Week 5: Exodus 38-Leviticus 19

Reflection:

As we bring Exodus to a close, we read of the tabernacle being erected and God coming down and dwelling with His people. The question then is how can God's people continue to dwell with God in this new Eden-like state without being "put out of the camp". Leviticus summarizes how sin and contact with the dead (Lepers were continuously in contact with deadness in them) removes them from God's presence, but sacrifice allows them to reenter. Let's consider each of the types of offerings and some reasons for how they relate to Christ:

Burnt Offering: This offering shows that we can do nothing to atone for our sin.

Like the burnt offering, Christ's entire body was offered up to God in atonement for our sin. The burnt offering restored the Israelites relationship with God, but through Christ we have full, final, and perfect reconciliation

Grain Offering: Purpose was to worship God and acknowledge His provision and sovereignty. The grain offering was a costly offering, but Christ was the ultimate, costly offering to God. Whereas the offering had a memorial portion, Christ’s work is the all-sufficient memorial portion and aroma of our redemption.

Peace (Freewill, Vow, Thanksgiving) Offering: Not concerned with propitiation of atonment, but a way to thank Him for His goodness and provision. Whereas the peace offering was a way to say thank you to God and to praise Him for his deliverance, Christ provides infinite grounds of thanksgiving and final, ultimate deliverance. The peace offering gave the opportunity to expressly praise and give thanks to God, but Christ gives us union with God and access to the throne of grace

Sin (Purification) Offering: Made for sins committed in ignorance or unintentional sins. The sin offering cleansed the people for their unintentional sins, but Christ cleanses us from all our sin, intentional and unintentional. The sin offering was carried outside the camp, but it was Christ who willfully suffered outside the camp for our redemption.

Guilt Offering: Required when a person unintentionally violated some of the LORD’s holy things. The guilt offering atoned for a violation of the LORD’s holy things, but Christ is the fulfillment of the holy things themselves, being Himself holy. The guilt offering showed the seriousness of even the smallest violation against God, but Christ assures us that even our smallest sins are atoned for.

*Above descriptions/connections courtesy of Collin Marcum's Old Testament Teaching Notes

Family Discussion Questions

1. Why do you think the cost for atoning sins was so costly? How should we feel about our sins today?
2. There were laws for all sorts of things, even things we would consider to have little emotional or spiritual impact. What does the regulation of those things imply about God? Man?