In my previous post, I mentioned that BSF has taken me to the book of Hebrews. Chapters 7-10 were on the agenda for this past week, and they focus on comparing the old versus the new covenants in the Bible.
If you aren't familiar with this, here is a short recap:
OLD covenant= Laws given by God to Moses and the Israelites, people had to obey these laws in order to have favor with the Lord, involved Levitical priests to go before the Lord once a year in tabernacle, animal sacrifices were necessary to forgive sin, only laws and no freedom
NEW covenant= Jesus came as the one superior sacrifice for all our sins, intimate fellowship and direct access with the Lord possible now, animal sacrifices and priests no longer need, law now written in the hearts of believers, believers have a permanent and unbroken relationship with the Lord, grace and complete freedom in Christ offered
I'll be honest and say that I thought I was very familiar with this topic in the Bible, I mean that is the difference of the Old and New Testament (testament means "covenant"), and I was...BUT, oh, I had more things to learn this week! First off, 4 chapters a week was kicking my butt! I started in on the usual assignments of questions and was stumped time and time again! They were just TOO HARD! Instead of persevering and praying through them, I was SO frustrated, did not have a good attitude about them, and didn't even finish. (If you know anything about BSF, this is a no-no). You may know, or have noticed above, that the sacrifice/penalty for sins always involved the shedding of blood. In the old covenant this occurred through animal sacrifice, and in the new covenant through Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. The hard questions asked...How did Christ secure our eternal redemption? What spiritual effects resulted from shedding of the blood? Why was the shedding of blood necessary to ratify both covenants? Why do you think God requires blood to forgive man's sin? I DON'T KNOW. BIG QUESTION MARK.
And so, when I thought I knew it all, I learned this...
I am sure you all are familiar with the story and Adam and Eve and the fall of man recorded in Genesis. Sin entered the human race when, through an attack of Satan, Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit. They doubted God's word and trusted in their own ability to discern good from evil. Immediately after sinning, they realized they were naked and were shameful for being exposed. AND THEN in chapter 3:21 it says, "The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them." This was the FIRST SACRIFICE MADE FOR SINS. God had to kill an animal (shed blood) in order to make these garments to cover Adam and Eve. THIS is why the shedding of blood was necessary for both the covenants. This event foreshadows the sacrificial system of animals in the old covenant and the eventual sacrificial death of Jesus as an atonement for sin of the new covenant. From the beginning, shedding of blood was necessary for the sacrifice/consequence of sins. I am blown away with what I have learned! This is so cool to me!
Have you thought about this concept before or heard this explanation?
If you aren't familiar with this, here is a short recap:
OLD covenant= Laws given by God to Moses and the Israelites, people had to obey these laws in order to have favor with the Lord, involved Levitical priests to go before the Lord once a year in tabernacle, animal sacrifices were necessary to forgive sin, only laws and no freedom
NEW covenant= Jesus came as the one superior sacrifice for all our sins, intimate fellowship and direct access with the Lord possible now, animal sacrifices and priests no longer need, law now written in the hearts of believers, believers have a permanent and unbroken relationship with the Lord, grace and complete freedom in Christ offered
I'll be honest and say that I thought I was very familiar with this topic in the Bible, I mean that is the difference of the Old and New Testament (testament means "covenant"), and I was...BUT, oh, I had more things to learn this week! First off, 4 chapters a week was kicking my butt! I started in on the usual assignments of questions and was stumped time and time again! They were just TOO HARD! Instead of persevering and praying through them, I was SO frustrated, did not have a good attitude about them, and didn't even finish. (If you know anything about BSF, this is a no-no). You may know, or have noticed above, that the sacrifice/penalty for sins always involved the shedding of blood. In the old covenant this occurred through animal sacrifice, and in the new covenant through Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. The hard questions asked...How did Christ secure our eternal redemption? What spiritual effects resulted from shedding of the blood? Why was the shedding of blood necessary to ratify both covenants? Why do you think God requires blood to forgive man's sin? I DON'T KNOW. BIG QUESTION MARK.
And so, when I thought I knew it all, I learned this...
I am sure you all are familiar with the story and Adam and Eve and the fall of man recorded in Genesis. Sin entered the human race when, through an attack of Satan, Adam and Eve ate the forbidden fruit. They doubted God's word and trusted in their own ability to discern good from evil. Immediately after sinning, they realized they were naked and were shameful for being exposed. AND THEN in chapter 3:21 it says, "The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them." This was the FIRST SACRIFICE MADE FOR SINS. God had to kill an animal (shed blood) in order to make these garments to cover Adam and Eve. THIS is why the shedding of blood was necessary for both the covenants. This event foreshadows the sacrificial system of animals in the old covenant and the eventual sacrificial death of Jesus as an atonement for sin of the new covenant. From the beginning, shedding of blood was necessary for the sacrifice/consequence of sins. I am blown away with what I have learned! This is so cool to me!
Have you thought about this concept before or heard this explanation?
Ashley this is my first year in BSF and in my confusion and frustration to find answers I found your post. Thank you for making it more clear for me. I have been struggling because this lesson is well like you said kicking my butt. I have felt like I am missing the big picture and thanks to you I see more clearly.
ReplyDeleteI know BSF wants us to learn from the Holy Spirit and I think He helped me find your post.
Thanks
Melanie from Memphis
Good theory on the origins of sacarfice with animals. I see what you are saying. Yes, I see the parallel. However, the question remains, why was blood required? God could have chosen anything other than blood? He could have chosen anything he wanted because he is God. Why blood? Why did He require the life of His son?
ReplyDeleteThe Preciousness of Blood
ReplyDeletehttp://bible.org/seriespage/preciousness-blood-leviticus-17