Leviticus 1: 3 – 9 (NIV): If the offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he is to offer a male without defect. He must present it at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting so that it will be acceptable to the Lord. He is to lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, and it will be accepted on his behalf to make atonement for him. He is to slaughter the young bull before the Lord, and then Aaron's sons the priests shall bring the blood and sprinkle it against the altar on all sides at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. He is to skin the burnt offering and cut it into pieces. The sons of Aaron the priest are to put fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire. Then Aaron's sons the priests shall arrange the pieces, including the head and the fat, on the burning wood that is on the altar. He is to wash the inner parts and the legs with water, and the priest is to burn all of it on the altar. It is a burnt offering, an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to the Lord.
Leviticus was written by Moses about fourteen-hundred years before Christ. It was a hand-book for the priest on how to conduct worship, sacrifices and celebrations. It uses the word holy 152 times, more than any other book of the Bible. God was very specific about how he wanted sacrifices to be done.
What we see in this passage is that true sacrifice is always costly. David said, “I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.” God said the worshiper must sacrifice a “male without defect”. This is important for two reasons: one, it meant that they were to give their best to God. Ranchers need their best males to insure the best stock. God said give it to him. This insured that the sacrifice was costly. Secondly, it is symbolic of Jesus, who was without blemish (sin) and was thus worthy to be a sacrifice.
Why would God demand innocent blood? Why does Hebrews 9:22 say “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness”? Because bloodshed is the ultimate sacrifice. God is holy and we are not, so only an ultimate price is sufficient. Freedom is so precious because it is paid for by that ultimate sacrifice. More than a million Americans have died for our freedom. But as unbelievable as that is, it is even more amazing that the creator of the universe shed his blood for my salvation.
Blood shows how serious sin is. It is not a joke to God, or something he is going to let slide. My sin and your sin cost his son's life and he doesn't think that is funny anymore than you would. (The mystery of the Trinity is that Jesus was God's son, but also God incarnate – in the flesh.)
The sacrificial system in Leviticus is no longer in effect. Jesus became the offering for us once and for all (Hebrews 10:10). But it is important to study it so that we realize that sacrifice must be costly. It was costly to God and true sacrifice is costly to us as well.
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