Skip the Irrelevant?
It’s great you’re reading your Bible. The entire Word of God, from cover to cover, provides every thing God wants you to know. In your readings, have you ever arrived at the third book of the Pentateuch and decided not to read it?
“The what,” someone asks?
The Pentateuch. That’s what the first five books of your Bible are often called. ‘Penta’ means five in Greek and ‘teuch’ or (teukhos) means rolls, scrolls, volumes or books. Moses was God’s writer for this first section of the Bible.
All too often when we start reading Leviticus (the third book) we give up after the first few chapters and jump to a more common section of your Bible – parts of our Bible we think are more relevant to our lives today.
Does it surprise you that some Christians find gold in Leviticus? Some get to the end of Chapter One and their hearts are thrilled. They go back over the verses and prayerfully consider each word and bow their heads and breathe out a big ‘thank you’ to the Lord.
Try it:
The LORD called Moses and spoke to him.saying, “.When any one of you brings an offering to the LORD, you shall bring your offering of livestock from the herd or from the flock.”If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he shall offer a male without blemish. .Then he shall flay the burnt offering and cut it into pieces, and the sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire. And Aaron’s sons the priests shall arrange the pieces, the head, and the fat, on the wood that is on the fire on the altar; but its entrails and its legs he shall wash with water. And the priest shall burn all of it on the altar, as a burnt offering, a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the LORD.
(Leviticus 1:1-13)
How did you enjoy that? Did it give you the boost you needed or is it irrelevant to your life as a believer?
The problem is – in our fast world, we want spiritual nourishment at God’s drive-thru window. We want to gobble down something on-the-run and feel full for the day. Often the Lord in His grace will give us just that: a beautiful, relevant verse to chew on for the day.
However what we need is not always available at the drive-thru. Without being rushed, you need to sit down with your open Bible and with your head bowed – with your computer/notebook on the side. With a little study and meditation you will see Christ Himself as the burnt offering in Leviticus Chapter 1. Think about Him not having any blemishes or spots. Absolutely perfect inside and out.
Think of the various pieces of the sacrifice. The head – the thought life of the Lord Jesus. Never a bitter or revengeful thought. Never a defiling, dirty thought passed through His holy mind. Think of the legs of the animal. The walk of Christ from village to village. The perfect walk; He never stumbled or fell into sin. He always walked in the path of the will of God. Think of the entrails or the internal organs and parts. Christ had no deep, hidden selfish motives. The throbbings of His heart, His affections were 100% pleasing to His Father. As for the fat – well, it may speak of everything else in the life of the Lord Jesus as being totally for the delight of His Father.
The fact that all of the animal was to be placed on the altar (unlike other sacrifices in Leviticus) reminds us that every single aspect of the life of Jesus was ultimately for the pleasure of God.
If you skip the drive-thru and go for a solid meal in Leviticus, you will find even more nutritious bites in the study of the offerings. They all point to the beauties of our Saviour; but then, as you study them, you can apply them to your own life as a believer. The point is – all of this is rich in meaning. We miss it when we skip it.
If you don’t already have the old classic book by Andrew Jukes entitled: The Law of the Offerings add it to your personal library by visiting one of these links.
Gospel Folio Press: http://shop2.mailordercentral.com/gospel/prodinfo.asp?number=X-9765
Penfold Books,
Walk carefully and closely with the Lord today.
Warmly in Christ
Peter Ramsay