Lay your hand on the animal’s head, and the LORD will accept its death in your place to purify you, making you right with him. [Leviticus 1.4]
Substitution.
From the time sacrifices first began until the death of Jesus, substitution was an important part of worshiping God. It was Israel's only hope for being made right with God.
For all the variations and stipulations associated with the substitutionary sacrifices of the Bible, we must not allow ourselves to lose sight of the goal with these sacrifices: they provided temporary relief and more importantly, pointed to Jesus, the Promised Messiah.
If, in studying the sacrifices of the Old Testament, we wander away or forget their revelatory purpose, we have missed the point altogether. Jesus was clear:
“You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me! [John 5.39]
Father, help me to stay focused on Jesus as I read the Old Testament again this year. More so, may I have greater understanding of the New Testament and it's time in which I live as I remain mindful of Jesus throughout my reading of the Old Testament.
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