4.27.26 ~ Revamping Sacrificial Thoughts

For those who missed Passover on April 1, Scripture makes a special offer for individuals to participate in Passover Sheni (Second Passover; Num. 9:7–8), May 1, 2026. We will host a second Passover at Faith Works here in Stanton, Michigan, at 6:30 p.m. (potluck style :-).

In this fourth week of counting the Omer—today being the 23rd day—we will take the time to expand our understanding of blood and atonement. Like everything we have done over the past three weeks, there is probably more to the story than tradition has taught us. And like every study at the beginning of the week, I ask for your patience until we get to the very end. And as always, I encourage you to go back and double-check everything because I am susceptible to making mistakes, like anyone else :-).

When blood is applied to people in the Torah, it marks a transition from one realm to another, in the direction of greater holiness, greater access, and greater intimacy with God. Blood, associated with the covenant, inaugurates powerful bonds between God and His people.

Blood at Aaron's ordination transforms him from a member of the twelve tribes into the priesthood. The blood of the metzorah (the leper) purifies from the realm of death to life. No sin. No substitution. None of them involve punishment. Ironically, and to our surprise, blood from a sin offering is never used on people—never. These rituals cannot have anything to do with substituting for someone else's death or deserved penalty. And yet, blood remains the most powerful substance in the sacrificial system. When blood does touch people, it changes their status, gives them access, and/or restores relationships. Blood equals access. That is the pattern.

Over the past few weeks, I have enjoyed the questions that people have had. I know these expansive thoughts are a little stretchy for some to consider. Up to this point, basically what we have talked about is that the Passover lamb was not a sin sacrifice. It was not penal substitution. The blood on the doorpost was a sign of protection and identity. It was not a payment or punishment toward a sinner.

The Passover, even after it was brought into the Temple system, was classified as a peace offering (shelamim)—a well-being offering, a communion offering—not a sin offering, not an atoning sacrifice. And someone will say—and have said—"But what about Exodus 12:27?" which is happening right around the corner (Friday night). It calls the Passover a sacrifice (zevach pesach). That is true. And the context of that statement, if you read it, is a child asking, "What does this ceremony mean to you?" looking back on it. And the Torah answers the child: "It is the Passover sacrifice to the LORD, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt, sparing our home." By the time it was a sacrifice in the Temple, it was a memorial once the Tabernacle was built. Yes, the priesthood was established when the Passover entered the sacrificial system. As we all know, it is very real that it was identified as a sacrifice. But the question that I kind of left on the table was: what kind of sacrifice (zevach)? And for what purpose?

So far we have established that the Passover lamb was not originally a sacrifice, but after the fact, it was a sacrifice in the Temple. Why? What does it do? What is it about? Because the modern Bible reader hears the word "sacrifice" and hears one thing: usually, someone died so that sin could be forgiven. Death as a payment—that is the customary go-to answer; that is the lens. But if that is the lens through which you look at everything sacrifice-related, then you are looking wrong. Sin and blood and substitution and atonement and all of these big $0.25 words, unfortunately, they all collapse into one single category: death.

So today, we take off the lenses of PSA (Penal Substitutionary Atonement), and what we find is that sacrifice in the Torah is much, much, much more varied—far more beautiful, far more relational than most people in the world would imagine. It describes multiple categories of offerings, most of them having nothing to do with sin. Even those that do have to do with sin need some expansion to be understood. We will do that later :-).

The offerings that do involve blood are doing things with that blood, which should fundamentally change how we understand Yeshua's blood. For now, let us focus on what sacrifice actually is, as we will eventually bring it all back around to the sacrifice of Jesus/Yeshua and how we should biblically understand that.

Step one: let us start with the most foundational offering in the entire system: the twice-daily burnt offering (korban tamid). The Tamid, the daily burnt offering, is an olah (ascension). An olah—an elevation offering—is offered every single morning in the Temple and every single evening (Ex. 29:38–46 and Num. 28:1–8; please read).

The text of your Bible calls these "pleasing aromas"—fire offerings of pleasing aromas to Me, God, at their appointed times. The offering goes up. The aroma ascends, and in some supernatural way it attracts God to the altar. He meets with the Israelites there. That is the purpose: not payment, not penalty, but presence. The Tamid is an invitation—a daily summons of God's presence to dwell among His people. Twice a day, every day, year after year after year. And again, hear me clearly: it has nothing to do with sin.

However, I referenced to you a couple of weeks ago the website GotQuestions.org—one of the go-to websites in all the world for people who have Bible questions—and they say, "Every morning and evening, a lamb was sacrificed in the temple for the sins of the people." That is not true! Oh my stars—the most widely read Christian apologetics site says that to the entire world. That is a problem. It is not what the text says. It is not what the offering is for. This is a sacrifice that God delighted in. It was relational. It was about nearness. It was not about any kind of debt. And it matters, because if the most frequent sacrifice in the system—twice a day, every day—is not about sin, then the assumption that all sacrifices are about sin is already on a very, very unstable footing. Most of the bleeding, burning, altar work in the Tabernacle was never about covering sin. It was about God wanting to be near His people. Are you tracking with me? Have we gotten that established?

The question for this afternoon and every day is: Am I offering myself as a Tamid offering twice daily (Rom. 8:36)?

On this 23rd day of counting the Omer, I am praying that you will commit to the responsibility to lay your life down as a living sacrifice (Rom. 12:1–2) and imitate God and Yeshua as a korban olah (burnt offering) (Eph. 5:1–2).

Keep ascending!

Alan