During the history of Christianity from the days of the apostles until now, there has been a strong tendency for believers to focus on themselves and on what God has done and will do for them. This is not surprising, for since the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, man’s heart has been not only selfish, but what is far worse, self-centered. His thoughts have revolved around himself — his ambitions, his pleasure, his will. Indeed, sin itself is not merely the doing of wrong things, but is, in its root, the exercise of an independent will. Sad to say, this attitude is not only common in the world, but has tended to pervade Christianity.
As a result, believers have often looked upon the work of Christ on the cross merely as a fire escape from hell, and they have looked upon God as a philanthropist who is there to provide for all their needs, to solve all their problems, and to give them an easy pathway through this world. It is true that the Lord has promised to care for us and supply our needs. He wants us to depend on Him and to come to Him with our difficulties. However, if our relationship with Him does not go any farther than this, we miss a great deal and dishonor the One who has so much more than this for us.
God’s Perspective
God wants to lift us out of ourselves to have such a relationship with Him that we see everything, not from our side, but from His perspective. God lives and moves in eternity, and man too, being made in the image and likeness of God, was made for eternity. We live in a time scene, and for the moment our minds are bounded by time, but we read in Ecclesiastes 3:1111He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end. (Ecclesiastes 3:11) that “He hath set the world [or, the infinite, eternity] in their heart.” When God lifts our hearts above this world, we see things in a broader way: We appreciate God’s thoughts about everything, and not merely our limited thoughts. This is a blessed privilege for us as believers, and particularly in view of the truth given to the church in the New Testament. However, we have types of this precious truth in the Old Testament, and one of the best of these is the burnt offering.
The term “burnt offering” goes as far back as Abraham’s time, but the truth of it comes in right at the beginning of man’s history, for we read in Genesis 4:44And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: (Genesis 4:4) that Abel “brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof.” The fat was the Lord’s portion, which Abel offered by faith, and it speaks of the inner energy and force in the sacrifice. This was ultimately seen in perfection in Christ, the true burnt offering. This was for God Himself, although offered by man, and is brought out fully in the voluntary offerings detailed in the Mosaic law.
The Burnt Offering
The burnt offering, then, is the first one mentioned in the offerings given to us in the early chapters of Leviticus, as that which brings before us Christ’s offering Himself up to God in full obedience and for God’s glory. The offering was voluntary, showing us that the obedience of Christ was voluntary; it was not forced. Rather, it was, “I delight to do Thy will, O My God” (Psa. 40:88I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart. (Psalm 40:8)). Also, atonement is not so much in question as the fact that all was to be “a sweet savor unto the Lord” (Lev. 1:99But 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 savor unto the Lord. (Leviticus 1:9)). Atonement is, of course, brought in, for the blood must be sprinkled “round about upon the altar,” but in the voluntary offerings the thought is more about the excellency of the sacrifice rather than the guilt of the offerer. Thus, when the offerer laid his hand on the head of the offering, he was identified with all the excellency and worth of the sacrifice.
All of the burnt offering was for the Lord; “the priest shall burn all on the altar” (Lev. 1:99But 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 savor unto the Lord. (Leviticus 1:9)). None was to be eaten or used in any other way. This brings before us God the Father’s delight in His beloved Son, who in willing obedience submitted Himself perfectly to His Father’s will, whatever the cost might be. He became “obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Phil. 2:88And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (Philippians 2:8)). Sin could not be a sweet savor, but the sacrifice of Christ, in all that He was and in all His willing obedience, was of special sweetness to God the Father. “Christ ... hath given Himself ... an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor” (Eph. 5:22And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savor. (Ephesians 5:2)).
Degrees of Appreciation
On our part, there may be degrees of appreciation of what Christ was to God, as evidenced by the various animals mentioned for the burnt offering. The bullock was a comparatively large animal, and it speaks of a large appreciation of what Christ was to God and of the excellency of His Person. The sheep or goat was smaller, and the turtle-dove or pigeon quite small. But how beautiful it is; in each case the comment on the sacrifice was the same: “It is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savor unto the Lord” (Lev. 1:9,13,179But 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 savor unto the Lord. (Leviticus 1:9)
13But he shall wash the inwards and the legs with water: and the priest shall bring it all, and burn it upon the altar: it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savor unto the Lord. (Leviticus 1:13)
17And he shall cleave it with the wings thereof, but shall not divide it asunder: and the priest shall burn it upon the altar, upon the wood that is upon the fire: it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savor unto the Lord. (Leviticus 1:17)). In whatever measure we understand and appreciate what Christ was to God, our sacrifice of praise and worship is a sweet savor to the Lord.
In the case of the turtle-dove or pigeon, part of the bird was to be removed before it was offered. More than this, it was the priest who killed the bird, not the offerer; this was not the case with the bullock and the sheep or goat. The priest typifies the Lord Jesus, who Himself, by His Spirit, is there to help us in our weakness, when we present Him to God in worship. A hymn expresses it well: “To all our prayers and praises, Christ adds His sweet perfume.”
Things to Remove
The feathers were removed, again by the priest, because they typify outward show. In some birds the feathers are very thick, as, for example, in the great grey owl. When he attacks his prey, the object of his attack often tries to defend itself, but usually gets only a mouthful of feathers, because they are so thick. But the feathers must be removed, speaking of that in our worship which is merely of nature and not of the Spirit.
Finally, the crop must be removed, for the crop of a bird holds food which has not yet been digested. It is held there until transferred to the bird’s stomach for digestion. As believers, we may use expressions in our praise and worship which we may have read or heard, but have not yet meditated upon and made our own. As such, it is merely expressing the thoughts of others which are not yet really ours. This is not true worship, for it is another’s appreciation of Christ and not from our own hearts. The Lord Jesus, typified by the priest, must remove all this, so that what is presented to God is only the reality — that which is of the Spirit.
In conclusion, then, we see that God’s estimate of His beloved Son far exceeds ours, for our appreciation of Him tends to be based on our need. If we allow God to take our thoughts beyond ourselves, to see everything from God’s side, not only are our own thoughts greatly expanded, but also God is far more honored and our Lord Jesus Christ far more glorified.
W. J. Prost