Leaven, typifying malice, wickedness and human pride is not accepted in spiritual sacrifices.
Take heed of those sins which will certainly spoil the acceptableness of worship.
Leviticus 1
1 And when any will offer a meat offering unto the LORD, his offering shall be of fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon:
2 And he shall bring it to Aaron’s sons the priests: and he shall take thereout his handful of the flour thereof, and of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof; and the priest shall burn the memorial of it upon the altar, to be an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD:
3 And the remnant of the meat offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons’: it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the LORD made by fire.
4 ¶ And if thou bring an oblation of a meat offering baken in the oven, it shall be unleavened cakes of fine flour mingled with oil, or unleavened wafers anointed with oil.
5 ¶ And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in a pan, it shall be of fine flour unleavened, mingled with oil.
6 Thou shalt part it in pieces, and pour oil thereon: it is a meat offering.
7 ¶ And if thy oblation be a meat offering baken in the fryingpan, it shall be made of fine flour with oil.
8 And thou shalt bring the meat offering that is made of these things unto the LORD: and when it is presented unto the priest, he shall bring it unto the altar.
9 And the priest shall take from the meat offering a memorial thereof, and shall burn it upon the altar: it is an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.
10 And that which is left of the meat offering shall be Aaron’s and his sons’: it is a thing most holy of the offerings of the LORD made by fire.
11 No meat offering, which ye shall bring unto the LORD, shall be made with leaven: for ye shall burn no leaven, nor any honey, in any offering of the LORD made by fire.
12 ¶ As for the oblation of the firstfruits, ye shall offer them unto the LORD: but they shall not be burnt on the altar for a sweet savour.
13 And every oblation of thy meat offering shalt thou season with salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy meat offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt.
14 And if thou offer a meat offering of thy firstfruits unto the LORD, thou shalt offer for the meat offering of thy firstfruits green ears of corn dried by the fire, even corn beaten out of full ears.
15 And thou shalt put oil upon it, and lay frankincense thereon: it is a meat offering.
16 And the priest shall burn the memorial of it, part of the beaten corn thereof, and part of the oil thereof, with all the frankincense thereof: it is an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
Leviticus 1 – J. Vernon McGee
Leviticus 2:1-16 – Meal-Offerings with Oil and Incense
The meal-offering, which is described in this chapter, portrayed in emblem the perfect character of our Lord. He was as fine flour, of the best quality, without grit or coarseness. There was nothing uneven, nothing rough and harsh, nothing unseemly or forbidding in Him. He was anointed with the oil of the Holy Spirit; His perfect obedience was fragrant to the Father, and should be so to us; there was no leaven of guile or hypocrisy in His constitution. See Ephesians 5:2. We should feed on His holy character by meditation, and resemble it in daily living. The interposition of the priest was an essential feature of the ancient ritual, informing us that our prayer and self-surrender are acceptable to God through our Savior. We are also reminded by Leviticus 2:14 that we are called to be a kind of first-fruits of His creatures to the Creator. See James 1:18. —Through the Bible Day by Day
Leviticus 2:1 – Fine flour; and he shall pour oil upon it, and put frankincense thereon.
This type is only true in its fullest extent of the blessed Master; but as we are to be conformed to His image, we may humbly take the ingredients of the meat offering as indicating various qualities in our personal character and behavior.
Fine flour.—There should be nothing coarse-grained or rough to the touch; but all even and tender. So that however great the pressure brought to bear on us, we should meet it with perfect grace and gentleness. Jesus reviled not again, but was led as a lamb to the slaughter. David Livingstone said that the promise of Christ was the word of a perfect gentleman. This should be our character.
Oil upon it.—We must be mingled with oil—that is, the Holy Spirit must have access into the secret places of the inner life, and we must have the anointing of the Holy Ghost for service. In Christian work nothing is of any value or permanence, useful to man or pleasing to God, in which the Holy Spirit is not first.
Frankincense.—Every act of our life should emit sweet fragrance towards God. Always moving forward in Christ’s triumphant procession, bearing aloft the incense-bowls of thought, action, word, filled with love and praise.
Salt.—“Let your speech be alway with grace, seasoned with salt” (Colossians 4:6). The words of Jesus were full of grace, and also of truth. There was a pungency and purity and uncorruptness in His speech, which have in every age arrested the progress of the world’s evil. Let us give Him our lips.
No leaven—the symbol of the rising of pride and self.
No honey—that which is merely attractive and sensuous. —Our Daily Homily