Didn’t We Already Cover This?
Okay, most of this
material – and the material for tomorrow – summarizes what we have already read
in Leviticus about the individual sacrifices.
So I’m going to take this in a slightly different route, knowing that we’ve
already spoken of the sacrifices no more than a month ago.
Much Sacrificing
Does anyone know how
many sheep, goats, and oxen would be sacrificed in order to keep each of these
weekly, monthly, and annual sacrifices for a single year? Does anyone know how much flour and wine
would be consumed in the sacrifices? Yes,
it is a realistic number – especially for a nation. But it is a significant number. And no, I’m not going to tell you. You can figure it out for yourself if you
want.
But let’s recognize
that it is a significant amount of sacrificing going on. Even if we just look at the daily sacrifices,
that’s over 700 lambs a year alone! And
let’s remember, these are just for the nation and don’t count among them any
sort of individual sacrifice for forgiveness.
So, what does that mean? Is God
an unjust God who demands more sacrifice than the people can bear?
Absolutely not! What this system of sacrifices does is
demonstrate the wonderful wealth of God’s provision.
God’s Provision
God does require
great sacrifice – even from us today.
But God gives even more abundantly.
God’s grace and mercy is plentiful.
If we take all that we have and compare it to what God asks of us, it is
not too big of a deal. If the Hebrew
people took all that God had provided them with and compared it to what He asks
of them it would be no big deal. Yes, it
is significant, but not even close to unbearably so. God’s provision always outweighs His demands.
If we add to this
fact that God is leading them into the Promised Land, then what we can see is
that this “burden of sacrifice” is actually an incredible promise. Here’s what I mean by this. If God truly expects sacrificing to this
level, He will have to prosper His people.
If God demands this level of devotion, God must be leading His people
into a place where this level of devotion is absolutely possible. By establishing this principle, God is
assuring the people that they will be prosperous should they continue in their
relationship with Him.
Faith
That leads me to the
human side of this conversation: faith.
Giving is an act of faith. Anyone
can give out of their surplus – that is no act of faith. But the one who tithes gives not out of their
surplus but rather according to what God desires of them. Remember Jesus sitting across from the
offering boxes with His disciples as the poor widow puts in her “insignificant
sum?” She is praised because she gave
out of her need, not out of her excess.
(See Mark 12:41-44)
They give not out of
their surplus, but out of their first-fruits.
They give back to God trusting that God will take care of their
needs. The weight of this sacrificial
system indicates the faith that there people had that God would provide for
them. After all, who gives up their best
ox without trusting that God can provide over and above what that ox could have
ever provided?
That is what the
sacrificial system is all about. It is a
give-and take relationship between God’s provision and our faith. That is what sacrifice is all about. Trust in God; put faith in God on display!
What is it that Jesus
said to His disciples? Look at the birds
and the flowers. Does not God clothe and
feed them with all they need? Why should
we then worry? Trust God. Have faith in His provision rather than our
own ability to provide. Worship Him in
good faith.
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Okay, maybe I will
share the result with you about the total sacrifices offered. The yearly
national offerings found in this chapter and the next must include 113 bulls,
32 rams, and 1,086 lambs, plus over a ton of flour and about 1,000 containers
of oil and wine. And remember, this is
just for the national sacrifices. This
does not count any of the sacrifices for individual sin, and of the sacrifices
made by the leaders of the people, or any thank offerings!
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