THE MEAL OFFERING
Lev. 2:1-3
Morning Meditation 7/3/2015
Verse 1-3 says, “And when any will offer a meat offering unto the LORD, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon: And he shall bring it to Aaron's sons the priests: and he shall take thereout his handful of the flour thereof, and of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof; and the priest shall burn the memorial of it upon the altar, to be an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: And the remnant of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his sons': it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the LORD made by fire.”
The meat offering is actually a meal offering which is evident by reading the context. The word “meat” in 1611 when the KJV was translated the word “meat” could mean any kind of food including the ingredients used in this offering.
This was the only sacrifice made without blood. This offering represents a perfect life offered to God as an acceptable gift.
THE OFFERING OF A PERFECT LIFE
This offering is impossible for fallen man but not for Jesus Christ. All these five offerings TOGETHER picture His one offering to the Father in our behalf. While there is no mention of death in this offering, there is something of it hidden.. His sufferings are seen in the bruising, beating, and crushing of the various substances that were used in this offering.
We can’t get to His perfect life to offer back to God as an acceptable living sacrifice without the bruising, beating and crushing of His sacrifice on calvary. Let’s notice the following features of this offering:
IT WAS A WILLING OFFERING
Verse 1 says, “AND when any will offer a meat offering . . .” God wants a willing people. He made us to have a choice. Some people’s theology have spoiled them into making this aspect of our relationship to God insignificant. Any belief in the sovereignty of God that negates man’s will is contrary to Scripture. I cannot reconcile the sovereignty of God with man’s free will. I have never read after anyone who could. As a friend of mine used to say, “God’s sovereignty and man’s free will are friends.” But they don’t seem to be friends when man tries to explain them. This was a willing offering. It involved a definite choice.
IT WAS AN OFFERING OF FINE FLOUR
Verse 1 says, “his offering shall be of fine flour . . .” The words “fine flour” comes from a word that means, “To crush.” It is referring to the finest flower which came exclusively from the inner kernels of the wheat. It was a luxury item to be used especially in the entertaining important guests (Based on the definition in the Theological Workbook of the Old Testament)
This is an offering that is a natural product of the earth (Christ’s incarnation) and is completely pleasing to God and is food for man. Jesus said in John 6:51: “I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” Then John went on to say in verse 53: “Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.” Life is in the meal offering. It has to be eaten which means that we must receive Christ as the Bread that GIVES LIFE and the Bread that SUSTAINS LIFE. We do not only get eternal life by receiving Him but we are sustained by His life: Rom. 5:10 says, “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.”
Life does not originate in the burnt offering. The burnt offering only presents one aspect of the offering of Christ. Life originates in the meal offering. This is life in His perfect life. Anything less than the fine flower of His perfect life is death. This is the reason that it is not just the death of Christ that we preach. It is the death, burial, and resurrection. We obtain forgiveness through His death but we obtain life through His resurrection. The eternal life that we have now is His life taken in by faith.
IT WAS AN OFFERING MADE WITH OIL
Oil is a type of the Holy Spirit. The oil speaks of the power of God. Hebrews 9:14, “How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” We have the Holy Spirit associated with His death (the blood) and His perfect life (without spot) in this verse.
We are to live a life of righteousness after we are saved. Rom. 12:1 says, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” What is the “living sacrifice” that we are to offer? It is the sacrifice of our self-life so that His life of perfection can be “fleshed out” through us. The Holy Spirit is associated with the “fine flower” of His life being lived in us NOT the weak attempts of the flesh to become better for His glory. The flesh will never become better. The filling of the Holy Spirit is absolutely necessary to produce a righteousness that is His. Any other is self-righteousness. The OIL IS A REQUIREMENT WITH THE MEAL OFFERING. It is a requirement because it is essential. The oil mingled with the fine flower speaks of God the Holy Spirit being the power of that righteousness.
IT WAS OFFERED WITH FRANKINCENSE
Moses said of this offering, “. . . and put frankincense thereon.” Lockyer say that the frankincense speaks of sacrifice accomplished by prayer. Psalms 141:2 makes incense a type of prayer; “Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.” Since the frankincense gives off a sweet odor, it is an evidence that it is for pleasing or glorifying God. Mackintosh says, “The oil typifies the power of Christ’s ministry; the frankincense typifies the object thereof. The former teaches us that He did everything by the Spirit of God; the latter, that He did everything to the glory of God. The frankincense presents that in the life of Christ which was exclusively for God.”
The christian life is to be lived for the glory of God. This cannot be done in our own strength. It takes the oil of the Spirit to empower, and the fragrance of His holy life imparted to us to glorify God. It is so good to know that the sacrifice of Christ enables us to live a life that will glorify Him.
IT WAS AN OFFERING MADE BY FIRE
Even though it was a bloodless offering, it was an offering made by fire. This speaks of a Holy God’s acceptance. The sinless humanity of Jesus suffered the righteous wrath of God. God accepted His offering. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” Elijah offered his offering in 1 Kings 18:38 and it says, “the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt sacrifice . . .” It speaks of acceptance.
IT WAS AN OFFERING MADE WITHOUT LEAVEN AND HONEY
Lockyer says, “The absence of leaven means purity; absence of honey, absence of everything impure or even doubtful.” Jesus offered His perfect humanity to His Father and His living sacrifice was completely acceptable.
IT WAS AN OFFERING MADE WITH SALT
Lev. 2:13 says, “And every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt.” The salt speaks of preservation and permanence. John Gill says, “Which makes food savoury, and preserves from putrefaction; denoting the savouriness and acceptableness of Christ as a meat offering to his people, he being savoury food, such as their souls love, as well as to God the Father, who is well pleased with his sacrifice; and also the perpetuity of his sacrifice, which always has the same virtue in it, and of him as a meat offering, who is that meat which endures to everlasting life.”
There was and is a magnitude about Jesus that draws one to Him. Even His enemies had a difficult time in finding justification in opposing Him. When Pilate examined Jesus he said in “Luke 23:4, “Then said Pilate to the chief priests and to the people, I find no fault in this man.” There is something about Him that makes you feel as you would feel about no other man. The salt speaks of His holy influence.
THE OFFERING WAS WELL PLEASING
It was a “sweet savour” offering. This means it was well pleasing. The word “sweet” translates “nichowich” and means, “soothing, quieting, tranquillizing.” The word “savour” translates “reyach” and means, “scent, fragrance, aroma, odor.” When something is pleasing to the smell it satisfies. It is an indication of good before the taste. The smell of Jesus perfect life pleased God. It still does. The life that pleases today is the Christ-life being lived now by Him in us. This is the Spirit filled life. Gal. 5:22-23 says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” These nine things describe the life of Jesus. They are not works of the flesh. It is the fruit of the Spirit. Imputed righteousness is salvation, imparted righteousness is His holiness of life seen in us.
THE OFFERING WAS EATEN BY AARON AND HIS SONS
Verse 3 says, “And the remnant of the meat offering shall be Aaron's and his sons': it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the LORD made by fire.” The priests were to feed off this offering for the maintenance of their lives. We as believer priests are to feed off the life of Christ for our daily maintenance. John 6:55-57 says, “For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.” The believer eats and drinks off Jesus daily. We eat His holy life through the daily eating of His Word. He said, “The Words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” (John 6:63).
No one of these five offering tell the whole story of Jesus’ sacrifice. It takes all five of them together. In this offering we see that Jesus is not only the burnt offering for sin, but He is also the meal offering to give and sustain the life that the burnt offering provides.
May the Lord bless these words to our hearts.
In Christ
Bro. White
