Paul McCartney famously said that if slaughterhouses had glass walls no one would eat meat. Images of animals being killed are confronting but being present while an animal is slaughtered in front of you is very distressing. I have personally seen the effect of this on one hapless Australian teenager left catatonic for days after witnessing the entire process for a pork dinner in a Thai village.
So why is this relevant to reading the Bible? Well, the Israelite who sinned, purposefully or neglectfully or even ignorantly, had to put his hand on the head of an innocent animal, to sense its life, its body heat so as to totally identify with it. Then he had to kill that animal - not the priest, not a butcher, but the person who had sinned, male or female.
He must lay his hand on the goat’s head and slaughter it at the place where burnt offerings are slaughtered before the LORD. This is an offering for his sin. Lev 4:24
Can you imagine the horror of doing this? It gives you a glimpse of the horror of our sin to God. There is no sanitising our sin. There is no turning your head away and wishing or pretending it gone. There is only the repulsion and horror that must accompany our acknowledgment of our sin.
Then we have to acknowledge that the animal sacrifice was costly, as too was the cost of a sacrifice for the sins of the world. Our sin could only be covered by the perfect atonement provided by God Himself.
He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world. (1 John 2:2).
Like Adam and Eve, we like to think that fig leaves could cover and hide our sin but God has loudly pronounced from the beginning of time that only a lamb, a specially chosen and prepared lamb — the Lamb who was slaughtered before the world was made (Rev. 13:8) could ever cover our sin.
Jesus’ sole mission was to come and save us, the ones who were helpless to save themselves. The ones who were the cause of his violent death. The ones who keep wanting to enthrone themselves instead of Him in their lives.
It took stamina and resolution to identify with an innocent animal, sure, but what is that resolution compared to someone who knew before you were created that He had to be that sacrifice for all your sin and rebellion?
All my sin was so contagious
All my failing, so outrageous
Says the Saviour, "I will pay this"
Praise the Saviour, Jesus (City Alight).
#kristinatrott #thewingsofadove #trottpublishing #jesussaviouroftheworld #jesussaves #animalsacrifice #sin
All quotes from NLT.
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