When dealing with sacrifice, the issue at the heart of the question is "how are we saved", since there seems to be much confusion on this point.
In the previous answers there are some points at odds with scripture. I have added some of the conclusions I have come to in an attempt to understand God's word as a unified whole.
One point was made that implies that the law is not possible to keep. Deuteronomy contradicts this assertion flatly:
30:11
"For this commandment which I command you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it out of reach.
30:12
"It is not in heaven, that you should say, ' Who will go up to heaven for us to get it for us and make us hear it, that we may observe it?'
In God's law, there was a way for people to repent, so He had built into it the assumption that it would be broken by the people. This is why God said we are able to keep it.
We can keep the law only by faith in God, and it is that faith that saves us, not the law. Here are 2 verses that seem contradictory at first glance:
Ro 2:13 -
for it is not the hearers of the Law who are just before God, but the doers of the Law will be justified.
Ephesians 2:8-9 -
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;
9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.
For many years I only had verses 8 & 9 of the above memorized which only caused me not to see what the scripture was saying about the role of the law. The next verse is the key:
Eph. 2:10 -
10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
Verses 9 and 10 make sense of the Romans 2:13 passage. The Romans passage doesn't say they are saved by the law, but as the Eph. verse points out, those who are saved obey God's law (do the works in Messiah we were created to do).
The problem Paul was dealing with was people (Jews or possibly converts) who were convincing people that they had to do something the law said in order to be saved (circumcision). Paul points back to Abraham and illustrates that God made the promise to Abraham before the law was given, and before Abraham was even circumcised!
Also, Israel was saved from Egypt and brought out before God gave them the law. It was because of God's choosing that Israel was saved (by grace) not because Israel was a superior or more righteous people (many were idolaters like everyone else).
While no-one said it, some posts seemed to imply that the sacrifice used to have power to forgive sins. This also is directly contradicted by Hebrews-
10:4
For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
Some implied that there was a covering and later an actual taking away of the sin, but this is assuming that Messiah's sacrifice only took effect when he died (assuming man's view of time). This is contradicted by Scripture:
13:8
All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
If you search on the phrase "before the foundation" on a Bible web search (
http://biblestudytools.net) you will see that there is a pattern of God's choosing and that to Him, the sacrifice of our Master occured before creation, along with His choice of us as His own!
All the patriarchs were saved the same way we are (by faith and election), they just didn't have the same view of the plan (since some of the things hadn't happened yet).
Hebrews 11 (the faith chapter) really drives that point home.
So what does that leave the sacrifice? We know it had no power to forgive/take away sin (that is God's job). One post pointed to the educational nature of the sacrifice. This I believe is the most important aspect. Some in Israel were using the sacrifice as a lever to obtain forgiveness (much like indulgences in the Catholic church). God's response showed clearly that the sacrifice had no power to forgive-
Isa. 1:11-21 -
11 "What are your multiplied sacrifices to Me?" Says the LORD. "I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams And the fat of fed cattle; And I take no pleasure in the blood of bulls, lambs or goats. 12 "When you come to appear before Me, Who requires of you this trampling of My courts?
But it doesn't stop there, God goes on to say that He didn't approve of
their festivals (as opposed to God's):
13 "Bring your worthless offerings no longer, Incense is an abomination to Me. New moon and sabbath, the calling of assemblies-- I cannot endure iniquity and the solemn assembly. 14 "I hate
your new moon {festivals} and
your appointed feasts, They have become a burden to Me; I am weary of bearing {them.}
God even would not listen to their prayers:
15 "So when you spread out your hands {in prayer,} I will hide My eyes from you; Yes, even though you multiply prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are covered with blood.
Offerings had to be unblemished, as do our prayers. In other words, if we harbor sin in our life, our prayers are like defiled sacrifices. See also Psalm 51 in full.
I think that the real questions are brought up by the passages in Ezekiel starting at chapter 40 and on. Therein is described a temple (in Jerusalem) that has not yet existed. It also describes the Messiah (the Prince) as presenting sin offerings. This presents problems with the idea that Jesus came to do away with sacrifices. If they are done away with, then they would be gone for good. Since they come back in the Messianic era, then this is not the case.
The word used for "sin" in the sin sacrifice is the Hebrew word het (the h makes a guttural sound). This word is often translated sin, but could be actually purification. This would make more sense in passages where a person is required to offer it for things they have no control over (a woman’s purification from a hemorrhage Lev. 15:19-30)
It is also noteworthy to point out that in Leviticus 17:11 -
'For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement.'
God is the one who provides the atonement, not the person. God gives them a means to atone for their sin. This was to point out the worshipper that it was God who provides the atonement (same in Gen. 22:1-10).
So does Jesus replace the means by which our sins are paid? Not at all, He is the only way our sins are paid. The sacrifices were for us to learn that sin causes death, and that we are still influenced by sin-
Heb. 10:3 -
3 But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year.
When the temple is rebuilt, I believe that participation in sacrifices is something that would help us to more seriously consider the effects of sin if we are sensitive to God's spirit, but those who don't have the Spirit will use it as an indulgence, and they will receive their due. This happens in the church today, even without sacrifices.
