The Power of Sacrifice

Chapters 8 and 9 of Leviticus are all about the ordination of Aaron and his sons and the beginning of their ministry. Be prepared for blood. Lots of blood.

 Moses slaughtered the bull and took some of the blood, and with his finger he put it on all the horns of the altar to purify the altar. He poured out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. So he consecrated it to make atonement for it.  Leviticus 8:15

Then Moses slaughtered the ram and splashed the blood against the sides of the altar.  Leviticus 8:19

Moses slaughtered the ram and took some of its blood and put it on the lobe of Aaron’s right ear, on the thumb of his right hand and on the big toe of his right foot.  Leviticus 8:23

 Then Moses took some of the anointing oil and some of the blood from the altar and sprinkled them on Aaron and his garments and on his sons and their garments. So he consecrated Aaron and his garments and his sons and their garments.  Leviticus 8:30

Why exactly is blood so important? And how can slaughtering so many innocent animals be deemed acceptable to God?

At that time, sacrificing to the gods was vital. The people would do everything they could to appease the gods, because they believed the gods controlled the weather and illness and harvest and anything they could not explain. Sacrifice could get completely out of hand. Some tribes resorted to sacrificing children. So these very clear regulations from the God of Israel tapped into the concept of sacrifice and atonement that the people already understood but provided very clear boundaries so that sacrifices would always take place in a controlled, measured way. A way that may seem barbaric to us but was revolutionary at the time, a massive step forward.

And as for blood……blood was used as a symbol of purification, a symbol that a pure life (without defect) has been given, that lifeblood has been spilled. Blood is a symbol of life – hence words like ‘bloodshed’ imply widespread loss of life. Sacrifice would not be sacrifice without blood.

Sacrifice still means a lot to us today. Particularly at this time of year, when we remember all the soldiers who have given their lives for our country, for us. Laying down your own life so that others may live in freedom – now that is special, moving, spiritual even. Stories in the news about individuals willing to sacrifice their own lives to protect their children, their families, their communities….these stories move us to tears and inspire us to believe in the goodness of humanity.

These are amazing acts of sacrifice, but there are also the everyday smaller acts of sacrifice that we face. We were talking about this at the Book Club last night – the book ‘And the mountains echoed….'(well worth reading by the way) starts with a major act of sacrifice when a father sells his daughter into adoption so that the rest of the family will have money for fuel to survive the winter. We in our comfortable lives cannot understand that level of desperation and the agony of making such a choice, but there are many people all over the world facing choices like this every day. Even in our country. I remember watching a documentary where a man only had enough breakfast for one and chose to give it to his son…but as the observer pointed out, if the man didn’t eat, then he would become weak and ill and not be fit to look for work and where would his son be then?

In the book, the mountains echo with sacrifice upon sacrifice…….caring for a sick relative, feeling trapped by an elderly parent, adopting a disfigured child, giving up your own dreams to care for someone else……..people around us all the time are making sacrifices like these, with all the mixed emotions of love, resentment, disappointment, duty, fulfilment that accompany them. Sacrifice is about putting others’ needs before your own – and that is hard. We too have needs and these needs also need to be met, otherwise we cannot be all that God intended us to be – we need to be healthy emotionally, mentally, physically and spiritually to be fully human. But that does not give us permission to be self-centred 100% of the time. Jumping forward, here is a verse from Romans that I’ve always loved and often think of as I go up to receive communion –

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.  Romans 12:1

God no longer requires blood. Jesus made sure of that. We are to be a living sacrifice, to live and love and work and play and care and laugh and cry and serve and support for the glory of God. Giving the best of all we are and have to serve the living God in all that we do.

There is power in sacrifice.