THE BURNT offering represents the blessed Man, Christ Jesus, as the obedient One, obedient right on to death itself (Phil. 2:5-85Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: 6Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: 7But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (Philippians 2:5‑8)). It presents Him not so much as taking our sins, but as offering Himself without spot to God, to accomplish His will, to glorify Him, and that in death. It is a wonderful thing for one to learn that the Lord Jesus died to put all my sins away, to be able to say, “He died for me!” For this we shall sing His praise through all eternity. Yet we gain infinitely more in our souls when we consider what that precious death has meant to God. This gives a much deeper and more lasting peace to the soul.
You will notice that the offerer brought the offering “of his own voluntary will,” to the door of the tabernacle. Now the Lord Jesus was really both the willing Offerer and the Victim too. He presents Himself “before the Lord” to do His will at all cost. All through His life on earth He did the Father’s will perfectly and this drew forth those words of the Father, “Thou art My beloved Son; in Thee is all My delight.” Thus He was fit to be a sacrifice.
But all His perfect righteousnesses, however much they might glorify God, would have been of no avail to us if He had not died, and so we see the Offering killed, and the blood sprinkled round the altar. It was sprinkled there because the brazen altar was the first place of approach to God. The worshiper who came with the offering had come to meet with God, and needed One to make atonement for Him. This the blood does; for “it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.”
But first the offerer “shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering.” This was also done in the case of the sin offering, but there in type the sins of the offerer were transferred to the Victim. However, in the burnt offering the offerer is seen as identified with all the value of the sacrifice in the sight of God. Just as God accepts and finds infinite delight in the sacrifice of Christ, in the same measure He accepts the believer and delights in him too. “It shall be accepted for him"; “He hath made us accepted in the Beloved.” (Eph. 1:66To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. (Ephesians 1:6)).
Perhaps our dear young reader is one of many who say, “I believe that Jesus died for my sins, but I do not seem to have peace.” This is what makes the truth of the burnt offering so precious, for the more we learn of what Christ is to God, the deeper will be the peace in our souls.
God finds infinite delight in Christ and what He has done. The believer is now before Him in all the perfection of that work. We shall never be more perfect, never more acceptable to God, in heaven than we are now. He has nothing but thoughts of love and goodness toward us.
Sweetest rest and peace have filled us, Sweeter praise than tongue can tell; God is satisfied with Jesus, We are satisfied as well.
ML-05/02/1971