Sermon # 17 Leviticus Sermons

Title: The Priests’ Portion

Text: Leviticus 7:1-10

Subject: The Trespass Offering, Burnt Offering, and Meat Offering

Date: Sunday Morning – October 14, 2001

Tape # W-64a

Reading: Galatians 5:16-6:10

Introduction:

We who believe are declared to be “a royal priesthood.” The Lord Jesus Christ has made us kings and priests unto God. Today, I want to talk to you about our priesthood. The title of my message is – The Priests’ Portion. Our text is Leviticus 7:1-10.

(Leviticus 7:1-10) "Likewise this is the law of the trespass offering: it is most holy. {2} In the place where they kill the burnt offering shall they kill the trespass offering: and the blood thereof shall he sprinkle round about upon the altar. {3} And he shall offer of it all the fat thereof; the rump, and the fat that covereth the inwards, {4} And the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the flanks, and the caul that is above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away: {5} And the priest shall burn them upon the altar for an offering made by fire unto the LORD: it is a trespass offering. {6} Every male among the priests shall eat thereof: it shall be eaten in the holy place: it is most holy. {7} As the sin offering is, so is the trespass offering: there is one law for them: the priest that maketh atonement therewith shall have it. {8} And the priest that offereth any man's burnt offering, even the priest shall have to himself the skin of the burnt offering which he hath offered. {9} And all the meat offering that is baken in the oven, and all that is dressed in the fryingpan, and in the pan, shall be the priest's that offereth it. {10} And every meat offering, mingled with oil, and dry, shall all the sons of Aaron have, one as much as another."

In verse 7, the Lord God specifically declares, “There is one law for them.” By that statement, he tells us that all he has revealed concerning the sacrifices to this point was one law. All that has been stated in the preceding six chapters and all that is stated in these ten verses is intended by God to point us to Christ, teaching us to trust him alone as our Savior. The lessons to be learned from these verses are of immense importance.

1. Details are important. -- If we would worship the holy Lord God, we must worship him in the way he has prescribed in his Word. God has given us minute details and specific directions as to how we must approach him (vv. 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10).

· By Faith in Christ

· Humility

· Reverence

2. Sin brings death (vv. 1-2). – The trespass offering, the blood shed, and sprinkled, all declare the judgment of God upon sin, the necessity of death, and the necessity of blood atonement by a justice satisfying sacrifice.

3. That which is given and consecrated to our God must be the very best (vv. 3-5). God will not have, he will not accept our leftovers (Mal. 1:6-11).

(Malachi 1:6-11) "A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name? {7} Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the LORD is contemptible. {8} And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts. {9} And now, I pray you, beseech God that he will be gracious unto us: this hath been by your means: will he regard your persons? saith the LORD of hosts. {10} Who is there even among you that would shut the doors for nought? neither do ye kindle fire on mine altar for nought. I have no pleasure in you, saith the LORD of hosts, neither will I accept an offering at your hand. {11} For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith the LORD of hosts."

4. Everything and everyone accepted by God is, through the merits of Christ, reckoned “most holy.” – We are made to be the very “righteousness of God in him!” – We are in Christ made to be, in the consecration of our lives to him, living sacrifices, holy and acceptable unto God (Rom. 12:1-2; 1 Cor. 6:13, 19).

With those things said, let’s look at these ten verses in Leviticus 7 together, asking God the Holy Spirit to teach us the things revealed in them. Sometimes we think that the repetition of things is redundant. But in the Book of God, nothing is redundant.

· The repetition of instruction concerning the offerings in this chapter shows us that the things herein described are of immense importance.

· This repetition of instruction, specifically being given to the priests, teaches us that the priests, those who serve as God’s ministers must worship him in the same way and upon the same grounds as all others.

· The Lord God never tires of repeating his instruction with regard to these types. (How often many aspects of the types are repeated in these seven chapters alone!) --Because of his wondrous, infinite love to needy sinners, the Lord God delights to show us these blessed pictures of redemption by Christ. – Because of his infinite, indescribable love for Christ, his Well-Beloved, the God of heaven delights to display these pictures of him. – “To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe.”

(Verses 1-2) "Likewise this is the law of the trespass offering: it is most holy. {2} In the place where they kill the burnt offering shall they kill the trespass offering: and the blood thereof shall he sprinkle round about upon the altar."

Precious Blood

The holy Lord God, whose law we have broken, whose character we have violated, whose throne we have despised, whose Son we nailed to the cross, is ever looking for blood. He demands it; and he will have it, -- either our blood or the blood of a Substitute by whom his holy wrath and justice can be satisfied for us.

The blood was to be “round about upon the altar.” Those who came to the house of God must have reckoned themselves terribly guilty, guilty sinners before the holy Lord God, because the Lord God seems to have spoken to them constantly of sin and guilt in the language of blood.

The constant sight of blood in the house of God constantly tells those who worship here two things.

· We are terrible, guilty sinners before the holy Lord God.

· There is forgiveness with God!

Guilty, heavy laden sinners relish the never ending sight of blood when they came to worship at the altar of God. Guilty, heavy laden sinners, men and women convinced by God the Holy Spirit of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment, can relish the preaching of the crucified Christ. We who need him, cry with Paul, “God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me and I unto the world!”

(Galatians 2:19-20) "For I through the law am dead to the law, that I might live unto God. {20} I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."

Let others, if they dare, speak lightly of the blood and deride us for preaching it. All who know and worship God count the blood of Christ precious (1 Pet. 1:18-20.

(1 Peter 1:18-20) "Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; {19} But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: {20} Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you."

It is impossible for me to speak too often or too much about the blood of God’s sacrifice. The Lord God said to Israel, “When I see the blood, I will pass over you!”

1. The trespass offering is declared by God to be “most holy” (v. 1). This offering, as we have seen, was an eminent type of our Lord Jesus Christ, the perfect, holy, Lamb of God, who was…

· Intrinsically Holy.

· Representatively Holy.

· Infinitely Holy.

2. The blood must be shed and the sacrifice offered “in the place where they kill the trespass offering” (Lev. 1:3,5,11; 4:24,29,33). The sacrifice had to be offered in God’s sight, at God’s altar, before the tabernacle.

3. The blood had to be “sprinkled round about upon the altar.”

What a sight this must have been! Those who stood before the tabernacle and observed these things were, by their very worship of God, compelled to reckon and confess themselves to base, vile sinners, guilty and undone before the holy Lord God, except for the blood! I can almost hear them singing…

“What can wash away my sin?

Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

What can make me whole again?

Nothing but the blood of Jesus!

Oh! Precious is the flow

That makes me white as snow!

No other fount I know –

Nothing but the blood of Jesus!”

It was this, the sight of blood, blood required, blood provided, blood shed, blood accepted, that made the tabernacle the delightful place of worship. -- It is this, the sight of blood, blood required, blood provided, blood shed, blood accepted, that makes the house of God in this gospel day the delightful place of worship.

(Verses 3-6) "And he shall offer of it all the fat thereof; the rump, and the fat that covereth the inwards, {4} And the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the flanks, and the caul that is above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away: {5} And the priest shall burn them upon the altar for an offering made by fire unto the LORD: it is a trespass offering. {6} Every male among the priests shall eat thereof: it shall be eaten in the holy place: it is most holy."

The Fat and the Rump

In verses 3-5 we are again reminded that all the fat, the rump, and all that was the richest and best belonged to the Lord. -- That is Christ! That is what God required. That is what Christ gave. That is what the Lord God gives to us again.

(Psalms 63:5) "My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:"

(Isaiah 55:1-2) "Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. {2} Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness."

In all our services, in all our gifts, in all things, let us give to God the richest and the best.

Burnt Upon The Altar

Verse 5 tells us that the fat taken off of the sacrifice was to be burned on the altar. This was typical of Christ, which is a sweet smelling savor, bearing the fire of divine wrath in the room and stead of his people, for a trespass offering, an offering for trespasses committed, to make atonement for our sins. This part of the sacrifice, the burning of the fat, was the Lord’s offering. The rest was the priest’s portion (v. 6).

The Priest’s Portion

(Verse 6) “Every male among the priests shall eat thereof: it shall be eaten in the holy place: it is most holy.”

I will deal with this more in a few minutes. For now let me say just two things:

1. Only those who are God’s priests, serving God in the holy place, only those who worship God by faith in Christ can eat of the Altar, Christ Jesus.

(Hebrews 13:10) "We have an altar, whereof they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle."

Do not forget that the fat and the blood of the sacrifice were never to be eaten. That is not a law forbidding us to eat fat or rare meat! It was a law concerning the sacrifices of God. The reason is quite clear. – The sin-atoning blood of Christ cannot be eaten by man, except by faith (John 6:54-55). -- The fat, which was necessary to fuel the fire could not be eaten because the sacrifice was offered to God alone.

2. In eating the trespass offering, the priest made the sins of his brother to be his own.

Aaron’s family alone were allowed to eat of these offerings. But every male was required to eat of them. Eat them every male must, but only in the holy place. The significance is instructive, beautiful, and clear. -- In eating the trespass offering, the priest made the sins of his brother to be his own. Here again this act is declared to be "most holy." How much more so is that which is implied by it.

· Certainly, this is a picture of Christ our great High Priest taking our sins to be his own, when he was made to be sin for us as our Substitute.

(2 Corinthians 5:21) "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him."

(1 Peter 2:21-24) "For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps: (22) Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: (23) Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: (24) Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed."

(Psalms 40:12) "For innumerable evils have compassed me about: mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up; they are more than the hairs of mine head: therefore my heart faileth me."

(Psalms 69:5) "O God, thou knowest my foolishness; and my sins are not hid from thee."

· This act of the priest eating the trespass offering also portrays that brotherly love that is to rule the house of God, that love which causes believers to make the sins of their brethren their own.

This passage has application to us, those who are "holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling." It is our privilege and responsibility to eat not only the meat offering, and our given portion of the peace offering, and the trespass offering together.

We must not fail to make the sins of a fallen brother our own. To condemn such is easy and natural. But to identify ourselves with the fallen is the privilege of the priestly family. Let us bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. If we are, indeed, one in Christ, we ought to deal with our fallen brethren, in their weaknesses as members of our own bodies in need of help.

(Galatians 6:1-2) "Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. (2) Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ."

(Verse 7) "As the sin offering is, so is the trespass offering: there is one law for them: the priest that maketh atonement therewith shall have it.”

“There is one law for them.” – This particularly refers to the sacrifices. They were all designed for one purpose: to fix our hearts and minds upon Christ. -- He alone has made atonement for sin. -- He alone is accepted of God. -- We are accepted in him. -- Because Christ alone has redeemed us, we belong to him entirely and alone. – “Ye are not your own, for you are bought with a price” (1 Cor. 6:20).

Provisions for the Priests

Verses 8-10 give specific instructions regarding the priests and God’s specific provisions for those who served him in the holy place. Let’s look at the verses briefly. Then I will show you the lessons clearly taught in them, as those lessons are set forth in the rest of Scripture.

(Verse 8) "And the priest that offereth any man's burnt offering, even the priest shall have to himself the skin of the burnt offering which he hath offered."

The skin of the sacrifice belonged to God’s priest. I cannot avoid making a connection between this and what we see in Genesis 3, when the Lord God clothed Adam and Eve with the skins of the slain sacrifice.

There, at the gate of Eden, the Lord Jesus Christ acting as our great High Priest, who appointed and provided the sacrifice (Typical of Himself!), took possession of the skins. The skins belonged to him alone. He gave them to the fallen pair and put them on them; but they were his. Those skins, like the skin mentioned in Leviticus 7:8, represented his righteousness imputed to us, the garments of salvation, wherewith he clothes our naked souls with “fine raiment,” with “fine linen, clean and white.” This is the righteousness of the saints in which we stand accepted of God. But it is his righteousness, righteousness that could not be had but by his death as our sin-atoning Sacrifice.

(Revelation 3:18) "I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see."

(Verses 9-10) "And all the meat offering that is baken in the oven, and all that is dressed in the fryingpan, and in the pan, shall be the priest's that offereth it. {10} And every meat offering, mingled with oil, and dry, shall all the sons of Aaron have, one as much as another."

We will discover the significance of these two verses by looking at a few verses in the New Testament.

(1 Corinthians 9:7-14) "Who goeth a warfare any time at his own charges? who planteth a vineyard, and eateth not of the fruit thereof? or who feedeth a flock, and eateth not of the milk of the flock? {8} Say I these things as a man? or saith not the law the same also? {9} For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen? {10} Or saith he it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be partaker of his hope. {11} If we have sown unto you spiritual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things? {12} If others be partakers of this power over you, are not we rather? Nevertheless we have not used this power; but suffer all things, lest we should hinder the gospel of Christ. {13} Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar? {14} Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel."

Those commandments of the law requiring a provision for the priests in Israel were specifically given to teach us that God’s servants are to be provided for by the gifts of God’s people.

Let me give you the lessons taught in these last three verses of our text (Lev. 7:8-10).

1. In all the offerings, as here in the trespass offering, the first thing to be understood is that the offering is the Lord’s. – It was for the satisfaction of divine justice. God must do something for himself before he can do anything for the sinner.

2. Here the priest as well as the offering typified the Lord Jesus Christ, who is our great High Priest. – The priest’s portion on which he fed and found satisfaction, speaks of Christ our Priest and Mediator having that for which he labored. – “He shall see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied. – The joy set before him.”

3. As the Holy Spirit uses this picture in 1 Corinthians 9, we are taught that Those who preach the gospel shall live by the gospel. That is clearly the way the Holy Spirit himself uses this law in the New Testament.

This matter of supporting gospel preachers, maintaining God’s servants and their families in their livelihood needs to be understood in precisely the way it is presented here. The financial support of pastors, evangelists, and missionaries is not primarily to be viewed as a display of love and appreciation for them personally, though that is certainly a part of it. But, primarily, this is a matter of stewardship to God himself. It is not giving to a man, but giving as unto the Lord. If we give God his due, we will give his servants their due. If we are niggardly in the support of God’s servants, we are niggardly in our attitude toward the Lord God himself, whose servants they are.

After the Lord’s portions of the sacrifice were consumed upon the altar, the best of the residue was given to the priests. In some cases, the whole sin-offering was given to the priests. In other cases, what we would call the “choice cuts” were the priests’ portion, the breast, the leg, and the rump. The priests portion was always the best.

Today, it is a sad, but common, thing for churches to deal with pastor’s, missionaries, and evangelists as businesses deal with employees: Get as much out of the man as possible for the least amount of pay. Such an attitude is shameful and shows an utter contempt for Christ, the gospel of his grace, and the church of God. Let me be crystal clear.

· God’s servants are not hirelings. – They do not seek to enrich themselves. We labor not for yours, but for you! We seek no man’s gold, but every man’s good.

· Yet, as the servants of God, those men who faithfully give themselves to the work of preaching the gospel are to be highly esteemed for their work’s sake, and properly maintained in their work.

(1 Thessalonians 5:12-13) "And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labour among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you; {13} And to esteem them very highly in love for their work's sake. And be at peace among yourselves."

(Matthew 10:10) "Nor scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves: for the workman is worthy of his meat."

(Luke 10:7) "And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give: for the labourer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house."

(Galatians 6:6) "Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things."

(1 Timothy 5:17) "Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine."

(1 Corinthians 9:11) "If we have sown unto you spiritual things, is it a great thing if we shall reap your carnal things?"

When God’s servants are properly esteemed as God’s servants by those whom they serve, esteemed as men by whom God speaks to, ministers to, comforts, and edifies their souls, those who are served by them will count it a privilege and honor, indeed a part of divine worship and service to give them the best support they can.

(2 Corinthians 9:6-8) "But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. {7} Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. {8} And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work:"

(2 Corinthians 9:10-11) "Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;) {11} Being enriched in every thing to all bountifulness, which causeth through us thanksgiving to God."

(2 Corinthians 8:1-5) "Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia; {2} How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality. {3} For to their power, I bear record, yea, and beyond their power they were willing of themselves; {4} Praying us with much entreaty that we would receive the gift, and take upon us the fellowship of the ministering to the saints. {5} And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will of God."

Application:

1. Let us ever give thanks to God for his unspeakable gift. – Thank God for the precious, sin-atoning blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

2. Let us continually feast upon the Altar Christ Jesus, and the Sacrifice of the Altar.

3. Let us seek, like the priests of Israel to bear one another’s burdens before the Lord.

4. Let us highly esteem God’s servants, and do whatever we can to maintain them in their labors and thereby maintain the gospel and the worship of our God in this world, for the glory of Christ.