Sacrifices Then and Now

By Jeff Curtis

In Exodus 27 God gave Moses directions for building the altar of burnt offering. The altar was used to offer sacrifices to God. The passage, then, can be used to help us think about the subject of sacrifices, both then and now.

Sacrifices then. The text doesn’t tell how the altar was to be used. The first readers didn’t need that information; they were familiar with the fact that sacrifices were offered on it.

Further instructions concerning those sacrifices are given in the book of Leviticus. There, we learn that the sacrifices offered on the altar had a variety of purposes. Among the sacrifices were guilt offerings, sin offerings, whole burnt offerings, and peace offerings – including thank offerings and freewill offerings and sacrifices made when vows were taken. For some of the offerings (whole burnt offerings), the whole animal was burned on the altar and the other part was eaten by those who brought the sacrifice. The priests were also given portions of the meat from the offerings.

Sacrifices now. The New Testament teaches that Christ is the sacrifice for those under the new covenant. In addition, He is the high priest who takes the blood of the sacrifice into the most holy place (Hebrews 8:1; 9:11-15). Christians are saved by His blood (Ephesians 1:7). No matter what we do for Christ – even if we were to die for Him – in no sense can our sacrifices or our gifts atone for our sins. Only Christ’s blood can make atonement for us.

Even though our gifts so not cover our sins, as priests we are to “offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1Peter 2:5). A sacrifice is an offering; it is anything we offer to God.

We are to offer a sacrifice of ourselves. Altar terminology is used when the Christian is called upon to give himself as a “living…sacrifice” to God (Romans 12:1-2). Jesus called on every Christian to offer himself, even to the point of death, when He said that each one must “take up his cross” and follow Him (Matthew 16:24).

We are to offer a sacrifice of the praise of our lips. Hebrews 13:15 says. “Let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name.” We are to praise God in song, to “be of the same mind with one another… so that with one accord we may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 15:5-6). We don’t bring animals to offer on an altar; rather, we place before God’s heavenly altar the praises of our lips when we join together to sing in the assembly.

We are to offer a sacrifice of money. Paul wrote to the Philippians that he had received from Epaphroditus the gift that they had sent to him. He called that gift

“a fragrance aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God” (Philippians 4:18). Giving a gift of money to the church is also a gift to God, an offering or sacrifice to the Lord.

We are to offer a sacrifice of saved souls to God. Paul was given the privilege of being a “minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles” and wrote of “my offerings of the Gentiles” (Romans 15:16). This imagery depicts Paul as a priest making an offering to God. What was Paul’s offering? The Gentiles, the people to whom he preached and who were saved by his preaching. In a similar way, when we preach to others and lead them to salvation, they become our offerings to God.

We cannot give our own blood for our sins. Christ has made the sole sacrifice that takes away sins. Because we have been saved by Christ’s blood, we are to make offerings to Him. Are we making the offerings we should, or are we giving Him less that He desires and deserves?

The Gospel of Mark

By Jeff Curtis

The Gospel of Mark has an appealing vividness. It is brief, pointed, succinct, and written with realism and lifelikeness. The account leaves out the birth narratives, and, beginning with verse 2 of the verse chapter, it proceeds immediately into the ministry of John the Baptist.

In regard to Jesus’ public addresses, the book has only two of His long discourses (4:3-32; 13L5-37). The omission results in this Gospel containing less of Jesus’ teachings that the other three Gospel accounts.

Mark contains a few unique verses. Perhaps no more than fifty verses of this Gospel are not found in either Matthew or Luke. This fact has led to the view that the writer recorded the core of the Gospel story that Peter preached.

The style of writing joins realism with simplicity. In a straightforward fashion, we, the reader become almost an eyewitness. James Morrison, seeing the writing style as plain and easy to read, described it as “homely, humble, unadorned, and altogether devoid of literary artifice or art.”

The narrative of this Gospel is characterized with rapidity. Ralph Earle referred to Mark as being similar to a movie: “It might be said that, while Matthew and Luke furnish us with color-slides of the life of Christ and John presents a studied portrait, Mark gives us moving picture of the Master’s ministry.” Marvin Vincent referred to Mark as “pre-eminently the pictorial Gospel.” Even though fewer words are used, this account always reveals something the other Gospels don’t tell us.

Mark allows us to look into the hearts of the characters of this story. The book reveals how the disciples of Jesus reacted in their hearts to His words and deeds (4:41). Likewise, it gives the mental response of the crowds who gathered around Him (1:27; 2:7).

Concerning the structure of sentence and using of tenses, Mark makes use of the Greek “historic present” 151 times. This technique of writing is apparently used “to portray and event vividly, as though the reader were in the midst of the scene as it unfolds.”  

Sometimes the book uses the aorist tense in the first part of a sentence and then conjoins it with the present tense in the second part of the sentence (1:30). It also uses the imperfect tense to accomplish the same purpose (1:37). Combining the two tenses in this way, Mark makes the past and the present work together effectively to reveal the action of the present. In addition, with this grammar construction, Mark gives a vividness and a rapid pace to the presentation of the story.