H – Highlight
Leviticus 9:7 – Then Moses said to Aaron, “Draw near to the altar and offer your sin offering and your burnt offering and make atonement for yourself and for the people, and bring the offering of the people and make atonement for them, as the Lord has commanded.”
E – Explain
In Leviticus 8-9, we see the ordination of Aaron as high priest and the first offerings made for the people in this new priesthood.
A – Apply
I think what grabs my attention is not so much the verse that I have highlighted as the detail and bloodiness of the whole affair. The commands that Aaron needed to follow were meticulous. As Hebrews 9:22 reminds us, almost everything was purified with blood. This was a messy, ugly thing that had to be done so that the sins of people could be covered and so they could approach the Lord.
The application for me is one of awe and gratitude. My sin is such a thing that I should not be allowed to approach the Lord. But God has done what needed to be done. No bull, no goat, no birds can shed their blood for my sin. The spotless Son of god died to pay the price for my sin so that I can approach the Lord.
R – Respond
Lord, I thank you for the sacrifice of Jesus for my sins. I thank you for the picture, here in Leviticus, of the need for blood to cover my sin. I confess my failure and fallenness. I pray that you will help me live now to honor you, living forgiven. Help me to be changed to be more given to you in all things.
Pastor Travis Peterson 