Last week we thought a lot about unintentional sins. As we mentioned before; there were so many different kinds of sacrifices to be made in the ancient worship; different types of sacrifices to atone for different types of sins. People had to understand their sins and understand God’s requirements.
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to our ongoing chronological Thursday Bible Study called COME AS A CHILD. Today we are covering Lesson 204 which is taken from Leviticus Chapter 5. If you missed last week’s lesson; you may review it here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/unintentional-sin/
SINS OF NEGLECT
If you leave Chapter 4 and go on to Chapter 5 of Leviticus you hear more specifics of the same subject; but it is given in a little more detail. For instance the scriptures seem to speak more about sins of neglect, which is a bit different from sins that are totally unintentional.
Both subjects seem to be about what we would probably label “indirect” sins, or sins that you didn’t plan out that just happened around you; but both are still sins that we all need to be dealing with.
FOR THE TIMES THAT YOU DO NOT SPEAK UP WITH THE TRUTH
In sins of neglect; the example is given of a person who might choose not to speak up when they hear a public charge to testify regarding something they have witnessed or heard information about.
We all arrive here in this uncomfortable place at one time or another as we go through life. We could be the person who makes a difference in the outcome of a situation; but do we want to actually get involved? What cost would we encounter by getting into the scene with our first-hand knowledge? Would it be costly for us?
IT IS HUMAN TO AVOID UNNECESSARY DRAMA
Most people do not like to deal with confrontations.
Sometimes it is easier to sit back and let matters come to the surface on their own.
Why should you be the one to interfere or take part in someone else’s drama?
How about this answer? Because the scriptures say it matters.
HOLDING BACK EVIDENCE
This relates to holding back evidence in trials, or not speaking out when you are the only person available with the truth that would pronounce a person innocent or guilty, or make a difference in another person’s life down the road.
Truth is truth; we don’t get to sort it out and bring it forward whenever we feel it is most convenient. An honest person tells the truth even when it hurts. It ALWAYS matters.
Maybe speaking up and telling the truth in a matter involving another person might also bring to light something that could incriminate you and prove one of your sins too. Still; you cannot remain silent. It would be a sin on top of another sin.
GOD VALUES THE TRUTH ABOVE ALL THINGS
Examples are given in Leviticus Chapter 5 for many such sins. The instructions are clear; we all must confess when we have sinned. The truth must be told to the proper people who need to hear it. Sometimes that means clarifying what has happened to others as well as God. In these types of situations, the necessary actions for each person’s safety and well-being should always be taken. If a careless mistake is made; that person must come clean and admit it to those that it would affect.
Haven’t we all been in this place at one time or another? It is never easy, it is always painful.
A TENTH OF AN EPHAH OF FINE FLOUR COULD BE USED
If this type of sin happened; the person committing the sin was to bring a female lamb or goat before God and confess their sins over the animal being sacrificed. If you could not afford a female lamb or goat; you could bring two doves or two pigeons. One would be a sin offering and one would be a burnt offering. If the sinner could not afford doves or pigeons; they could bring a tenth of an ephah of fine flour without olive oil or incense.
An ephah is a unit of measuring. The tool that was used much like we use a container for measuring a “cup” today was called an ephah too. An omer contained one-tenth of an ephah when measuring dry grain. We now symbolically count the omer as we count the days leading up from Passover to Pentecost. To know more about that read here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/seasons-coming-into-the-spring-holy-days-counting-the-omer-part-one/.
The offering was made, the confession was given and the sin was atoned. Afterward; a meal of some type was shared. The sinner walks away clean and forgiven and relieved of carrying the burden of that sin around anymore.
I’ll bet we all would be totally shocked if we knew all of the un-confessed sins of neglect and guilt that people are carrying around with them like very unnecessary heavy baggage. Today; all it takes to change the situation is to come clean, confess and lay the burden down at the feet of Jesus. You will be forgiven and you will be set free.
WHEN THE HOLY IS DESECRATED
In the last portion of this chapter we get to a portion of the scripture that speaks more specifically about the guilt offerings. It talks about what to do if you desecrate something that was set aside as holy.
People often unintentionally sinned regarding things that were set aside as holy. There were a number of different ways that this could be done – through touching something dead and then touching something holy, or through touching something so holy that it was not supposed to be touched, or even touching something holy without washing first. Many, many things could make a holy thing unclean and unacceptable.
This sin required a sacrifice of a ram without blemish and a proper amount of silver shekels.
THE REPLACEMENT VALUE WAS PAID IN SILVER SHEKELS
If something holy was destroyed or desecrated; they needed to pay one-fifth of the holy thing’s value in silver to redeem the replacement. This would be considered a type of “guilt offering.”
IF YOU BELONG TO GOD YOU ARE HOLY AND SET-APART
One can’t help but make the association today of the body of a human being who has come into the sacred fold of The Kingdom of God through the redemption of Jesus Christ. They now belong to God. They have become holy and set-apart for a certain service.
Salvation and atonement make a person holy; as does the further process called sanctification which usually follows. A person making a decision and commitment to be a child of God forever and to follow His ways is a set-apart person; someone who God considers to be one of His people; and that would make them holy and set-apart.
If the holy things of the wilderness tabernacle were considered sacred; how much more valuable would the set-apart body of a sacred human life be to God?
A life redeemed would be much more valuable than all the holy things used in worship in the wilderness tabernacle. Even an unredeemed life should be considered sacred because there is always the possibility that it will be redeemed in the future.
Humans and human lives are not to be destroyed or desecrated or made unholy before God. Born or unborn; all life is sacred.
WE MUST RECOGNIZE THAT THIS IS A TYPE OF SIN
If this desecration of life happens, it is a sin.
It calls for confession and atonement must be made by an unblemished sacrifice as a guilt offering before God.
Jesus has provided a way for all of us to confess such sins as this before God. He has become the unblemished ram; the One that replaced Isaac in the thicket when Abraham was willing to sacrifice his only Son. God has given His Only Begotten Son in exchange for the atonement of our sin. This is how sins are atoned today.
WE MUST LEARN TO CONSIDER THE SACRED
It is easy to defile other people. You can hurt them intentionally or unintentionally. If you do; God requires a confession and a guilt offering. You must pray, confess the sins and allow God to accept the blood of Jesus that makes atonement.
In those days; one had to distinguish this type of sin and act appropriately. They had to HOPE that the sacrifice was perfect enough to work. We do not have to wonder and wait and hope that we have enough. Christ has paid the redemption price. He was declared guilty in our place and sold for a few shekels of silver coins.
He is enough! It is finished. The Lamb of God has been slain and it was planned for us from the very foundations of the world. The wilderness tabernacle and the sacrificial rights that we read about here in Leviticus were the pattern that we learn the truth from. It was God’s way of teaching us the miracles that He would eventually set before mankind.
JESUS PAID IT ALL
In the ancient days the people took their sins and their sacrifices very seriously.
Do we do that today? How sacred is life? How sacred are the ways of God that give us the best ways to live our lives?
We must learn to pay attention to our greatest gift and blessing.
Whatever we did wrong; the value of His life has repaid.
We can walk away free and clear.
Jesus paid it all.
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