From Leviticus to Christ: The Sacrifice That Secures Our Acceptance
Orientation
The image of Jesus begging God to forgive you undermines the finished work of the cross and the basis of your acceptance.
- This false picture shifts assurance from Christ's work to our unstable performance.
- It collapses justification into a negotiation and sonship into anxiety.
- It misunderstands the unity of the Father and Son in the work of salvation.
My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world. (1 John 2:1-2)
— 1 John 2:1-2
Clarification
Christ's advocacy is not a plea for leniency but the presentation of His own finished sacrifice as the basis for our acceptance.
- The Father and Son are one in will; the Father sent the Son to be the propitiation.
- Christ's blood and obedience answer every charge and silence all accusation.
- Our acceptance is based on Christ's pleasing aroma to God, not our own scent.
I and my Father are one. (John 10:30)
— John 10:30
Structure
The burnt offering in Leviticus reveals the foundation of our acceptance: Christ's absolute devotion produces a pleasing aroma that makes the altar holy.
- The burnt offering's blood, sprinkled seven times, is the basis for all other offerings.
- Christ is the true burnt offering; His perfect life and sacrifice are the pleasing aroma.
- In Christ, believers are a sweet-smelling savor to God—accepted in His righteousness alone.
For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: (2 Corinthians 2:15)
— 2 Corinthians 2:15
Weight-Bearing Prose
The burnt offering was wholly for God, a declaration of absolute devotion. Its blood made the altar ‘most holy,’ establishing the only ground for accepting any other approach to God. This is the pattern fulfilled in Christ. His life, motives, and obedience were perfectly open before the Father. His sacrifice is the continual, pleasing aroma. Our justification (Romans 3:24) and our standing as a ‘sweet-smelling savor’ (2 Corinthians 2:15) are not based on our devotion but on His. This is propitiation (Romans 3:25): God’s righteousness satisfied in Christ, not merely sin covered. Christ’s advocacy, therefore, is not begging. It is the presentation of this finished work. The accusations of Satan are disarmed (Colossians 2:15) because the charge of the law is terminated in Christ’s body on the cross. The old self is circumcised away (Colossians 2:11). The fear of death is destroyed (Hebrews 2:14-15). This is Pauline category: union with Christ in His death and resurrection is the rule of life, not a system of pleading for mercy.
Integration
You are accepted. The aroma that rises to God is Christ’s, and you are in Him. Your Advocate does not negotiate; He presents what is already complete. The altar is most holy because of His blood. Draw near, therefore, with full assurance. Your comfort, strength, peace, and joy are found here, in the certainty of His finished devotion. This is your freedom from fear. Rest in the sweet savor of Christ. He is your righteousness, your sanctification, your redemption. There is no condemnation, only acceptance in the Beloved. Let this truth anchor you, not as a challenge to perform, but as a settled reality in which to abide.