I know firsthand, it's very hard to say, Lord, I thank you for my salvation. You know, get on my knees and still get up off my knees when praying to you. There's a lot to think, but when you're bitter or you're fighting bitterness, or a melancholy You know, you just want to be petted. You know, there's a time for that when there's real grief. And we live in a society now that is encouraging us.
And every step. To be weak. wherever it can. It is trying to weaken the pulpits and it's trying to weaken the pew, and they're getting away with it. This is Cross-Reference Radio with our pastor and teacher, Rick Gaston.
Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville. Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the book of Leviticus. Please stay with us after today's message to hear more information about Cross-Reference Radio, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching. Leviticus chapter 6 is where Pastor Rick will begin today on this edition of Cross-Reference Radio. The third thing is he had to dispose of the ashes which signified the atonement, And here's the most powerful one.
He had to guard the fire. which is the element by which the offering passes from the giver to God. Without the fire What use is the altar? That would happen for the golden altar as well as the brazen altar. That is the primary one in.
being spoken of here. These offerings, again, not implemented until the tabernacle was anointed, the priests were consecrated. We'll get to that. But these this is a very powerful section here tucked away in Leviticus six. Let's look at verse ten.
And the priest shall put on his linen garment, And his linen trousers, he shall put on his body and take up. The ashes of the burnt offerings which the fire has consumed on the altar, and he shall put them beside the altar.
So here's where knowledge of other verses concerning linen garments is very helpful because it reads as though. He takes off whatever he's had on, he puts on linen garments, he takes the ashes away, then you get to the verse 11, then he takes those linen garments off, he puts something else on, he takes the ashes out of the camp. But actually, there's only two changes, not three. This garment is a linen garment. According to Exodus 28, 42, and verses 42, 43, they have linen garments.
Yeah.
So that's what they're wearing in all their duties, except when they take the ashes out of the camp.
Now, we so we'll have to talk about this because everybody's wondering, maybe, I would think, about these linen trousers. The priests Approached the altar in their linen garments, that was mandatory, and the trousers were underneath.
Sort of uh a loincloth that covered the hips and thighs. And when carrying these ashes from the whole burnt offering or from the altar. They'd have to take off those linen garments. to dispose of The sin which what was left of dealing with it, the ashes and Sin is a contaminant. Heggai chapter 2 verse twelve, he he talks about how Unclean things contaminate clean things.
just by touching them. But it doesn't work the other way around. Such is life. Destruction happens in an instant, but construction takes a long time. As a rule, Well After the death of our Lord Jesus, he was wrapped in white linen.
John makes that clear in chapter 19, and so does Luke in Luke's Gospel 23. Verse fifty three Not only is the linen fabric associated with the death of Christ, it is associated with his finished work. Revelation 19:14, and the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed him on white horses. That's us. That's a long Uh you know the the long-range plan of the Lord.
That long outlook. And it is a glorious one. And so, yeah, we see the word linen in the scripture related to the priest. We think of Christ. But when you think of Christ, you think of what he's done for sinners.
And that's One evidence of it there in Revelation 19, 14. The less flesh that is visible, the better. As a rule, and thus those linen trousers, make no mistake, these priests were working hard. And there weren't a lot of them in the early stages. There were not a lot of priests.
Aaron had four sons. We find out later some of the grandsons were acting as priests, but there were still not that many. They're going to lose two of them. In a day, and we'll get to that in chapter 10. John's Gospel: It is the spirit who gives life, the flesh profits nothing, and so let's cover it up.
As much as we can, and take up the ashes of burnt offerings which the fire has consumed on the altar. And he shall put them beside. The altar.
So he takes them up, places them on the side because he's going to change his clothes. And the rest of verse 11 now. Then he shall take off his garments, put on other garments, And Carrie The ashes outside the camp to a clean place.
So there's so much activity happening on this. Temple grounds. Between the animals coming in, the people, people bringing in more water and more wood, where were the Knives. Sharpened. Where were the axes sharpened that would be outside the camp felling trees to bring in firewood?
I mean, it's just a lot of this was a national temple, it wasn't a church. This is the temple of the nation.
Now, when it says they were to take the ashes to a clean place, that means don't dump them in the trash pile outside the camp. There's a place that has to be separated and even. The complete The process of the offering was um under code was regulated by God. Verse 12, and the fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it, it shall not be put out. And the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order on it.
And he shall burn on it the fat. of the peace offerings.
So Every morning they had altered these burnt offerings, but what's omitted here is the sin offering in front of it that you get somewhere else.
So again, these they're working. Proverbs 30 verse 16, fire never says enough. You can put water on it to stop it from eating everything. But looking at verse 12, the first sentence is an outstanding metaphor for the believer. and the fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it.
It shall not be put out.
Well, that altar is my heart. The fire for the Lord, the fire for my faith. You can't say, you're not supposed to say. I'm just tired of Christianity. I'm tired.
I'm weary of trying and failing, and I'm tired of other Christians, and I'm tired. You know what I mean? Write for that. It's a soldier, kids say, you know, I'm tired of the war. I'm going home now.
He gets shot in the back that way. In an organized army.
So, you know, here we are. Yeah, you get tired. As Moody used to say, I'm weary in the work, not of the work. Moody said, I get it. I get it.
This is hard work. It should be if you're not working hard as a Christian. What is wrong with that picture? Sin is not something you can just casually deal with. And we deal with sin.
Just by showing up to church. Believe it or not, a pastor should not want you to come to church because he wants the offering box to be full. He wants the people to come to church because he understands there's a battle formation. That there's work that happens here. That iron sharpens iron with sparks.
You know, that, oh, I ain't sharpened his eye. Yeah, but there's friction going on there.
So, yeah, there's people at church you don't like.
Well, maybe some people at church don't like you either.
So what do you do? Stay home? This is where this dispassion comes from. Verses like this. Priests shall burn wood on it every morning.
No moment passes which lacks a need for cleansing. There's always a need for cleansing. It's called recurrent grace. Yeah, if I sin, I repent. I have this relationship with God, and I have to say, Lord, I did not mean to do that.
I repent. But what if I miss it? What if it's an unknown sin? How am I covered? What if I die before I can repent?
I'm going to heaven. Because of recurrent grace. It's not dependent upon the confession, it's dependent upon the relationship. which was built on an initial confession. which is built on the cross of Christ.
Otherwise it's legalism. Otherwise it's a code word. Is not a code word. Don't forget to say you're sorry.
Well, we say that out of our heart, because of our Christ-likeness. But when Jesus said it is finished. I choose to believe him. And it's just that simple, and you can complicate it all you want and have at it. How can you function effectively as a Christian?
If you're constantly looking over your shoulder to see if God's going to get you. It's better to just have this zeal for the Lord. Knowing that He loves using defective instruments. And only he can do that. Anyway, that's why Paul said, I rejoice in my infirmities, that the power of God may rest upon me.
This is big business for us. And I hope this kind of preaching stirs you to action. It has many. If it hadn't, we wouldn't have any servants. Anyway, and it's not the preaching, it's the movement of the spirit.
Well, the wood had to be chopped to keep the fires going. The water had to be fetched. There's a lot of cleansing taking place going on here at the temple. The priests are going to get thirsty out there working in that sun. There's no shade at the temple.
They had hats on, but there's no shade. The blades had to be sharpened. to cut up the animals. to do their duty. And all of that had to be repeated again and again.
And so in between sacrifices, they're getting ready for the next sacrifice. And for the next sacrifice, the next morning, They had to have wood and water. and everything sharp and ready for that next morning. And so, when we come to the temple and you come inside the temple and you see all the utensils that they're using, you know, the wick cleaners and all the other stuff. Those are the little tools.
The big ones are outside by that brazen altar. And so you who serve Stand strong. You belong to a great heritage in the faith. Verse 13, A fire shall always be burning on the altar. It shall never go out.
My heart The altar You'll love the flame. I don't remember who said that. I said it. I just said it. I'll take credit for it.
They should have been more vocal. Uh anyway. It's a beautiful Christian saying, My heart the altar, thy love the flame.
Well, you know it had to be in the early part of the 19th century to use the word die. Anyway, a fire shall always be burning on the altar. It shall never go out. The ever-ready altar and the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin matches that verse completely. Sustained cleansing inspires zeal.
If I know God's got me. I guess strong. Verse 14, a stronger. This is the law of the grain offering. The sons of Aaron shall offer it on the altar before Yahweh, This is an offering of gratitude to God.
Which is an excellent way to start prayer, which is a difficult way to start prayer. When eyes are on yourself. I know firsthand, it's very hard to say, Lord, I thank you for my salvation. You know, get on my knees and still get up off my knees when praying to you. There's a lot to think, but when you're bitter or you're fighting bitterness.
or a melancholy You know, you just want to be petted. You know, there's a time for that when there's real grief. And we live in a society now that is encouraging us. And every step To be weak. Wherever it can.
It is trying to weaken the pulpits and it's trying to weaken the pew, and they're getting away with it. And it infects. It's infectious. And you have to be on your guard. And you say, well, how do I be on my guard?
Well, look at what the scripture says and go after that. I think I would tell a pastor if he was going to start a church somewhere or become a pastor. Pastor. Don't give motivational speeches.
Well, that stuff is void. It's it's There's nothing in it, it's vain. You're not trying to motivate anybody. You're trying to say, that which I first received, I have given to you. It's the out, it should be the outflow.
So, if you see a pastor and he's saying, These are the things I'm shooting for. It automatically means you too. Because if he's gotten it from God's word. It may be a twist and turn here or there. But this is what it takes.
Uh, to be a Christian, it takes hard work, and we're seeing this right here in the book of Leviticus. In fact, maybe an alternate name for the book of Leviticus would be the laborers of God. Um I'm going to submit that one. But it might be late. Anyway, verse 15: he shall take from it his handful of fine flour.
Of the grain offering With this oil? And all the frankincense which is on The grain offering. And shall burn it on the altar a sweet aroma, a memorial, as a memorial to Yahweh. Those standing anywhere near this altar, are going to detect that frankincense The fragrance of that frankincense When it hits the air. That means they knew God detected it too.
God detected the faith in their hearts. They're offering, he's accepting it, a sweet aroma to the Lord.
Now the Hebrew word here For Flour is actually wheat flour. As opposed to the barley, which is twice as expensive. Verse 16: the wheat flour costs twice as much. And the remainder of it Aaron and his sons shall eat with unleavened bread, and shall be eaten in a holy place. In the court of the tabernacle of meeting, they shall eat it.
You say, well, that's just more boring reading.
Well, wait a minute. The priest are experiencing their faith. Not experimenting with it. That's the meaning of them eating it. They're part of this.
It's getting in is consuming it. There's a fellowship here with the sinner and between the sinner and God and the priest that's in between. Labor-intensive ministry with God, and God provides a dining area for his laborers. The priests, what are they going? They can't go run and get home and get a snack.
All the little lunch bags lined up. I mean, God is saying, you know, you're going to partake of the sacrifice.
So there again, there were far more Levites at this point than there were priests, and that means the priest had more work to do. Then, as years rolled by, and then they had divisions of priests. But at this point, They were hard workers. Verse 17: It shall be baked with leaven. I have given it.
As their portion of my offerings made by fire, it is most holy, like the sin offering. and the trespass offering. Again, this is from the priest. Perspective. In verse 18, the males among the children of Aaron may eat it.
Everyone at the bottom of verse 18 now says, Everyone who touches them must be holy, the offerings.
So all the Aaronic males, not ironic, but the descendants of Aaron.
Okay. were appointed and anointed to the priesthood, thus qualified For this um Honorarium And you know the word, the phrase be holy, it appears 21 times. Uh in Leviticus. That's why there are some commentaries called Be Holy on Leviticus. But I nobody can give you a complete commentary.
I believe me, I've read a lot of them, and there they just can't, not enough information. But they all try like they're going to. I'm the only one that's figured out. This is a lost cause, fellas. You're not going to get this.
Let's just hang on to the things we can understand.
So, anyway, verse twenty says, This is the offering of Aaron and his sons, which they shall offer to Yahweh, beginning on the day when he is anointed.
So, this is the high priest. He will pass this process on. Aaron is the anointed one. He is the subtle sp distinctions as we go through Leviticus. We'll catch a couple of them.
But when it singles out the anointed priest, it's the high priest, but the other priests are not far behind. Verse twenty two, the priest from among his sons who is anointed in his place Shall offer it. It is a statute forever. Yahweh It shall be wholly burned, not wholly, but entirely, in that sense. Apparently In addition to the morning sin and burnt offerings, the There was this grain offering.
That the for the priest Um the priests were To daily offer it morning, night. And then again in the evening. Uh but the details are a little ambiguous here. Uh verse 23. For every grain offering for the priest shall be entirely burned, it shall not be eaten.
Now, here's where it gets tricky, one of the many places. This is not the grain offering of the people, but of the priest. offered as a whole burnt offering. They were not to eat their own sacrifice. But if a person was offering this particular sacrifice, they could eat of it.
You don't know how many hours it takes to get that.
Okay. Because when you get to the bottom, it sounds like a contradiction. But it's not.
Well let's get to the bottom, what do you say? Verse 24. Also Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, Again, for a guy with a speech impediment, he's getting a lot of things to go tell people. Speak to Aaron and to his sons, saying, This is the law of the sin offering. In the place where the burnt offering is killed, the sin offering shall be killed before Yahweh.
It is most holy. Verse 26: The priest who offers it. For sin shall eat it. In a holy place it shall be eaten, that means on the temple grounds. In the court of the tabernacle of meeting.
Well, see, there it is. You said it. didn't need me to say it.
So there's this again, this kitchenette for the priest. The Lord's taking care of them. And I guess it would be a nice sight to see. You're coming to make your offering, you're seeing God is taking care of. Your spiritual leaders.
And so imagine if a congregation, everybody was driving around and Cadillacs and Preacher Hedda Moped or a Scooter It just wouldn't be right. And yet it goes the other way too. If you got people they're driving around and you go's, They are need prayer. But you shouldn't be driving around in a Cadillac. There needs to be some balance there.
It's helpful for everyone.
So again, in contrast to the priest's burnt offering. the sin offering for the priest, not for the people. was to be eat eaten, So um If you just really want to hammer these things out, you can. The information is there. But it's better, I think, to just glean.
A book like Leviticus, and you come out with a lot of nutrients. Back to the sacrifices, it's pointless to make these offerings and not connect. The burnings and the milling and the death and the blood and the fire. It's pointless to do these things if you're not considering you're standing before God. I say that because a lot of Christians come and they worship the Lord and they don't even consider how they're living.
They can be the most, you know, mean-spirited. It's just they're like, gang, you got to connect these things. You don't just. You know, love on the Lord and And go. do nasty things and say lies about people.
Verse twenty seven Everyone who touches its flesh must be holy, and when its blood is sprinkled on Any garment, you shall wash that on which it was sprinkled in a holy place with pause there. There's a need for more water now. They gotta wash their clothes. On the temple ground. Who's bringing in this water?
Towels, hand towels, the cloth ones in the cafe, who washes them?
So, you know, there's other things. Everything gets done by a servant. Verse 28. But the earthen vessel in which it is boiled shall be broken, and if it is boiled in bronze pot, it shall be scoured and rinsed in water. And so you've again more work, more labor, thus the law and the labor.
Verse 29, all the males among the priests may eat it. It is most holy, and Well, um Everything I've commented on, except you know, to review the minister's materials. The wood, the water. the metal that was involved. Uh, the energy to do these things, they didn't have time to feel sorry for themselves.
You know, can I just have five minutes so I can go over there and just be depressed? No, you can't, it's too much work to get done. Uh so Those who serve today have to remember. That when you're weary in the church, in the service of God, there's been others the same way. But there's a sweetness to diligence.
That makes things happen. In heaven and on earth. Because when you're serving the Lord, He's a part of that. There on his throne in heaven.
So stand tall. even in the tedious That's why you'd pick a book like Leviticus to go verse by verse and skip a verse here and there. Verse thirty now But no sin offering from which any of the blood is brought into the tabernacle of meeting to make atonement in the holy place shall be eaten. It shall be burned in the fire. But wait a minute, I thought he just said he could eat it.
Well, this applies down back to the common sin offerings. Not those for the priest.
So you have dual offerings. The priest are giving theirs as priest, then the priest are giving. offerings for the people. And those are the two things that once you see, okay, that's going on and that fits there, then you say, okay, that works. These people weren't.
Writers of the scripture Leviticus, they weren't dummies. They didn't write a blatant contradiction. And just keep going? They've caught it too. They knew what they were talking about.
And sometimes, well, in my line of work, when I read commentators, some of the best ones say, you know what, this is ambiguous. He's not speaking clearly. The old school guys don't use periods. They use semicolons. And it's just throwing, like, where does this thought go?
Okay, this is semi-like a period, but it's inferior. Anyway So these very intelligent men, they know what they're saying. But here you are 100 years later trying to figure out some of the things, and it doesn't always work well. And so it is with the scripture. God always gets the benefit of the doubt because He's not to be doubted.
And if he is to be doubted, you got the wrong God. Yeah.
Yeah Thanks for tuning in to today's edition of Cross Reference Radio. Pastor Rick Gaston is currently going through the book of Leviticus. We're glad you joined us. We trust that you're gaining some valuable insights into God's Word as we go through this Old Testament book. Cross-Reference Radio comes to you from Calvary Chapel, Mechanicsville, in Virginia.
If you'd like to subscribe to our podcast, you can do so by going to your favorite app store and downloading from there. For any additional information about this ministry, we invite you to visit our website, crossreference radio.com. Make sure to come back again for the upcoming edition in the book of Leviticus, as Pastor Rick has much more to share. We thank you for being with us right here on Cross Reference Radio. Yeah.
