The Drink Offering
/Read in KJV
Leviticus 1:1-9 NASB
1 Then the LORD called to Moses and spoke to him from the tent of meeting, saying, 2 “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, ‘When any man of you brings an offering to the LORD, you shall bring your offering of animals from the herd or the flock. 3 If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he shall offer it, a male without defect; he shall offer it at the doorway of the tent of meeting, that he may be accepted before the LORD. 4 He shall lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering, that it may be accepted for him to make atonement on his behalf. 5 He shall slay the young bull before the LORD; and Aaron’s sons the priests shall offer up the blood and sprinkle the blood around on the altar that is at the doorway of the tent of meeting. 6 He shall then skin the burnt offering and cut it into its pieces. 7 The sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire on the altar and arrange wood on the fire. 8 Then Aaron’s sons the priests shall arrange the pieces, the head and the suet over the wood which is on the fire that is on the altar. 9 Its entrails, however, and its legs he shall wash with water. And the priest shall offer up in smoke all of it on the altar for a burnt offering, an offering by fire of a soothing aroma to the LORD.
Leviticus 1:3
If his offering be a burnt sacrifice of the herd, let him offer a male without blemish: he shall offer it of his own voluntary will at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the LORD.
Numbers 15:8-10 KJV
8 And when thou preparest a bullock for a burnt offering, or for a sacrifice in performing a vow, or peace offerings unto the LORD: 9 Then shall he bring with a bullock a meat offering of three tenth deals of flour mingled with half an hin of oil. 10 And thou shalt bring for a drink offering half an hin of wine, for an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.
Numbers 28:6-8 NASB
6 It is a continual burnt offering which was ordained in Mount Sinai as a soothing aroma, an offering by fire to the LORD. 7 Then the drink offering with it shall be a fourth of a hin for each lamb, in the holy place you shall pour out a drink offering of strong drink to the LORD. 8 The other lamb you shall offer at twilight; as the grain offering of the morning and as its drink offering, you shall offer it, an offering by fire, a soothing aroma to the LORD.
We have covered some of these thoughts recently regarding the preparation of the sacrifice. When we discussed the thought of allowing the Lord to search our hearts and to try our reins, we came to the understanding that the sacrifice was cut open and inspected. The animal would have undergone a thorough examination both internally and externally to look for blemishes or any defects that would have made the sacrifice unacceptable in the eyes of God. Once the insides were inspected, they would be washed. Then, the animal would be separated into its individual parts and arranged in specific order on the altar, the legs, the head, the fat, the insides.
The KJV and a couple other translations phrase verse 3 slightly different: he shall offer it of his own voluntary will. The Numbers passage adds that both a hin of oil and a hin of wine were poured out upon the offering. Oil is a type of the Holy Spirit and its relationship with the sacrifice is a reminder to us of the closeness and working of the Holy Spirit through the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. You can’t have one without the other. Most specifically, I want to talk to you about the hin of wine that was poured out upon the whole burnt offering. All of this together: the fat, the oil, the wine produced a smoke that rose towards the heavens, and it is recorded in the word that this smoke resulted in: a soothing aroma to the LORD. The KJV says: a sweet savour unto the LORD
The Strong’s dictionary claims: odour of soothing (technical term for sacrifice to God)
I can’t help but ask, why was it a sweet smelling Savor unto the Lord and what is being soothed when this offering is brought before the Him? Certainly the thought that this sacrifice was a type of Jesus’ sacrifice would have made the offering sweet in the nostrils of God. After all, if God is love and He so loved the world that He sent His only Son to die for their sins, it makes perfect sense that every time these sacrifices were offered that it would bring great pleasure to God. It was a reminder that Jesus was coming. It also makes perfect sense that the technical term would be the odor of soothing, and that the answer to the question asked earlier would have to be that it’s His anger that is being soothed. His
We should feel great gratitude and our hearts should be filled with mercy and grace for others.
Wrath can be held back for a period of time until He sends Jesus, and once He sends Jesus His wrath can be held back a little longer also, which makes Him joyful because He’s longsuffering. He is not willing that any, not even one will perish. But what about the additional thought of this drink offering, especially when it’s mixed with the idea of this New Testament passage:
2 Timothy 4:6-8
6 For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; 8 in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.
The Apostle writes this 2nd letter to Timothy at the end of his journey. He is in the Mamertine Prison in Rome. Nero is about to call his name and when he does, his head will be placed on the chopping block. His body, through the years has been shredded and torn. He explains in this very letter that many believers have forsaken him and become ashamed of his chains. I wonder if these other believers began to question the validity of the Apostle’s faith at this point? How could the life of a man of God like this, one who believed God and rose the dead, how could his life end like this in such tragedy? You will be able to ask the Lord one day, but for now, just let it be understood that the Apostle likened it to being a drink offering that results in a pleasing aroma to God:
2 Corinthians 2:12-15 ESV
12 When I came to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ, even though a door was opened for me in the Lord, 13 my spirit was not at rest because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I took leave of them and went on to Macedonia.
14 But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere. 15 For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, while the smoke was rising, the smoke represents judgment towards the guilty and pardon for the innocent.
Jesus’ entire life was a drink offering in that He poured out Himself and that is what our lives are supposed to be also
It seems appropriate that Jacob poured out a drink offering on the rock at Bethel Genesis 35:14– the house of God. The place where a portal to heaven opened and heaven and earth came together in the form of a ladder. Upon that ladder the angels of God were ascending and descending upon the ladder. Jesus said: John 1:51.
Jesus willingly laid His life down, Like a lamb led to slaughter Isaiah 53 John 10:17-18 17 Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life, that I might take it again. 18 No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.
Luke 22:42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.
Paul’s understanding of the drink offering was that the people of God were to be like Jesus:
I. Philippians 2:5-- Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:— He couldn’t serve the Father the way God was asking unless He let self die
II. Gal 2:20, Romans 12:1
This message has been in my heart for at least 3 weeks and I had forgotten that I had mentioned the Rich young ruler (Matt 19:16). I thought it interesting when I reviewed my notes that Angie mentioned him also. There was that one thing that he wasn’t willing to give up and allow to be poured out of himself. He gripped his riches with a tight fist—But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions (Matthew 19:22).
The man that was given the one talent buried it in the ground and it just laid there unproductive waiting for Jesus to return.
Between being an ICU nurse and experiencing personal tragedies, I have been around more human death than what I would have preferred by this time in my life. But this is part of the path chosen for me by God.
One thing that I have noticed regarding human death is that, at times, it is slow and insidious. What I mean is that at the end of a life that goes through the course of some disease process and not some type immediate tragic event, the body tries to continue its functions. The brain signals the lungs to breathe, the cells craving oxygen struggle for more. The weakened state of the body reflexively gasps in agony for another breath. I can remember being by the bedside speaking to family members removed from life support when they would say, “Look, he’s breathing!” And I would have to say, “Yes, ma’am, it’s called an (agonal) breath. The body is trying to continue, but it’s inefficient to support life. These breaths are inefficient to provide oxygen to the cells as needed, that’s why the heart is beating so rapidly. It’s trying to distribute the little bit of oxygen to the cells that are desperately needing oxygen. Please let me know if you need something. I will be right outside. I’m going to check on my other patient.”
Several minutes would pass, and they would come and find me and ask, “Why, does the heart monitor look like that now?”
“That’s what we call an agonal heart beat. Now, the heart is weakened after overworking for so long trying to distribute the oxygen. It won’t be too much longer now.”
From there the electrical impulses will slow even more to where there may be a blip across the screen only every now and then at some point it may not even beat an actual pump of the heart, just an electrical impulse caught on the monitor, the last breath and then the body loses all muscle tone once the spirit leaves.
This makes me consider our spiritual lives and how so often we cling to self. I’m not talking necessarily about open and blatant sin. I’m talking about self. What self wants. What self thinks is right as opposed to what the Spirit wants to reveal to our lives. But there are parts of us that really want what we want, so like that agonal breath or agonal heart beat, we cling to signs of life, but spiritually we are going through the motions of what we want for our own lives, our own plans.
With a drink offering the whole vessel is poured out. I will be the first to tell you that I have not arrived, but that’s what I’m asking, that my life would be a living sacrifice for the Lord, that He would use me as a vessel that would be pleasing to Him.
I think that most of us would agree that we are living in the last of the last days?
Do you believe God is looking for people willing to be poured out and used by Him?
Do you think that God is looking for churches that are willing to let HIM work through them?
Do you think that God has been telling us here that He wants to use us that way?
What is your part in the pouring?
Teach
Pray— healing
Intercede
Release a prophetic word
Release an interpretation
Pour your heart out in worship and invite the presence of the King to show up in our services so that people’s lives will be set free
Help finance the move of God
Are you doing the part that He has called you to do? Have you obeyed His voice completely or have you gripped tightly to something that is your own will and not the will of God?
I. I pour self out
II. I ask to be filled with you
III. I will go where you send me so you can pour YOU out of me into others
IV. I remember always that the drink offering is always related to the whole burnt offering. Everything I say, everything I do is to remind others of what you have done for them. You made the way: miracles are available, filling with your Spirit, restored marriages, our children made whole, increase, souls… it’s all in the whole burnt offering so I give myself to your work O Lord. Make me a drink offering God.