Leviticus 8:25 says, And he took the fat, and the rump, and all the fat that was upon the inwards, and the caul above the liver, and the two kidneys, and their fat, and the right shoulder:  Verse twenty-six adds, And out of the basket of unleavened bread, that was before the LORD, he took one unleavened cake, and a cake of oiled bread, and one wafer, and put them on the fat, and upon the right shoulder:  Moses was combining some of the ingredients of the sacrifices into one.  Jesus Christ is our complete sacrifice today.  Verse twenty-seven states, And he put all upon Aaron’s hands, and upon his sons’ hands, and waved them for a wave offering before the LORD.  Moses then put these combined sacrifices on the hands of Aaron and his sons aa a wave offering to the LORD.  Verse twenty- eight adds, And Moses took them from off their hands, and burnt them on the altar upon the burnt offering: they were consecrations for a sweet savour: it is an offering made by fire unto the LORD.  Moses then took the things that had been put on the hands of Aaron and his sons back off their hands and offered it as a burnt offering to God.  I believe that this would have signified the transfer and removal or their sins.  Verse twenty-nine says, And Moses took the breast, and waved it for a wave offering before the LORD: for of the ram of consecration it was Moses’ part; as the LORD commanded Moses.  Moses then offered the breast as a wave offering.  Verse thirty adds, And Moses took of the anointing oil, and of the blood which was upon the altar, and sprinkled it upon Aaron, and upon his garments, and upon his sons, and upon his sons’ garments with him; and sanctified Aaron, and his garments, and his sons, and his sons’ garments with him.  Moses then sprinkled the oil and blood on Aaron and his sons, sanctifying them.   We today are sanctified by the blood of Jesus, though we do not need to have any real blood sprinkled on us.  Verse thirty-one declares, And Moses said unto Aaron and to his sons, Boil the flesh at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and there eat it with the bread that is in the basket of consecrations, as I commanded, saying, Aaron and his sons shall eat it.  Moses then instructed Aaron and his sons to boil the flesh at the door of the tabernacle and eat it with the bread in the basket of consecrations.  Moses had been doing everything related to their consecration for them, but now they were to take a more active role.  People may do everything possible to lead us to a right relationship with God, but ultimately each person must accept the sacrifice of Christ for his or her sins individually.  We cannot be saved by proxy.  Vere thirty-two adds, And that which remaineth of the flesh and of the bread shall ye burn with fire.  Anything left over was to be burned.  It couldn't be saved for later, but was to all be consumed or burned at that time.  Salvation today is not something that we can save for later, but we must come when God calls us, and even though we can share the good news of salvation and are even told that we must, we cannot share our individual salvation with others.  Verse thirty-three declares, And ye shall not go out of the door of the tabernacle of the congregation in seven days, until the days of your consecration be at an end: for seven days shall he consecrate you.  Aaron and his sons were to remain in the tabernacle for seven days until their consecration was complete.  Today, our consecration is complete once we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  No waiting is necessary before we can go and tell the world about Him.  Verse thirty-four states,  As he hath done this day, so the LORD hath commanded to do, to make an atonement for you.  Moses said this was done under God's direction to make an atonement for Aaron and his sons, just as the death of Christ was done to make atonement for the sins of everyone.  Of course, we have to personally come to Him in faith for the sacrifice, already made, to have an effect in our life.  Verse thirty-five adds,Therefore shall ye abide at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation day and night seven days, and keep the charge of the LORD, that ye die not: for so I am commanded.  This was a warning against not following through on the command of God that they stay at the door of the tabernacle day and night for seven days and keep the charge, or command, of the LORD.  This was not the command of Moses, but the command of God that Moses had received.  We today are to follow through on our accepting Christ as our Savior and Lord and do the things that He then calls us to do.  Verse thirty-six concludes, So Aaron and his sons did all things which the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses.  Aaron and his sons did as Moses told them to do, just as we today must do the things that God calls us to do once we have accepted the free gift of salvation.  Salvation does not free us to do anything we desire to do, but calls us to live daily under the leadership of the Holy Spirit.

Leviticus 8:13 says,  And Moses brought Aaron’s sons, and put coats upon them, and girded them with girdles, and put bonnets upon them; as the LORD commanded Moses.  Moses simply began to carry out God's instructions concerning Aaron and his sons.  Of course, Aaron and his sons had to do as Moses instructed them, just as we today must do as God instructs us to do.  Verse fourteen states, And he brought the bullock for the sin offering: and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the bullock for the sin offering.  After Aaron and his sons were dressed in their priestly attire, Moses brought a bullock for a sin offering, and Aaron and his sons laid their hands on its head.  Normally, the people brought the sacrifice to Aaron and his sons and the person bringing it laid his hands on the head, but in this case, it was the sins of Aaron and his sons, the priests, that were being sacrificed for.  No matter what our position in the church may be, we all need to confess our sins so that the sacrifice of Christ on the cross may atone for them.  Verse fifteen adds, And he slew it; and Moses took the blood, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about with his finger, and purified the altar, and poured the blood at the bottom of the altar, and sanctified it, to make reconciliation upon it.  This time, Moses was doing the job of the priests, since he was God's representative, and the priests could not make atonement for their own sins.  Verse sixteen continues, And he took all the fat that was upon the inwards, and the caul above the liver, and the two kidneys, and their fat, and Moses burned it upon the altar.  Moses offered the sacrifice on the altar of those things normally offered there.  We today have the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross to atone for our sins, and it is the only way that sin can be atoned for.  Verse seventeen says, But the bullock, and his hide, his flesh, and his dung, he burnt with fire without the camp; as the LORD commanded Moses.  Moses burned what was left of the bullock outside the camp.  Aaron and his sons did not get what was left in this case, I believe because it would have been them profiting materially from the sacrifice for their sins.  When we come to Christ accepting Him as our Savior and Lord, we do not do so to profit materially.  Verse eighteen declares, And he brought the ram for the burnt offering: and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the ram.  Moses next brought a ram for the burnt offering, and once again Aaron and his sons laid their hands on its head as they had done with the bullock.  Verse nineteen adds, And he killed it; and Moses sprinkled the blood upon the altar round about.  Verse twenty continues, And he cut the ram into pieces; and Moses burnt the head, and the pieces, and the fat.  Moses was once again the one carrying out the requirements for the sacrifice, just as Jesus Christ carried out the only sacrifice for sin that will ever be acceptable.  We cannot come to God through our own plan, just as Aaron and his sons couldn't make sacrifices for their own sins.  Of course we do not have a Moses, an earthly representative of God, who can sacrifice for us.  Through faith in Christ alone can a person find salvation.  Verse twenty-one concludes, And he washed the inwards and the legs in water; and Moses burnt the whole ram upon the altar: it was a burnt sacrifice for a sweet savour, and an offering made by fire unto the LORD; as the LORD commanded Moses.  Once again, the whole sacrifice was burned, this time on the altar, and it was a sweet savor to the LORD.  Our sacrifice of all that we have to God through our faith in Christ will always be a sweet savor to God.  Verse twenty-two declares, And he brought the other ram, the ram of consecration: and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the ram. Then verse twenty-three adds, And he slew it; and Moses took of the blood of it, and put it upon the tip of Aaron’s right ear, and upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the great toe of his right foot.  This was the sacrifice of consecration, and Moses first consecrated Aaron.  As followers of Christ, we must each individually consecrate our self to God.  Verse twenty-four concludes,  And he brought Aaron’s sons, and Moses put of the blood upon the tip of their right ear, and upon the thumbs of their right hands, and upon the great toes of their right feet: and Moses sprinkled the blood upon the altar round about.   Moses did the same with Aaron's sons.  Aaron's consecration did not consecrate his sons, just as the consecration of someone else cannot consecrate us today.  We must all come to Christ individually to be sanctified before God.

Leviticus 8:1 says, And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Then verse two adds, Take Aaron and his sons with him, and the garments, and the anointing oil, and a bullock for the sin offering, and two rams, and a basket of unleavened bread;  God was now giving Moses instructions on the cleansing of the priests and the things associated with them.  As followers of Christ, we are a priesthood of believers, and I believe that we bound to spiritually cleanse ourselves and everything associated with our lives by placing everything under God's control by our faith in Christ.  Verse three continues, And gather thou all the congregation together unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.  The whole congregation of Israel was to gathered together for this ceremony.  The tabernacle was ready, the laws had been given, and now it was time to set aside Aaron and his sons for the office of the priesthood.  When we come to Christ, everything is already in place to enable us to assume our calling as a part of the priesthood of God, and we must simply consecrate our self to fulfilling the role.  Verse four declares, And Moses did as the LORD commanded him; and the assembly was gathered together unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.  The first thing that had to happen was for Moses to do as God commanded, and he did.  The first thing we must do in every situation after we come to Christ as our Savior and Lord is to do what God tells us to do, as we must do in every situation after that, if we are to be successful in doing what God calls us to do.  Verse five says, And Moses said unto the congregation, This is the thing which the LORD commanded to be done.  Moses first let the congregation know that this was God's instruction and not just his own plan.  We should always know that what we are doing is what God instructs us to do, and we should let others know that we are doing what God has instructed us to do.  If we all know that we are all doing what God calls us to do as His followers, then there should be little reason for dissension among us.  Verse six declares, And Moses brought Aaron and his sons, and washed them with water.  Moses began the purification ceremony for Aaron and his sons, again done before the whole congregation.  There was nothing secretive about this.  We today cannot attempt to do things secretively that would somehow put us in a position of authority over other Christians.  Verse seven adds, And he put upon him the coat, and girded him with the girdle, and clothed him with the robe, and put the ephod upon him, and he girded him with the curious girdle of the ephod, and bound it unto him therewith.  Moses then put the priestly garments on Aaron.  Verse eight continues, And he put the breastplate upon him: also he put in the breastplate the Urim and the Thummim.  Moses then began to place the other items associated with the priesthood on Aaron.  Verse nine concludes, And he put the mitre upon his head; also upon the mitre, even upon his forefront, did he put the golden plate, the holy crown; as the LORD commanded Moses.  Moses had now dressed Aaron in all the items associated with the priesthood.  Aaron did not just put these things on by himself, but they were put on him by Moses, God's representative to the people of Israel.  We today cannot just assume whatever position we may desire in the church, but we must be called and placed there by the Holy Spirit.  When we do come to Christ, we have all the armor of God that we should put on as we go out into the world to do God's bidding.  Verse ten states, And Moses took the anointing oil, and anointed the tabernacle and all that was therein, and sanctified them.  Moses then anointed the tabernacle and all that was in it with the anointing oil.  Though Aaron and his sons were being anointed to the priesthood, all of the people of Israel were to be a part of this setting them aside for the priesthood.  I believe that we as Christians are all involved together with the carrying out God's purpose here on earth, and we should all support one another in whatever position God calls us to fill.  Verse eleven adds, And he sprinkled thereof upon the altar seven times, and anointed the altar and all his vessels, both the laver and his foot, to sanctify them. Verse twelve concludes, And he poured of the anointing oil upon Aaron’s head, and anointed him, to sanctify him.  Moses then anointed Aaron with oil, thereby setting him aside for the priesthood.  Today, we should anoint,, or set aside for God's use,  all that we are or have.

Leviticus 7:22 says, And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Then verse two adds, Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, Ye shall eat no manner of fat, of ox, or of sheep, or of goat.  God now began to tell the people of Israel some dietary restrictions, Matthew Henry says since fat was used in the sacrifices to God.  Though we don't have dietary restrictions today, I believe that God still expects us to put every aspect of our lives under His control and to never misuse what He has blessed us with.  Verse twenty-four states, And the fat of the beast that dieth of itself, and the fat of that which sacrifices and is torn with beasts, may be used in any other use: but ye shall in no wise eat of it.  They were allowed to use the fat in other ways, but they were not to eat of it.  Verse twenty-five adds, For whosoever eateth the fat of the beast, of which men offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD, even the soul that eateth it shall be cut off from his people.  Though the people were allowed to eat of the flesh of an animal sacrificed, they were not allowed to eat of the fat.  If they did, they were to be cut off from the rest of God's people.  If we disobey the word of God today, we will be cut off spiritually from God's people.  We cannot disobey God's laws and still maintain a closeness with His people or Him.  Verse twenty-six declares, Moreover ye shall eat no manner of blood, whether it be of fowl or of beast, in any of your dwellings.  The people of Israel were also prohibited from eating any blood in their dwelling.  Again, blood was used in sacrifices to God.  Verse twenty-seven adds,  Whatsoever soul it be that eateth any manner of blood, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.  As with the eating of the fat, anyone who ate of the blood was to be cut off from the rest of the people of God.  Verse twenty-eight declares, And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Verse twenty-nine adds, Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, He that offereth the sacrifice of his peace offerings unto the LORD shall bring his oblation unto the LORD of the sacrifice of his peace offerings.  This would appear to be a separate time when God spoke to Moses, but could just be a reemphasis that this was God's instructions to Moses.  Verse thirty continues, His own hands shall bring the offerings of the LORD made by fire, the fat with the breast, it shall he bring, that the breast may be waved for a wave offering before the LORD.  The man bringing the offering was to kill it and also remove the breast as a wave offering, which could later be used by Aaron and his sons for food.  Verse thirty-one adds, And the priest shall burn the fat upon the altar: but the breast shall be Aaron’s and his sons'.  This was what I have just stated.  Verse thirty-two continues, And the right shoulder shall ye give unto the priest for an heave offering of the sacrifices of your peace offerings.  The right shoulder was to used as a heave offering, once again something that was not to be burned.  Verse thirty-three says, He among the sons of Aaron, that offereth the blood of the peace offerings, and the fat, shall have the right shoulder for his part. The one of Aaron's sons offering the sacrifice of the blood on the altar was to be allowed to keep the right shoulder.  Verse thirty-four states, For the wave breast and the heave shoulder have I taken of the children of Israel from off the sacrifices of their peace offerings, and have given them unto Aaron the priest and unto his sons by a statute for ever from among the children of Israel.  God told Moses that He had taken the wave breast and heave shoulder of the peace offerings and had given it to Aaron and his sons by statute.  This was one way God provided for the priests.  Verse thirty-five adds, This is the portion of the anointing of Aaron, and of the anointing of his sons, out of the offerings of the LORD made by fire, in the day when he presented them to minister unto the LORD in the priest’s office;  God was providing for Aaron and his sons, the priests, but it was still by His plan and authority.  God provides for our needs today as followers of Christ, but it is still under His plan and by His authority.  Verse thirty-six continues, Which the LORD commanded to be given them of the children of Israel, in the day that he anointed them, by a statute for ever throughout their generations.  God told Moses that this wasn't an optional thing, but was a statute throughout all the generations.  Verse thirty-seven adds, This is the law of the burnt offering, of the meat offering, and of the sin offering, and of the trespass offering, and of the consecrations, and of the sacrifice of the peace offerings;  God then told Moses that these laws applied to the burnt, meat, sin and trespass offerings.  Then verse thirty-eight concludes. Which the LORD commanded Moses in mount Sinai, in the day that he commanded the children of Israel to offer their oblations unto the LORD, in the wilderness of Sinai. We are then told that these were laws commanded to Moses on Mount Sinai.  This was God's law 

Leviticus 7:11 says, And this is the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which he shall offer unto the LORD.  This was still God's instructions to Moses, this time concerning the peace offering.  We need to hear what God has to say to us today if we are followers of Christ.  Verse twelve states, If he offer it for a thanksgiving, then he shall offer with the sacrifice of thanksgiving unleavened cakes mingled with oil, and unleavened wafers anointed with oil, and cakes mingled with oil, of fine flour, fried.  Moses was first told of the requirements for a thanksgiving offering, which was to be offered with unleavened cakes and wafers anointed with oil.  These offerings were not required, but were to be freely offered any time a person wanted to do so.  Accepting Christ's sacrifice on the cross for our sins is all that is necessary for salvation, but we are still to make offerings to God of the material things that He blesses us with.  Verse thirteen adds, Besides the cakes, he shall offer for his offering leavened bread with the sacrifice of thanksgiving of his peace offerings.  There were also leavened cakes that were to be offered with the peace offering as an offering of thanksgiving.  Verse fourteen declares, And of it he shall offer one out of the whole oblation for an heave offering unto the LORD, and it shall be the priest’s that sprinkleth the blood of the peace offerings.  One part the leavened bread was to be given to the priest, who would sprinkle it with the blood of the peace offering.  We know today that we are made righteous with God by the shed blood of Jesus, and when we offer anything to God, it is purified by the blood of Jesus.  Verse fifteen says, And the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings for thanksgiving shall be eaten the same day that it is offered; he shall not leave any of it until the morning.  What was left over from the peace offering could be eaten not just by the priest but by the one bringing the offering as well, but it had to be eaten that day.  Matthew Henry says this was so that something given to God would never be allowed to decay.  When we offer something to God today, we must give it freely to be used up immediately if God sees fit, and if we are allowed to still keep a portion for ourselves, then we must still use it all for the glory of God.  Verse sixteen states, But if the sacrifice of his offering be a vow, or a voluntary offering, it shall be eaten the same day that he offereth his sacrifice: and on the morrow also the remainder of it shall be eaten:  There was a little difference in the offering made for a vow, and that was that what was left could be eaten on the second day as well.  As Christians, everything we own should belong to God, and some of it will be immediately removed from our possession to do God's work through the church as a whole, but even the rest should be viewed as belonging to God and used for His honor and glory.  Verse seventeen declares, But the remainder of the flesh of the sacrifice on the third day shall be burnt with fire.  Anything left by the third day was to be burned up.  Verse eighteen adds, And if any of the flesh of the sacrifice of his peace offerings be eaten at all on the third day, it shall not be accepted, neither shall it be imputed unto him that offereth it: it shall be an abomination, and the soul that eateth of it shall bear his iniquity.  Any of the offering eaten the third day would make the offering not be accepted.  We need to realize that God is the One Who controls the way that our offerings are to be used, and once we make them they are then under His control.  Verse nineteen states, And the flesh that toucheth any unclean thing shall not be eaten; it shall be burnt with fire: and as for the flesh, all that be clean shall eat thereof.  If the flesh of the offering touched anything unclean, it was to be burned.  All that was clean could still be eaten.  When we bring an offering to God today, we should ask forgiveness for any sin in our lives when we do so, and then our sacrifice will be pure.  Verse twenty declares, But the soul that eateth of the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, that pertain unto the LORD, having his uncleanness upon him, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.  Anyone eating part of the peace offering who was unclean was to be cut off from the people of God.  If we allow something unclean, or some sin, to enter our life today as a follower of Christ, then we may lose our close relationship with other Christians, though won't lose our salvation.  Verse twenty-one adds, Moreover the soul that shall touch any unclean thing, as the uncleanness of man, or any unclean beast, or any abominable unclean thing, and eat of the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which pertain unto the LORD, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.  Offerings and sacrifices were taken seriously then, as should our offerings be today.  Whenever we offer anything to God, we should first make sure that we are not made unclean by some sin that is in our life.

Leviticus 7:1 says, Likewise this is the law of the trespass offering: it is most holy.  The law of the trespass offering was said to be most holy.  A trespass would be a deliberate sin against God I believe, and even if our actions are against a neighbor, they are ultimately against God if the are wrong.  Verse two states, In the place where they kill the burnt offering shall they kill the trespass offering: and the blood thereof shall he sprinkle round about upon the altar.  The trespass offering was to be killed in the same place that the burnt offering was killed.  I believe that we can say that all offerings we make today as Christians are made at the same place, and that is at the foot of the cross of Jesus.  Verse three adds, And he shall offer of it all the fat thereof; the rump, and the fat that covereth the inwards,  Ten verse four continues, And the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the flanks, and the caul that is above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away:  These two verses give the specifics of what was to be offered.  As with all the sacrifices, God set the terms of what was to be sacrificed.  Today, it is simple.  We offer all that we are and all that we have to God through our faith in Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Verse five says, And the priest shall burn them upon the altar for an offering made by fire unto the LORD: it is a trespass offering. The offering was to be burned like the trespass offerings had been on the altar, just as the peace offerings had been burned.  Verse six states, Every male among the priests shall eat thereof: it shall be eaten in the holy place: it is most holy.  Evidently the fire was not to consume this offering, or this refers to the rest of the sacrifice that was not consumed by the fire.  The priest were to be allowed to eat of the sacrifice together in the holy place.  This would bring them both food and fellowship with each other in the presence of God.  We still need that sustenance and fellowship with God and our fellow believers today.  Verse seven declares, As the sin offering is, so is the trespass offering: there is one law for them: the priest that maketh atonement therewith shall have it.  The people were told then and we are told today that there was one law for all the offerings, and that was the law of God.  We know today that all sins are forgiven the same way, and that is by coming to Jesus Christ and confessing our sins, and all sin can only be forgiven this way.  Verse eight states, And the priest that offereth any man’s burnt offering, even the priest shall have to himself the skin of the burnt offering which he hath offered.  The priest who offered the offering was to have the skin of the burnt offering.  This would be of use to the priest, and it was not to be divided among the priests.  God does not give all of His followers the same things materially, but He does provide for all their needs if they put their faith in Him.  Verse nine adds, And all the meat offering that is baken in the oven, and all that is dressed in the fryingpan, and in the pan, shall be the priest’s that offereth it.  If the offering was of flour then all that was left from preparing the offering was to belong to the priest offering it.  Then verse ten concludes,  And every meat offering, mingled with oil, and dry, shall all the sons of Aaron have, one as much as another.  Matthew Henry says that this refers to those parts of the sacrifice that did not need to be consumed immediately.  We do know that some of the sacrifice was to be consumed in the holy place and by the priest on duty and some was to be shared with all the priests.  Today, some of what God blesses us with will be for our own use and some will be for sharing with others.  I believe that if we are listening to God that we will know how to use what He blesses us with.

Leviticus 6:19 says, And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Then verse twenty adds, This is the offering of Aaron and of his sons, which they shall offer unto the LORD in the day when he is anointed; the tenth part of an ephah of fine flour for a meat offering perpetual, half of it in the morning, and half thereof at night.  God then specified a perpetual offering of fine meal that was to be offered, half in the morning and half in the evening.  I believe that we can say today that God expects us to offer ourselves to Him day and night as a living sacrifice, through our faith in Christ, Who is our high Priest.  Verse twenty-one states, In a pan it shall be made with oil; and when it is baken, thou shalt bring it in: and the baken pieces of the meat offering shalt thou offer for a sweet savour unto the LORD.  The flour was to be cooked with oil and burned as a sweet smelling offering to God.  Verse twenty-two adds, And the priest of his sons that is anointed in his stead shall offer it: it is a statute for ever unto the LORD; it shall be wholly burnt.  The priest who was anointed that day was to offer the sacrifice, and this offering was to not only be perpetual. but it was to be burned totally up.  Verse twenty-three declares, For every meat offering for the priest shall be wholly burnt: it shall not be eaten.  As just stated, this offering was to be burned up totally, since it was an offering for the sins of the priests.  We cannot hold back parts of ourselves when we come to Christ by faith, but we must give all that we are and have to Him to be used as He sees fit.  Verse twenty-four says, And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Verse twenty-five adds, Speak unto Aaron and to his sons, saying, This is the law of the sin offering: In the place where the burnt offering is killed shall the sin offering be killed before the LORD: it is most holy.  God through Moses continued to give instructions about the offerings.  The sin offering was to be killed in the place where the burnt offer had been killed, because it was a most holy place to God.  Then verse twenty-six continues, The priest that offereth it for sin shall eat it: in the holy place shall it be eaten, in the court of the tabernacle of the congregation.  This offering was not to be totally burned up, but was to be eaten by the priest who was anointed.  This would signify the taking of the sins of the people on himself by the priest, just as Christ took all sins on Himself when He died on the cross.  Verse twenty-seven states, Whatsoever shall touch the flesh thereof shall be holy: and when there is sprinkled of the blood thereof upon any garment, thou shalt wash that whereon it was sprinkled in the holy place.  Anything that the offering touched was to be considered holy, and if blood got on a garment, it was to be washed.  I believe that we today can say that when we touch Christ by putting our faith in Him as our Savior and Lord that we are made holy, or set apart for His service.  Of course, instead of washing off His blood, we are made pure by being washed in the blood of Christ.  Verse twenty-eight adds, But the earthen vessel wherein it is sodden shall be broken: and if it be sodden in a brasen pot, it shall be both scoured, and rinsed in water. If the sin offering had been in an earthen pot, it was to be broken, and if it was in a brazen pot, the pot was to be scoured completely.  Verse twenty-nine states, All the males among the priests shall eat thereof: it is most holy.  All the male priests were to eat of this offering.

Then verse thirty concludes, And no sin offering, whereof any of the blood is brought into the tabernacle of the congregation to reconcile withal in the holy place, shall be eaten: it shall be burnt in 

the fire.  Then, God said that no sin offering was to be eaten, but it was to be burned completely.  There was to be no profit materially from the sin offering.  

Leviticus 6:8 says, And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Verse nine adds, Command Aaron and his sons, saying, This is the law of the burnt offering: It is the burnt offering, because of the burning upon the altar all night unto the morning, and the fire of the altar shall be burning in it.  God spoke to Moses and told him to command Aaron and his sons, who were the priests, concerning the burnt offering.  Though the priest represented God to the people, they were still under God's command, just as preachers are today.  This offering was to be a daily offering, just as we are to offer ourselves as a daily living sacrifice to God.  Verse ten states, And the priest shall put on his linen garment, and his linen breeches shall he put upon his flesh, and take up the ashes which the fire hath consumed with the burnt offering on the altar, and he shall put them beside the altar. The priest was even to dress in a particular way, wearing the garments that he wore at any service at the altar, and then remove the ashes from the altar.  This was basically a housecleaning job.  We today do not have to dress in a particular way when we come into God's presence, but we do have some house cleaning to do everyday.  We need to remove all the things from our lives that get between God and us.  Verse eleven adds, And he shall put off his garments, and put on other garments, and carry forth the ashes without the camp unto a clean place.  After the priest removed the ashes from the altar, then he was to change out of his priestly garments.

The priest was then to dispose of the ashes in a clean place.  Matthew Henry says that the ashes were still representative of the sacrifice to God and were to be treated as such.  Verse twelve says, And the fire upon the altar shall be burning in it; it shall not be put out: and the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order upon it; and he shall burn thereon the fat of the peace offerings.  The fire on the altar was to never go out.  It was the responsibility of the priests to keep the fire going so that the daily sacrifices might be made.  It is our responsibility today as followers of Christ to make sure that the fire of the gospel never goes out.  We must feed the flame daily.  Verse thirteen adds, The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out.  This was simply a reemphasis that the fire on the altar was to never go out.  The fire of the altar was to be ever ready at anytime for a sacrifice, just as we are to be ready at anytime to offer our lives as a sacrifice to God.  Today, being a Christian is a twenty-four hour a day, seven day a week calling.  Verse fourteen declares, And this is the law of the meat offering: the sons of Aaron shall offer it before the LORD, before the altar.  God now goes into the specifics of the way the meat offering was to be presented.  Once more, we need to follow God's directions when we are serving Him.  We cannot just do what we want and then claim that we were doing it for God.  Verse fifteen adds, And he shall take of it his handful, of the flour of the meat offering, and of the oil thereof, and all the frankincense which is upon the meat offering, and shall burn it upon the altar for a sweet savour, even the memorial of it, unto the LORD.  Only a portion of the meat offering was to be burned.  Verse sixteen continues, And the remainder thereof shall Aaron and his sons eat: with unleavened bread shall it be eaten in the holy place; in the court of the tabernacle of the congregation they shall eat it.  The rest was to be eaten by Aaron and his sons, the priests, with unleavened bread in the tabernacle of the congregation.  God was making provision for them, but that did not mean that they were to skimp on the amount burned because they knew the rest was going to be theirs,  We today need to realize that as followers of Christ that everything that we have belongs to God, and we should never skip on what we give to do His work.  Verse seventeen adds, It shall not be baken with leaven. I have given it unto them for their portion of my offerings made by fire; it is most holy, as is the sin offering, and as the trespass offering.  Then verse eighteen concludes, All the males among the children of Aaron shall eat of it. It shall be a statute for ever in your generations concerning the offerings of the LORD made by fire: every one that toucheth them shall be holy.  Only the male descendants of Aaron were to eat of the left overs from the offerings, because they were the priests.  Today, any Christian, whether male or female, is a part of the priesthood of God.  We can come freely to God at any time.

Leviticus 6:1 says,  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Once more, we are told that this is God's word given to Moses.  If we are sharing the word of God today, we must first make sure that it is His word, and to do that, we must first know what His word says and recognize His voice when He talks to us.  Verse two states, If a soul sin, and commit a trespass against the LORD, and lie unto his neighbour in that which was delivered him to keep, or in fellowship, or in a thing taken away by violence, or hath deceived his neighbour;  God now begins to deal with sin that involves a person's neighbor.  Though these are things done against a neighbor, the are called sins against God.  We, as followers of Christ, represent Him in the world today, and if our actions cause harm to our neighbor, they reflect on God.  Ultimately, all sin is against God, because it breaks our relationship with Him.  God speaks of breaking ones trust with a neighbor by attempting to misuse what the neighbor has entrusted him or her with.  Verse three adds, Or have found that which was lost, and lieth concerning it, and sweareth falsely; in any of all these that a man doeth, sinning therein:  Then God, through Moses, speaks of finding something someone has lost and attempting to keep it for ones self, even lying to do so.  We can never justify the finders keepers, losers weepers attitude as Christians.  If we find something, we must attempt to return it to its rightful owner if at all possible, and we can certainly never justify lying to keep it.  Verse four declares, Then it shall be, because he hath sinned, and is guilty, that he shall restore that which he took violently away, or the thing which he hath deceitfully gotten, or that which was delivered him to keep, or the lost thing which he found,  God deals with more than one way that a person could be guilty of taking something belonging to his or her neighbor.  It could be taken violently, deceitfully, found, or have been given in trust.  We might notice that God does not distinguish between these acts.  All are sins.  We might judge those more harshly that take things by force, but in the eyes of God, a person is just as guilty if he or she takes something by violating a trust.  Verse five continues, Or all that about which he hath sworn falsely; he shall even restore it in the principal, and shall add the fifth part more thereto, and give it unto him to whom it appertaineth, in the day of his trespass offering.  This verse adds lying to keep something that isn't yours, then specifies the penalty.  Not only was the thing attained illegally to be restored, but a twenty percent penalty was to be added to it.  This was to be done before a trespaas offering was offered.  It is not enough to just say that we have asked God's forgiveness and not think that we therefore need to do nothing more.  God expects His people to deal honestly with other people, and when they don't, He expects them to do their best to make restitution.  Not only are we as followers of Christ not above the law, but we are to set the standard for others to follow in obeying the law, unless it somehow directly affects our relationship with God.  Verse six continues, And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD, a ram without blemish out of the flock, with thy estimation, for a trespass offering, unto the priest:  After restoration was made, the man was to bring a ram to the priest as an offering.  We must attempt to make things right with those we have offended and then we are to offer our sacrifice to God, which is our true repentance and placing our lives once again in His hands, since Jesus Christ has already made atonement for all our sins.  Verse seven concludes, And the priest shall make an atonement for him before the LORD: and it shall be forgiven him for any thing of all that he hath done in trespassing therein.  Jesus Christ is our Priest today, and He makes atonement for all our sins, but we cannot just ignore it when we sin, especially if we have hurt our neighbor by saying that God has already forgiven us.  We must take responsibility for our sins, and do our best to make things right with our neighbor if we have harmed him or her.

Leviticus 5:11 says. But if he be not able to bring two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, then he that sinned shall bring for his offering the tenth part of an ephah of fine flour for a sin offering; he shall put no oil upon it, neither shall he put any frankincense thereon: for it is a sin offering.  Once more, there was a provision for those who couldn't even affordable turtle doves to bring an offering of fine flour.  God always makes provision for even the poorest to be forgiven of their sins, but of course, salvation is free for all.  Verse twelve states, Then shall he bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take his handful of it, even a memorial thereof, and burn it on the altar, according to the offerings made by fire unto the LORD: it is a sin offering.  The man was to bring the offering to the priest who was to offer a part of it for a sin offering.  Verse thirteen adds, And the priest shall make an atonement for him as touching his sin that he hath sinned in one of these, and it shall be forgiven him: and the remnant shall be the priest’s, as a meat offering.  The rest of the flour offering was to be the priest's.  The thing offered was not the key, but the willingness of the person to offer the best he had was, and this is still true today.  Verse fourteen says,  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  Before Moses could tell the people of Israel what God said he had to first listen to God.  Before we can tell people today what God has to say, we must first listen to what God tells us.  Verse fifteen states, If a soul commit a trespass, and sin through ignorance, in the holy things of the LORD; then he shall bring for his trespass unto the LORD a ram without blemish out of the flocks, with thy estimation by shekels of silver, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for a trespass offering:  In this case, if a person sinned through ignorance against the holy things of God, he was to bring a ram and an offering of money as well.   Verses sixteen adds, And he shall make amends for the harm that he hath done in the holy thing, and shall add the fifth part thereto, and give it unto the priest: and the priest shall make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering, and it shall be forgiven him.  The man was to make amends for the harm done to the holy thing, and add another fifth to the cost and give it to the priest.  As always, the priest would present the offering to God.  We today come to Jesus for forgiveness, and He presents Himself to the heavenly Father as an atonement for our sins.  Verse seventeen says,  And if a soul sin, and commit any of these things which are forbidden to be done by the commandments of the LORD; though he wist it not, yet is he guilty, and shall bear his iniquity.  We might say that ignorance of these was no excuse.  I believe that way down in our soul we are always going to be convicted of our sins, even when we may not know exactly what that sin is.   Verse eighteen adds, And he shall bring a ram without blemish out of the flock, with thy estimation, for a trespass offering, unto the priest: and the priest shall make an atonement for him concerning his ignorance wherein he erred and wist it not, and it shall be forgiven him.  When the man became aware of his sin he was to bring a ram to the priest to be offered to God.  As soon as we realize that we have sinned we are to come to Christ for forgiveness, but we can only bring our self.  Verse nineteen declares, It is a trespass offering: he hath certainly trespassed against the LORD.   All sin is really a trespass against God and it must be confessed and forgiveness asked if we are to be in a right relationship with God. 

Leviticus 5:1 says, And if a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether he hath seen or known of it; if he do not utter it, then he shall bear his iniquity.  God, through Moses, now begins to deal with specific sins that people could be guilty of.  The first is knowing that someone else has sinned, whether by actually seeing it or hearing of it, and saying nothing about it when called on to testify, then according to Matthew Henry, that person is just as guilty as the one who committed the sin.  I believe that it may go a step farther and mean that if a person knows of someone sinning and says nothing, whether testifying or not, then they are guilty of abetting the person in the sin.  We today seem to look down on people who do report sins, or crimes at least.  I believe that as followers of Christ we have a responsibility to take action when we see something happening that is wrong.  Verse two states, Or if a soul touch any unclean thing, whether it be a carcase of an unclean beast, or a carcase of unclean cattle, or the carcase of unclean creeping things, and if it be hidden from him; he also shall be unclean, and guilty.  Moses said that if a person touched an unclean thing, even unknowingly and then became aware of it and did not take action to purify himself that he was unclean and guilty.  Though we don't have unclean things, we do have sin, and if we are guilty of sin, even if we did not realize at first that we were, then we have a responsibility to confess that sin and ask God's forgiveness.  As Matthew Henry says, even if we are not aware of the sin at the time, as Christians the Holy Spirit will convict us of the sin, then we must repent or bear the burden of the sin.  Verse three says, Or if he touch the uncleanness of man, whatsoever uncleanness it be that a man shall be defiled withal, and it be hid from him; when he knoweth of it, then he shall be guilty.  This would also apply to touching not just the unclean thing itself, but also to touching someone else who had touched the unclean thing, thereby becoming unclean themselves.  Today, we might say that we were guilty by association.  Verse four states, Or if a soul swear, pronouncing with his lips to do evil, or to do good, whatsoever it be that a man shall pronounce with an oath, and it be hid from him; when he knoweth of it, then he shall be guilty in one of these.  Once a person swore to tell the truth, they were responsible to do so.  Matthew Henry says this applied whether what was sworn to was good or evil.  Of course, if it were evil, then the person would be guilty whether they kept their oath or failed to keep it.  I believe this is a warning that we are to be careful about what we swear to.  Verse five says, And it shall be, when he shall be guilty in one of these things, that he shall confess that he hath sinned in that thing:  When a person became aware that he was guilty of any of any of these sins, then he had to confess to be restored to a right relationship with God.  Though we know that this was stated as applying to men, we also know that it applies to women as well.  Verse six states, And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD for his sin which he hath sinned, a female from the flock, a lamb or a kid of the goats, for a sin offering; and the priest shall make an atonement for him concerning his sin.  Not only did the person have to confess, but he had to bring a trespass offering to God, and the priest would make atonement for the sin.  All we can do today is to come to Christ again in repentance if we sin as His followers, and he is the One Who can make atonement for us.  Verse seven adds, And if he be not able to bring a lamb, then he shall bring for his trespass, which he hath committed, two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, unto the LORD; one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering.  Once more, an allowance was made for those who may not have been financially well off enough to bring a lamb.  God makes the same sacrifice available for our sins today, no matter how rich or poor we may be, and that is that we accept the sacrifice of Christ on the cross for our sins.  Verse eight continues, And he shall bring them unto the priest, who shall offer that which is for the sin offering first, and wring off his head from his neck, but shall not divide it asunder:  Again, the sacrifice was to be brought to the priest, and the priest made the sacrifice.

Jesus Christ is our Priest today, and we must come to Him to find forgiveness for our sins.  Verse nine adds, And he shall sprinkle of the blood of the sin offering upon the side of the altar; and the rest of the blood shall be wrung out at the bottom of the altar: it is a sin offering. The offering was to be carried out much the same as th other offerings, just as the offering of the blood of Christ for our sins is the same no matter the sin.  Verse ten concludes, And he shall offer the second for a burnt offering, according to the manner: and the priest shall make an atonement for him for his sin which he hath sinned, and it shall be forgiven him.  After the priest made the offering for atonement, the sin was forgiven.  Today, we have the glorious news that once we come to Jesus by faith that our sins are atoned for and we are forgiven.  Still, even after we accept Jesus as our Savior and Lord, when we find ourselves to have committed a sin, and I believe that the Holy Spirit will convict us when we do, we must come to Christ and ask forgiveness for that sin.  We can never simply overlook sin.

Leviticus 4:27 says, And if any one of the common people sin through ignorance, while he doeth somewhat against any of the commandments of the LORD concerning things which ought not to be done, and be guilty;  Common people would be those who were not rulers of the nation, and would be most of the people.  This again was referring to inadvertent sin that the person became aware that they had committed, I believe, otherwise if they didn't become aware that they had committed the sin inadvertently they would not know they needed to repent.  Verse twenty-eight states, Or if his sin, which he hath sinned, come to his knowledge: then he shall bring his offering, a kid of the goats, a female without blemish, for his sin which he hath sinned.  Once the person became aware of his sin, then he was to bring a sacrifice to God for it.  The common man could bring a female kid of a goat for his sacrifice.  If we become aware of some inadvertent sin, we cannot just ignore it because we were unaware that we were sinning at the time.  All sin must be atoned for.  Also, though this refers to the man, we need to realize that it applies to women as well.  Though Christ died for all sins for all time, we must still acknowledge them if we commit them, even inadvertently, and ask His forgiveness.  Verse twenty nine adds, And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin offering, and slay the sin offering in the place of the burnt offering.  Verse thirty continues, And the priest shall take of the blood thereof with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out all the blood thereof at the bottom of the altar.  Then verse thirty-one concludes, And he shall take away all the fat thereof, as the fat is taken away from off the sacrifice of peace offerings; and the priest shall burn it upon the altar for a sweet savour unto the LORD; and the priest shall make an atonement for him, and it shall be forgiven him.  Once more, the person who brought the sacrifice was to place his hands on the head and kill it, then the priest was to spread the blood and deal with the details of the rest of the disposition of the sacrifice.  We today bring ourselves to Christ and put our lives in His hands by faith, and He becomes the sacrifice, based totally on God's plan.  Faith in Christ brings us total forgiveness.   Verse thirty-two says, And if he bring a lamb for a sin offering, he shall bring it a female without blemish.  There was also a provision for a lamb to be brought, also a female.  Today, we know that these sacrifices were only symbolic of the time when Christ would come and become the sacrifice for all sin.  Verse thirty three adds,  And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin offering, and slay it for a sin offering in the place where they kill the burnt offering.  Verse thirty-four continues, And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out all the blood thereof at the bottom of the altar:  Then verse thirty-five concludes,  And he shall take away all the fat thereof, as the fat of the lamb is taken away from the sacrifice of the peace offerings; and the priest shall burn them upon the altar, according to the offerings made by fire unto the LORD: and the priest shall make an atonement for his sin that he hath committed, and it shall be forgiven him.  The sacrifice may have been different, but the details of the sacrifice were the same.  We are all different people when we come to Christ in faith, but the sacrifice is the same for all, and that is that Jesus Christ died for all our sins for all time.

Leviticus 4:13 says, And if the whole congregation of Israel sin through ignorance, and the thing be hid from the eyes of the assembly, and they have done somewhat against any of the commandments of the LORD concerning things which should not be done, and are guilty;  There are a lot of qualifiers in this statement, but it basically speaks of the entire nation of Israel inadvertently sinning against God by breaking His law stating that they were still guilty.  As soon as they realized this, instead of trying to hide it or justify it, they needed to repent and ask God's forgiveness.  Matthew Henry says it is possible for the church to sin by misinterpreting the laws of God, but if it does, then as soon as the members of the church realize this, they must repent and ask God's forgiveness.  Verse fourteen states, When the sin, which they have sinned against it, is known, then the congregation shall offer a young bullock for the sin, and bring him before the tabernacle of the congregation.  As stated, when the congregation became aware of this sin, even though it may have been inadvertent, they had to take responsibility for it.  We cannot simply excuse sin by claiming that we were unaware that we were sinning at the time it occurred, but if we as a group of God's people realize that we have been in error on any issue, we must turn to God and ask His forgiveness.  Then, they were to bring a sacrifice for their sins, but we today have the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for all our sins for all-time, so we simply have to acknowledge our sin and take responsibility for it and ask His forgiveness.  Verse fifteen adds, And the elders of the congregation shall lay their hands upon the head of the bullock before the LORD: and the bullock shall be killed before the LORD.  The congregation was to bring a young bullock to the tabernacle, and the elders were to lay their hands on the head of the bullock and kill it.  The elders would represent the whole congregation of Israel, and today, certain preachers are seen as representing the whole congregation, though as followers of Christ we are all individually responsible for our relationship with God.  Verse sixteen continues, And the priest that is anointed shall bring of the bullock’s blood to the tabernacle of the congregation:  Then verse seventeen adds, And the priest shall dip his finger in some of the blood, and sprinkle it seven times before the LORD, even before the vail.  After the leaders, who represented the people, killed the bullock, the priest who was appointed, was to bring the blood and sprinkle it on the altar seven times before the veil.  We as followers of Christ are already forgiven when we accept the sacrifice of Christ for our sins, but when we sin we must still come to Him in repentance once again.  We cannot just claim that since our sins are forgiven that we no longer have to repent and ask forgiveness for our sins, even if they are inadvertent.  Verse eighteen continues, And he shall put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar which is before the LORD, that is in the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall pour out all the blood at the bottom of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.  Some of the blood was to be placed on the horns of the altar and some at the bottom of the altar before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.  I believe this would represent a complete cleansing of the tabernacle, just as we are completely cleansed by the blood of Jesus today when we put our faith in Him.  Verse nineteen states, And he shall take all his fat from him, and burn it upon the altar.  Then verse twenty declares, And he shall do with the bullock as he did with the bullock for a sin offering, so shall he do with this: and the priest shall make an atonement for them, and it shall be forgiven them.  The priest was to treat the bullock as a sin offering and by doing so, it would bring atonement to the people of Israel.  Again, this was not for an individual's sin, but for the sin of the congregation, or nation.  As a congregation of believers today, if we realize that we have been wrong in our actions or attitudes concerning any particular issue, we must confess our sins and be restored by our faith in Christ, Whose blood cleanses all unrighteousness if we only ask Him to forgive us.  Verse twenty-one adds, And he shall carry forth the bullock without the camp, and burn him as he burned the first bullock: it is a sin offering for the congregation.  The bullock was to be taken outside the camp and burned.  We must remove sin from the congregation today and at least figuratively speaking take it outside the camp of the congregation and burn it.  Verse twenty-two says, When a ruler hath sinned, and done somewhat through ignorance against any of the commandments of the LORD his God concerning things which should not be done, and is guilty;  Moses now dealt with the inadvertent sins of a leader instead of the whole congregation.  We need to pray that if our leaders sin today that it is inadvertent and not knowingly.  Verse twenty-three adds, Or if his sin, wherein he hath sinned, come to his knowledge; he shall bring his offering, a kid of the goats, a male without blemish:  When the leader became aware of his sins, he was to bring a young goat without blemish to be sacrificed for his sins.  Verse twenty-four continues, And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the goat, and kill it in the place where they kill the burnt offering before the LORD: it is a sin offering.  The leader was to place his hands on the head or the goat and kill it in the place of sacrifice before the LORD, because it was a sin sacrifice.  A leader today, especially in the church, must likewise repent and lay their sin at the altar of Christ when if they realize that they are guilty of an inadvertent sin,  Verse twenty-five continues,

And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out his blood at the bottom of the altar of burnt offering.  Once more, the priest was responsible for the actual spreading of the blood, just a Jesus is the One Who spreads His blood for everyone who comes to Him in faith today.  Jesus is our High Priest, and the only one who can bring us forgiveness.  Verse twenty-six concludes, And he shall burn all his fat upon the altar, as the fat of the sacrifice of peace offerings: and the priest shall make an atonement for him as concerning his sin, and it shall be forgiven him.  Once the priest had made the sacrifice for a peace offering he would have made atonement of the sin and the leader would be forgiven.  We cannot just dismiss sin, even those that may be inadvertent, but must bring them to the cross and ask God's forgiveness to be restored to a right relationship with Him.  We do not lose our salvation, but we do lose our witness and closeness to God if we allow sin to go unrepented.   

Leviticus 4:1 says,  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,  We must always remember that these were God's laws and not those of Moses.  Matthew Henry says that this was probably at a later time than the time of the first two chapters.  God continues to speak to His people to guide them throughout their lifetime, and not just once and then that is it.  Verse two states, Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a soul shall sin through ignorance against any of the commandments of the LORD concerning things which ought not to be done, and shall do against any of them:  God now began to address non deliberate sin, those things that were against God's law when the person had no knowledge of that law.  Deliberate, willful sin, whether by commission or omission, is different than sinning when a person does not know the law and sins.  Being born into the nation of Israel did not automatically make a person knowledgeable of the laws of God, and there were many, many people who did not know God or His laws.  This did not make them not be responsible for obeying God, but they were given a way to restoration.  Jesus Christ is our way to restoration to God for all sins, those committed knowingly and those committed unwittingly.  Verse three says, If the priest that is anointed do sin according to the sin of the people; then let him bring for his sin, which he hath sinned, a young bullock without blemish unto the LORD for a sin offering.  The first provision was made for a priest who sinned but not deliberately.  The priests were but people and just as capable of sinning as anyone else.  We today as followers of Christ are a part of the priesthood of believers, and we are also just as capable of sinning as anyone else is, but hopefully if we do it will not be an actual act of defiance of God's law.  Still, if we do, we need to confess that sin and ask God's forgiveness, even when we know that we are already forgiven through our faith in Christ.  Verse four adds, And he shall bring the bullock unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the LORD; and shall lay his hand upon the bullock’s head, and kill the bullock before the LORD.  The priest who was guilty of an unintentional transgression against the law of God was to bring a bullock before the congregation and lay his hands on its head and kill it before the LORD.  The people brought the sacrifice to the priest and he killed it, but in this case the sacrifice was for the priest himself, so he killed it himself.  As a part of the priesthood of believers through our faith in Christ today, we do not need to go through anyone else to find forgiveness for any of our sins, but must go to God on our own for forgiveness.  Verse five states, And the priest that is anointed shall take the bullock's blood, and bring it to the tabernacle of the congregation:  The priest that was anointed was to then take the blood of the bullock into the tabernacle of the congregation.  Jesus Christ is the Anointed Priest of all who believe in Him today, and by His blood we are forgiven.  Verse six adds, And the priest shall dip his finger in the blood, and sprinkle of the blood seven times before the LORD, before the vail of the sanctuary.  The priest was to dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle it seven times before the veil of the LORD.  The number seven was important in the Jewish community since it was said to represent completeness.  We know today that Christ shed His blood for us to bring us forgiveness once and for all-time, and this forgiveness is a complete forgiveness.  Verse seven states, And the priest shall put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar of sweet incense before the LORD, which is in the tabernacle of the congregation; and shall pour all the blood of the bullock at the bottom of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.  Then verse eight adds, And he shall take off from it all the fat of the bullock for the sin offering; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,  The next few verses are just instructions for how to sacrifice the bullocks.  Verse nine continues,  And the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away,  Verse ten continues,  As it was taken off from the bullock of the sacrifice of peace offerings: and the priest shall burn them upon the altar of the burnt offering.  These were specific instructions for how the sacrifice was to be made.  Verse eleven then adds,  And the skin of the bullock, and all his flesh, with his head, and with his legs, and his inwards, and his dung,  Verse twelve concludes. Even the whole bullock shall he carry forth without the camp unto a clean place, where the ashes are poured out, and burn him on the wood with fire: where the ashes are poured out shall he be burnt.  The priest was to take the whole bullock to a specific place and burn it.  This was all to be done for the forgiveness of the sin of a priest.  There are no separate sacrifices for particular sins today, but we can only find forgiveness through the blood of Christ, which covers all sin for all time.

Leviticus 3:12 says, And if his offering be a goat, then he shall offer it before the LORD.   Once again, the offering was of less value overall than some in material terms, but I believe this was a provision for those who were unable to give something that was of more material value.  I don't believe that those who were able to give a greater offering were to look for the lesser offering to give.  If we don't have much, we cannot give much, but we must give our best to God.  When it comes to our life, we cannot afford to hold back the best parts and give God the lesser parts.  We must give all that we are and all that we have to God, and if we do, then He will meet our every need.  Verse thirteen states, And he shall lay his hand upon the head of it, and kill it before the tabernacle of the congregation: and the sons of Aaron shall sprinkle the blood thereof upon the altar round about.  The way the goat was to be sacrificed was the same as the other, more expensive animals were sacrificed.  No matter how wealthy or poor we are materially in the world, we must all come to God the same way, and that is through the cross of Calvary.  Verse fourteen adds, And he shall offer thereof his offering, even an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,  Once more, there were specific instructions for the way the sacrifice was to be prepared.  We today must lay it all on the altar for God as well, and we must come to Him by His terms.  Verse fifteen add further, And the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away.  Then verse sixteen continues, And the priest shall burn them upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire for a sweet savour: all the fat is the LORD’s.  As with all the sacrifices, the one making offering brought the sacrifice to the priest, and the priest presented the actual sacrifice to God.  Jesus is our High Priest, and we mist present ourselves to Him and He makes the actual sacrifice to the heavenly Father through His shed blood.  Verse seventeen concludes, It shall be a perpetual statute for your generations throughout all your dwellings, that ye eat neither fat nor blood.  These rules of sacrifice were to apply for all generations, until the coming of Jesus Christ as the forever sacrifice for our sins.  There was also the restriction of eating no fat or blood, but we know that after the death of Christ that the dietary rules were no longer in effect, because as God told Peter, what God has made clean we are not to call unclean.  This is not to say that God's law changed, but that it was fulfilled through Jesus Christ.

Leviticus 3:1 says, And if his oblation be a sacrifice of peace offering, if he offer it of the herd; whether it be a male or female, he shall offer it without blemish before the LORD  Peace offerings were to be from the herd, or cattle, and could be either male or female.  It to was to be without blemish, or in other words not some sickly or deformed bull or cow.  Though what we bring to God may change, He always expects us to bring the best that we have.  Verse two states, And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and kill it at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron’s sons the priests shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar round about.  The man making the sacrifice was to put his hands on the head of the sacrifice and kill it in front of the tabernacle and Aaron's sons the priests would sprinkle the blood around the altar.  Once more, the blood was to represent the bringing of peace, just as the blood of Jesus should bring us peace today.  Verse three adds, And he shall offer of the sacrifice of the peace offering an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,  Certain portions of the animal were to be offered as a burned sacrifice.  Verse four continues, And the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away.  Then verse five concludes, And Aaron’s sons shall burn it on the altar upon the burnt sacrifice, which is upon the wood that is on the fire: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.  These specific parts were to be burned and they would be a sweet savor, or scent, to the LORD.  We must come to God on His terms, which is through the blood of Christ, and we must then present our lives to Him to be used as He sees fit, which will bring a sweet scent unto God.  Verse six says,  And if his offering for a sacrifice of peace offering unto the LORD be of the flock; male or female, he shall offer it without blemish. Once more it is stated that the sacrifice should be without blemish.  Sometimes God tells us things more than once to make sure that we understand what He is telling us is important.  Verse seven states, If he offer a lamb for his offering, then shall he offer it before the LORD.  There are now instructions for offering a lamb that would be without blemish.  Of course, Jesus is referred to as the Lamb of God, and He was certainly without blemish spiritually, and when we accept His sacrifice for our sins, then He makes us the same way.  Verse eight adds, And he shall lay his hand upon the head of his offering, and kill it before the tabernacle of the congregation: and Aaron’s sons shall sprinkle the blood thereof round about upon the altar.  The same instructions were to apply to the killing sacrifice and sprinkling of the blood as before. 

Verse nine says, And he shall offer of the sacrifice of the peace offering an offering made by fire unto the LORD; the fat thereof, and the whole rump, it shall he take off hard by the backbone; and the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,  Then verse ten adds, And the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, which is by then flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away.  Some of the inward parts of the animal that were to be burned differed from before, just as each individual today will differ in what he or she can offer to God.  Verse eleven concludes, And the priest shall burn it upon the altar: it is the food of the offering made by fire unto the LORD.  Once more, this was to be burned as an offering to the LORD.  This will be repeated several times in Leviticus, and I believe that it says to us today as followers of Christ that once we bring a sacrifice to God that it is His to do with as He sees fit.  All we can do is bring ourself and the best that we have to God.

Leviticus 2:9:  And the priest shall take from the meat offering a memorial thereof, and shall burn it upon the altar: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.  The priests were to take a portion of the sacrifice and burn it as an offering made by fire.  This would once again be a sweet savor, or scent, to the LORD.  This was not because God wanted the thing sacrificed, but because by sacrificing it in the way that God prescribed they would show their obedience to Him.  God does not want what we can give Him today, because it is all His anyway, but He does want us to be willing to give everything to Him.  The only thing we can offer is our own sinful nature through our faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Verse ten adds, And that which is left of the meat offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons’: it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the LORD made by fire.  What was left was to belong to Aaron and his sons, but it was to be considered a thing most holy.  God allows us to use what is left over after we offer our tithes and offerings to Him, but we need to realize that if we are a Christian that what is left over is still a thing most holy, since we gave everything to God when we accepted Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.  Verse eleven declares, No meat offering, which ye shall bring unto the LORD, shall be made with leaven: for ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in any offering of the LORD made by fire.  The meat offering, or bread in this case, was to be unleavened.  In other words, it was simply to be as plain as possible.  God does not need our offerings to be ornate, but should be given in simplicity.  Verse twelve adds, As for the oblation of the firstfruits, ye shall offer them unto the LORD: but they shall not be burnt on the altar for a sweet savour.  First fruits were to be offered to God, but were not to be burned.  The first fruit that anyone can offer today is himself or herself, and then that person should offer the first of all that God blesses them with to Him, to be utilized for the work of His kingdom.  Verse thirteen states, And every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt.  All the offerings were to be seasoned with salt.  This would have enhanced the flavor, but salt was also a preservative.  Verse fourteen adds, And if thou offer a meat offering of thy firstfruits unto the LORD, thou shalt offer for the meat offering of thy firstfruits green ears of corn dried by the fire, even corn beaten out of full ears.  Another of the first fruits was that of corn, and it was to be dried by the fire before being offered to God.  Verse fifteen says, And thou shalt put oil upon it, and lay frankincense thereon: it is a meat offering.  The corn was to have oil and frankincense put on it.  Verse sixteen concludes, And the priest shall burn the memorial of it, part of the beaten corn thereof, and part of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof: it is an offering made by fire unto the LORD.  The priest was to burn a portion of the meat offering as a burnt offering to God.  We have it much easier today since we only have to acceptJesus Christ as our Ssvior and live with Him as our Lord which the Holy Spirit enables us to do,

Leviticus 2:1 says, And when any will offer a meat offering unto the LORD, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon:  Though referred to as a meat offering, these next few verses actually refer to offerings of crops that had been made into flour.  Not everyone had flocks to make offerings from, but God made  provision for them as well.  This was still a free offering of the best that the person had.  It is not the cost of the gift that we bring to God that is important, but the attitude with which we bring it.  It must be a free gift, and it should be the best that we have to offer.  Of course, as followers of Christ, we are to present ourselves as living sacrifices, and when we do we are to give the best of our life to God.  Verse two states, And he shall bring it to Aaron’s sons the priests: and he shall take thereout his handful of the flour thereof, and of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof; and the priest shall burn the memorial of it upon the altar, to be an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD:  As with the other offerings, this offering was to be brought to the priests, Aaron's sons, and they were to offer it to God on the altar.  As Christians today, we present ourselves to Christ in faith, and He offers Himself as a sacrifice to God.  Verse three says, And the remnant of the meat offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons’: it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the LORD made by fire.  Anything left of the offering after it was offered to God would be the possession of the priests.  This was one way that God provided for the needs of the priests, but it did not mean that they could just offer the smallest amount possible and keep the rest for themselves.  Also, only the priests were to eat of the offering.  We today must give our best to God, and He will bless us by meeting our every need.  Verse four states, And if thou bring an oblation of a meat offering baken in the oven, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil.  Then, there were instructions for how to prepare the offering.  We cannot decide how we are going to give to God outside of giving by His instructions in the Bible.  Verse five says, And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in a pan, it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mingled with oil.  There were different ways to prepare this offering, but all ways were under the guidance of God.  There are different ways to reach the cross today, but we must all come in obedience to God through our faith in Christ.  Verse six states, Thou shalt part it in pieces, and pour oil thereon: it is a meat offering.  Again, there were specific instructions for giving this offering.  It was to be separated into pieces and covered with oil, I believe to make it more useable to the priests.  Verse seven says, And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in the fryingpan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil.  Again, there were different ways to prepare the offering.  Verse eight concludes, And thou shalt bring the meat offering that is made of these things unto the LORD: and when it is presented unto the priest, he shall bring it unto the altar. The offerings were to be presented to God by the priests, just as our offering, which is our self, is to be presented to God by our high priest, Jesus Christ.

Leviticus 1:10 says, And if his offering be of the flocks, namely, of the sheep, or of the goats, for a burnt sacrifice; he shall bring it a male without blemish.  Provision was made for more than one type of sacrifice, I believe because not all the people could afford to offer the same thing.  Of course, today, we have one sacrifice for all our sins and that is Jesus Christ, and everyone can afford His sacrifice, because it is free.  Verse eleven says, And he shall kill it on the side of the altar northward before the LORD: and the priests, Aaron’s sons, shall sprinkle his blood round about upon the altar.  There were specific instructions for sacrificing the sheep or goat as well.  We must always come to God on His terms and not on our own.  We are to always offer the best that we have to God.  Verse twelve adds, And he shall cut it into his pieces, with his head and his fat: and the priest shall lay them in order on the wood that is on the fire which is upon the altar:  The instructions for the sacrificing of the animal were the same.  The sacrifice of Christ on the cross is the same for all individuals.  We can only come to salvation by accepting Christ's sacrifice on the cross, which actually applied to those who had lived in this time as well.  We can only come in obedience to God's call.  Verse thirteen continues, But he shall wash the inwards and the legs with water: and the priest shall bring it all, and burn it upon the altar: it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.   As before, the burnt offering was to bring a sweet savor to the LORD.  Verse fourteen states, And if the burnt sacrifice for his offering to the LORD be of fowls, then he shall bring his offering of turtledoves, or of young pigeons.  There was even another provision for the animal that was to be sacrificed, and this time it was for birds.  I don't believe that this means that those who were able to offer the more costly sacrifices were supposed to sacrifice the less costly sacrifices.  This was a provision those who could not offer anymore.  We today can offer no less than our self on the altar of God through the blood of Christ.  Verse fifteen adds, And the priest shall bring it unto the altar, and wring off his head, and burn it on the altar; and the blood thereof shall be wrung out at the side of the altar:  In all the sacrifices, the sacrifice was to be offered through the priest, and when we offer ourselves to God today it must be through Christ, our high priest.  Verse sixteen continues, And he shall pluck away his crop with his feathers, and cast it beside the altar on the east part, by the place of the ashes:  Not all of the sacrifice was to be burned this time, since the crop and feathers were to be placed by the altar.  Then verse seventeen concludes, And he shall cleave it with the wings thereof, but shall not divide it asunder: and the priest shall burn it upon the altar, upon the wood that is upon the fire: it is a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.  The wings were to be cut off, but the rest of the bird was to be burned whole.  The sacrificial system of the Jews is hard to understand at times, but it was all spelled out by God's instruction to Moses.  Some would make salvation a complicated thing today, but it is all very simple and dictated by God, and that is that we give ourselves to God by faith in Christ.  This is God's salvation plan, and the only one available.

Levitcus 1:1 says And the LORD called unto Moses, and spake unto him out of the tabernacle of the congregation, saying, God called to Moses and spoke to him out of the tabernacle of the congregation.  For us to know what God has to say, He must speak to us, and He will often do it when are assembled together in His name.  Of course, we must first recognize His voice in order to hear Him.  Verse two states,  Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, If any man of you bring an offering,  God did not say when, but if.  I believe this is because an offering is not a debt, but a free gift.  God does not demand that we give Him anything, even our life, but if we do, God can determine how He will use the gift or our life.  Verse three says, 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 altar.  God said if the offering was to be a burnt sacrifice, that it should be a male without blemish.  We might want to offer something less than perfect if it was going to be burned up anyway, but God expects us to offer the best that we have, and we are to do so willingly.  Verse four states, LORD. And he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt offering; and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him.  We do not live under the sacrificial system, so it may be difficult to truly understand it, but I believe that putting the hands on the head of the sacrifice would represent transferring one's sins to the sacrifice.  We are not under the old sacrificial system because Christ died as a sacrice for all sins for all time, and putting our faith in Him transfers our sins to Him without any physical act.  Verse five says,  And he shall kill the bullock before the LORD: and the priests, Aaron’s sons, shall bring the blood, and sprinkle the blood round about upon the altar that is by the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.  The sacrifice was to be killed before God and the priests, the sons of Aaron, and the blood sprinkled on the altar.  When we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, it is done before God and His people and all the world.  The blood of Christ has already been shed for us.  Verse six states, And he shall flay the burnt offering, and cut it into his pieces.  Then verse seven adds,  And the sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire upon the altar, and lay the wood in order upon the fire:  Verse eight continues,  And the priests, Aaron’s sons, shall lay the parts, the head, and the fat, in order upon the wood that is on the fire which is upon the altar:  The sacrifice was to be cut in to pieces, and the priests were to place the majority of it on the wood of the sacrifice to be burned.  Verse nine concludes, But his inwards and his legs shall he wash in water: and the priest shall burn all on the altar, to be a burnt sacrifice, an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.  Parts were to be washed and burned on the altar itself.  This was to be a burnt offering to the LORD, and would be a sweet savor, or scent, to God.  When we accept Christ as our Savior and Lord, our sins are burned away and we are washed by His blood to be a living sacrifice to God, which will be a sweet savor or scent to Him.

We will do a quick review of the things we learned from the book of Philippians.  First, we need to realize that our status in the world should not determine our joy in the LORD.  We should learn to be like Paul and be content in the Lord no matter what.  Next, we need to learn the value of other Christians in our life.  Paul sincerely cared for the Christians at Philippi.  He was concerned with their welfare, and so should we be with the welfare of our fellow believers.  Then, we need to realize that earthly attributes mean nothing to God, but that only our relationship with Christ does.   Paul said his birth, his education, and his religious standing meant nothing before God.  Only his relationship with God did.  The same is true for everyone who ever has or ever will live.  Finally, we need to learn to help our fellow Christians whenever we can.  We will next look at the book of Leviticus.

Philippians 4:11 says, Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content.  Paul had thanked the Christians at Philippi for contributing to help supply for his needs, but he now tells them that he wasn't writing to seek more aid.  Paul said that he had learned to be content no matter what his circumstances, and we should be the same way today as followers of Christ.  Verse twelve states, I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.  Paul said he knew both how to be abased and how to bound, and how to be hungry and to be filled.  In other words, he wasn't just speaking as someone who had always been blessed or in need.  He had experienced the best and worst of life, but had learned to be content by his faith in God no matter what his situation was.  We should be the same way today.  Verse thirteen declares, I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.  Paul then said that he could do all things through Christ because he was strengthened by Christ.  We hear this verse quoted a lot, but we must remember the two verses that came before as well.  I don't believe that this means that everything will always be perfect because of our faith in Christ, but that we can endure hunger and hardship if necessary in order to follow the will of Christ.  Verse fourteen adds, Notwithstanding ye have well done, that ye did communicate with my affliction.  Paul then said that the Christians at Philippi had done well to help him, though that wasn't why he felt that they were special to him.  We should never put some Christians above others simply because they have done more for us materially.  Verse fifteen says, Now ye Philippians know also, that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church communicated with me as concerning giving and receiving, but ye only.  Paul said that when he went to Macedonia at the beginning of the spreading of the gospel that the church at Philippi was the only one that offered him support.  I believe this was both morally and financially.  We need to be like the church at Philippi and support missionaries as much as we can today.  Verse sixteen adds, For even in Thessalonica ye sent once and again unto my necessity.  Paul said they had sent him aid when he was in Thessalonica several times, but again it was not simply because of their financial support that they were special to Paul.  We cannot allow other Christians to become more special to us because they have help us financially, but must see all Christians as special if they are following God's will in their relationship to us.  Verse seventeen continues, Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account.  Paul said that he didn't desire a gift for his own benefit, but that the Christians at Philippi might see their fruit abound because of their giving.  As stated, it wasn't the amount or the frequency of their giving that Paul was speaking of, but their obedience to the Holy Spirit when they gave.  We can send a lot of support to missionaries today, but if we are not doing it under the leadership of the Holy Spirit and for God's glory, then we are really accomplishing very little spiritually.  Verse eighteen declares, But I have all, and abound: I am full, having received of Epaphroditus the things which were sent from you, an odour of a sweet smell, a sacrifice acceptable, wellpleasing to God.  Paul declared that he was full because of the gift that they had sent by Epaphroditus, which was a sacrifice acceptable and well pleasing to God.  This should be our key to giving.  What we give should be acceptable and well pleasing to God.  If we are giving for any other reason, then we are missing the point.  Verse nineteen adds, But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.  Paul then said that God would likewise supply for all their needs according to His riches.  This does not say that God will give them everything that they want and desire.  We today cannot allow this verse to mean that God is going to give us everything that our heart desires.  Paul was in prison at this time and Christians were being persecuted, but God still provided for the needs of the Christians at Philippi and for Paul out of the abundance of his riches and not based on any earthly situation.  Verse twenty proclaims, Now unto God and our Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.  Paul said that it should all be done to the glory of the heavenly Father, and so should anything that we do as followers of Christ today.  Verse twenty-one adds, Salute every saint in Christ Jesus. The brethren which are with me greet you.  Paul basically told them to greet each other under the leadership of Jesus Christ, and that those with him saluted them as well.  No matter where we are, as Christians we should support and uplift each other under the leadership of the Holy Spirit.  Verse twenty two continues, All the saints salute you, chiefly they that are of Caesar’s household.  Paul said that there were even Christians in the household of Caesar.  We should never assume that because of their situation in life that people are not Christians.  Verse twenty-three concludes, The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. It was written to the Philippians from Rome by Epaphroditus.  Paul called on the grace of their Lord Jesus Christ to be with the Christians at Philippi and said that Epaphroditus had written down what he had to say to them for him.  

Philippians 4:1 says, Therefore, my brethren dearly beloved and longed for, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, my dearly beloved.  Paul had great praise for the Christians at Philippi.  He did not call them his children, but his brethren, because although he may have led them to Christ and have been considered an apostle, they were all equal in God's sight.  If we lead someone to Christ today, he or she is our equal in God's sight.  Paul called them beloved and longed for, because they were his brethren.  We should have that same feeling of closeness for our fellow believers today.  Verse two states, I beseech Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that they be of the same mind in the Lord.  Even though Paul had spoken highly of the Christians at Philippi, it did not prevent him from singling out the actions of two women who were evidently having a dispute.  He called on them to be of the same mind in Christ.  If two Christians are disputing, if they will both honestly seek God's will in the matter, then they should be led to a peaceful resolution.  Verse three adds, And I intreat thee also, true yokefellow, help those women which laboured with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and with other my fellowlabourers, whose names are in the book of life.  Paul does not name the person that he calls his fellow yoke person  Matthew Henry says some think it may have been Epaphroditus, and some even think it might have been Paul's wife.  If the person's name were really important, Paul would have identified them by name.  The important thing was that this person was considered a yoke person of Paul.  Our name is really unimportant in our Christian journey, but our relationship with Christ and our fellow Christians is what matters.  There are many. many more unnamed Christians in the Bible and ever since than there are those that we know by name.  Verse four says, Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice.  Paul was in prison, but he called on the Christians at Philippi to rejoice, and not just some of the time but always.  In the world that seems to have gone insane today, we need to rejoice in the Lord always.  Verse five states, Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand.  Paul called on the Christians at Philippi to be known for their moderation, because the Lord was at hand.  Even then. Paul felt that the return of Christ might be close.  We as followers of Christ today should live our lives in moderation because whether by our death or the return of Christ, we will one day give an account for our life.  Verse six adds, Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.  This was not a call for them to act reckless, but to act in faith that God would meet their needs, no matter what that need might be.  If we live in prayer and supplication to God, then we have no need to fear the world.  We should live to boldly proclaim God's word and advance His kingdom.  Verse seven declares, And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.  Paul said that when the Christians at Philippi followed God's guidance that they would have a peace that surpassed all understanding.  We have no reason to feel anything but peace in our lives today if we are following the will of God.  If we have fear, then we need to get closer to God  and the Holy Spirit will bring us peace even in a world that seems to have gone insane.  Verse eight adds, Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.  Again. Paul was using hypothetical questions to point out that true, honest, just, pure, lovely and things of good report come from God.  These should be the product of our faith in God today, and they should be the things that we think about or fill our minds with.  If our thoughts are filled with the good things of God, we cannot have them filled with the negative things of this world.  Verse nine continues, Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.  Paul called on them to do the things that he had done under the leadership of the Holy Spirit.  Paul was not calling on them to do exactly what he had done, because they would have been called to their own specific ministry by God, but he was calling on them to be as faithful as he had been to his calling.  Though we may use other Christians as examples of how to live by faith, we should not attempt to make them our standard, because as Christians Christ will always be our standard.  Verse ten concludes, But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that now at the last your care of me hath flourished again; wherein ye were also careful, but ye lacked opportunity.  Paul said he thanked them for their support.  Evidently, some time had passed before they sent gifts to help Paul in his situation, but he thanked them instead of berating them for being so long in offering their help.  We should always simply accept the help that others offer us under the leadership of the Holy Spirit and should never berate them because we feel that they haven't done enough or done it quickly enough.