For the life of the body is in its blood. I have given you the blood on the altar to purify you, making you right with the Lord. It is the blood, given in exchange for a life, that makes purification possible. (Leviticus 17:11)
In ancient days, when a sinner found himself or herself in sin, broken in fellowship with God, it was essential that there be an animal sacrifice. Sometimes the sacrifice was with a goat, sometimes with a bull, sometimes with a heifer, or a sheep, or a dove, or even a pigeon. The details of such sacrifices are spelled out in this ancient book of worship used by the Jews and carried out by the priests—the Levites.
We find the process spelled out in four stages.
The first stage: The sinner brings an animal without defect to the altar. The plan was designed to be uncomplicated. As soon as one realises that sin had come into his life, intentional or unintentional, that individual knew that the sin had caused a separation from fellowship with God. To clear that up, an animal had to be brought to the altar. Not any animal, but an animal that was without defect to become a “sin offering.”
The second stage: The sinner lays his hand on the animal. According to Leviticus 4, this is the job of the priest who, in this case, is the sinner. He lays his hand upon the head of the animal. The act symbolised the transfer of guilt from himself to the animal.
The third stage: The animal is to be killed. God devised this plan: By the shedding of blood, two will be brought together as one. The blood of the animal will bring atonement between humanity and God. The blood would cover sin.
The fourth stage: The blood is poured or sprinkled as God required. Since the earliest days, as these Jews connected atonement with their Lord, there was a constant emphasis on blood and sacrifices. Sheep were slain at Passover by the thousands. The blood literally ran out of the city of Jerusalem. Priests were ceaselessly dealing with blood sacrifices. Day in and day out. God required it. That is why we must resist the modern tendency to remove the blood from our theology and our hymnody. Without blood, there is no remedy for sin.
