The Sacrifice

Leviticus 1:1-5 (HCSB)

“Then the LORD summoned Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting: ‘Speak to the Israelites and tell them: When any of you brings an offering to the LORD from the livestock, you may bring your offering from the herd or the flock. If his gift is a burnt offering from the herd, he is to bring an unblemished male. He must bring it to the entrance to the tent of meeting so that he may be accepted by the LORD. He is to lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering so it can be accepted on his behalf to make atonement for him. He is to slaughter the bull before the LORD; Aaron’s sons the priests are to present the blood and sprinkle it on all sides of the altar that is at the entrance to the tent of meeting.’”

We know this is a precursor of Christ’s sacrifice. The offering was to be “unblemished.” It was to be without defect, without fault—not a “factory second.” To be an acceptable substitute for us Jesus had to be perfect in His character and nature.

Taken “from the herd of flock” means He had to like us. To be our representative on the cross He had to be like us in every detail. This was the reason for the incarnation.

To be “accepted by the LORD” meant that He had to pass inspection. I believe this happened on the Mount of Transfiguration. Jesus was transfigured—tested by fire. In this case the fire was the glory of God. God’s verdict was, “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased—hear Him!” In other words, He passed the test!

Laying hands on the sacrifice represented the transfer of guilt from the offerer to the offering. Hands were physically laid on Jesus as the guards slapped His face. On the cross our sins were laid on Him.

“Atonement” means “a covering.” His blood covers our sin. Now when God looks on us He no longer sees our sin and guilt, but He sees the pure, spotless blood of Christ shed on our behalf.

But that blood had to be spilt. Blood poured out represents the life of the sacrifice. The rule is “a life for a life.” My crime was high treason against the God of the universe. The sentence was death. The payment was “a life for a life.” Jesus stepped into my place and took my spot in that place of execution. He died for me. No truer words have ever been spoken, but the fullness of the truth has never been realized. May it’s reality sink into our hearts today!