Q3. Animal Sacrifice

[Stacy]

When I was thinking of animal sacrifices, the only kind of killing that is part of modern day life, to me, would be related to crime like a murder. Murders are splashed across headlines daily and to a certain extent our hearts are a little hardened to it -- it's typical news. When I am flipping through the channels and while the news channels don't bother me, shows like Animal Precint on Animal Planet do. But to think of a sacrifice, that's hands on whether it be an animal or a person. No matter how much news dulls me, the taking of a life (any life, except bugs!) would be next to impossible.

With animals, our modern day relationships with them are as pets not an obvious choice of food. The thought of killing a pet that we are emotionally attached to is partly what causes us to feel repulsed. That's us city folk.

Now in the country, thing's are different. Animal = food. You become detached because you slaughter to eat and you understand that. Meanwhile, at the grocery store those of us who aren't don't tend to think of Bessie, the cow, when buying the fixings for a barbeque.

Stacy

[linda biloni]

We are not accustomed to killing animals for a sacrifice. In the city we buy meat from a store and we're not involved in the raising of an animal to be slaughtered, whereas on a farm it may be a way of life.

[thlynch]

I am struck by the world today that reveres and worships animals. Save the whales and kill the unborn. In the OT times, the killing of the animal was heavy on the heart of the owner. It was a pet, he would be proud of it, it was part of the family. Today, nothing is sacred. People do not connect with their own sin. Their depravity is far from their attention. The pets they have are worshipped. There have no need for a sacrifice or Jesus.

-Tom

[nelda huffman]

I agree a little with all about how repulsed the human rade gets with the killing of animals, people do treat their animals as humans so thus they are repulsed by the killing of them. These usally are the same people who have no need for Jesus or the sacrificial lamb.

[Diane]

What a GREAT answer Patty. I think that we've been removed from the finality of death and the consequences of the act of taking a life. We've been 'protected'. The seriousness of the act is important...otherwise it would be called a sacrifice.

There's lots of food for thought from the posts I've read here. We are, indeed, repulsed by animal sacrifices because we are not grounded in country living anymore to a great degree. We may have lost something else, however, and that is a sense of the importance of life and the fragility of it. I can only imagine how seriously the Jews felt about their sins since this was the covenant God had to make with man and it took an animal's life as a substitute.

[Kimberly Grant]

I'm with you, Patty Heard. This posting is all new to me, but I could not resist a resounding agreement that, yes, sin is costly, and we as a society have become numb to so much of it. The sacrifice of our savior should repulse us more than the death of some animal, as we are to blame for Christ's death. Thank God that through it we are forgiven. This topic made me really realize the horror of what Christ did for us, for me! I will not take this for granted. I owe it to respond as his disciple.

[Kathern Edenloff]

I Think most people of today no matter where they lived would find it difficult to accept the tought of animal sacrifice for sin. We usually think more of animals as pets or sources of food or milk. This is not to say I don't understand that in the Old Testament it was necessary for the slaying of an animal for sin, but praise the Lord we do not have to rely on that since Jesus has been the sacrifice once and for all. I know animals are slaughtered for food in our day, but I still would find it difficult to watch.

I feel very blest to know that though I am weak in this area, my Father in heaven knows my heart and give praise that He loved me so much He sent His son to take the place of sacrificing animals. In His great wisdom as stated in the Old Testament we to would fail as they did and that is why Jesus the Lamb of God was the great sacrifice for us all.

I hope this doesn't sound to confusing an answer to the question.

[jaunita]

Hello again! After reading all the respones's, I agree with all that has been said...Yes, killing of animals is repulsive to most people. We don't like to think about the fact that before eating it, it had to die! Those raised on farms, seem to grasp the fact that killing animals for food, is necessary. The one thing I would like to add, is that most of the people, whom yell the loudest, about animal crulity, think nothing of the many babies who are killed daily. I pray this statement offends no one, but society, today, has such a strange way of thinking about death. To watch TV, & see people murdered, many times, over, in one program ( yes!, I know its not real! ) is ok, in most minds. After reading our first lesson, Saturday, I found myself in tears, thinking about the people who were required to pick a lamb, a perfect, spotless, lamb, ( one that I'm sure was special to them ) & offer it up, as an offering for their sin! To have to be the one whom actually cut the throat of this little, crying lamb....it broke my heart. I am sure God chose this way, to make the sin more real, to those doing the offering....to show the "price of sin" in all its horriblness.! It also made me think of the price, payed for mine & yours. Love, jaunita

[Bridget Golob]

Q3. Why is animal sacrifice repulsive to modern people? How much of this has to do with a city vs. a farming way of life? Exposition

We are repulsed by sacrifices of animals because we are not used to doing that sort of thing. We go to the market, buy our meat and the butcher does all the hard work for us! I am a city girl originally from L.A. and now I live in the greater Seattle area. I guess we have been spoiled through the years.

[Jim Mc]

Today people are repulsed with animals partly due to the entertainment world which has raise animals to the same level as humans. such as or Little Bear are examples of this, where animals take on human personalities and emotions. Secondly, people who live in cities tend to be more removed from the process of and preparing animal meat for sale. City folk don't see value of livestock in the same way. A farmer sees the animals as a commodity that is to be raised and taken care of to the point where it is ready to be sold to the stockyards for slaughter.

Dogs and cats are used as a tool where they protect the farm from any unwanted visitors. On most farms that I have been on these animals don't even come in the house at night during the winter, but rather they are provided with their own quarters in the barn or shed.

[Kris Ann]

Q3. Why is animal sacrifice repulsive to modern people? How much of this has to do with a city vs. a farming way of life?

Today, when we think about animals, we think of pets. Even if we don't have a pet, we tend to have a favorite type of animal. An animal that we associate with or relate to in some way. They bring us joy and comfort. Further more, we don't like to think about death, let alone the death of this creature.

Yet when we have meat for dinner every night, we don't think of it as having been an animal that brought about comfort and joy to our world. It is simply food for our bellies.

People that have the experience of living and working on a farm or ranch make a living of raising animals for meat. They too feel the joy and comfort that pets can provide, but know the neccesity of killing for food.

(Every vegetarian would disagree that it is a neccesity. Where there vegetarians back then?)

And these farmers/ranchers kill animals daily. Perhaps this is why they use the term 'livestock'...

It is an impersonal act to kill 'livestock' as apposed to killing your most favorite, your most prized sheep. (As modern city dwellers, we might be better off thinking of this prized sheep as our precious pet.) This is what GOD requested for sacrifice. Our most prized, most favorite, most costly to lose, most important, animal.

I think that this sacrifice would be difficult for even the rancher who is used to killing livestock everyday, let alone a city dweller.

[Helen Williams]

Animal sacrifice is repulsive to modern people because we are insulted that killing is required. I feel it has to do with our background, our way of living and what issues we hold dear to our hearts. A farmer would have different views than a lawyer. Farmers are accustom to the idea of raising and slaughtering animals. City folk don't butcher, drain the blood nor even cut them up.

There is a difference because we are all different in so many ways but yet and still alike. We were all created in the image of God. There may be something in the WORD OF GOD that may seem repulsive to use but has to be for God's will to be fulfill.

[richard palmer]

The sacrifice of our savior should repulse us more than the death of some animal,  as we are to blame for Christ's death.  Thank God that through it we are forgiven. This topic  made me really realize the horror of what Christ did for us, for me!  I will not take this for granted.  I  owe it to respond as his disciple.

Your statement Kimberly is right on the money! It is ashamed that our Savior Jesus had (willingly) to go to the cross for us, and I can never thank him enough for his sacrifice (a love so great to comprehend fully). An animals life is nothing compared to ours, or Christ. There is a new movie coming out soon called "The Passion", about the last 12 hours of Jesus' life before the cross, not sure if I will see it, it is not in English, so I consider it a foreign film.

[Hector Villarreal W.]

Behold the Lamb - Qestion 3, Lesson 1

Answer- A) Because we aren't used to see how animals are slaughter and most people repulse blood shed.

But mainly because we don't know the value of the blood and are totaly ignorant about Blood Covenants. Being aquinted with it, should made us

give thanks every second to the Lord for doing these Covenant with us.

Exodus 19:5 - Mathew 26:28 - Hebrews 7:22; 12:24; 13:20

City living is much farther about this than farm living.

May the Lord keep blessing you.

Hector Villarreal W.

Greetings to all of you from the church in Mexico

[Dennis Hatlestad]

now a days we are not required to have animal sacrifice,for Jesus died on the cross for us and He was our sacrifice for atonement of our sins. I dont believe we could find a perfect unblemished sacrifice for all of cross breeding of livestock. I work on a farm and our cattle are raised to sell and we use some for our own meat. God gave us animals for food.

[Missy]

I think that our being "sanitized moderns" has helped us to miss out on the deep object lesson God intended to give us through the animal sacrifices, which is: Sin is messy, stinky stuff.

I wonder this, and maybe someone can help me here. In order for an animal to be considered perfect enough to be sacrificed, would it have required special care and attention from its owner? If so, that would make the sacrificing even more difficult, wouldn't it? Almost like killing a pet.

[luminosa]

Modern people consider animal sacrifice to be primitive and cruel. Some people might feel that there are more humane ways to draw closer to God. There are many people in modern society that are active in animal rights groups and are vehemently opposed to any type of activity they might consider cruel towards animals.

Large segments of the population now live in urban and suburban areas. These folks have little contact with farming animals which are typically the kind used for sacrifice. Many people have pets that are dear to them and would not be able to conceive of killing animals for any reason.

[mindy]

I am grateful that God uses our preferences to teach us. Blood is repulsive and sticky and disease ridden, in the same way sin is repulsive and sticky and disease ridden. God uses the ritual of blood sacrifice to illustrate for us how grotesque sin is when viewed from His perspective. It becomes obvious that the blood of the animal cannot cover the repulsiveness of the sin, it is only by grace that God allows the sin to be covered by the obedience of His only begotten Lamb.

[Vickie]

Thanks, Patty, for the great insights! Wonderful!

Many (many ) years ago, when I was 12, I went with my uncle to a meat packing plant. I was so incredibly repulsed by the overwhelming smell of blood, the sight of the stripped carcasses and the sound of the cows in the distance (I was sure they were screaming in pain) that I couldn't eat meat for years after. It wasn't until I became physically ill from my poor eating habits that I again ate meat.

As a Christian, I now know that God gave us animals for our use. And, it has been speculated that He never intended man to be a meat-eater, but, of course, He knew from the beginning of our creation that we would be eating meat after the flood. It has also been proven that vegetarians live an average of 12 years LESS than those who choose to add meat to their diet. I'll stick with my steaks.

I think God intended for us to be repulsed by the sacrifices...knowing that was the end result of our sins, I believe it was intended to be a deterrent. Of course, Jesus, being the ultimate and final sacrifice, has released us from the bondages of continual atonement slaughter, giving us GRACE instead!

[Linda Stanley]

A lot of people who live in the city dont routinely butcher animals,or go through that process.Farmers or meat factories are the best at that,as we do not see how meat is processed and packaged.All we do is buy it at a store,or market.I myself would not want to see how it is done.Would probably make me sick to eat meat, for quite some time.Where as farmers or people who run these farms have been raised in this type of life style in going through this process.Now,going back to the Israelites they were very well aware that blood reguires taking of life.We know that also,but many of us do not see the blood drain.this is really something to think about,in how it was done in animal sacrifice,B.C.

[linda bass]

Modern man for the most part is repulsed with the idea of killing animals.

The Israelites were herdsmen while our ancestors were farmers. City people don't usually butcher animals, drain their blood, and cut them up.

Most people are insulated from the killing part that is required to process their meat and get it to the supermarket in plastic wrapped styrofoam trays. Farmers and those who work in meat packing plants aren't bother as much by the killing of animals.

[Dennis Williams]

We live in a society today that is bombarded with animal rights activists from all walks of life, movie stars, politicians, local SPCA groups, and the list goes on and on. Couple that with the fact that the vast majority of our population live in cities and urban areas that have no concept what so ever of what it means to provide for themselves from the land. Now add to that the teaching of pro-choice, abortion rights, legalized abortion, being promoted by many of the same ones that are so concerned about animal rights, and you have the society that we live in today. They think nothing of approving of the systematic murder of thousands of unborn children every year, but at the same time they cannot tolerate harming a defenseless, furry little animal. Now you place that same society in todays Church Age where sin is not preached against, but tolerance is preached vehemently. Now you have a generation that sees through worldly eyes, animals are people too, people have the right to choose for themselves what is right and what is wrong, God has become like us and no longer cares about our sin so long as we are accepting and tolerate of everybody and everything that comes along. Psalm 50:21.

[Annette Phillips-Gay]

For me when I think of animal sacrifice now I tend to think of satanic worship for some reason, because as christians now we do not have to offer up animal sacrifices now because we are under the new covenant. Though from what I understand here it's refering to killing animals for human consumption. People in the city know that they have to get meat to cook, they go to the supermarket, but it, cook it and that's it; no thought really goes in to the slaughtering of the animals. For the farmer it's a reality and a part of the job so it comes natural and he's not repulsed when the animals have to be slaughtered, how else will they get meat? I remember when I was in school we had to tour a chicken processing plant, and I couldn't eat chicken for a week, all I could remember seeing was all that blood. In addition when I was younger we used to keep sheep and chickens, and my mother could never get the sheep or chickens killed at home. Apart from that we would never eat the meat once we knew it was ours. Society has not become "modern", whereas in old days, pardon me majority of persons would have had to keep and slaughter their own animals.

[debs4jc]

Q3. Why is animal sacrifice repulsive to modern people? How much of this has to do with a city vs. a farming way of life?

Modern people who don't live on farms are not used to seeing animals slaughtered. The sight of the blood and pain of the animal would probably sicken them. City dwellers are removed from the process, they just buy the meat already prepared for them. We get removed from the provision of the Lord in this way, we don't see the struggle of growing and raising animals or a crop, we just take it for granted. It doesn't cost us any hard work like it did the farmer/rancher.

[Melatiah]

I admit it...I cheated on this question and read everyone else's responses before posting mine. So much insight -- especially from Patty Heard and Missy (read their posts, if you haven't already!).

As one who can barely stand to watch a church's portrayal of the crucifixion of Christ at Easter, I can't even imagine killing an animal because I had sinned. Three points hit home.

1) I need to keep that association between the horror of blood sacrifice and my sin ever before my eyes.

2) How much the people of the OT must have desired rightness with God to be willing to kill a beloved, treasured, spotless lamb -- a lamb they had most likely helped to be born.

3) How much God must love me (us) to have killed His Spotless Lamb to purge my (our) sin. His love is extravagant.