Intro:
1. Most of our lives are built upon lies, some of them are:
The check is in the mail...
You get this one; and I'll pay the next time...
My wife doesnt understand me...
Trust me, I'll take care of everything...
It's not the money, it's the principle of the thing...
I never watch TV, except for PBS...
But, we can still be good friends...
She means nothing to me...
I'll call you later...
Pastor, I'll see you Sunday...
I've never done anything like this before...
Sorry, we can't come to the phone right now...
But the greatest lie we buy is that we can please God apart from Jesus Christ.
2. There is nobody who can really please God except Jesus Christ. It is true, that we can be pleasing in the eyes of God, but only as we are clothed in the righteousness of Christ.
You can think of God having a sweet tooth, that can only be satisfied by the substitutionary death of Christ.
3. The Only One Pleasing to God is Jesus. Lev. 1:9b, 13b, 17.
Trans:The Structure of our passage is Introduction (1:1-2); and then the Instructions related to offering something from the Herd (vv.3-9); and the flock
(10-13); or of a bird (14-17). The Burnt Offering.
I. First, it is the Lord who Seeks us. 1:1
Leviticus 1:1 (NKJV)
1 Now the LORD called to Moses, and spoke to him from the tabernacle of meeting, saying,
We simple cannot initiate a relationship or fellowship with God. Lu.19:10/
Rom. 3:11
Tozer, "Before a man can seek God, God must first have sought the man. We pursue God because, and only because, He has first put an urge within us that spurs us to the pursuit. The impulse to pursue God originates with God...God is always previous."
II. Furthermore, we are to ReSpond to His initiative. 2
Leviticus 1:2 (NKJV)
2 "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: 'When any one of you brings an offering to the LORD, you shall bring your offering of the livestock--of the herd and of the flock.
McGee, "If any man" means "whosoever may come." The Lord said, "If any man thirst, let him come to Me." Isaiah said, "Ho, everyone that thirsts, come to the waters" (Isa. 55:1). Anyone can come to Christ if he chooses to come."
"The impulse to pursue God originates with God, but the outworking of that impulse is our following hard after Him."
III. Then, the sacrifice must not be Second-rate. 3a
Leviticus 1:3 (NKJV)
3 'If his offering is a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him offer a male without blemish..."
A. Must be Sacrificial - from the herd, flock, bird.
Wenham, "The Hebrew refers to domestic as opposed to wild animals. According to Deut. 14:5, game could be eated, if correctly slaughtered, but not offered as a sacrifice, since it cost nothing. Meat was a rare luxury in O.T. times."
Harrison, "For burnt offering only domesticated animals, indicating a developed stage, of agricultural life were to be presented; since wild species did not cost the donor anything. In addition, wild animals had not received the labor and care that had been expended on herds and flocks."
B. Must be the Strongest of the flock.
a male - Mal.1:7,13
C. Must be Spotless.
This all speaks of Jesus Christ a strong, sinless sacrifice...
2 Corinthians 5:21 (NKJV)
21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Hebrews 7:25-26 (NKJV)
25 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.
26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens;
1 Peter 1:19 (NKJV)
19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.
1 John 3:5 (NKJV)
5 And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin.
The point is God gave His best! He gave the most Sacrifical, the Strongest, the Sinless beloved Son!
IV. Fourthly, the sacrifice was not to be Stiffnecked.
Leviticus 1:3b (NKJV)
"...he shall offer it of his own free will at the door of the tabernacle of meeting before the LORD.
It is used of an uncooperative animal, remember he was not only the sacrifice but our High Priest offered Himself willingly. Jn.10:15-18/Heb.10:5-6
V. Fifthly, it was a Substitution.
Leviticus 1:4 (NKJV)
4 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.
Kellogg, "He put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering, this was an act of designation. It symbolized a transfer, according to God's merciful provision, of an obligation to suffer for sin, the offer to the innocent victim. Hence forth the victim stood in the offerer's place and was dealt with accordingly."
McGee, "He was designating this little animal to take his place. The man was confessing that he deserved to die. When you Christ, you put your hand on Him, that is, you designate Him as your Savior, your substitute."
Isa. 53:4-6/Rom.4:25/etc.
Ironside, "The offerer when he presented his unblemished burn sacrifice, he was practically saying, "I have no worthiness in myself. I am full of sin and failure, but I bring to God that which is without blemish, that which speaks of the worthiness of His own Son.
Note: This offering related to sin, other sacrifices deal with individual sins.
Ryrie, "The Burnt offering atoned for sin in general, while the Sin offering focused on unintentional sins, and the Guilt or trespass offering for specific sins."
"The refers to a general state of sinfulness and served to remind the offerer of his depravity. The burnt offering was thus not so much to gain forgiveness for a particular sin, but to make atonement for the offerer's sinfulness, the individuals sinful state. The burnt offering seems to provide a divine solution for man's fallen condition."
Jesus did not just die for sins, but for the root of our problem, sin.
Watchman Knee, "God makes it quite clear in His Word that He has only one answer to every human need - His Son, Jesus Christ. God will answer, all of our questions, in one way and one way only, namely, by showing us, more of His Son...Now, no matter how many sins I commit, it is always, the one sin-principle, that leads to them.
I need forgiveness of my sins, but I need also deliverance from the power of sin. When God's light first shines into my heart, my one cry is for forgiveness for I realize, I have committed sins before Him; but when once I have received forgivenss of sins, I make a new discovery, namely, the discovery of sin, and I realize not only that I have committed sins, before God, but that there is something wrong within. I need forgiveness for what I have done, but I also need deliverance from what I am."
Steadman gives a good describtion of substitution :
"You and I are on Death Row. We have lived lives of crime and sin. We have been apprehended, bought before the Judge, tried, and convicted. The Judge has pronounced sentence: Death!
How we await execution. Just a few yards from our cell, at the end of the corridor, is the gas chamber. Time is dragging us moment by moment to the fate we have earned. But wait - do you hear those footsteps? Someone is coming down the hall. And listen - the footsteps stop outside our cell! The key is turning in the lock. The door creaks open - there standing in the doorway is the Judge himself.
What is He saying? Can we believe our ears? Yes! He is saying "Your are free to go!" We walk out of our cell, hardly able to believe what is happening!
But as we step out another man step into our cell. Who is the man? The Judge says, "He has volunteered to take your place, your death."
We say, "What did he do wrong?" And the Judge says, "He did not do anything wrong - infact, he is the best man that I have ever know." And as the tears welled-up in the judges eyes he says, "I should know he is my son."
VI. Sixthly, the sacrifice is Slain by us. 5a
Leviticus 1:5 (NKJV)
5 He shall kill the bull before the LORD; and the priests, Aaron's sons, shall bring the blood and sprinkle the blood all around on the altar that is by the door of the tabernacle of meeting.
We are the one's who put Him to death, because of our sins. I Pet.3:18
VII. Seventhly, the blood had to be Sprinkled. 5b
Leviticus 17:14 (NKJV)
14 for it is the life of all flesh. Its blood sustains its life. Therefore I said to the children of Israel, 'You shall not eat the blood of any flesh, for the life of all flesh is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off.'
See Heb. 9:22
"The blood is for atonement. We need forgiveness for the sins we have committed lest we come under judgment - and they are forgiven not because God overlooks what we have done, but because He sees the blood...God has said, "When I see the blood, I will pass over you" (Ex.12:13)...There is life in the blood, and the blood has to be poured out for me, for my sins.
Our sins are so real, and sin may trouble us, so that, we come to the point where to us, our sins loom larger than the blood of Chrsit. Now the whole trouble with us is that we are trying to sense it, we are trying to feel its value, and to estimate subjectively what the blood is for us.
We cannot do it; it does not work that way. The blood is first for God to see. We then have to accept God's valuation of it. If God can accept the blood as payment for our sins, and as the price of our redemption, then we can rest assured that the debt has been pain. The blood has satisfied God, it must also satisfy us!
The cleaning work of the blood is seen in Hebrew 10, to have reference to our conscience, it says "our hearts have been blood sprinkled from an evil conscience. As soon as we find our conscience is uneasy, our faith leaks away and immediately we know we cannot face God.
In order therefore to keep going on we must know teh up-to-date value of the blood. It never loses its efficacy as our ground of access if we lay hold of it.
I approach God through His merit alone, and never on the basis of my attainment. I have to come by way of the blood every time. Our approach to God is always in boldness and that boldness is ours through the blood, never our personal attainment."
VIII. Eighth, the sacrifice of Skin was given to the priests.
Leviticus 1:6 (NKJV)
6 And he shall skin the burnt offering and cut it into its pieces.
This is a picture of the imputed righteousness of Christ.
"It is as though God said to the priest, "I have found My portion in Christ. He is everything to Me, the beloved of My heart, in whom I have found all delight.
Now I want you to take the fleece and wrap yourself in it! Clothe yourself in the skin of the Burnt offering. It is a wonderful picture of our acceptance before God in Christ. We are covered with the skin of the burnt offering."
[Ironside]
David Brainard, "As I was walking in a dark thick grove, unspeakable glory seemed to open to the view and apprehension of my soul...I felt myself in a new world, I wondered that all the world did not comply with this way of salvation entirely by the righteousness of Christ." Rom. 10:1-4
IX. Nine, the sacrifice was a total Surrender to God.
Leviticus 1:7-9 (NKJV)
7 The sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire on the altar, and lay the wood in order on the fire.
8 Then the priests, Aaron's sons, shall lay the parts, the head, and the fat in order on the wood that is on the fire upon the altar;
9 but he shall wash its entrails and its legs with water. And the priest shall burn all on the altar as a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the LORD.
Outside of the skin the entire animal was consumed. As Abraham was willing to offer his son Isaac completely to God, and was stopped the burn offering depicts what Christ actually did on the cross. Phil. 2:8
X. Finally the Scope of the sacrifice. 3, 10, 14
Leviticus 1:10-17 (NKJV)
10 'If his offering is of the flocks--of the sheep or of the goats--as a burnt sacrifice, he shall bring a male without blemish.
11 He shall kill it on the north side of the altar before the LORD; and the priests, Aaron's sons, shall sprinkle its blood all around on the altar.
12 And he shall cut it into its pieces, with its head and its fat; and the priest shall lay them in order on the wood that is on the fire upon the altar;
13 but he shall wash the entrails and the legs with water. Then the priest shall bring it all and burn it on the altar; it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the LORD.
14 'And if the burnt sacrifice of his offering to the LORD is of birds, then he shall bring his offering of turtledoves or young pigeons.
15 The priest shall bring it to the altar, wring off its head, and burn it on the altar; its blood shall be drained out at the side of the altar.
16 And he shall remove its crop with its feathers and cast it beside the altar on the east side, into the place for ashes.
17 Then he shall split it at its wings, but shall not divide it completely; and the priest shall burn it on the altar, on the wood that is on the fire. It is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the LORD.
A bull was only provided by the wealthy; sheep or goat was afforded by the middle class; and even the poorest could bring a bird. No one was excluded!
Con:
1. I wonder if you have believed Satan greatest lie - that you can somehow please God apart from Jesus Christ.
2. In the movie Chicken Run, Ginger is the chicken mastermind who is making plans to help her chickens escape the consentration camp condition of Tweedy Farms.
One day hope arrives with the coming of Rocky the Flying Rooster - one day he flies over the fense into the chicken farm. Unaware that Rocky had just been shot out of a cannon from a nearby circus, Ginger believes that Rockey can fly.
Seeing this as a ticket to freedom, she asks Rocky, "Can you teach us to fly?" He boasts, "Don't worry. I'll teach you everything I know!" Rocky leads the chickens through various flying exercises, they do push-up, various moves...They begin to jump off the chicken coop roofs with all the success of a lead baloon!
But none of them, for all their work and effort ever learn how to fly.
The world is full of Rockies, people who tell you that you can escape Satan, and become righteous by something you do. It only comes through what Jesus has already done at the cross.
Johnny Palmer Jr
www.strugglingthruscriptures.ning.com
www.blogtalkradio.com/strugglingthruscriptures
