The King provides a way to restore our relationships.
17 "Suppose you sin by violating one of the LORD's commands. Even if you are
unaware of what you have done,
you are guilty and will be punished for your sin.
18 For a guilt offering, you must
bring to the priest your own ram with no defects, or you may buy one of
equal value. Through this process the priest will purify you from your
unintentional sin, making you right with the LORD, and you will be forgiven.
Leviticus 6:7 Through this process, the priest will purify you before the
LORD, making you right with him, and you will be forgiven for any of these
sins you have committed."
So far in the book of Leviticus we have seen the first four sacrifices that God established for his people so that they would be able to approach his holiness. This is important because the people that originally received this information have just completed the Tabernacle and now that God is with them there they must know how to approach him.
The fifth sacrifice that Leviticus gives us is usually called the Guilt Offering which doesn't give you a clear idea of what it is since feeling guilty was a common part of all of these offerings. A better name is restitution offering since this was given to repay debts caused by unintentional sin against:
- Holy things (Leviticus 5:14–16)
- Sin against God’s commands (Leviticus 5:17–19)
- Sin against a neighbor (Leviticus 6:1–7)
When the offense is against God and his holy things, he shows us how
to return his stuff back to their clean, holy state. In our culture we have
very little sense of the holiness of God, we have been given so much freedom
in Jesus that we take it for granted. We fail to see that holy things need
to be respected and protected from unholy uses that would make them
unclean.
When the offense is against a neighbor and their things, it may
require more than an apology to make things right between you. This offering
helped show remorse for your sin so that the people you offended will see
that your repentance is genuine.
Atonement and restitution go together like repenting and obeying, it is
always good when we have verbs to back up our change of heart. The
offender is in great need of both, repentance and obedience, the first brings about pardon and the later
proves the condition of the heart.
Remember the way that Zacchaeus reacted after Jesus changed his life, a
notorious taker became a most generous giver after he received God's
forgiveness he voluntarily gave back what he took and paid interest. (Luke
19:8-10)
The Joy Of Being Forgiven And Cleared Of Guilt
Psalm 32:1-2 Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight! 2 Yes, what joy for those whose record the LORD has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty!
God's people didn't groan when they received God's rules, it is unfair
that we named these first books of the Old Testament "The Law" so that
they seem like a burden, we don't see any of the rules in the Torah as a
source of joy.
But God's people were joyful about the law because it was their source
of information about how to please their God so they could live without
fear. The man made gods of the pagans didn't come with any clear
instructions on how to please them. (Psalm 1:1-2) We have been blessed
with God's revelation of himself from the Torah all the way to
the book of Revelation
and every book in between.
Loving God And Your Neighbor
The people back there in Moses day didn't realize it but we know that those sacrifices were pointing toward a better sacrifice. The only sacrifice that truly mattered, the only sacrifice that can make peace with God and restore my relationship with my friends and neighbors.
God didn't need to do anything to reconcile our relationship with him, he could have allowed us to continue into the downward spiral that our sin caused, he could have done nothing to help us and it would not change his holiness.
But God did everything that we couldn't do to have a peaceful relationship with him, not that we in any way deserved it, he personally gave us the best gift ever so that we can stand before him with confidence. (2 Corinthians 5:5-8)
God's awesome goodness toward us should control everything that we do, it should give us a huge desire to please him in everything, living for ourselves should not be an option for God's people. (2 Corinthians 5:9, 14-15)
2 Corinthians 5:18-21 And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. 19 For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people's sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation.20 So we are Christ's ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, "Come back to God!" 21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.
God came down to our level to restore our relationship with him so how can we think we can refuse to restore the relationships around us? The Old Testament sacrifices show us the high cost that God was willing to pay to make us right with him. I have no excuse to hold resentment and judge those that have offended me.
I should imitate God by giving the gift of restored relationships away to others. His example of extravagant giving is the standard that I must live up to. As God's ambassador I need to share the gift of restored relationships with my friends and neighbors so they can do the same.
