Sermon #36 Leviticus Sermons

Title: “It Is The Blood!”

Text: Leviticus 17:1-16

Subject: Life In and By The Blood of Christ

Date: Sunday Morning – May 12, 2002

Tape # W-100a

Reading: Colossians 1:1-29

Introduction:

(Leviticus 17) "And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Speak unto Aaron, and unto his sons, and unto all the children of Israel, and say unto them; This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded, saying, 3 What man soever there be of the house of Israel, that killeth an ox, or lamb, or goat, in the camp, or that killeth it out of the camp, 4 And bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer an offering unto the LORD before the tabernacle of the LORD; blood shall be imputed unto that man; he hath shed blood; and that man shall be cut off from among his people: 5 To the end that the children of Israel may bring their sacrifices, which they offer in the open field, even that they may bring them unto the LORD, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priest, and offer them for peace offerings unto the LORD. 6 And the priest shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar of the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and burn the fat for a sweet savour unto the LORD. 7 And they shall no more offer their sacrifices unto devils, after whom they have gone a whoring. This shall be a statute for ever unto them throughout their generations. 8 And thou shalt say unto them, Whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers which sojourn among you, that offereth a burnt offering or sacrifice, 9 And bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer it unto the LORD; even that man shall be cut off from among his people. 10 And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people. 11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul. 12 Therefore I said unto the children of Israel, No soul of you shall eat blood, neither shall any stranger that sojourneth among you eat blood. 13 And whatsoever man there be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, which hunteth and catcheth any beast or fowl that may be eaten; he shall even pour out the blood thereof, and cover it with dust. 14 For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof: whosoever eateth it shall be cut off. 15 And every soul that eateth that which died of itself, or that which was torn with beasts, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger, he shall both wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even: then shall he be clean. 16 But if he wash them not, nor bathe his flesh; then he shall bear his iniquity."

This 17^th chapter of Leviticus has nothing to do with the imaginary sanctity of animal life. It has nothing to do with the health risks involved in eating red meat, or even with eating red meat rare. Leviticus 17, like all the rest of this Inspired Volume, is all about the gospel. It is all about Christ.

There are two things revealed in this chapter. They are lessons of tremendous importance. We must learn them. Without the knowledge of these two things, we will never understand the Book of God, the gospel of God, or the work of God. These two lessons are vital.

1. All worship except the worship of God through the blood atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ is idolatry.

2. Atonement is in the blood.

I. All worship except the worship of God through the blood atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ is idolatry (vv. 1-10.

Christ is the Way. There is no other. Christ is the Truth. There is no other. Christ is the Life. There is no other. Will we ever learn this? Christ is the Door. There is no other. All who attempt to come in some other way are thieves and robbers, thieves who would rob God of his glory. And God will not tolerate them. Hear what he says about this in verses 1-10.

(Leviticus 17:1-3) "And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 2 Speak unto Aaron, and unto his sons, and unto all the children of Israel, and say unto them; This is the thing which the LORD hath commanded, saying, 3 What man soever there be of the house of Israel, that killeth an ox, or lamb, or goat, in the camp, or that killeth it out of the camp,"

A. This is a law regarding the worship of God.

After giving the law regarding the day of atonement the Lord God gave this commandment to the children of Israel. It was a commandment which he required every Israelite to observe and a commandment he required every stranger who sojourned among them to observe. Any who refused to do so were to be cut off from among the people of God, put out of the camp, banished from the church.

1. Remember the context.

The Lord had just finished declaring to Israel that they were to observe the day of atonement every year on the tenth day of the seventh month. This was made as an everlasting statute (Lev. 16:29-34).

(Leviticus 16:29-34) "And this shall be a statute for ever unto you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourneth among you: 30 For on that day shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the LORD. 31 It shall be a sabbath of rest unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls, by a statute for ever. 32 And the priest, whom he shall anoint, and whom he shall consecrate to minister in the priest's office in his father's stead, shall make the atonement, and shall put on the linen clothes, even the holy garments: 33 And he shall make an atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make an atonement for the tabernacle of the congregation, and for the altar, and he shall make an atonement for the priests, and for all the people of the congregation. 34 And this shall be an everlasting statute unto you, to make an atonement for the children of Israel for all their sins once a year. And he did as the LORD commanded Moses."

Of course, everything required in this statute portrayed our Lord Jesus Christ in his great work of redemption. In these last verses of chapter 16, we are given a picture of the believer’s experience of grace. On that great and glorious day…

·        The high priest made atonement for the holy sanctuary, the tabernacle of the congregation, the altar, himself, the priests, and for all the people of the congregation of the Lord. – That is a picture of particular redemption. By the sin-atoning blood of Christ God’s Israel has been cleansed, made clean from all sin before the Lord (1 John 3:5).

·        Those for whom atonement was made were required to afflict their souls and do no work at all “by a statute forever” (vv. 29 and 31). – That is a picture of faith in Christ.

·        That day, that great and glorious day, when Israel saw redemption accomplished and sin put away by God’s sacrifice, was “a sabbath of rest…by a statute forever.” – That is a picture of the blessed rest of faith. Not only do we cease from our works, we rest in him who has done all for us.

It is in this context that God gives the commandment regarding blood. – He is not talking about the sanctity of animals. He is talking about worship, the sanctity of his throne! – He is not talking about diet. He is talking about worship. He specifically mentions the killing of an ox, a goat, or a lamb because these were the animals Israel was required to sacrifice at his altar, by which Israel worshipped him.

Now, look at verse 4.

(Leviticus 17:4) "And bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer an offering unto the LORD before the tabernacle of the LORD; blood shall be imputed unto that man; he hath shed blood; and that man shall be cut off from among his people:"

B. This is a prohibition against idolatry.

God did not make a prohibition against hunting! The prohibition was against idolatry. Verse 4 is talking about the offering of a sacrifice in the open field. This is clearly the intent of the passage (v. 5).

(Leviticus 17:5) "To the end that the children of Israel may bring their sacrifices, which they offer in the open field, even that they may bring them unto the LORD, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priest, and offer them for peace offerings unto the LORD."

All men naturally presume that it is perfectly acceptable for us to worship God as we please. Surely God would not object to a man offering a sacrifice to him in the open field. What could be wrong with that?

It was an act of idolatry. It was despising God’s altar, God’s priest, God’s sacrifice, and God’s Word. It was an act of defiance, revealing a man’s contempt for God. It was nothing less than robbing the Lord Jehovah of his glory, and ascribing and giving to Satan that which was due to God alone.

A man might ask, "But can I not offer a sacrifice in one place as well as another; can I not come to God any way I wish, so long as I am sincere?" The answer is this:—God promised to meet his people on the mercy-seat, between the cherubs (Ex. 25:22). To offer sacrifice somewhere else showed contempt for God. He calls it devil worship, an act of the worst form of adultery in the world, whoring after other gods (v. 7).

The lesson should be plain to all.—There is one place where God has appointed to meet the sinner, at the cross—the antitype of the brazen altar. There and there alone has God's claim upon the life been duly recognized. To reject this meeting-place is to bring down judgment upon ourselves.—It is to trample under foot the blood of Christ, make the blood a common thing, do despite to the Spirit of grace, and defy the just claims of God, arrogating to ourselves a right to life which we have forfeited by sin.

·        Only the precious blood of Christ is acceptable to God.—Only his sin-atoning blood is “a sweet savor unto the Lord” (v. 6).

(Leviticus 17:6) "And the priest shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar of the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and burn the fat for a sweet savour unto the LORD."

The blood and the fat belonged to God. Our blessed Savior fully recognized this. As a man (the God-man, our Mediator) he surrendered his life to God the Father. He voluntarily walked to the place of sacrifice and there gave up laid down his life, poured out his precious blood (an eye for an eye—a tooth for a tooth—life for life!). The fragrant sweet incense of his infinitely excellent sacrifice ascended up to God and satisfied his holy, infinite justice for us! Blessed, blessed Savior! The incense of your precious blood shall never cease to prevail with God for us!

Dear Lamb of God, Thy precious blood

Shall never lose its power,

‘Til all the ransomed church of God,

Be saved to sin no more!

·        God required that the blood of the sacrifice offered anywhere except upon his altar be imputed to the man who shed it.

Though it was only the blood of an animal, yet being shed as a sacrifice for man, and typical of the blood of Christ which was shed for us at Calvary, the blood was sacred and precious to God. That blood, he required be offered to none but himself., offered only upon his appointed altar, by his appointed priest, and at his appointed time. Anyone who defied his sacrifice was to be punished as a murderer, because in God’s sight idolatry is as equally heinous as murder (Isa. 66:3).

(Isaiah 66:3) "He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man; he that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he cut off a dog's neck; he that offereth an oblation, as if he offered swine's blood; he that burneth incense, as if he blessed an idol. Yea, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delighteth in their abominations."

·        All false worship is idolatry.—Will we ever learn this lesson? God will not be worshipped except upon his Altar, through his Priest, by the merits of his Sacrifice—Christ!

(Leviticus 17:7-10) "And they shall no more offer their sacrifices unto devils, after whom they have gone a whoring. This shall be a statute for ever unto them throughout their generations. 8 And thou shalt say unto them, Whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers which sojourn among you, that offereth a burnt offering or sacrifice, 9 And bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer it unto the LORD; even that man shall be cut off from among his people. 10 And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people."

·        The idolater was to be cut off from the congregation, not merely excommunicated from the church of God, deprived of the privileges of his house, but even put to death. He was guilty of blood[1], that is, of death. Therefore, he was to be put to death, either by the hand of the congregation (when the offence was known by men), or by the immediate hand of God (Lev. 17:10), as Uzza was when he touched the ark.

(Leviticus 17:10) "And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that eateth any manner of blood; I will even set my face against that soul that eateth blood, and will cut him off from among his people."

·        The application to us in this gospel age is clear.—We must worship God in the way he has prescribed and cut ourselves off from all idolatry and all idolaters (Lev. 17:5; 2 Cor. 6:14-7:1; Rev. 18:4).—We must come to God trusting Christ alone!

(2 Corinthians 6:14-18) "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? 15 And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? 16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, 18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty."

(2 Corinthians 7:1) "Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."

(Revelation 18:4) "And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues."

II. Atonement is in the blood.

(Leviticus 17:11-16) "For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul. 12 Therefore I said unto the children of Israel, No soul of you shall eat blood, neither shall any stranger that sojourneth among you eat blood. 13 And whatsoever man there be of the children of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn among you, which hunteth and catcheth any beast or fowl that may be eaten; he shall even pour out the blood thereof, and cover it with dust. 14 For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof: whosoever eateth it shall be cut off. 15 And every soul that eateth that which died of itself, or that which was torn with beasts, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger, he shall both wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even: then shall he be clean. 16 But if he wash them not, nor bathe his flesh; then he shall bear his iniquity."

I call your attention to verse 11. Understand verse 11 and the rest of the chapter is plain enough.

(Leviticus 17:11) "For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul."

Let’s look at this 11^th verse line by line.

A. "For the life of the flesh is in the blood.”—Stated 3 Times in verses 11 and 14!

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure this out: no blood, no life! Blood nourishes and sustains the whole of life physically. When An animal was sacrificed upon the altar of God, a life was sacrificed. When the Lord Jesus Christ poured out his life’s blood upon the cursed tree for us, he gave himself. Giving his blood, he gave his life!

(Galatians 2:20-21) "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. 21 I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain."

(1 John 3:16) "Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren."

These blood sacrifices in the Old Testament signified much, much more than most ever imagine; and the pouring out of Christ’s precious blood displays the very same thing as those sacrifices did.

1. The sacrifice of a life declares that life belongs to God.

Life is God’s prerogative. He kills and he makes alive, both physically and spiritually. He is the Lord of life. Life belongs to him. He gives it and he takes it, as it pleases him. He declares, “I am the God of all flesh” (Jer. 32:27). Man was not to feast upon that which was God’s prerogative. The blood of an animal slain was either to be brought to God’s altar or poured out like water upon the ground, returning to God.

Coming to God, by faith in Christ, we acknowledge that we have robbed God of our lives. We have taken that which properly belongs to God and consumed it upon our own lusts. Bowing to him, we consecrate our lives to him, gladly taking Christ as our Lord. We lose our lives to our Savior! That is what faith is in its essence. It is giving up my life to Christ (1 Cor. 6:19-20).

2. The sacrifice of life declares the horrid enormity of our sin.

Oh, what a horribly, infinitely evil thing sin must be, if God (ever good, ever gracious, ever merciful, ever love) should require the life of his own darling son to put away sin!

B. "For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar."

Look away, yonder to Calvary. Behold, Christ’s precious blood poured out upon God’s altar. Hear the Lord God speak. He says, “I have given it to you!” What a blessed word of grace!

1. The Lord Jesus gave his life’s blood for us to God the Father; but the Lord God has given his Son’s precious blood to us.

·        We are justified by the blood (Rom. 5:9).

·        The wrath and justice of God has been satisfied by the blood (Rom. 3:24-26).

·        We are reconciled to God by the blood (Eph. 2:13).

·        Every blessing of grace comes to us through the blood (Col. 1:14, 20).

·        Our consciences are purged from the guilt of sin by the blood (Heb. 9:12-14).

·        We have access to God by the blood (Heb. 10:19-20).

·        We are sanctified by the blood (Heb. 13:12).

·        We are cleansed by the blood (1 John 1:7).

·        We will, one day soon, stand before the throne of God perfectly purified by the blood (Rev. 7:14).

·        We will triumph over sin and death, over hell and the grave by the blood (Rev. 12:11).

·        We will glorify Christ forever, singing and praising him because of the blood (Rev. 5:9).

2. Turn back to Exodus 12:13 and hear this:—The Lord God says, “the blood shall be to you for a token!” It is a token God has given un, by which the constantly speaks to us.

(Exodus 12:13) “And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.”

·        A Token of God’s Willingness to Save Sinners!]

·        A Token of Assured Acceptance!

·        A Token of God’s Infinite Love!—Ancient Love!—Intense Love!—Mighty Love!—Unlimited Love!—Immutable Love!—Persevering Love!—Free Love!—Saving Love—“When I see the blood I will pass over you!”

C. Look at Leviticus 17:11 again.— "For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul."

The blood of our Lord Jesus Christ was shed at Calvary for one specific purpose—“To make atonement for your souls.” Will it do the job? Is it enough? Let’s see.

D. "For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul."

Yes, sir! The blood of Christ poured out upon the cursed tree accomplished precisely what God intended. His blood made atonement for his people! Just as the blood of the paschal lamb made atonement for the whole congregation of Israel, so the blood of Christ our Passover, who was sacrificed for us, made atonement for all God’s Israel.

(Romans 5:6-11) "For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. 8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. 10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. 11 And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement."

Atonement is God's gift to his people. This atonement is in the blood, and only in the blood. "It is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul." It is not the blood and something else. The word is most explicit. It attributes atonement exclusively to the blood. "Without shedding of blood there is no remission" (Heb. 9: 22). It was the death of Christ that rent the veil. It is "by the blood of Jesus" we have "boldness to enter into the holiest." "We have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins" (Eph. 1: 7; Col. 1: 14). Christ “made peace by the blood of his cross." "Ye who were afar off are made nigh by the blood of his cross." "The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin" (1 John 1: 7). All the saints of God have "washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb."

The blood of Christ is the foundation of everything and the fountain of everything. "It is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.” This is conclusive. Only in this way can God be both “a just God and a Savior.” Only by the blood can he be both Just and the Justifier of all who believe.

Read the Bible one more time. From Genesis through Revelation, you will find that the only ground upon which God almighty can or will deal with sinners in grace is through “the blood that maketh atonement for the soul.” The blood of Christ is revealed as the alone foundation of righteousness.

As it is the only foundation upon which we can come to God, so it is the only fountain by which grace flows to us. We get pardon, peace, life, righteousness, all by the blood, and nothing but the blood.

Precious, precious, precious beyond expression is the blood of Christ. “It is the blood that maketh atonement for the soul!” The blood of Christ is so precious in God's sight that he will allow nothing to be added to or mingled with it. "The life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar, to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul."

[1] He who was guilty of blood was guilty of the blood of God’s sacrifice, Christ. That blood was imputed to him. Therefore he was cut off. (Leviticus 17:4) "And bringeth it not unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer an offering unto the LORD before the tabernacle of the LORD; blood shall be imputed unto that man; he hath shed blood; and that man shall be cut off from among his people:"