Then he shall carry the bull outside the camp, and burn it as he burned the first bull. It is a sin offering for the assembly. Leviticus 4:21
Of the five ceremonial offerings in Leviticus, two did not produce any sweet aroma to the Lord. They were the sin offering and the trespass offering. Sin always rises up to God as a disgusting stench. The sin offering was offered according to the position of the one that was offering it.
Whenever a priest or the whole congregation sinned against the Lord, a bullock must be offered to make atonement for that sin (Lev. 4:3, 13-14). Herein lies an important truth: the sin of a spiritual leader has the same degree of seriousness as the sin of an entire congregation.
With the privilege of leadership comes the great responsibility to walk uprightly before the Lord. The sin offering of a ruler would be a male goat (Lev. 4:22-23), while that of a commoner, a female goat (Lev. 4:27-28). In each instance, the sacrifice had to be perfect. The animal with the sin imputed on it had to be slain and carried out of the camp (Lev. 4:11-12).
The sin offering foreshadowed Jesus Christ, the perfect sacrifice slain for all mankind. Just as the sin offering dealt with the sin nature of Israelites, God today wants to break the power of sin in you. He wants to remove that corrupt, fleshly sin nature from you.
The trespass offering was closely related to the sin offering. Sinning is missing the mark. Trespassing is overstepping the mark. While the sin offering dealt with the power of sin, the trespass offering dealt with the actual practices of sin. A number of specific sins were important enough to be listed out by God as practices that have overstepped His righteous boundary.
There are 10 trespasses listed out in Leviticus 5-6:
He has broken the power of sin and has forgiven all the practices of sin in your life. This is confirmed by the apostle John when he says, “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7)—the singular form of the word “sin” refers to the power of sin being broken in us. Then two verses later, he declares, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins” (1 John 1:9)—the plural “sins” refer to the practices of sins being now forgiven. What a complete salvation!
Of the five ceremonial offerings in Leviticus, two did not produce any sweet aroma to the Lord. They were the sin offering and the trespass offering. Sin always rises up to God as a disgusting stench. The sin offering was offered according to the position of the one that was offering it.
Whenever a priest or the whole congregation sinned against the Lord, a bullock must be offered to make atonement for that sin (Lev. 4:3, 13-14). Herein lies an important truth: the sin of a spiritual leader has the same degree of seriousness as the sin of an entire congregation.
With the privilege of leadership comes the great responsibility to walk uprightly before the Lord. The sin offering of a ruler would be a male goat (Lev. 4:22-23), while that of a commoner, a female goat (Lev. 4:27-28). In each instance, the sacrifice had to be perfect. The animal with the sin imputed on it had to be slain and carried out of the camp (Lev. 4:11-12).
The sin offering foreshadowed Jesus Christ, the perfect sacrifice slain for all mankind. Just as the sin offering dealt with the sin nature of Israelites, God today wants to break the power of sin in you. He wants to remove that corrupt, fleshly sin nature from you.
The trespass offering was closely related to the sin offering. Sinning is missing the mark. Trespassing is overstepping the mark. While the sin offering dealt with the power of sin, the trespass offering dealt with the actual practices of sin. A number of specific sins were important enough to be listed out by God as practices that have overstepped His righteous boundary.
There are 10 trespasses listed out in Leviticus 5-6:
- Concealing truth when it is demanded in the course of justice.
- Indulging in any practice that defiles the soul and damages the spirit.
- Breaking promises and contracts.
- Dishonesty toward God in holy, spiritual things.
- Ignoring and disobeying God’s commandments.
- Failing to safeguard what is entrusted to you.
- Unfairness in partnership.
- Taking what is not yours through violence.
- Lying and deceiving.
- Keeping that which doesn’t belong to you.
He has broken the power of sin and has forgiven all the practices of sin in your life. This is confirmed by the apostle John when he says, “The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7)—the singular form of the word “sin” refers to the power of sin being broken in us. Then two verses later, he declares, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins” (1 John 1:9)—the plural “sins” refer to the practices of sins being now forgiven. What a complete salvation!
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