on their own, cannot pay for their own sin. All sin requires an innocent, blemish-free sacrifice and without that sacrifice, that unatoned sin will hound you and haunt you all the way into, and throughout, an eternity separated from God. Folks, hear this carefully, until you come to terms with the way God deals with all sin against Him, you can never move on to step 2.
By placing their hands upon the head of that innocent, blemish-free animal, they were identifying with it and in faith, believing that just as God promised them, their sin would be transferred to the innocent victim. Through this action, the person guilty of sin, faithfully transferred their guilt to the sacrificial victim that would die and be completely consumed for the sin of the one bringing the offering.
An exchange took place. Instead of the sinful, guilty party giving their life to pay for the death penalty of their own sin against their Maker, Creator, and God, another was taken. God allowed an innocent, blemish-free sacrifice to pay the price for the guilty party. The innocent sacrifice did nothing wrong, was not guilty, and did not deserve to die. Yet the exchange was seen as necessary by God.
Folks, at this point the parallel has been made beyond crystal clear here in the Old Testament as it foreshadows all the way into the New Testament. Sin has not changed. The price of sin has not changed. And sinners have not changed. Every single one of the 8.17 billion people on the planet earth today are sinners. The only difference with every one of those sinners is who they identify with in the atonement for their sin. To stop the endless trail of innocent animals being sacrificed daily for the sins of His people, God sent a perfect, spotless, blemish-free sacrifice for all time for all people. All you must do today is follow the three steps above as you, in faith, personally identify with the Savior that was sent to this world to take away the death of its sins. Admit that your sin is out of your control and without heartfelt confession and repentance, its filthy unrighteousness will not allow you into the perfectly righteous presence of God in heaven. Your sin requires a perfect, innocent, blemish-free sacrifice and that is just what Jesus Christ did as He allowed Himself to be hung on a cross to die for sinners...become your spotless, sin-free, sacrificial lamb. (John 1:29, 1 Peter 1:19) But praise and glory be to God, Christ rose three days later to forever conquer the death penalty of all sin. And today, by faithfully identifying with Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, you can have your sin forgiven and have an eternal home in Heaven in the very presence of God. Friends, don’t wait for a tomorrow that may never arrive, call upon Christ today.
And for those that have already experienced this miracle moment of salvation in Christ, the question for you is…are you still readily identifying today with the one that saved your soul? Is the lamb the center of your life as you abide in Him and only Him daily? Is Jesus fresh on your lips as He sits on the throne of your heart? Are you quick to identify with Christ as you openly tell people you are a Christian and then share the best news that has ever existed…Jesus saves sinners? You see, it is easy to identify with Christ as a new Christian and then slowly over time fall back in love with the world and identify with something or someone else in place of Jesus. Today, Christian brother or sister, identify boldly and openly with the Savior of your soul and serve Him and Him alone with all that you are.
May the lost be found and may the found be strengthened ~ Dan
“God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith.” Romans 3:25a NIV
“He Himself (Jesus Christ) is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.” 1 John 2:2 NLT
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