Who doesn’t like the smell of homemade bread baking?  I don’t know of anyone who doesn’t; do you?  As an adult, I love making bread.  Making it and giving it away reminds me of Grandma Lacquement.  I spent a lot of time on Grandpa and Grandma’s farm as they cared for me while my parents worked.  I watched as my grandma made bread as their way of life.  Bread on the farm was rarely “store-bought.”  Even the butter for the bread was made using her old mixer to whip the cream taken off the top of the milk produced by their cows. It was my job to watch the cream turn to butter because the mixer could jump off the counter in the process!

Grandpa raised beef, chicken, and pork for the purpose of butchering in the fall to fill their freezer—and ours! Sometimes, goat milk and meat was also part of the farm’s menu.  Grandma and Grandpa were mostly self-sufficient as they also had a garden of fresh vegetables and fruit. 

What I observed most about them was how humbly grateful they were for the privilege to have the farm where they would work hard to produce these products as a way of life, along with his carpentry work for others.  They always gave glory to God for His provisions daily.  They gave from their provisions to others in need who would come down their lane seeking help.  Thank you for allowing me to indulge in my memories of these precious people who reflected the goodness of God and taught me how to give away a portion of what God has so graciously given to me.

Speaking of God, apparently, HE loves the smell of bread cooking, too!  Read on…

Leviticus 2

The Grain Offering

“‘When anyone brings a grain offering to the Lord, their offering is to be of the finest flour. They are to pour olive oil on it, put incense on it ² and take it to Aaron’s sons the priests. The priest shall take a handful of the flour and oil, together with all the incense, and burn this as a memorial portion on the altar, a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. ³ The rest of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the food offerings presented to the Lord.

⁴ “‘If you bring a grain offering baked in an oven, it is to consist of the finest flour: either thick loaves made without yeast and with olive oil mixed in or thin loaves made without yeast and brushed with olive oil. ⁵ If your grain offering is prepared on a griddle, it is to be made of the finest flour mixed with oil, and without yeast. ⁶ Crumble it and pour oil on it; it is a grain offering. ⁷ If your grain offering is cooked in a pan, it is to be made of the finest flour and some olive oil. ⁸ Bring the grain offering made of these things to the Lord; present it to the priest, who shall take it to the altar. ⁹ He shall take out the memorial portion from the grain offering and burn it on the altar as a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. ¹⁰ The rest of the grain offering belongs to Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the food offerings presented to the Lord.

¹¹ “‘Every grain offering you bring to the Lord must be made without yeast, for you are not to burn any yeast or honey in a food offering presented to the Lord. ¹² You may bring them to the Lord as an offering of the firstfruits, but they are not to be offered on the altar as a pleasing aroma. ¹³ Season all your grain offerings with salt. Do not leave the salt of the covenant of your God out of your grain offerings; add salt to all your offerings.

¹⁴ “‘If you bring a grain offering of firstfruits to the Lord, offer crushed heads of new grain roasted in the fire. ¹⁵ Put oil and incense on it; it is a grain offering. ¹⁶ The priest shall burn the memorial portion of the crushed grain and the oil, together with all the incense, as a food offering presented to the Lord.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND TO GOD?

We must give back a portion of all that God has given to us to steward for our good and His glory.  Giving back to God displays our thanksgiving for all He has provided. Giving the best and the first of our labors shows our gratitude for all He has created for us to enjoy.

From Genesis to Revelation—we see Jesus in all of Scripture.  Jesus was at the beginning of Creation. Jesus is “God with us” now as the One who willingly sacrificed His life for our sins’ punishment which removed all the sins of the world.  When we repent of our sins to Jesus—all our sins are removed from our being—to be remembered no more!

Jesus is and always will be King of kings, and Lord of lords, as designated by God.  God, the Father plan was for His Son to be our one and only high priest who by the sacrifice of His life once and for all, reconciled us back to God.  Jesus was the ultimate “grain offering” when he sacrificed Himself for us.  Jesus is our Savior and Lord now and forever.  Only through Jesus can we obtain Life eternal—God’s Plan.  And Jesus, the alpha and omega, beginning and end of this age, is coming back!

So, we will see Jesus throughout Leviticus as “offerings” are set in motion as pleasing aromas to God.  We are reminded today of the words of Jesus while He walked the earth: “I AM the Bread of Life.”

God knows.  God knows what His People need to understand about Him.  God provides. God still does that for us through His Word—ALL of it.

A portion of an old hymn plays in my mind; written in 1902 by Howard Grose, to teach us how to give our best back to God;

Give of your best to the Master;
Give of the strength of your youth;
Clad in salvation’s full armor,
Join in the battle for truth.

Give of your best to the Master;
Give Him first place in your heart;
Give Him first place in your service;
Consecrate every part.
Give, and to you will be given;
God His beloved Son gave;
Gratefully seeking to serve Him,
Give Him the best that you have.

God is first. Seek God first. Listen to God first before doing anything.  Jesus taught us that!  Moses relayed God’s command to put God first and worship only God as the number one commandment.  We now learn thought-out Scripture that God gives.  We must learn to give like God by giving back the first fruits of His provision to us! It is not so God “has enough” but to remind us that God is always enough for us.

Jesus explains God’s giving gene that is embedded in all believers in this way;

“If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.

“Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.”–Jesus, Matthew 6:30-34, MSG

“Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33, NIV Jesus demonstrated seeking God first often as He would get away by Himself to seek God’s will before doing anything of significance in His ministry on earth.  Jesus was our perfect example of seeking God first then doing what God says.  Who are we not to seek God first if Jesus, Son of God, did?

Jesus, Bread of Life.  Jesus, the sacrificial offering to God, removed our sins from us set us free to enjoy a sweet relationship with God, our Father, an aroma pleasing to God!

Lord, God of all and in all,

Your resurrection power has resurrected me indeed.  Thank you for teaching us how to love, give, and live a life worthy of who you created us to be.

In Jesus Name, Amen