A Thank Offering to the LORD

Leviticus 23:1-44

Key Verse 22:29

In this passage we can learn how to remain thankful to the Lord. The Lord knows that although thanksgiving serves good purposes of its own, it is possible that we may go unthankful to the Lord for all our thanks topics. In anticipation of this possibility, the Lord came up with ways to get his children disciplined in appreciating his provisions. In the passage we find an important training program geared to discipline his children to remain thankful to the Lord.

We know that thanksgiving is the key to securing our position as children of God; it is a safeguard for us not to forfeit all the blessings found in the Lord. Remember how the first couple lost all their blessings, that is, because of their ingratitude. Consider also what Paul says in Romans 1:19-32, esp. v. 22. 

The Lord knows the importance of thanksgiving for our salvation. So he had his divine way (wisdom) to teach us how to remain thankful to the Lord. The key is to help us appreciate the value of the salvation coming to us in and through the Lord Jesus. How then do we learn to appreciate the value of our salvation? The answer is by learning to actually sacrifice what we have to the Lord. Sacrifice is the key to thanksgiving. Example: If you want to know what it is for the Lord to shepherd over his flock, by all means learn to actually shepherd over one person, sacrificing your time and energy. Or if you want to know the value of the Lord's sacrifice for us (sacrificing even to the point of shedding his blood, to the last drop), go and get one lamb, butcher it, drain its blood, and offer it to the Lord as the priests were asked to do for each Israelite who sinned. Easy come easy go. 

Another quick example is what’s going on with the American football game. As a player works hard in the field to score, and even as the scores he earns results in his team winning, he ends up appreciating the value of the victory better for he himself put a lot of efforts into the game. In the same way the Apostle Paul said that if we suffer with Christ, we can be heirs and coheirs with Christ. No cross, no gain.

Read Leviticus 22:29. This passage indicates that one of the characteristics of "a thank offering to the Lord" is an act of "sacrifice" on our part. Why then should we "sacrifice" anything in giving thanks to the Lord? [Or "Why is sacrifice on our part necessary in giving thanks to the Lord?”] What does the phrase "on your behalf" tell us about the one who benefits from such an offering (of thanksgiving to the Lord)?

** It is to appreciate the value of the sacrifices the Lord came up with. What the Lord has already achieved for us is unfathomably valuable. But a lot of people end up missing out on it; they drop the ball and blow up their salvation simply because they don’t appreciate the value of it. 

** It is the one who sacrifices, not the Lord. While the Lord is also a person and as a person he likes or dislikes your responses to what he does for you, still ultimately it is you who benefits; the Lord is already sufficient, and he doesn’t want you to sacrifice this or that because of his own needs, but because of the needs you/we have. 

 

Skim through the chapter 23 and think about the following expressions: "my appointed feasts" (2); "the appointed feasts of the Lord" (2,44); or "the Lord's appointed feasts" (4,37). What do these expressions indicate about the "point" of these feasts? About our life in the Lord? 

** The point is the Lord. The Bible says that the law is a shadow of the reality to come, that is, Jesus Christ. Colossians 2:17; Heb 10:1. These feasts are about the Lord, pointing to what the Lord did in the past, what he is doing now, and what he is going to do more for us in the days to come. 

** This is like a couple in a marriage relationship; our Lord Jesus is called a husband, and believers are called his bride. One of the meanings of this analogy is that whatever happens to the husband is going to happen to the bride, if the bride sticks to the husband. Jesus came to lead us out of bondage to decay into the life eternal. He came to restore the paradise we lost.

How many times is the expression "sacred assembly" repeated? What does "sacred" mean? What does this expression tell us about the nature of the feasts mentioned in Leviticus 23?

** 8 times in singular, 3 times in plural (sacred assemblies)

** Sacred – blessed, consecrated, pure, saintly, divine, godly, celestial, spiritual

** They touch mostly upon the spiritual aspects of our lives, so that as we are blessed spiritually we are going to be blessed on a physical level as well. These feasts are blessed occasions; they are blessed occasions with spiritual imports, designed to bless us inside out. 

What do the following words (or expressions) stand for? 1) Sabbath; 2) Passover; 3) Unleavened bread; 4) a sheaf of the first grain (10); 5) firstfruits (17,20); 6) trumpet blasts; 7) the Day of Atonement (Deu 32:43); and 8) [the Lord's feast of] Tabernacles.

** Sabbath – rest (work itself is a blessing if we are in the Lord; but this work must come with rest, for it is through rest that we can work better; rest is also the purpose of work, for while we are in a physical body we are called to work out the salvation the Lord has already purchased for us, and thereby get ourselves ready to enter into the eternal rest the Lord prepared for us. Heb 4:5-11

This is the summary as well as the whole point of all the thanks topics we have in the Lord, that is, the vision to fulfill man's full potential without a limit, without sweating, doing God's work for God's glory effortlessly, with joy, still finding the deepest level of rest in the Lord, which is the vision to be fulfilled in the Lord.

Remember that Jesus is the Lord of the Sabbath. Matthew 12:8; Mark 2:28 This is why Jesus calls us to come to him to find rest. Matthew 11:28

** Passover – this denotes the passage from the life of slavery to the power of sin and Satan to the freedom of life in worship of the Lord for those who put trust in Jesus, the Passover Lamb. 1Co 5:7; The word "pass plus over" is suggestive of God forgiving us of our sins by God looking at Jesus who took the punishment for us. 

So we passed the river, crossing the land of slavery (as a criminal without any future of life and prosperity) to the land of freedom (as a child of God), with the right to inherit a glorious future in the Lord.

This happens to those who like Cornelius hear the message of peace and believe in the forgiveness of sins in Jesus' name.

This is the first thanks topic. Without you passing this point, it is pointless for you to talk about all other good things for you are like a man on the Titanic not knowing that the boat is going to go down.  

** Unleavened Bread – it denotes the blessed life with Jesus who is without sin. We are to eat Jesus the unleavened bread and live on him. In Matthew 26:26 Jesus asked his disciples to eat the bread which he called his body, and that bread was without yeast. Of course this does not mean that we need to participate in communion service all the time; rather what Jesus meant was to accept Jesus as the Lord and Savior into our heart, form a spiritual unity with him, and live by His will and purpose. In the Bible eating is symbolism for intimate fellowship. Unlike the Passover meal, we need to eat unleavened bread seven days a week, meaning all the time. Exo 13:7; Lev 23:6

Leaven stands for corruption caused by sin due to unbelief. 1Co 5:7-8

This is the second thanks topic. 

** A sheaf of the first grain denotes the resurrected Jesus. In the Bible [wheat of] grain stands for a soul saved into God's presence (Matthew 3:12; 13:30); Jesus is the first one to be saved into the presence of God in a resurrected body. While Jesus himself is God, Jesus being the perfect God and perfect man, himself showed an example of the ones to be saved into God's kingdom. 

This is the model for us to follow.

So this is the third thanks topic.

** Firstfruits – this denotes the batch of the saved souls in the Lord, namely all who believe in Jesus. The first batch of the saved ones came out on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit came down upon the body of believers 50 days after the resurrection of Jesus. James 1:18

This is the fourth thanks topic.

** Trumpet blasts: these are the heralding the second coming of Jesus. Notice the prolonged wait for this feast following the feast of the firstfruits, which indicates the long wait of the believers for the groom to come back again. 

This is a series of wake up calls, calling us to remain spiritually alert, instead of falling into spiritual slumber.

One bible scholar noted that the no. of promises of Jesus' second coming is 8 times more than that of Jesus' first coming. This is just like the long trumpet blasts which were heard throughout Israel for ten days until the day of Atonement arrived. 

This is the fifth thanks topic.

** The Day of Atonement denotes the day when Jesus comes again to fulfill what was prophesied by the prophets such as Moses as in Deut. 32:43. This day is going to be the day when Jesus will restore the Israelites and their land back to him. This is the concept Jesus talks about when he said the first will be last, the last first. At first some Jews became first in coming to the Lord. Then the Gentiles came. Then those who were first are to be last, that is, Jews being saved as is seen here on this festival.

This is the day when the enemies of God's people would be judged by the Judge, the Risen Jesus. 

This is the sixth thanks topic, for the Jewish believers are to be all saved as the Gentile believers. 

** Tabernacle – this denotes the Lord dwelling among us. This looks forward to the Lord coming to this planet earth and building his rule here on earth to be with us and rule with us. This prayer topic is seen in the Lord's prayer that is to pray "Your kingdom come here on earth…" 

This is the final  thanks topic.  

Think about the offering (or offerings) to be brought to the Lord on each feast (except the Sabbath). Why do you think the Lord commanded the Israelites to bring them to the Lord? What do these commands indicate about the way to offer thanks to the Lord?

** These offerings are great teaching devices, that is, teach them the value of the Lord's provision for his children. Read Matthew 6:21; God knows that we are materialistic. So by asking us to sacrifice what we think as valuable, he teaches us the value of the sacrifices the Lord is making for his children. In addition by letting us go through these sacrifices the Lord wants us to better understand the meaning of the Lord's sacrifices esp. the blood of Jesus, the Son. 

** Do not come to the Lord empty-handed. Exodus 34:20 Notice that this is not to burden us but to bless us. God does not need to eat or be made materially rich. Rather God wants us to mean business in giving thanks to God for his provisions such as Passover or pouring of the Holy Spirit onto the life of he one who believes in Jesus' sin-forgiveness. 

Practically we do not need to actually bring animals such as lambs. We don't need to peel off the skin of a lamb or goat, nor do we need to go through rituals such as shedding blood on an altar or the like. Rather, we can best experience the true meaning of thanksgiving by actually devoting our resources sacrificially to serving the Lord, preaching the gospel, or serving the Lord by supporting the ministry through monetary offerings. 

** Share a testimony on one thing you learned about the way to give thanks to the Lord.

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