THE VALUE OF THE BLOOD. Leviticus 17 We have instructions about holy living and practices from chapters seventeen through twenty-six. Some call this part of Leviticus the “Holiness Code.” Sacrifices were only to be made at the door of the tabernacle. Any other place was forbidden because it was the practice of idolaters. To sacrifice to any other gods would be like a man’s wife becoming a prostitute. Betraying God means being rejected by God. It was a strict rule that all sacrifices to God be made at His altar.
Many people fear seeing blood. Some actually faint because, despite their bravado, blood reminds them that death is inevitable. They may not consciously think about it, but our death day is kept at bay by the blood flowing in our veins. While some get used to seeing blood from animals or others, the idea of losing their own blood sparks fear, and they do everything possible to stop it. Humans worry about this because man cannot produce blood, and they understand this. The value of blood far exceeds any monetary worth. "The life of the flesh is in the blood." Life comes from and belongs to God. We depend entirely on God for life. Even if a serious blood loss occurs, God can produce more within us to restore what has been lost. Men can save it, store it, freeze it - but they cannot create it because the life of the flesh is in it, and only God can give life.
God had a specific place to meet with His people where they could bring their sacrifices and offerings to Him. They were not allowed to offer sacrifices anywhere else after the Tabernacle was established. Before Israel became a nation distinguished from other peoples, the patriarchs built altars and offered burnt offerings at many locations. This changed when God chose to dwell among His people in the Holiest of All, with the cloud and pillar of fire confirming His presence. These holy people were now privileged as a called-out community—the assembly in the wilderness.
When we gather in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we are called out from the world system to be gathered to Him as a separated people. This is our appointed position: "In the world, but not of the world." It doesn't only happen when we come together for meetings of God's people for teaching, testimony, and worship. We are gathered to Him at all times. When we make our spiritual sacrifices and offerings, we bring them to Him in the place where saints meet. Our sacrifices are connected with the "kingdom of priests."
The attitude of worship, praise, and thanksgiving leads to the action of offering spiritual sacrifices at the place where we remember Him and proclaim His death until He returns. The Lord's Supper is primarily for God and then for us. Just as the Jewish people were prohibited from making sacrifices in any location they chose, we too must follow the ordinances as God specified. Others may observe and hear, helping us avoid mistakes or developing personal worship habits that are not in line with God's will. It is just as wrong to think we are doing God's work in our own way as it was for an Israelite to offer a sacrifice in his own manner and place. That was the way the Egyptians sacrificed to their goat idols (demons), and God's people were not to imitate that practice in any way.
The significance of the atonement through the blood of a sinless sacrifice far exceeds what we usually understand. The right attitude was essential in sacrifices offered to the Lord. Someone might bring an offering out of religious duty, but it would hold no value. Religious rituals alone do not make a sacrifice acceptable to God. Simply performing a sacrifice and offering does not satisfy God's pleasure. When a sacrifice was made, the blood of a perfect substitute was shed. This blood symbolized the sinner's life, which, due to sin, ended in death. It also represented the life of the innocent substitute through which we are forgiven.
A common pagan practice was to drink blood, hoping to gain the animal's strength. This was forbidden because only God gives life and the strength needed. Also, the life of the animal is in its blood, and drinking it would imply we can obtain that on our own, undermining the symbolism of the new life God gives. God provides life and intends the blood of the animal to be respectfully covered, like in a burial. All life is a gift from God and should never be taken lightly. It is only a life that can be given for sin.
Life is sacred because only God can give it. Life belongs to God - both the giving and the taking of it. He holds the key to life and death. To offer a life to God in man's own way essentially robs God of that which is His to give or keep, and in the case of sacrifices made to idols, it gives to Satan what belongs to God. Atonement involves substituting a life for a life. Atonement is in the blood, and at the cross is where God meets the sinner. That is where a perfect life was given for us.
The uniqueness of our Lord Jesus Christ's substitutionary life is that, as the “Life-Giver,” He has obtained “eternal redemption” for us. His life is eternal, and He “gave His life as a ransom for all.” No one took His life from Him; He gave it personally, and God offers eternal life as a gift to those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. That gift was provided for us and paid for by shedding His own “precious blood.”
A just God found a just Savior and is able to justify us freely by His blood. "Without the shedding of blood (a life given), there is no remission (of sin)." The Lord Jesus Christ "made peace (with God) through the blood of His cross." The result is that we are "made nigh by the blood." Furthermore, "the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin." In the future, millions of people will wear garments "made white in the blood of the Lamb" and be able to join with those who "overcame by the blood."
The significance of the sacrifice and shedding of innocent blood began when Adam and Eve were clothed with skins from an animal that was killed so they could live. Throughout the Bible, the importance of blood is consistently taught. Our future song will be "Unto Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood."
Any dead animal that had not been bled would be rejected as food. The contamination that defiled one animal could be passed on through blood not drained from a slain beast. Another reason it was forbidden was to prevent the transfer of disease and infection through the blood of a dying animal. Strangled animals, blood—all these prohibitions had physical, moral, and spiritual restrictions imposed by God to protect the well-being of the whole person who was dedicated to Him. We need to be reminded from time to time that we "are not our own," we have been "bought with a price (the blood of Christ)": therefore, glorify God in your body and spirit, which is God's.