The Meat Offering
Leviticus 2:1-5 - And when any will offer a meat offering unto the Lord, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon: [2] And he shall bring it to Aaron's sons the priests: and he shall take there out his handful of the flour thereof, and of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof; and the priest shall burn the memorial of it upon the altar, to be an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord: [3] And the remnant of the meat offerings shall be Aaron's and his sons': it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the Lord made by fire. [4] And if thou bring an oblation of a meat offering baked in the oven, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil. [5] And if thy oblation be a meat offering baked in a pan, it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mingled with oil.
Leviticus 6:14-23 - And this is the law of the meat offering: the sons of Aaron shall offer it before the Lord, before the altar. [15] And he shall take of it his handful, of the flour of the meat offering, and of the oil thereof, and all the frankincense that is upon the meat offering, and shall burn it upon the altar for a sweet savour, even the memorial of it, unto the Lord. [16] And the remainder thereof shall Aaron and his sons eat: with unleavened bread shall it be eaten in the holy place; in the court of the tabernacle of the congregation they shall eat it. [17] It shall not be baked with leaven. I have given it unto them for their portion of my offerings made by fire; it is most holy, as is the sin offering, and as the trespass offering. [18] All the males among the children of Aaron shall eat of it. It shall be a statute for ever in your generations concerning the offerings of the Lord made by fire: every one that touches them shall be holy. [19] And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, [20] This is the offering of Aaron and of his sons, which they shall offer unto the Lord in the day when he is anointed; the tenth part of an ephah of fine flour for a meat offering perpetual, half of it in the morning, and half thereof at night. [21] In a pan it shall be made with oil; and when it is baked, thou shalt bring it in: and the baked pieces of the meat offering shalt thou offer for a sweet savour unto the Lord. [22] And the priest of his sons that is anointed in his stead shall offer it: it is a statute forever unto the Lord, it shall be wholly burnt. [23] For every meat offering for the priest shall be wholly burnt: it shall not be eaten.
When the term Levitical offering is mentioned, the thought of blood sacrifices flashes across the minds of most people. While it is true that the offerings in the Levitical system were blood sacrifices, there was ONE exception- the meat offering.
The meal offering was a bloodless offering, consisting of grain presented to the Lord. The Hebrew word meal (Minchah) means gift and refers to any gift presented to God (Gen. 4:3) or mankind (Gen. 32:13).
And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord.
Genesis 32:13
And he lodged there that same night; and took of that which came to his hand a present for Esau his brother;
In this passage of Scripture it refers to the Israelites presenting their meal offerings in thanksgiving for God’s love and goodness bestowed on them.
The meal offering could be presented in one of three forms:
1. Uncooked flour
2. Unleavened Cakes
3. Green ears of grain, dried over fire, and beaten to remove the grain
The first form of a meal offering was in the form of uncooked flour. Unlike the blood sacrifices, labor went into the preparation for the meal offerings. The meal had to be CRUSHED, GROUND and sifted 13 times to become fine flour, picturing Christ’s ministry.
Leviticus 2:1
And when any will offer a meat offering unto the Lord, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon [2] And he shall bring it to Aaron's sons the priests: and he shall take there out his handful of the flour thereof, and of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof; and the priest shall burn the memorial of it upon the altar, to be an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord:
Fine flour speaks of the evenness and uniformity of the Lord’s character and service. He was scourged and crucified for the sins of mankind. During His earthly ministry, Jesus went through the sifting process of Satan’s temptation and the religious leaders’ testing, yet NO SIN was found in Him. More importantly, no GUILE was found in His mouth. He never complained about His calling and destiny in life. The writer of Hebrews said He “offered up cries” to be delivered but was not heard.
Those cries were not groanings and murmuring, it was the cry of the Saviour burdenend with the sins of the world. He knew the end of His life was going to be cruel and hard but willingly and THANKFULLY He offered up Himself to the Father for us. That is the message of the MEAT OFFERING – thanksgiving.
The uncooked flour pictures the labor of the Israelites. They had to plant, water, weed, harvest, crush, grind, and sift the grain before offering it to the Lord. For the believer today, we become the offering itself, offering our life and thanksgiving to God with a pure motive of love and in the power of the Holy Spirit. In the New Covenant economy, the Holy Ghost does the watering, the weeding, the harvesting, the crushing, the grinding, the sifting and bringing the grain into the barn.
The second form of meal offering was unleavened cakes.
Leviticus 2:4 - And if thou bring an oblation of a meat offering baked in the oven, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil.
These cakes could be prepared in three ways: kneeding the flour into unleavened cakes and baking it in the oven (v. 4), picturing the unseen suffering of the Lord at the hand of God the Father.
Matthew 27:45-47
Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all the land unto the ninth hour. [46] And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me
The second way the priest prepared the cakes was to bake the cakes in a pan (griddle, v.5), picturing His intense suffering at the hand of Satan (Gen. 3:15).
Genesis 3:15
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
The third way was to bake the cakes in a frying pan, picturing the visible suffering of Christ at the hand of mankind (Matthew 27:27-31).
Matthew 27:27-31 - Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the common hall, and gathered unto him the whole band of soldiers. [28] And they stripped him, and put on him a scarlet robe. And when they had platted a crown of thorns, they put it upon his head, and a reed in his right hand: and they bowed the knee before him, and mocked him, saying, Hail, King of the Jews! [30] And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head. [31] And after that they had mocked him, they took the robe off from him, and put his own raiment on him, and led him away to crucify him.
The meal offering went a step beyond being fine flour, because more preparation was involved. It also pictured us as believers going a little step further in our service for the Lord than just what is demanded. A thankful heart will gladly go the extra mile for Jesus without question and without thought to the cost of the offerers. Selfishness is foreign to the meat offering. It rebukes the spirit of the age.
The third form of meal offering was a green ear of grain, dried over fire, and beaten to remove the grain (v. 14). In John 12:24, Jesus pictured Himself as a grain of what that had to die to produce fruit. A grain that falls into the ground dies, but through its death the life of the kernel is freed from its encasement and regenerates itself into thousands of other grains possessing the same nature.
Through death, Jesus brought resurrection life to all who will put their faith in His finished work on the cross. The grain was SCORCHED, another picture of Jesus going through the fire of suffering to redeem mankind. Beating the grain typified Christ’s scouring and beating (Matthew 27:26,30).
Matthew 27:26
Then released he Barabbas unto them: and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered him to be crucified.
Matthew 27:30
And they spit upon him, and took the reed, and smote him on the head.
The offering was to be of the first fruits (v. 14), a definite type of Christ, who is the first fruits of the resurrection (1 Cor. 15:20,23) and appears in heaven representing all believers, who one day will be resurrected in their glorified bodies (Phil. 3:20-21, James 1:18).
1 Cor. 15:20-23
But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the Firstfruits of them that slept. [21] For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. [22] For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. [23] But every man in his own order: Christ the Firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming.
Philip. 3:20-21
For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: [21] Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself.
James 1:18
Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of Firstfruits of his creatures.
Various ingredients were added to or omitted from the meal offering. Leaven, which could not be used in the offering (v. 4, 11), was made by kneading flour (without salt) into a ball and allowing it to stand it until fermented. It was not used at Passover (Ex. 12:8, 15-20), the Feast Of Unleavened Bread (Lev. 23:6-8), or any offering placed on the altar (Ex. 23:18; Lev. 2:11), with two exceptions. Leaven was permitted in the peace offering and the two wave loaves presented at the time of the first fruits.
Leviticus 1:4
And he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him.
Leviticus 1:11
And he shall kill it on the side of the altar northward before the Lord: and the priests, Aaron's sons, shall sprinkle his blood round about upon the altar.
Exodus 12:8
And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.
Exodus 12:15-20
Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel. [16] And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you. [17] And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever.
[18] In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even. [19] Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eateth that which is leavened, even that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a stranger, or born in the land. [20] Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread.
Leviticus 23:6-8
And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the Lord: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread. [7] In the first day ye shall have an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein. [8] But ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord seven days: in the seventh day is an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein.
Exodus 23:18
Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning.
Leviticus 2:11
No meat offering, which ye shall bring unto the Lord, shall be made with leaven: for ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in any offering of the Lord made by fire.
First, the Israelites presented unleavened cakes (Lev. 7:12) with the peace offering, picturing the sinless Christ, who provides peace for us as believers, reconciling us back to God.
Ephes. 2:13-18
But now in Christ Jesus the blood of Christ makes you who sometimes were far off nigh. [14] For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; [15] Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; [16] And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: [17] And came and preached peace to you which were afar off, and to them that were nigh. [18] For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.
Second, they offered leavened bread as a thanksgiving offering for the peace God provided for them. Leavened bread typifies believers making peace with God through proper sacrifices, although evil still exists in us. In the wave offering, the same picture was presented, but the application was to the church, not to individuals.
Leviticus 7:13
Besides the cakes, he shall offer for his offering leavened bread with the sacrifice of thanksgiving of his peace offerings.
Leviticus 23:17
Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baked with leaven; they are the Firstfruits unto the Lord.
In Scripture, leaven always pictures impurity and evil. Jesus compared the evil doctrines of the Pharisees and Sadducees with that of leaven.
1 Cor. 5:6-8
Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? [7] Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us: [8] therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
Matthew 16:12
Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.
Honey could not be used in the meal offering (Lev. 2:11) for a number of reasons. First, honey, like leaven, is a fermenter and corrupter when used in the preparation of vinegar. Second honey represents NATURAL sweetness, which is pleasant to the taste and something to be desired, but it is a symbol of carnality and wicked pleasure. Although very tasty in the mouth, honey becomes sour in the stomach if too much is eaten. (Prov. 25:16, 27)
Leviticus 2:11
No meat offering, which ye shall bring unto the Lord, shall be made with leaven: for ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in any offering of the Lord made by fire.
Proverbs 25:16-17
Hast thou found honey? Eat so much as is sufficient for thee, lest thou be filled therewith, and vomit it. [17] Withdraw thy foot from thy neighbor’s house; lest he be weary of thee, and so hate thee.
Third, honey was offered in the abominable religious practices of heathens living around the Israelites. These points can be applied to Christ’s ministry. He relied not on the natural graces of the sweetness of His person to persuade men, but on the power of the Holy Spirit. Christ also turned away from the sweet things of life – whether they were relationships or material comforts – if they interfered with His mission on earth. There was no element of sweetness in His sacrificial death on the cross; rather, it was cruel suffering.
Olive oil was to be mixed into the meal offerings symbolizing the anointing power of the Holy Ghost, the person of the Godhead who administers the plans, purposes and programs of God on earth.
The Holy Spirit played a major role in the ministry of Christ. He was conceived (Matthew 1:18-20), baptized (Matthew 3:16), anointed (Heb. 1:9), empowered for service (Luke 4:14, 18), and resurrected (Rom. 8:11) by the Holy Spirit.
Luke 4:14
And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit into Galilee: and there went out a fame of him through the entire region round about.
Luke 4:18
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
Romans 8:11
But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
Matthew 3:16
And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:
Matthew 1:18-20
Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. [19] Then Joseph her husband, being a just man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily. [20] But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.
The Holy Ghost is operative in believers in many ways. We are “BORN” of the Spirit (John 3:3-6), baptized into the Body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:12-13), blessed with gifts for service (1 Cor. 12:7-11, 27-30, Eph. 4:11), and empowered to witness for the Lord through the “Baptism” in the Holy Ghost. (Acts 1:8).
John 3:3-6
Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. [4] Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? [5] Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. [6] That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
1 Cor. 12:7-11
But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. [8] For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; [9] To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; [10] To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: [11] But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as he will.
1 Cor. 12:27-30
Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular. [28] And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues. [29] Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles? [30] Have all the gifts of healing? do all speak with tongues? do all interpret?
Eph. 4:11
And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
Acts 2:4
And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Acts 1:8
But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.
1 Cor. 12:12-13
For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. [13] For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
A second ingredient to be put into the meal offering was SALT. Salt was used to preserve it from putrefaction and arrest corruption within the meal. Salt was emblematic of God’s covenant relationship with Israel; thus, it was called “salt of the covenant of thy God” (v. 13), signifying the enduring covenant relationship between God and Israel, which was never to be broken (Numbers 18:19; 2 Chr. 13:5)
Leviticus 2:13-14
And every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt. [14] And if thou offer a meat offering of thy Firstfruits unto the Lord, thou shalt offer for the meat offering of thy Firstfruits green ears of corn dried by the fire, even corn beaten out of full ears.
Numbers 18:19
All the heave offerings of the holy things, which the children of Israel offer unto the Lord, have I given thee, and thy sons and thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: it is a covenant of salt for ever before the Lord unto thee and to thy seed with thee.
2 Chron. 13:5
Ought ye not to know that the Lord God of Israel gave the kingdom over Israel to David for ever, even to him and to his sons by a covenant of salt?
The meal offering seasoned with salt reminded the Israelites of their covenant relationship with God in several ways:
One, they were to live PURE and consistent lives before the Lord. Two, they were to bring their offerings in truthfulness without hypocrisy; they were to be obedient to the commands of God; the covenant signified God’s friendship with them and assured that God would be a faithful friend, keeping His promises; and the covenant was eternal, showing them the perpetuity of their relationship with God.
Salt is used in the New Covenant as a symbol of the relationship of Christians to God. We are to be “the salt of the earth.”
Matthew 5:13
Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
Just as salt arrests corruption, so Christians dispel the tide of satanic corruption manifested in the world. Our speech is to be “seasoned with salt,” so that they can “minister GRACE unto the hearers” by means of the tongue. Our words expose the life we live. If our words are always criticism, griping, complaining, backbiting, murmuring, negative thinking, groaning, grumbling, and all the like – then we can be sure we have a heart issue with God. Out of the abundance of the HEART the mouth speaks.
Col. 4:6
Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that ye may know how ye ought to answer every man.
Ephes. 4:29
Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.
Matthew 5:13
Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.
Matthew 12:33-36 - Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt: for the tree is known by his fruit. [34] O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. [35] A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things. [36] But I say unto you, that every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the Day of Judgment. [37] For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.
Salt is not insipid but has TANG, as will Christians whose lives are filled with the Holy Spirit. But salt can lose its savor or taste (Matthew 5:13). Christians are not to lose their savor, they become unusable for God’s service and must be set aside. The end result is that we become non-effective in our testimony to the world, and people trample our witness under foot.
A third ingredient put on the meal offering was frankincense. Frankincense should not be confused with the incense burned on the altar of incense, since it was a different substance. Frankincense was made from the fragrant white gum that exudes from the salar tree found in Arabia. It was never used for private purposes (Ex. 30:31-33) but only for worship.
It typified Christ in two ways. First, at Jesus’ birth the wise men presented Him with frankincense (Matthew 2:11), symbolic of His pure life. The incense is a picture of Jesus’ life, which manifested the sweet fragrance of perfection in all that He said and did. Second, the incense is a symbol of Christ through the New Covenant believer. Paul made reference to this in 2 Corinthians:
2 Cor. 2:14-15
Now thanks be unto God, which always causes us to triumph in Christ, and makes manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place. [15] For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish:
The Offerers
Meal offerings were brought VOULUNTARILY to the Lord, “when any will offer,” (v. 1). The offerers could bring as much meal, as often as they desired, to the Lord. The meal offering, like the burnt offering was “a sweet savour unto the Lord.” (v. 2)
The Israelites were to present their meal offerings to the priests: “And he shall bring it to Aaron’s sons, the priests (v.2). The entire offerings were then given to the priests at the entrance of the Tabernacle. Unlike the burnt offering, no ceremony accompanied the meal offerings. The Israelites did not participate in these offerings; they simply yielded their gifts to the priests in obedience to the law, picturing the Israelites presenting the fruits of their lives and labors to the Lord.
Believers today certainly bring gifts to the Lord through our tithes and offerings but the greatest gift we bring Him is our lives AND labor as a LIVING sacrifice unto God – THANKFUL, not begrudgingly. Our motives are key to everything. The Lord loves a “CHEERFUL” giver. That “cheerful” giving spirit must accompany even our tithes. Even though the tithe is required, if it is not given out of a cheerful heart God does not bless it that much at all.
Our labor on earth is not for earthly fame or fortune. This world is not our home; we’re just a passing through. Our TREASURES are laid up somewhere beyond the blue. Where are TREASURE is there will our heart be also.
Matthew 6:19-24 - Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: [20] But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: [21] For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. [22] The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light. [23] But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness! [24] No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
Realizing their labors are not in vain gives believers the incentive to be steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in good works. We know we will someday stand before the judgment seat of Christ to have our works judged by the Judge of the Earth and King of the nations.
1 Cor. 3:12-13 - Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; [13] Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.
2 Cor. 5:10
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
The Officiating Priests
The priests took a handful of flour, cake, or grain to burn on the altar as a memorial (v. 2). The handful offered on the altar represented the whole burnt offering presented to the Lord. The priests in the holy place of the Tabernacle court could eat the remainder of the meal offering (Lev. 6:16).
Leviticus 6:2
If a soul sin, and commit a trespass against the Lord, and lie unto his neighbour in that which was delivered him to keep, or in fellowship, or in a thing taken away by violence, or hath deceived his neighbor;
Leviticus 6:16
And the remainder thereof shall Aaron and his sons eat: with unleavened bread shall it be eaten in the holy place; in the court of the tabernacle of the congregation they shall eat it.
Only males were permitted to partake of this offering.
Leviticus 6:18
All the males among the children of Aaron shall eat of it. It shall be a statute forever in your generations concerning the offerings of the Lord made by fire: every one that touches them shall be holy.
The daughters of the priests were permitted to eat the other offerings, which could be taken out of the Tabernacle. For the priests to partake, they had to be ceremonially clean, for “everyone that touches them shall be holy.”
Likewise, Christian believers are expected to have a holy walk. This is a necessity for both communion with Christ and for service. In reality, a holy walk is vita for eternal life itself.
1 Peter 1:14-16
As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance: [15] But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; [16] Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.
We are called to feed upon Christ, who is the Bread of Life, receiving spiritual sustenance needed for fruitful service. Jesus made it clear: “without me you can do nothing.”
John 15:5
I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abides in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
Paul understood our great need for Christ:
Philip. 4:13
I can do all things through Christ, which strengtheneth me.
The priests were required to present a meal offering at their installation into the priesthood. They were to take a “tenth part of an ephah of fine flour,” mix it with oil, and bake it in a pan. Half was offered with the burnt offering during the morning sacrifice and half during the evening sacrifice. The offerings were to be given perpetually during the time of the priests’ service. They could not eat the meal offering that they presented to the Lord but were to offer it all on the brazen altar.
Leviticus 6:20-22
This is the offering of Aaron and of his sons, which they shall offer unto the Lord in the day when he is anointed; the tenth part of an ephah of fine flour for a meat offering perpetual, half of it in the morning, and half thereof at night. [21] In a pan it shall be made with oil; and when it is baked, thou shalt bring it in: and the baked pieces of the meat offering shalt thou offer for a sweet savour unto the Lord. [22] And the priest of his sons that is anointed in his stead shall offer it: it is a statute forever unto the Lord, it shall be wholly burnt.
Although the meal offering was not a blood sacrifice, and the Israelites were permitted to offer meal for a sin offering, they still had to bring a blood sacrifice to atone for sin. Moses set forth the principle in Leviticus long ago, “it is the BLOOD that atones for the soul.” (Lev. 17:11)
Leviticus 17:11
For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.
Leviticus 5:11
But if he be not able to bring two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, then he that sinned shall bring for his offering the tenth part of an ephah of fine flour for a sin offering; he shall put no oil upon it, neither shall he put any frankincense thereon: for it is a sin offering.
The meal offering always accompanied the burnt offering as a memorial of THANKSGIVING to the Lord, but there was one exception. The meal offering could be substituted for a blood sacrifice under only one condition. If an Israelite was too poor and could not afford the very inexpensive offering of two turtledoves or two young pigeons, then, and only then, could a tenth part of an ephah of fine flour be brought as a sin offering. But it had to be offered without oil or frankincense, showing that it lacked the character of a usual meat offering. The reasons for this were the same as for the burnt offering.
The Israelites brought their meal offerings in thanksgiving to God for His love and mercy bestowed upon them. Although Christians do not present meal offerings, they are to offer their lives and labors to the Lord.
Frances Havergal’s beautiful hymn says it all:
Take my love, my God I pour,
At Thy feet its treasure store;
Take myself, and I will be
Ever, only, ALL for Thee
Ever, only, ALL for Thee
That is the message of the meal offering – THANKSGIVING to God. Many give thanks each day to a God they don’t really know. There is only one way to know God and that is through the SON – The Lord Jesus Christ. He is the WAY, the TRUTH and the LIFE to the Father. No man, no man, no man, comes to the Father but by HIM! Neighbor, that is the song we are singing today- something that makes us glad. Jesus has taken our sins all away- oh SAY but I’m glad! Praise God.