Animal sacrifices were a major component of the Law of Moses. There were basically two categories of offerings—the compulsory offerings, such as the sin offering and the voluntary offerings, such as the burnt offering and the meal, or grain, offering. The meal offering is called a “meat” offering in the scriptures, but it’s the only offering that doesn’t involve animal flesh. This post will deal primarily with the burnt offering as described in Leviticus 1.
There were three major types of offerings based on the purpose—the sin offering, the burnt offering, and the peace offering. When all three were required, such as the cleansing of a leper or the ordination of a priest, they were done in that order (sin offering, burnt offering, peace offering).
The sin offering was for the atonement of sin. The burnt offering was a sanctification and surrender to God. The peace offering was for communion or fellowship with God. I think the sacrament aligns most closely with the peace offering, as we share a communal meal. One aspect of the symbolism points to Jesus Christ, but some of the symbolism is for the spiritual development of the individual making the offering. We can see this in the burnt offering in Leviticus 1.
The individual would bring the sacrificial animal to the door of the tabernacle and place his hands upon the head of the animal to allow the animal to be a substitute for him. The animal was required to be a domestic animal of his herd or flock. It could not be a wild animal. It was supposed to be a male without blemish, pointing to the supreme sacrifice of the Savior.
For the burnt offering, the whole animal was sacrificed, symbolizing the idea that the natural man or woman within was sacrificed in total submission. The concept is total surrender to God. The skin is then stripped away foreshadowing the crucifixion scene as the Roman soldiers stripped Jesus and put a robe upon Him. (Matthew 27:28). The sacrificial animal is cut into pieces in likeness of the parting of the garments of the Savior (Matthew 27:35). The animal is killed on the north side of the altar (Leviticus 1:11) to represent the Crucifixion site of Golgotha situated north of the city wall (see Bible Map 12).
Leviticus 1:9 states, “But his inwards and his legs shall he wash in water: and the priest shall burn all on the altar, to be a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord.” The term burnt sacrifice or burnt offering comes from the Hebrew word `olah, meaning “ascent, stairway, or steps.” The burnt offering gets its name from the smoke of the sacrifice ascending to heaven. This is what creates the “sweet savour” for the Lord. I like to think of this as my will going up in smoke. Sometimes I try to hold on to it, but it gets away, so I have to surrender my will to the Lord.
I’m a symbolism freak, so I have to hang out in Leviticus for a while. It only gets one week in Come, Follow Me (and less than that if you include sharing the last 6 chapters of Exodus). I understand why this needs to be in order to get through the whole Old Testament, but it has too many good symbolic ordinances and feasts and much temple imagery.
Maybe I can catch up in Numbers or Deuteronomy?
