Tabernacle and Leviticus

Main Points:

God is Holy. God expects His people to be Holy and to be completely devoted to Him. His people will be a peculiar people, set apart from the world to and for God. God gives His people rules/laws to live by to express their devotion to Him and to maintain their holiness.

10 Words or Less: A Holy God explains how to worship Him.

Location: At the foot of Mount Sinai.

Leviticus: “About the Levites” People in ancient times called this book the “priest’s manual.” It covers a lot of the job description of the Israelite priests and a step-by-step procedure for sacrifices. Levites are the descendents of Jacob’s child, Levi. Moses and Aaron are from this tribe. God appointed the Levites to serve as Israel’s worship leaders.

*Christ is the High Priest according to the order of Melchizedek, not Levi. All bowed to Melchizedek through Abraham. Christ is above all.

Animals are used as sacrifices to die for a person’s sins (Leviticus 1:3-4). This is to make atonement, expiation, and propitiation. What does this mean? Expiation: Sins are covered and are nullified. Propitiation: God’s wrath/anger is appeased. God reconciles sinners to Himself through the sacrifice. All of this points to Christ. Read Romans 3:25; Romans 5:10; 1 John 2:2; Hebrews 9 and 10.

“The life of the body is in its blood,” God explains. “I have given you the blood on the alter to purify you, making you right with the Lord. It is the blood given in exchange for a life, that makes purification possible (Leviticus 17:11). The wages of sin is death; sin warrants the death penalty (Romans 3:23; Romans 6:23). In Christ was life, and the life was the light of men (John 1:4).

The first Ordination - Leviticus 8:10 - Moses took anointing oil and anointed the Tabernacle and everything in it, making them holy… Then He poured anointing oil on Aaron’s head, making him holy for his work. The oil represented or symbolized God’s power. Jesus is the Anointed One, the Messiah, the Savior (Acts 10:38). He is God’s presence and power. The Christian is anointed by God through Christ for service (2 Cor. 1:21; 1 John 2:27).

Kosher Menu given - Leviticus 11:3 - While the menu may have serve to make a healthier people, it marked the people as God’s unique people, who were devoted to God. God was teaching them to obey Him. With the New Covenant, food laws become obsolete (Mark 7:20-23; Acts 10:15; Romans 14:1-23).

Seven Holy Feasts - Leviticus 23 - Feast of Passover, Feast of Unleavened Bread; Feast of First-fruits, Feast of the Harvest, Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Jesus is our Passover Lamb, the Lamb Who takes away our sins, Whom we partake and become the Body of Christ. Christ cleanses us from the yeast (sin) that contaminates, and we are free to leave our old lives behind and move forward with God, in His freedom. Christ is the “firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep and has resurrected (1 Cor. 15:20).” He was the first to rise and receive a glorified body, and so shall the many who will be born again. Pentecost came through Christ’s promise and sending the Holy Spirit (John 14:16, Acts 2; Eph. 1:13-14). The Feast of Weeks can point to Christ’s ministry, the church age, and what will occur at His second coming. The Feast of Trumpets may point us to the Second Coming and the trumpet blast that will sound out as the King of Glory comes back to finish all things. The Day of Atonement points to the Work of Christ and it may also point to the day when all Israel will be saved (Romans 11:25). The Feast of Tabernacles points to Christ coming to us in the flesh and to the time when He shall reign on the earth, and He will be with us forever.

“You must be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy” (Lev. 19:2). God is still Holy, Holy, Holy, and we should still treat Him as such.

Questions:

Does God still want me to be holy?

Does God care how we worship Him?

Am I still required to obey any laws from God?