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The heart
of the Good News is that Messiah Yeshua died for
our sins. Dying to atone for sin sounds strange
to many people today, including my Jewish people.
The Good News would have greater impact if more
people understood Temple worship, the sacrifices
and the priests who offered them. They might be
able to see how they are fulfilled in the Messiah
and the New Covenant, which enables us to truly
get close to the Three-In-One God of Israel!
Principles
That Govern The Sacrifices: The Principle
Of Getting Closer To God: "Korbanot"
is usually translated as "sacrifices"
or "offerings”. Korbanot comes from a Hebrew
root which means "to get close", and
indicates the primary purpose of these sacrifices:
to get us closer to a holy God from whom the whole
world is estranged. Getting close to God only
comes through God-appointed sacrifices.
The
Principle Of Sacrificial Giving: A korban
(singular of korbanot) requires the giving of
something valuable: bulls, sheep, goats, lambs,
rams, pigeons or grain. To whom much was given,
much was required. The rich were to bring their
bulls, the middle class were to offer sheep and
goats, and the poor could bring birds or grain.
The rich and middle class were not to present
offerings below their ability to give. They were
not to present pigeons. That would have been an
affront to God. We are to give God the best,
not the least that we can get by with. To have
an attitude that asks, "what is the least
I can give to God?" reveals a heart that
really hasn't come to know and love the Lord.
A Sacrifice
Must Be Perfect: All offerings were to be
without defects of any kind. They were to be conformed
to God's holy character. To offer an animal with
a defect demonstrated that the person who would
do such a thing despised God and their heart was
evil. In addition, because the sacrifices point
us to Messiah Yeshua, perfection was necessary
in the type. Offering a flawless animal was necessary
to demonstrate the perfect character and the perfect
sacrifice of the fulfillment - Messiah Yeshua,
the Ultimate Sacrifice. Imperfect animals could
not portray His sacrifice, which was perfect and
without any blemish. By obeying God's instructions,
the people would ultimately learn of the beautiful
connection between the animal, and the fulfillment
in Messiah Yeshua.
The
Principles Of Identification and Substitution:
The animal being offered was a substitute for
the person making the offering. Also, the things
done to the offering were things that the worshiper
himself deserved. Before the animal was killed,
the offerer laid his hands on the head of the
sacrifice. This ceremony depicted identification.
The offerer became identified with the animal’s
innocence, and the animal became identified with
the worshiper’s guilt. A kind of transfer took
place. Whatever happened to the animal from this
point forward should be seen as having actually
been experienced by the offerer. Of course, these
principles of identification and substitution
culminate in the ultimate sacrifice of the Son
of God, who becomes our Substitute. We must identify
with Him.
The
Order Of The Offerings: The Sin Offering was
basic to all the other offerings. It was the first
sacrifice offered. You dealt with the thing that
separated you from God - sin - before you offered
the Burnt Offering of dedication or the Grain
Offering of sanctified labor, followed by the
Peace Offering of fellowship. First, sin must
be atoned for. Then comes dedication and service
to God, then genuine fellowship and intimacy with
God. You cannot truly serve God until you have
genuine atonement. You cannot have genuine
intimacy and fellowship and closeness with God
until your sins are atoned for, and you are serving
the Lord.
The
Sacrifices Must Be Combined With Faith: Offering
the Korbanot by simply going through the motions,
without having genuine faith, did not draw a person
closer to God. The sacrifices had to be united
with genuine faith toward God in the heart of
the worshiper. The heart of the offerer needed
to be engaged, and God must truly be respected.
The Lord was not impressed with those who offered
sacrifices, but whose hearts were far from Him
(see Isaiah 1:10-14). Those Korbanot accomplished
nothing. In a similar way, those who claim to
believe in God and Messiah, but merely go through
the motions of religious rituals (going to church,
etc.) accomplish nothing.
The
Chatat: The Sin Offering: Chatah means “to
sin”, or “to miss the mark”. The Chatat Offering
took care of chatah - sin. A Sin Offering could
only be offered for unintentional sins committed
through carelessness, not for intentional, malicious
sins, such as murder. For sins like murder, no
offering would bring atonement; only the grace
of God would suffice. A few special Sin Offerings,
like a Sin Offering for the entire community,
or for a priest, could not be eaten. But, for
the average person's sin, some of the Chatat was
permitted to be eaten by the priests.
The Sin
Offering had the built-in lesson of identification
and substitution. When the offerer laid his hands
upon the head of the animal, the animal took the
place of the offerer and became his sin. It became
the substitute. The animal took the offerer's
penalty of death, and its life was given in exchange
to the offerer. That is the exchange-of-life principle.
The offerer
had to kill the animal, but it was the priest's
responsibility to offer the blood. The blood was
sprinkled - not burned on the altar. Blood is
a symbol of life. When he handled the blood of
the sacrifice, the priest was symbolically handling
the life of the offerer. The blood of the substitute
animal was symbolic of the new life to be given
to the Israeli - if he acted in faith to receive
it.
Prior
to the coming of Messiah Yeshua, the Sin Offering
afforded the Jewish people a visual demonstration
of the exchange-of-life principle. If the Jewish
person appropriated this lesson by faith, and
really grasped this principle, he was redeemed;
he was saved; his sins were forgiven. The people
of Israel could experience salvation and receive
atonement. The redeemed person would continue
to bring sacrifices for future sins, but it was
as one who knew God and knew what salvation meant.
There was a remnant of Israelis who understood
and appropriated this exchange-of-life principle,
but the vast majority went through the motions
without grasping the significance of the relationship
of the sacrifice to their own sin. In a similar
way, many today neither understand nor desire
salvation through the death of another Chatat
- Messiah Yeshua. What the Lord wanted the
Jewish people to learn in the Chatat and the exchange-of-life
principle has not changed; rather, it has been
enlarged. The object in this exchange is now the
Son of God. Messiah Yeshua's main purpose for
coming to Earth was to die as the final Chatat.
When a person asks Messiah Yeshua into his
or her life, what they are doing is symbolically
laying their hands on the head of Yeshua. The
person confesses his sins and the Son of God takes
away the sinful life of the person. Then He gives
the person His life, making the exchange of life
complete.
But His
life is incomparable to that of anyone else! Because
of who Messiah is, His life has an unmatched quality.
It is eternal, and so Believers receive a gift
that never ends! After concluding their life in
this world, they will continue to live forever
and ever, as Yeshua does. Since Messiah's life
is one of power and victory, when we receive His
life we gain an unmatched power which enables
us to live triumphantly and victoriously. This
power is available to all who receive His life
in the exchange-of-life principle. If you have
never done this, why not make Yeshua your Chatat
right now? Believe in Him! Identify with Him.
Join yourself to Him. Let Him take your sins,
and be your Substitute, and He will give you His
eternal, victorious life! Then, as needed,
continue to symbolically lay your hands on the
head of Messiah by regularly confessing your sins
to God, and thanking Him for the sacrifice of
the Messiah. The Lord will wipe away every sin
you have committed!
The
Asham: The Guilt Offering: Very similar to
the Sin Offering was the Asham - the Guilt Offering.
Asham comes from the Hebrew root meaning “to fail
in one’s duty” or “to be negligent” or “to become
guilty”. A Guilt Offering atones for sins against
the Lord’s holy things, like neglecting to pay
the tithe, or failing to redeem the first-born
son; or sins involving breach of trust against
man, like fraud or theft. In Isaiah 53:10, Yeshua
is specifically said to be an Asham - an offering
to atone for sin against the Lord’s holy things.
The Righteous One was guiltless in His relationship
to God, and faultless in His relationship to human
beings. He died so that we can be forgiven for
failing in our duties to God and man. None of
us has perfectly fulfilled our religious responsibilities
toward God, nor have any of us met all of our
obligations to our fellow human beings, but thank
God that Messiah’s sacrifice covers them all!
The
Olah: The Burnt Offering: The Hebrew word
for Burnt Offering is Olah, meaning “going up”
or “ascension”. An Olah is completely burnt on
the altar; no part of it is eaten by anyone. Because
the offering represents complete submission to
God's will, the entire offering is given to God.
The Burnt Offering represents dedication to God.
Just as the animal is entirely burnt up and
consumed and ascends heavenward, so the worshiper
offered a sacrifice declaring to God that his
life was not his own. Out of gratitude for being
forgiven and atoned for, his desire was to be
completely consumed in the service of God.
The Burnt
Offering finds its fulfillment in the life and
death of the Messiah. In every action He undertook,
with every word that He spoke, Yeshua was completely
dedicated to the will of God. He always did that
which pleased His Father. He never sinned. He
lived a flawless life, and then gave that life
as the final sacrifice for sin. His willingness
to lay down His life demonstrates the kind of
total dedication spoken of in the Burnt Offering.
We, the sons and daughters of God, who have been
redeemed, have been bought with a very high price.
Our lives are no longer our own. Knowing this,
we are to present our lives as living and holy
sacrifices, dedicated to God and His service.
Such an act of total dedication in the Believer's
life is his spiritual and reasonable service.
The
Mincha: The Grain Offering: Mincha refers
to an offering from the produce of the ground.
The Mincha was made of fine wheat. Grain in the
ancient world was the staple of one’s diet. Many
of the calories you ate came from grain. Grain
was the final product of much labor and was valuable.
A farmer first had to break up his ground. Then
he sowed the wheat seeds into the ground. Then
he waited on God to provide the rains at the proper
times. He weeded the soil and later, harvested
the crop. Then he separated the grain from the
chaff and milled the grain into flour. Finally,
he went up to Jerusalem to the Temple and offered
his grain to the Lord. A representative piece
of the offering was to be burned in the fire of
the altar, but the rest was eaten by the priests.
When one
brought his Grain Offering, he was offering something
that had been produced through diligence and hard
labor. The Mincha was an acknowledgment that our
jobs, our skills, our strength, our energy, our
labors, all come from the Lord. It is He who blesses
us with skill and strength, enabling us to work
and bring home our daily bread.
When he
offered this fine flour, the worshiper poured
oil on it. Oil moistened the flour so that it
wouldn't blow away and helped the flour to burn
better. Oil also has a symbolic meaning. It almost
always symbolizes the presence of God. God needs
to be involved in our work! Frankincense was also
put on the Grain Offering, and its aroma permeated
the air when it was burned. Frankincense was symbolic
of the prayers of God's people. The addition of
frankincense tells us that God considered our
work to be like a prayer that was acceptable to
Him. No Grain Offering was permitted to contain
leaven. Leaven, a symbol of sin, should never
be placed on the altar. Neither was honey, which
was also used in fermentation, and was associated
with leaven as a symbol of sin, permitted. Instead
of leaven or honey, all Grain Offerings were to
contain salt. If any leaven was somehow present,
the salt would arrest the leavening action. It
would therefore symbolize the nullification of
any presence of sin. The salt, which seasoned
the sacrifice, symbolized God's holiness, purity,
and the permanence of the principles of sacrifice
and covenant between the Lord and His people.
The Mincha
pictured the perfection of Messiah's life and
work. No aspect of Messiah's nature - His love,
His holiness, His righteousness - was lacking.
He was perfect in every way. He took on the tough
jobs. In His work for the Father He took the difficult
path of hard labor and of unselfish service. He
did all His labors perfectly, in total dedication
to His Father. After completing everything, He
could say, “It is finished - the great work that
God has given Me to do, has been done, and done
well!” God's presence, as symbolized in the oil
of the sacrifice, was continually with Yeshua
in His life and ministry. Messiah's life was like
frankincense, a pleasant aroma, one continuous
pleasing prayer to God. He enjoyed constant unbroken
communication with the Father. Every word He spoke,
He had first heard the Father speak. Every action
He took was perfectly consistent with the will
of the Father. His entire life was one beautiful
prayer! The absence of leaven in the Mincha symbolizes
Messiah's sinlessness. He is the only man who
never sinned. He is truth embodied, righteousness
personified.
We too,
are to serve the Lord diligently and wholeheartedly.
Our labor for the Lord is holy, no matter where
we are, rabbi or mother or secretary; carpenter
or street cleaner. Every legitimate place of
employment is like an altar where a child of God
can produce work that is holy and blessed by God.
All of us are to serve the Lord all the time!
True religion must happen every day of the week:
in the work-world, as well as on Shabbat. You
are not doing your duty if your work is not dedicated
to God - if you don't see your job as the ministry
that God has given you. We must work conscientiously
on the job, and be dedicated, and diligent and
honest. We must talk to our co-workers about the
Kingdom of God when possible, and let our lights
shine in the work place. Those who are dishonest
in their work, greedy in business, or lazy on
the job are not fulfilling the meaning of the
Mincha Offering.
The
Zebach Sh'lamim: The Peace Offerings: The
Hebrew term for the Peace Offerings is Zebach
Sh'lamim which is related to the word shalom,
meaning "peace" or "wholeness"
or “completeness”. A Peace Offering is an offering
thanking God for restoring the worshiper to a
state of wholeness with Him, for being at peace
with Him, for having fellowship with the Creator.
All is well between the worshiper and God! A portion
of the offering is burned on the altar, a portion
is given to the priests, and the rest is eaten
by the offerer and his family. Everyone gets a
part of this offering, which is eaten and enjoyed.
This category of offerings includes Thanksgiving
Offerings (“Todah” in Hebrew), Free Will Offerings,
and offerings made after the fulfillment of a
vow. The Peace Offering is fulfilled in Messiah,
who was always in a state of perfect peace with
God. He was always in a right relationship with
His Father. Then, He died to bring us peace with
God, and restore us to a state of well-being with
the Almighty.
Conclusion:
The Torah contains three covenants (those made
with Noah, Abraham, and Moses). Judaism claims
to be based on all three. The covenants made with
Noah and with Abraham are still in effect, however
the covenant that came to Israel through Moses
contains many laws, as well as the proper protocol
for drawing near to God through the Tabernacle,
the Priesthood and the Sacrifices. All of these
components (the Laws, Tabernacle, Priesthood and
Sacrifices) form a package deal between God and
Israel. If one part is violated, then the whole
Mosaic Covenant has been violated. Two thousand
years ago the Temple (which replaced the Tabernacle)
was destroyed and the sacrifices ceased. Judaism
was radically (and unilaterally) restructured
by the non-Messianic Rabbis, replacing the Temple,
the Priests and the Sacrifices with the Synagogue,
Rabbis, Prayers, Repentance, and Torah-observance.
But it is impossible to truly fulfill the Torah
and uphold our part of the covenant without meeting
its demands for bringing the Sacrifices God ordained
at the Mishkan. Rabbinic Judaism is based
on a broken covenant, which will not save us.
Instead of this radically reconstituted Judaism,
God wanted the Jewish people to enter into New
Covenant Judaism, based on the life, death and
resurrection and teachings of the Messiah. Furthermore,
He wanted us to bring the Gentiles into the New
Covenant too!
I’m indebted
to Dr. Louis Goldberg (may he always be remembered
for his goodness, his scholarship, his love for
God and his love for his Jewish people) for much
of this message.
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