Symbols of the Holy Bible (Sacrifices)
This text discusses the “Symbols of Sacrifices in the Holy Bible” and how they align with Christ’s redemptive work, highlighting the following main points:
- The Origin of Sacrifices: It began with Adam and Eve when God made garments of skin to cover their nakedness, establishing the concept of Atonement (covering with blood).
- The Evolution of Sacrifices:
- Abel: Offered his absolute best (the firstborn of his flock).
- Abraham: Was asked to offer his “only beloved son,” elevating the symbol from a regular sacrifice to representing “The Son.”
- Moses the Prophet: Sacrifices were formally organized in the books of Exodus and Leviticus.
- The Offerer’s Feelings: When a person offered a sacrifice, they realized that “the wage of sin is death,” confessed their guilt, believed in the principle of redemption (a pure soul dying on behalf of a guilty one), and felt forgiveness due to the shedding of blood.
- The Passover Lamb: Established as a law for salvation from destruction, carrying precise symbols:
| Passover Symbol | Spiritual Meaning |
| Roasted with fire | Symbolizes Christ’s suffering and God’s consuming justice regarding sin. |
| With unleavened bread | Symbolizes a pure life, as yeast represents evil and sin. |
| With bitter herbs | Remembering the bitterness of sin that caused Christ’s suffering (mixing the joy of salvation with a contrite, repentant heart). |
| Girded loins (Ready to travel) | Symbolizes feeling like a stranger in this world and being constantly ready to travel to Heaven. |
- The Consequences of Sin & Its Cure: Sin yields two results: it angers God and destroys humanity. On the cross, Christ addressed both simultaneously; He was the “Burnt Offering” (to please God, satisfy divine justice, and be a pleasing aroma), and at the same time, the “Sin and Trespass Offering” (to save the perishing human).
