Bible Discussion Thread

Lev. 16 cont. ...

and the ones who removed the carcasses are to wash themselves and his clothes and put on clean clothes before returning to the tabernacle that evening.

This ceremony was done on the 10th day of Tishri every year in perpetuity in order to atone for the sins of the people for the preceding year.

Yom Kippur is the Holy Day that typifies Christ so vividly. Not only is Jesus the High Priest that entered the Holy Place to make atonement upon the mercy seat of heaven, but it was His blood that was sprinkled on the heavenly mercy seat, and this was done once and for all, doing away with the rites mentioned in this chapter. And also, Jesus remains in the Holy of Holies in heaven to every intercede for us.

On the cross, Jesus was the bull offered for Himself, who became sin for us, and the goat who was offered for the sins of the whole world, and the scapegoat, who took our sins from us and put them away in a far place never to return to us. In Jesus all that was required of God to expiate, propitiate, atone, forgive, remove, and cleanse us from our sins, sinfulness, transgressions and impureness before God. He took the wrath of God for us. He died for us, In the tomb He the sins of the world were released from Him and left in the grave. In the resurrection He justified us making us alive to God and presenting us to God in His righteousness. In all of this, along with His sinless perfect human life and perfect eternal all sufficient divine life He broke the curse of sin on all of mankind and opened the way to paradise and eternal life eternally.

Those who believe this is true indeed receive all of the merits, promises, and treasures of the work of Christ in His incarnation. Those who refuse to believe this is all true cannot have these things appropriated to themselves and will die in their sins and spend eternity in hell. So sad for them. Yet so overjoyed for the elect of God in Christ! The salvation of God is immeasurable and completely sufficient!

Last words on Leviticus 17

I know that God brings such things to us to draw us into holiness before Him. I am thankful He does this.

I was hoping some of you may share ways y believers demonstrate that they esteem the blood of Jesus as so precious and also ways believers can defile of profane the blood of Jesus, thus trampling it underfoot.

"The Preciousness of the Blood"

Part 3

"A part of this was surely that the blood, as symbolized in the wine (of which some drank too much, vs. 21), was disregarded and profaned.

Not only is misconduct at the Lord's Table profaning the blood of Christ, but also absence from the Lord's Table. There are many who view communion as a ritual best to be endured, and then only occasionally. The New Testament saints remembered the Lord daily ( Acts 2:42-46), and later it was weekly ( Acts 20:7; 1 Cor.11:2 cf. 16:2). Those who consistently failed to commemorate the Lord's death not only disobeyed the command of the Lord ( Lk. 22:19-20) but they profane the blood He shed by valuing it so little that they fail to commemorate His death as He has instructed us. ....

There is essentially but one way in which non-Christians profane the blood of Jesus Christ, and that is esteeming it of so little worth that they seek acceptance with God on the basis of their own works, in place of the atonement, in which Christ shed His own blood. Imagine standing before the judgment seat of God (the Great White Throne) and having God ask you but one question, the answer to which determines whether you spend eternity in heaven or in hell. The question, I assure you, will be this, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH THE BLOOD OF MY SON?"

God cares nothing for what you have to offer, but only what He Himself has offered you, His only begotten Son: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." ( Jn. 3:16). How dare any man think he could offer God anything for his own redemption, when God has paid the price in full at the cost of the blood of His own Son."

I just thought that this portion of this article was so well said and worth consideration.

We may be able to think of other ways we can profane the blood of Jesus.

I think of when a believer shows acceptance of non-christian by Jesus without conversion. More ideas?

Thanks Gigi.

Great topic.

Wilful sin is a big issue as the article mentioned.

Hebrews 10:26-27. For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,

But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.

Here's also a commonly looked over sin.

James 4:17. Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

Sometimes we as Christians think we have the balances in our hands to tell the degree of the offence so we weigh the sin against another man's sin. That seems to give us comfort to continue in our folly.

We should understand that we have been bought/Redeemed with the blood of Christ!

Here is where we examine ourselves to see if Christ Lords over our 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.

I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.

This righteousness is not just Positionally it is practical. It should be on display "BECAUSE" it is energized by the Spirit.

This is not how well we serve, it's WHO we serve and WHO is glorified.

It's the outward act that shows the inward parts. ( The regenerated heart.)

If we count the blood of Christ dear to us we should have a fear of offending the grace of God, so his word and our our worship should line up with scripture.

Our walk and zeal confirms our attitude towards the ransom.

Another way to treat the blood of Christ as if it wasn't enough and try to add to it is to say "You don't except it or perhaps don't believe it.

God bless.

Thank you S. Spencer.

We can also talk on this thread about ways we show we treasure the shedding of our Lord's blood as being more precious than anything else.

I am thinking that we show this positive mindset about the blood of Christ by speaking truthfully about His person and His work and how His shed blood affects us.

We can show this positive mindset by praying for opportunities to share the gospel fully and completely with someone who is lost and then do it when the opportunity comes to us.

We can show that we treasure the blood of Jesus when we admit our absolute need for it for our salvation, admitting that we are sinners in need of atonement and the removal of our sin and guilt from us along with a desire to be right with God through the blood of our Savior, the only begotten Son.

We can show that the blood of Jesus is precious to us whenever we approach the throne of grace to draw near to the FAther knowing that it is the blood of Jesus that permits this.

I am sure others have very good thoughts on this, too. Looking forward to reading them.

"The Preciousness of the Blood"

Part 2

"If we truly treasure the blood of Christ, we will not defile it. the preciousness of the blood of Christ is a very pertinent factor in the life of the Christian. Peter maintains that the preciousness of the blood is to be the Christian's motivation for purity--for avoiding profaning the price of our redemption. In other words, to resist the goal for which the blood of Christ was shed is to profane the price which was paid to realize the goal: purity and holiness. Put differently, the degree to which the blood of Christ is precious is also the measure of the penalty for profaning it.

The regulations that God gave to the Israelites in Chapter 17 of the book of Leviticus were intended to prevent the profaning of the blood of living creatures. It should be granted, then, that what is precious should not be profaned. Are there ways in which the precious blood of Jesus Christ, our Lord, is profaned? I believe so.

First, the believer profanes the blood of Christ by persisting in the very sin from which the precious blood was intended to cleanse us. Listen to these most sobering words from the book of Hebrews:

"How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he has been sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace?...It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God." ( Heb. 10:29.31)

A second way in which a Christian can profane the precious blood of Christ is by a disregard for the Lord's Table, or by misconduct in your remembrance of the Lord's death. You will recall that in the 11th Chapter of 1 Corinthians, the misconduct of the Corinthian saints was described. The result was that some were judged by sickness and some by death ( 1Cor. 11:30). The reason given by Paul was that the saints did not "judge" the body rightly" (vs. 29).

Continued in Part 3

Hello, recently I posted for responses to my query of how we can defile or honor as precious the blood of Jesus. I am thankful for Chris' reply.

I had cited an article "The Preciousness of the Blood" by Bob Diffinbaugh. I was really impressed with what he wrote on this topic so I would like to quote this article today.

"Blood is not precious in its own right, but because it is equated with life. The principle conveyed first in Leviticus 17 is that "the life is in the blood". Pressing this matter further, then, we can safely conclude that God values life as precious. Blood is the instrument through which atonement is made, which spares the life of the sinner. Life is this precious to God, as well it can be for it was God who created all life. ( Gen. 1-2)

If blood, (and, as we have seen, life) is precious then there are several areas of application. The first application is that God values all life. Let the abortionist take note! Let those who talk about "quality of life" beware. God is the giver of life, Satan, through sin, seeks to destroy it. Let us prove to be on God's side by seeking to save life, rather than destroy it.

Pressing the fact that God values all lie to its personal level, we can say with great conviction, God values your life. God values your life so much more highly than you do. The measure of the value which God has placed on your life is the price which He was willing to pay to save it; the precious blood of His only Son, Jesus Christ. According to this standard, God has placed infinite value on your life. May you and I value our life in the light of the value God has ascribed to it.

Further, knowing the value which God has assigned to life enables us to better grasp the evil of sin, which seeks to destroy life by producing death. Cin can only be appraised in the light of tits ultimate result--death, and death can only be evaluated in light of its opposite--life. How ugly sin is in the light of the value of the life which it seeks to destroy."

Hello GiGi. Thanks for your very good commentaries on these chapters, and as in this chapter 17 on sacrifices conducted by the priests, your emphasis being on the blood.

Your question intrigued me, as true believers, endued with God's Spirit, will always consider Christ's Sacrifice & the necessary shedding of His Blood as most vital for their forgiveness & transformation, the other part of your question, of "ways believers can defile or profane the blood of Jesus, thus trampling it underfoot", I wondered about. I doubt whether genuine believers can ever "defile or profane" the Sacrifice that Jesus made for them.

Your statement took me to Hebrews 10:29: "Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?" Though there are opinions on this epistle, mine continues to focus on it being sent to the Hebrews, i.e. those of Jewry who have turned to Christ & meeting in various congregations outside of Palestine. But some, having left Judaism behind & drawn to Christ, were not necessarily converted. They may have confessed their faith, been baptized in water, even some demonstration of a heart change & 'gifts' used in the Church. But a large portion of this letter is an apologetic to the superiority of Christ to that of the Old Covenant & Laws, which the Hebrews writer would not address in such detail unless there was some problem amongst those who were considering abandoning the 'faith' & returning to Judaism.

Though this letter is an encouragement to them, it also came as a grave warning. And here in Hebrews 10:29 (as also seen elsewhere), the warning was to those in such a spiritual state, that to return to Judaism effectively meant that they have determined that Jesus & His Sacrifice meant nothing & Judaism was the only answer. No further sacrifice availed for them.

Thank you, Chris. Good food for thought.

A coincidence too find you together.

Thank you both for your reply and your continued faithfulness on this site.

Even so, your understanding of the word is articulated in your response, using the word.

When we get to that point in the scripture, we now have the meat of the word that will sustain, and give us more wisdom and strength found in His enduring love!

Proof once again that the scripturas is of no private interpretation, but Holy men and woman spoke and were moved according to the 3rd person in the trinity! The Holy Spirit that lives and moves even so now and forever!

I am comforted with knowledge that sin in itself is worthy of nothing more than the forgiveness of sin, through the Holy sacrifice of Jesus Christ! That, even so we all fail at times, sometimes falling away, yet the spirit is with us, watching over us in our times of failure.

Only to find once again the unfailing words that were spoken by Him," I will never leave you nor forsake you".

Let every soul know, that the law is the schoolmaster that brings us to Christ! It is through the law we have the knowledge of sin.

The inbreeded law, this the conscience serves, as the purpose that God has meant for it to be.

The law and the Gospel serving one another unto the perfection that our Lord wants for us! You cannot serve God and man. You will either love one and hate the other! Thank you both, In Jesus name

Again on Leviticus 17

Then Abraham offered animal sacrifices to God for atonement of sins. God called him to offer Isaac, Abrahams beloved son of the promise of God. God did not allow Abraham to follow through with this sacrifice but it showed that the sacrifice of a beloved Son was what will truly atone for sin and cleanse mankind from sin.

Now in the wilderness, YHWH speaks more about the killing of animals and the value of the blood. He forbids them to continue to offer any sacrifices in any way but bringing them to the tent of meeting. This would keep them from offering sacrifices to pagan idols like those around them, especially to Pan/Mendes, the goat idol of fertility, which was present in Egypt and in Canaan. The Israelites were to understand that in order for their sacrifice and their meat to be clean they were to present it unto God first. This reminds me of 1 Timothy 4:3-5 which tells us that we are to give thanks to God for our food and in thus doing it is deemed clean.

But even more deep is the preciousness of the blood of Jesus, our sacrifice for sin. AS the article I mentioned above speaks to, we are to hold as precious His blood shed for us and not defile or profane it in any way. Unbelievers do this by refusing to come before God by the blood of the Lamb thinking that they can present themselves before God acceptably any other way but through the blood of Jesus. Their refusal to receive the one remedy for their fallenness that God has ordained shows that they do not see the blood of Jesus as absolutely precious and lifegiving.

We, on the other hand, know this about the blood of Jesus cleansing us and giving us life, atoning for our sin and bringing forgiveness that we do not deserve. But I wonder that there are times when believers do not esteem His blood as precious as it truly is. Do we profane it or depreciate it's value in the way we speak of act? These thoughts to me really hit home. So, I examine myself before the Lord and repent.

More on Leviticus Chapter 17

I just finished reading a good commentary on this chapter titled, "The Preciousness of the Blood". It was such a great commentary. I recommend it. Go to Bible .org and type in the title.

I knew before reading this commentary that there was still more that God wanted me to glean from this chapter and I was thinking about the significance of singling out the blood in this chapter as being so important. so, being led to this article was a very good answer to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.

God has determined before the foundation of the world that blood is precious. It is in every creature He created. It is life determining. He emphasized this in Chapter 17 of Leviticus when it came to killing animals for consumption and for sacrifice. He emphasized that these animals are to be brought before the LORD at the tent of meeting so that the priest can butcher them properly, draining the blood and sprinkling it upon the altar. God cares about every animal he created. And when one dies he knows. Death is unclean, it defiles the body of the creature that once was alive. This is a very good depiction of what sin does in us. It defiles us because it brings death to us. It makes us unclean because it causes us to decay and become unwholesome.

The blood of creatures is precious because it keeps them alive. Not only the whole body, but each part of the body needs blood or else it will die even if the whole creature still lives. Sin causes death in different aspects of our lives. It is like a lack of blood flow to a body part. Life is in the blood, as the LORD decreed.

Before creation the Godhead determined that the shedding of blood to the death of one is the means of bringing atonement from sin. whether it was the animal God sacrificed in Genesis 3 to cover Adam and Eve's "nakedness" or the sacrifices Noah made after leaving the Ark to atone for the corruption of the earth from sin that brought on the flood. Blood cleansed and atoned.