Temporary Atkins Diet
Leviticus 23: 9-14

Seems like a lot of ground we've covered before. When the first harvest happens, they are to bring a sheaf of the first grain harvested and give it to the priest. The priest will wave it as an offering the day after the Sabbath. On that same day, a one-year old lamb (without defect) gets sacrificed as well. At the same time a mixture of flour and oil gets offered- and supposedly it smells pretty good... "a pleasing aroma." And the offering extravagnza is topped off with a drink offering (a quart of wine).

Until this offering was made, they weren't to eat any bread or new or roasted grain. This was a permanent law- for generations to come, wherever they happened to live, promised land or not.

What strikes me here is the focus of sacrifice. They didn't just give a percentage- or even save out the best at the end- the offering came first and they got was left over. Not just the best, but also the first.

The application seems fairly obvious and hard to live up to. It's even hard to figure out what the best and first is. I think it's a far cry from dropping a check in a plate passed around where all of your church folks can witness and approve. It may have a lot more to do with how we treat each other, how we look out for each other, how we love each other. Maybe I'm missing the point a little, but in short, sacrifice seems to be all about love. You're more important than me- so let me make your life better by sharing- my money, my goods, my time- or perhaps most importantly (not that the others aren't crucial, too) my heart.