Leviticus 9: God with Us

​Key Verse
23 And Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting, and when they came out they blessed the people, and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. 

MEDITATION
God desires to dwell with you, revealing His glory in a personal and powerful way. 
 
Sin separates humanity from God (Isaiah 59:2). Sacrifice is the price for an unholy people to return to relationship with a just and holy God. Jesus Christ focuses faith on God’s ridiculous grace by becoming the redemptive sacrifice needed to restore relationship and reveal glory.
 
The central theme of today’s chapter is God appearing to His people in glory (4, 6, 23). The tent of meeting was the place where Israel’s covenant King met with His people in the wilderness. Leviticus was priestly direction with the purpose of God re-engaging Israel in intimate relationship with their Redeemer. Sacrifice was central, for the priest (2-14) and the people, (15-21) so God’s glorious presence could fall on His people (23-24). 
 
The people gathered before the Lord in corporate worship. Appropriate sacrifices were made by the priests. Israel’s King appeared in glory, accepting the sacrifices, and worshipers fell on their faces. God’s glorious presence disrupts our posture and promotes worship.
 
God’s priesthood plan worked for a short time but it would not sustain (we see human inability in the next chapter- We need a greater priest than Aaron and his offspring!) God Himself would come dwell with humanity, Jesus revealing God’s glory (John 1:14; 2:11) and providing a way to return to relationship with God through the priestly sacrifice of His life (John 14:6). God’s sovereign grace reveals His eternal glory through Jesus Christ, the doorway for restored relationship with our King and direction for faithful worship.
 

PASSAGE
On the eighth day Moses called Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel, 2 and he said to Aaron, “Take for yourself a bull calf for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering, both without blemish, and offer them before the Lord. 3 And say to the people of Israel, ‘Take a male goat for a sin offering, and a calf and a lamb, both a year old without blemish, for a burnt offering, 4 and an ox and a ram for peace offerings, to sacrifice before the Lord, and a grain offering mixed with oil, for today the Lord will appear to you.’” 5 And they brought what Moses commanded in front of the tent of meeting, and all the congregation drew near and stood before the Lord. 6 And Moses said, “This is the thing that the Lord commanded you to do, that the glory of the Lord may appear to you.” 7 Then Moses said to Aaron, “Draw near to the altar and offer your sin offering and your burnt offering and make atonement for yourself and for the people, and bring the offering of the people and make atonement for them, as the Lord has commanded.”

8 So Aaron drew near to the altar and killed the calf of the sin offering, which was for himself.9 And the sons of Aaron presented the blood to him, and he dipped his finger in the blood and put it on the horns of the altar and poured out the blood at the base of the altar. 10 But the fat and the kidneys and the long lobe of the liver from the sin offering he burned on the altar, as the Lord commanded Moses. 11 The flesh and the skin he burned up with fire outside the camp.

12 Then he killed the burnt offering, and Aaron's sons handed him the blood, and he threw it against the sides of the altar. 13 And they handed the burnt offering to him, piece by piece, and the head, and he burned them on the altar. 14 And he washed the entrails and the legs and burned them with the burnt offering on the altar.

15 Then he presented the people's offering and took the goat of the sin offering that was for the people and killed it and offered it as a sin offering, like the first one. 16 And he presented the burnt offering and offered it according to the rule. 17 And he presented the grain offering, took a handful of it, and burned it on the altar, besides the burnt offering of the morning.
18 Then he killed the ox and the ram, the sacrifice of peace offerings for the people. And Aaron's sons handed him the blood, and he threw it against the sides of the altar. 19 But the fat pieces of the ox and of the ram, the fat tail and that which covers the entrails and the kidneys and the long lobe of the liver— 20 they put the fat pieces on the breasts, and he burned the fat pieces on the altar, 21 but the breasts and the right thigh Aaron waved for a wave offering before the Lord, as Moses commanded.

22 Then Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them, and he came down from offering the sin offering and the burnt offering and the peace offerings. 23 And Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting, and when they came out they blessed the people, and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. 24 And fire came out from before the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the pieces of fat on the altar, and when all the people saw it, they shouted and fell on their faces.


Richly Dwelling
-What stands out to you from today’s reading, especially the direction for God’s people to follow so they can engage Divine desire to restore glory in relationship with Him?
 
-Where do you see sacrifice a suggestion for restoring God’s glorious presence in personal relationship? This is to ask, where do you believe in your work more than the work of Jesus to restore and renew?
 
-Jesus has done everything to restore relationship. Jesus is the great High Priest who gave His life as a sacrifice for our sins! Jesus has done all the work to dwell in deep relationship with you.  Take time to write down what this has meant for your life and pray for ways to share this great hope with those you encounter.
 
Key Verse
23 And Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting, and when they came out they blessed the people, and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people.