What was the reason for sacrificing animals for their blood?

In The Old Testament, sacrificing creatures for their blood was done to punish, forgive, and cleanse the guilty for having unintentionally sinned. Valuable creatures were also burned on the alter as a food offering and as an aroma pleasing to our Father, God (YaH). Sacrificing creatures came to a sudden end, however, due to the ultimate sacrifice of our Brother, Jesus (Yeshua), The Son of our Father, God (YaH).

The following verses from The Holy Bible clarify the reasons for sacrificing creatures and the purposes for their blood:

“If anyone sins and does what is forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands, even though they do not know it, they are guilty and will be held responsible. They are to bring to the priest as a guilt offering a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value. In this way the priest will make atonement for them for the wrong they have committed unintentionally, and they will be forgiven" (Leviticus 5:17,18 (NIV)).

"For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life" (Leviticus 17:11 (NIV)).

"In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness" (Hebrews 9:22 (NIV)).

"The priest shall burn them on the altar as a food offering, a pleasing aroma. All the fat is the Lord’s" (Leviticus 3:16 (NIV)). The fat of creatures was valuable because it was a flavorful, high calorie food, and it could be burned for lighting at night.

"Then burn the entire ram on the altar. It is a burnt offering to the Lord, a pleasing aroma, a food offering presented to the Lord" (Exodus 29:18 (NIV)).

“When anyone is unfaithful to the Lord by sinning unintentionally in regard to any of the Lord’s holy things, they are to bring to the Lord as a penalty a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value in silver, according to the sanctuary shekel. It is a guilt offering. They must make restitution for what they have failed to do in regard to the holy things, pay an additional penalty of a fifth of its value and give it all to the priest. The priest will make atonement for them with the ram as a guilt offering, and they will be forgiven" (Leviticus 5:15-16 (NIV)).

"And as a penalty they must bring to the priest, that is, to the Lord, their guilt offering, a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value. In this way the priest will make atonement for them before the Lord, and they will be forgiven for any of the things they did that made them guilty” (Leviticus 6:6-7 (NIV)).

"Otherwise Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But he has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself" (Hebrews 9:26 (NIV)).

"The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!" (Hebrews 9:13,14 (NIV)).

"If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace?" (Hebrews 10:26-29 (NIV)).

Commentary

It is possible to believe in The Messiah without accepting Him as your Savior and Lord of your heart, soul, and mind. It's also possible to believe in The Messiah without receiving The Holy Spirit. The devil is a prime example of one who believes in The Messiah, but hasn't been baptized in The name of The Father, and The Son, and The Holy Spirit (James 2:19). All the devil worshippers, who are 'human beings', also believe in God, but haven't been baptized in The name of The Father, and The Son, and The Holy Spirit. Other believers (in Judaism, the Pharisees, and even many unsaved 'Christians') who have failed to develop personal and loving relationships with The Messiah, haven't been baptized in The Holy Spirit, so The Messiah said He doesn't 'know' those believers. Sadly, there are many Mormon, Catholic, and also many 'Christian' believers, whom think they are 'saved' but are not going to 'find' the 'narrow way' to the 'small gate' of Heaven (Matthew 7:14). Those believers will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven (Matthew 7:21-23).

A 'saved' Christian's body becomes a temple for the Holy Spirit, who is a living gift given to you by God (1 Corinthians 6:19). The Holy Spirit urges Christians to fellowship with other Christians, and urges them to study The Bible, which is the word of God. Equally important, The Holy Spirit urges Christians to maintain a personal, loving relationship with The Father and The Son. A 'saved' Christian should be reminded, and feel urged, to pray at least five times a day: after waking from sleep, before each meal, and before going to sleep (Luke 22:17-21; Colossians 3:17). These things are not burdensome in any way for a Christian who is filled with The Holy Spirit, despite all the socio-economic demands of the world on our daily lives. Are you all talk and no action, which is also referred to as, having faith but no works (James 2:14-26)?

The daily prayer is quite short, and yet, it includes forgiving other people for their sins (also known as debts or trespasses), so forgiveness is obviously very important to God. If our Father is to forgive the sins of His children, those Christians must forgive the people who have sinned against them (Colossians 3:13). If believers fail to forgive other people for their sins, especially if the sins are so minor as not to be referenced in The 10 Commandments, the salvation of those believers is questionable. The Messiah shed His blood and sacrificed His life on the cross to forgive our sins. What have you done to forgive?

Do you love God with all your heart, soul, and mind (Matthew 22:36-40)? One way to know for sure is to analyze whether or not you keep His commandments, which are not burdensome (1 John 5:2,3). If you truly love and follow The Messiah, you will keep His commandments without even having to think about keeping them because love fulfills the law (Romans 13:8-10). As you love The Messiah, so you should also love your neighbors as you love yourself. You must love because it's The Messiah's first commandment and because God is love (1 John 4:8). It's easy to love those who love you, but have you learned how to love your enemies yet (Matthew 5:44-47)? Your enemies are waiting to become Christians and your greatest allies.

Have you heard of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-20)? How are you doing with it? Would you say you are hot, cold, or lukewarm (Revelation 3:15,16). Would you say you're a temple for The Holy Spirit? Do you think The Messiah really knows you? God loves you so much He sent His Son to die for you, and He wants you to be born again and join Him in Heaven for eternity. Getting saved by God's grace is a miracle, so please honor and respect His grace by learning and living His scriptures. If God wanted you to merely sit back and revel in your salvation through God's grace, there would be little need for a majority of the scriptures in The Holy Bible.

I'll join you in prayer for us all.

Please read, The Messiah said, "I do not know you".

List of the most important questions with answers and information about YaH (God), Yehoshua (Jesus 'The Christ'), The Holy Spirit and The Holy Bible.

The Holy Bible chapter and verse references of the scriptures and gospels are quotes from: