A Continual Burnt Offering

Today's Verse:

And thou shalt say unto them, This is the offering made by fire which ye shall offer unto the LORD; two lambs of the first year without spot day by day, for a continual burnt offering. ~Numbers 28:3 

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The nation of Israel was commanded to observe various offerings and ceremonies as part of their spiritual relationship with God. Each of these offerings and ceremonies was designed to keep them conscious of and committed in their relationship to God. This morning, we are considering the continual burnt offering. 

It was a sacrifice. 

The burnt offering involved the sacrificial death of a lamb of the first year in the morning and in the evening. The lamb that was offered had to be without spot or blemish. It could not be disabled, wounded, or diseased. It was a baby lamb. It pointed to Jesus, Who was sinless and gave His life in the prime of His life. A sacrifice is when something very important is given up. In the case of the burnt offering, it was the entire life and body of the lamb. A sacrifice is always costly. It is a hands-off offering that is given with the utmost devotion. 

It gave a savor. 

It is a continual burnt offering, which was ordained in Mount Sinai for a sweet savor, a sacrifice made by fire unto the Lord. A sweet savor means the smell from the offering was pleasant to the nostrils of God. It is like walking into your house and smelling the aroma of delicious food being prepared with spices. God was to be pleased with the sacrifice in the morning and the evening. When a sacrifice was made, nothing was to be left over, and all of the sacrifice was to be consumed. God is pleased when the sacrifice is given without haste and reservation. 

It was to be ceaseless. 

It was a continual burnt offering. It was to be made every morning and evening. It was a daily sacrifice. They were never to tire of making this sacrifice. They were to never stop making this sacrifice. It was to be practiced from generation to generation. It was to be done at the same times each day. It was to be done the same way. It involved a lamb without blemish twice a day. God never tired of the continual burnt offering, and His people were to never let it get old or become indifferent toward doing it. 

It was supplemented. 

There were other offerings that were made along with the burnt offerings. There was the burnt offering of the Sabbath; there was the burnt offering of the beginning of months; there were the drink offerings; there were the meat offerings; there was the Passover and the Day of Atonement. The idea was that a sacrifice was never too much, too cumbersome, too many, or too repetitious. Sometimes, a church will have several special offerings. We should never feel like they are too much or too repetitious. 

It was symbolic. 

The continual burnt offering symbolized the whole dedication of a Christian. We are called upon to present our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God. The dedication of the Christian life to God is our reasonable service. Our dedication is a sacrifice that is to be ceaseless, a sweet-smelling savor, and without scorn. The motivation that drives our dedication is Christ’s complete and total sacrifice of His life for our sins. The dedication of our bodies as living sacrifices to God is never too much nor is it an infringement. 

Have a dedicated God Morning! 

Reading Schedule: Mark 14

#Numbers #BurntOffering #Dedication