Leviticus 4 SIN AND ITS EFFECTS The sweet savor offerings were all voluntary sacrifices made with the offering itself being what was important. Burnt offerings were made before the laws were given to the children of Israel. In the burnt offering all was burned on the altar and our acceptance by God is possible because of the Person of Christ. The meat offering was one in which no life was given. This was put on the burnt offering and all of the frankincense was for the Lord. The hidden years of the life of the Lord when He was here, as well as the public years of service, was able to be shared by God and those who worship Him. All the fat was burned for God. Peace has been made by Christ and in type - God, the priests and the offeror all partake of the same sinless substitute, expressing our fellowship with the Father and the Son through the Spirit. The two non- savor offerings were compulsory. One because of our sinful nature, and the other because of sinful acts.
There is the unmistakable fact that we sin because we are sinners, not the other way around. In the teaching of the sin offering, the emphasis is on the offeror rather than the offering. The offerings that were brought were suitable to the ones who offered them. This offering was for unintentional sin. For those who sin willfully after they have heard the truth, "there is no more sacrifice for sin." When one is awakened to their sin to which they had been ignorant of in their unbelief, there is conviction of sin and one wants to know what can be done to deal with this. By our nature we are not able to come to God ourselves or by our own efforts. We need a sinless substitute. This is where we begin with God. In the text of scripture, God begins with describing the offering first. We get God's view of things in the first chapters of Leviticus in the institution of the sweet savor offerings. Man's view is seen in the sin offering and the application of it to meet our need as sinners by nature. This is what first comes to mind when we hear the Gospel.
The first person mentioned is the priest who represents all the people. He assumes responsibility for others. At the door of the Tabernacle, where men meet with God, he brings the best he has of the herd. There he puts his hand on the animal's head in identification and sacrifices the animal. When he kills that animal the life blood is taken and some is sprinkled in front of the veil as close as possible to the ark of God's presence, some was put on the horns of the golden altar of incense, speaking of the heavenly view of the sacrifice. And then the rest is put at the foundation of the brazen altar, that speaks of the basis of our acceptance with God. The first one that has to be satisfied is God. Then worship at the golden altar and communion because of the redemption price paid, can begin. The fat is then burned all for God as incense of a sweet savor. The rest of the bullock is taken outside of the camp and burned completely in a clean place where the ashes of the offerings is taken.
The priest who brought the offering of a bullock is the type of Christ who is both the Offeror and the Offering. "He offered Himself without spot to God" on our behalf. He took the place as the Substitute for sinners and "suffered, the Just, for the unjust to bring us to God." By dying in our place, as our representative, He suffered the wrath of God when He was taken outside the city and crucified. "The blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanseth us from all sin." The terribleness of sin is not understood until we can see what He endured for us. The consequences of sin are often down-played by those who do not understand the holiness and righteousness of God. In our place of acceptance in Christ, we go "forth unto Him, without the camp, bearing His reproach." Christ our priest has opened the way to God for us through His own blood.
When the congregation sinned, the consequences were severe, because Israel had experienced idolatry down through the years. The offering that was required for the congregation is the same as that of the priest. The Church and Christ are indissolubly linked so that what affects one affects the other. The priest represented the people before God so brought his sacrifice suitable to the consequences of his sin. When the congregation sinned the elders of the people had to do the same as the priest did. The effect of both who sinned was the same, and the rite for atonement was the same. "A little leaven, leaveneth the whole lump."
The ruler who needed atonement for unknown sin had to bring a male goat. The ruler's sin did not interfere with the worship of God by the congregation but is a person of influence he has a certain degree of responsibility to have a clear conscience in order to serve other people acceptably. He had to be able to enjoy communion with God before He could represent them in the daily things of life in a righteous way. The blood of his sacrifice was sprinkled on the brazen altar and poured out there, relating to our acceptance by God here in our earthly walk. The heavenly response to the sin offering is not seen in this man's sacrifice.
We may feel insignificant as common people, but God's plan of salvation is the same for us as for any others. God made provision for those who live in simplicity and an ordinary life, to be fully accepted through the sacrifice of Christ. The female goat had to be without blemish the same as the other animals. The level of our apprehension of Christ determines the value of what God expects of us. Whether a lamb or goat, God in grace made it possible for all to come to God by virtue of the sacrifice. Christ has become the "propitiation for our sins." God was willing to accept the offeror who brought the appropriate offering.
As I watch in my mind's eye, these various people coming with their sin offering, I wonder if they came with fear and trembling. I believe I would have, because if the offering was not acceptable, I would not be forgiven. The priest who offered the sacrifice knew what was to be given to God and how the blood was to be applied. In the case of the priest and the congregation who brought the bullock, we know the whole animal apart from the fat and the blood was taken outside the camp and burned. As far as the ruler or the common people we know what God got and where the life blood was poured out. As far as the rest of the animal, we are not told what happened to it. God knows who we are and He knows how much we understand of His redemptive work. At the beginning of our Christian life, all we really knew was, "I am a guilty sinner, but Jesus died for me." And from that, God got what He desired because He knew what we could give. Now as individuals, and as a body of believers, we learn and grow in grace and knowledge. The more that is understood, the more that is rightly expected from us.
In our gatherings to declare the Gospel, we can tell people plainly, "Christ died for the ungodly." In the Church we know we have been purchased "with the blood of His own." As individuals we respond with gratitude to "the Son of God who loved me, and gave Himself for me." When I think of one who had brought his offering and his sense of guilt lay very hard on his conscience - now on his way home, there would be the relief and gratitude that "the priest made atonement for him, for his sin which he hath sinned, and it hath been forgiven him." How grateful and joyful he must have been! Forgiven!