A DRINK OFFERING
“But even if I am being poured out like a drink offering on the sacrifice and service coming from your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you. So you too should be glad and rejoice with me.
“I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. I have no one like him, who will show genuine concern for your welfare. For everyone looks out for their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But your know that Timothy has proved himself because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. I hope, therefore, to send him as soon as I know how things go with me. And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon.” Philippians 2:17-24.
Did Paul’s readers understand what he was saying?
As a Jewish rabbi, he was steeped in the knowledge of the Torah and would have been familiar with the intricacies of the sacrificial system. As a believer in Jesus Christ, he would have understood the symbolic meaning of the sacrifices.
The daily offering of a lamb, morning and evening was to be accompanied by their grain, oil and drink offerings which were a food offering presented to the Lord.
“This is what you are to offer on the altar regularly each day: two lambs a year old. Offer one in the morning and the other at twilight. With the first lamb offer a tenth of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with a quarter of a hin of oil from pressed olives, and a quarter of a hin of wine as a drink offering… a pleasing aroma, a food offering presented to the Lord.” Exodus 29:38-41, 41b.
Obviously God did not need food – the sacrifice was what the people gave out of their resources to symbolise the Lamb of God, Jesus, whom the Father gave for the sin of the world. The drink offering symbolised the blood that was poured out for us just as the body of the lamb was a picture of the body of Jesus given for us.
Paul was expanding on his song about Jesus who had laid aside His deity and His privileges to become human, humbled Himself even further until He was nothing by becoming a slave and a sacrifice for our sin. Paul saw himself as the accompanying drink offering, pouring his own life out on the sacrifice of his Lord as a pleasing offering to God.
Why was Paul telling the Philippians this? Was he trying to tell them how good he was? Was he boasting about his humility? Not likely! As a rabbi, he had the right to call people to follow him and to imitate him. As a disciple of Jesus, he was following Him.
“Follow my example as I follow the example of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 11:1.
Since Jesus had poured His life out as an offering so that others mght live, Paul was acting as a true disciple by pouring out his life so that others would follow Jesus and live. He was not claiming to be the sacrifice – that was the role of Jesus alone. Paul was the drink offering that accompanied the sacrifice as a sweet aroma to God.
Like Jesus, Paul never called people to do what he was unwilling to do. He did not follow the tradition of the Pharisees, although he had been one, to say one thing and to do another. Even in his pre-Christian days, although he was wrong, he was sincere and fanatical in his obedience to the Law. Now he was equally zealous and fanatical in his obedience to Christ.
Paul was unstinting in his recommendation of Timothy. He had found him as a young believer and nurtured him in his faith like a loving father. Timothy had turned out to be one in a million. There will always be those who join the cause for whatever reason other than obedience to Jesus, as in Paul’s day, so today. But for Paul, Timothy was a joy because he had turned out to be a true son – serving the Lord as he served him as his father in the faith.
Paul knew that Timothy would do anything he asked because he was a true son, growing up under the guidance of his mentor until he, too, would father others in the faith.
“Even though you have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel.” 1 Corinthians 4:15.
How true that even today we have many leaders who dominate or milk the people but not many fathers – those who love and nurture their people and pour out their lives for them like a drink offering.
Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.