Expert: Dean Gade - 1/25/2008

Question
The Old Testament is full of animal sacrifice including God's instructions on carrying it out.  Why?  What possible benefit is it to God for humans to slaughter animals and then burn them?  Does God really enjoy the pleasant aroma?
This is of course very silly, so why should we believe anything in the Old Testament?  did God really inspire the Old Testament?  There is a lot of brutally in the Old Testament mostly ordered by god, for example when he ordered the Israelites to utterly destroy the inhabitants of the Holy Land.  this certainly does not seem like the God of the New Testament who is a God of Love and Mercy.  Could you please reconcile the two versions of God or at least explain it to a doubting believer?

Answer
Sorry for the delay in answering your question.  There has been something wrong with my e-mail delivery for the last few weeks.   I don't believe that I did answer your question, so I'll try to do that now.

The blood sacrifices in the OT were all meant to be what the NT calls "shadows" or "copies" of the reality of the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ for us.

There is no binding of covenant/will and testament without shedding of blood/death.  In the fullness of time God sent His Son to be that propitiation for the sins of all in general and to be received by those with faith in the death of Christ to save them, specifically.

The best teaching on this is the NT Book of Hebrews.

The OT sacrifices were to be a continuos reminder to the children of Israel of the Messiah/Christ who would take away all their sin, once for all time, was coming into to world. The priests had to sacrifice daily in the tabernacle or temple.  The people were chosen by God, as descendents of Abraham to carry the message of God's sacrifice for them.  The giving of His Son was not only a means to satisfy His wrath/judgement against all and every sin,   but also to show the extent of His love for those who become His children.

The destruction of those who were NOT HIS PEOPLE was a protection for those who were.  If not for God's intervention the Israelites would have soon been destroyed by those who worship their forms of gods.  The attacks against the Israelites and all the children of promise have never ceased even till today.  God speaks about "ransoming" others for the sake of HIS children.
He speaks as if He was a perfect father whose children others are always seeking to harm.  And He vents His wrath against them not for enjoyment but as an alien act of His character of love.

The books of the Psalms, Isaiah and Jeremiah speak much about this too.

God's love and mercy is not available to those who hate Him, His Son or any of those who become His children according to His covenant in both the OT and NT.  It is not correct to accept the common teaching today that God loves sinner, but not their sin.  The wrath of God has been real since Adam and Eve and those who do any evil will have to face that wrath...unless they repent of it and receive His covenant in Christ.

Mal 2:17

17 You have wearied the Lord with your words.

"How have we wearied him?" you ask.

By saying, "All who do evil are good in the eyes of the Lord, and he is pleased with them"
NIV

You could say that there ARE two sides to God.  Primarily He is the epitome of love and even says that He IS love.  But it is definitely "tough love" as we call it today.  Those who have not been perfect in every way all their lives fall under the Law which says "The wages of sin is death".      The only other alternative is to receive perfection from One who IS perfect through perfect and complete obedience to our Father in heaven;  and Jesus, the Christ, is the only one who has been that and grants this to all who belong to Him.

John 5:24-30

24 "I tell you the truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life . 25 I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son to have life in himself. 27 And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.

28 "Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice 29 and come out — those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.
NIV

If you have further specific questions on this, do write again.