Unintentional Sin Matters; It’s Still a Sin

5. May 2010 by admin.

In life we sin, sometimes we sin intentionally and more often I hope, unintentionally.  In either case, it really doesn’t matter.  It all stinks in the nostrils of God.  I think in the matters of theology there are a lot of gray areas,  it is not black or white.  However, God is black or white in the area of sin; it either is a sin or it’s not a sin.  If we sin, God has a very specific way of handling it. 

In Leviticus 4, God gives specific instructions on the sin offering.  The sin offering is different for different people too.  If you are an anointed priest, and you bring guilt on the pople, a bull without defect must be brought to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting.  You are to lay your hand on the bulls head and slaughter it.  Then the blood is to be carried into the Tent, where you will dip your finger in it and sprinkle some of it seven times before God in front of the curtain of the sanctuary.  Then some of the blood will be put on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense that is before the Lord.  The rest of the blood shall be poured out at the base.  Then you will remove the fat of specific areas of the bull and you will burn it on the altar.  The rest of the bull must be taken outside the camp to a place ceremonially clean where the ashes are thrown and burn the bull in a wood fire on the ash heap.  

If the whole Israelite community sinse unintentionally, they are still guilty.  When they become aware of their sin, the assembly must bring a young bull beofre the tent of meeting.  The elders are to lay their hands on the young bull’s head and the bull is to be slaughtered.  the the anointed priest is to take some of the bull’s blood  into the tent and do likewise as the anointed priest would do in his sin offering.

When a leader sins unintentionally, he is guilty as well.  He must bring a male goat without defect, lay his hand on its head and slaughter it.  Then the priest will take some of the blood  withhis finger and put it on the horns of the altar and pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar.  He shall burn all the fat on the altar like the fellowship offering.

If a member of the community sins unintentionally, he is guilty.  He must bring a female goat without defect.  He is to lay his hand on the head and slaughter it at the place of the burnt offering. and do the same as  the leader’s offering.  If he brings a lamb, he is to bring a female without defect.

In every instance of the sin offering, the person (or elders in the case of the community) must place his hand on the animals head while it is being slaughtered.  This was to transfer the sin to the animal.  In every case the animal, or at least the fat was burned on the altar as an aroma pleasing to God.  Thankfully, we do not have to do this today because Jesus was our sin offering.  Hebrews 9:25-28 says, “Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own.  Then Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world.  But now he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself.  Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”  Christ died once, transfering our sin (both unitentional or intentional) to him.  He is our ultimate sacrifice.

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