Why did God accept animal sacrifices — what did they accomplish?
The Devotional Answer
The devotional answer is that God accepted animal sacrifices to engrave one fundamental truth into the heart of humanity: Sin is serious, and it demands a death payment. God, being holy and just (Question 64), cannot simply ignore sin (Question 22).
The ritual of sacrifice was a profound object lesson in substitutionary atonement. When a worshipper placed their hand on the animal's head before its death, they were symbolically transferring their guilt to the innocent animal.
This showed that the penalty for the worshipper's sin was paid by an innocent substitute. This entire system was designed not as an end in itself, but to prepare hearts for the one, final, perfect sacrifice: Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God (John 1:29), who would accomplish what no animal could—the permanent removal of sin.
The Simple Answer
Animal sacrifices, instituted primarily under the Mosaic Law (Leviticus), accomplished a temporary, conditional, and symbolic restoration of fellowship with God.
Their core purpose was to:
Atonement: To provide temporary covering for sins committed by the people and to cleanse ceremonial uncleanness, allowing the Israelites to remain in a covenant relationship with a holy God.
Foreshadowing: To demonstrate the principle of substitution—that an innocent life must be given in place of the guilty—a principle that found its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus.
Crucially, they could not fully remove sin: "It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins" (Hebrews 10:4).
The Deeper Dive
The book of Leviticus details several types of offerings (like the burnt offering, peace offering, sin offering, and guilt offering), but they all served the following theological purposes:
1. Acknowledgment of God’s Holiness and Human Guilt
The primary function of the sacrifices was to acknowledge the impassable gulf between a holy God and sinful humanity. The sacrifice provided a means for the sinner to approach God's presence at the Tabernacle (and later the Temple) without being consumed by His holiness. The sacrifice was a visible, tangible, and often bloody reminder of the severity of sin and the need for a mediator.
2. Ceremonial Cleansing and National Atonement
Sacrifices cleansed the individual and the entire nation from ceremonial defilement, which allowed them to continue their life within the covenant community.
Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur): Once a year, the High Priest would make a grand sacrifice to atone for the cumulative sins of the entire nation, symbolizing a fresh start for the people and maintaining the holiness of the sanctuary. This was the most important ritual, demonstrating that Israel's continued existence depended on God's provision of forgiveness.
3. Preparation for the Perfect Sacrifice
Ultimately, the entire sacrificial system was a teaching tool, a prophecy in ritual.
Temporary: The sacrifices had to be repeated daily and yearly, proving their inadequacy. This repetition created a longing for a final solution.
Perfection: The animal had to be without defect ("unblemished"), pointing to the absolute perfection and sinlessness of the future sacrifice—Jesus (Question 74).
Jesus, the perfect Lamb, entered the heavenly sanctuary once and for all, not with the blood of animals, but with His own blood, accomplishing eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:12).
God's Assurance
God assures you that because of Jesus, the sacrificial system is now completely fulfilled and obsolete. Your forgiveness is permanent, and your access to God is direct.
"He does not need to offer daily sacrifices, as those high priests did, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself." — Hebrews 7:27 (NIV)
You are assured that the final, most complete, and most powerful sacrifice has already been made for you.
Your Takeaway Thought
Do not look at the Old Testament sacrifices as a gruesome history lesson. Look at them as God's divine syllabus—a long, drawn-out visual aid teaching one truth: The cost of your sin is death, but God, in His love, provided the substitute. Because of Jesus' single, perfect sacrifice, you now have permanent peace and direct access to God.
