Sermon Manuscript

Leviticus 5:1-13 ~ 20160515 ~ Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org

05/15 Leviticus 5:1-13; The Sin Offering – Sins of Omission ; Audio available at: http://www.ephraimbible.org/Sermons/20160515_leviticus-5_1-13.mp3

Forgiveness. That is a powerful word. It is a treasure to be forgiven. To be forgiven means that I have done something wrong against someone, and that person has released me from the guilt and penalty of my trespass. The highest concentration of the word 'sin' in the Old Testament occurs right here in chapters 4 and 5 of Leviticus, dealing with the sin offering which secures atonement and forgiveness. This is the fourth offering listed in Leviticus, and the one that deals with specific sins. Leviticus 4 deals with the sins of the anointed priest, of the whole congregation, of a leader, and of a common person.

Leviticus 4:2 ...If anyone sins unintentionally in any of the LORD's commandments about things not to be done, and does any one of them, 3 if it is the anointed priest who sins, thus bringing guilt on the people,

13 “If the whole congregation of Israel sins unintentionally and the thing is hidden from the eyes of the assembly, and they do any one of the things that by the LORD's commandments ought not to be done, and they realize their guilt, 14 when the sin which they have committed becomes known,

22 “When a leader sins, doing unintentionally any one of all the things that by the commandments of the LORD his God ought not to be done, and realizes his guilt, 23 or the sin which he has committed is made known to him,

27 “If anyone of the common people sins unintentionally in doing any one of the things that by the LORD's commandments ought not to be done, and realizes his guilt, 28 or the sin which he has committed is made known to him,

These are unintentional sins, or sins of human weakness or failure. They are sins of commission, doing what ought not to be done. With a sacrifice appropriate to the status of the offender we are told:

4:20 And the priest shall make atonement for them, and they shall be forgiven.

26 So the priest shall make atonement for him for his sin, and he shall be forgiven.

31 And the priest shall make atonement for him, and he shall be forgiven.

35...And the priest shall make atonement for him for the sin which he has committed, and he shall be forgiven.

He shall be forgiven. God is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, ...forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin (Ex.34:6-7). When we approach God with the appropriate sacrifice, God is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.

The first 13 verses of Leviticus 5 are a continuation of the sin offering, this time dealing with sins of omission.

Leviticus 5:1 “If anyone sins in that he hears a public adjuration to testify, and though he is a witness, whether he has seen or come to know the matter, yet does not speak, he shall bear his iniquity; 2 or if anyone touches an unclean thing, whether a carcass of an unclean wild animal or a carcass of unclean livestock or a carcass of unclean swarming things, and it is hidden from him and he has become unclean, and he realizes his guilt; 3 or if he touches human uncleanness, of whatever sort the uncleanness may be with which one becomes unclean, and it is hidden from him, when he comes to know it, and realizes his guilt; 4 or if anyone utters with his lips a rash oath to do evil or to do good, any sort of rash oath that people swear, and it is hidden from him, when he comes to know it, and he realizes his guilt in any of these; 5 when he realizes his guilt in any of these and confesses the sin he has committed, 6 he shall bring to the LORD as his compensation for the sin that he has committed, a female from the flock, a lamb or a goat, for a sin offering. And the priest shall make atonement for him for his sin. 7 “But if he cannot afford a lamb, then he shall bring to the LORD as his compensation for the sin that he has committed two turtledoves or two pigeons, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. 8 He shall bring them to the priest, who shall offer first the one for the sin offering. He shall wring its head from its neck but shall not sever it completely, 9 and he shall sprinkle some of the blood of the sin offering on the side of the altar, while the rest of the blood shall be drained out at the base of the altar; it is a sin offering. 10 Then he shall offer the second for a burnt offering according to the rule. And the priest shall make atonement for him for the sin that he has committed, and he shall be forgiven. 11 “But if he cannot afford two turtledoves or two pigeons, then he shall bring as his offering for the sin that he has committed a tenth of an ephah of fine flour for a sin offering. He shall put no oil on it and shall put no frankincense on it, for it is a sin offering. 12 And he shall bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take a handful of it as its memorial portion and burn this on the altar, on the LORD's food offerings; it is a sin offering. 13 Thus the priest shall make atonement for him for the sin which he has committed in any one of these things, and he shall be forgiven. And the remainder shall be for the priest, as in the grain offering.”

Sins of Omission

Where chapter 4 deals with sins of commission, doing what ought not to be done, chapter 5 includes sins of omission, failing to do what one ought to do. We usually think of sin as doing something wrong. But did you know that neglecting to do what is right is also sin?

Remember the parable Jesus told in Matthew 25 of the master who entrusted his servants with his finances. When he returned, he found two of the servants had invested and doubled their master's money. But one servant hid what he had been given and then returned it to the master.

Matthew 25:26 But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! ... 27 Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest.

This servant was called 'wicked and slothful' because he failed to do what he ought to have done. He didn't steal, he didn't lie, but he didn't do what he ought to have done.

James 4:17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.

In Leviticus 5, there are 4 specific cases laid out of failure to do what one ought to do, which bring guilt and require atonement. Verse 1 is the failure of a witness to testify under oath. Verse 2 is failure to be cleansed after contact with an unclean animal. Verse 3 is failure to be cleansed after contact with an unclean human. Verse 4 is failure to fulfill a rash oath.

Failure to testify when you are a witness to a legal case is a serious offense. The ninth commandment is

Exodus 20:16 “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.

To fail to testify is a form of bearing false witness. This is serious. To fail to testify could cause great injury to another person. Now this verse doesn't deal with the motive. It could be that you knew about the case but you didn't want to be inconvenienced by having to testify. It could be that you withheld evidence in order to protect the guilty party. It could be that you heard about the case and fully intended to testify, but you got busy, it slipped your mind, you simply forgot. I knew what I was supposed to do, I meant to do it, but I got distracted.

Distraction

This is huge! How much of our lives are nothing more than a distraction? Let me ask you a question: What is the chief end of man? [according to the Westminster Shorter Catechism, Man's chief end is to glorify God, (1Cor.10:31; Rom.11:36) and enjoy him forever. (Ps.73:24-26; Jn.17:22,24)]. You know your purpose. You know what your life is meant for. You know what you were made for. How are you doing? Well, I had really good intentions, but I had this and that distraction, and the day just slipped away from me. The week slipped away. The month slipped away. The year slipped away. This life, this world, is full of distractions. This world is filled with meaningless trivialities that shamelessly devour our moments and our days. We have an adversary who would like to keep us from fulfilling our mission, and I believe his prime tactic is distraction. We are meant for great things! We are meant to bring praise and honor and glory to our great King! We are meant to enjoy him! But... well... something came up. I still have what you gave me, but I've done nothing with it. I guess there were more important, well, more urgent, more pressing things, and I meant well, but I just never got around to it. We must battle distraction! We must wage war against distraction! Distraction is everywhere around us. We must lay aside the things that entangle us. We must fix our eyes on Jesus and move unwavering toward our goal.

James 4:17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.

Failure to Seek Cleansing

The next two deal with issues of uncleanness or impurity.

Leviticus 5:2 or if anyone touches an unclean thing, whether a carcass of an unclean wild animal or a carcass of unclean livestock or a carcass of unclean swarming things, and it is hidden from him and he has become unclean, and he realizes his guilt; 3 or if he touches human uncleanness, of whatever sort the uncleanness may be with which one becomes unclean, and it is hidden from him, when he comes to know it, and realizes his guilt;

Leviticus chapters 11-16 deal with specific issues of uncleanness. Some uncleanness is contracted by doing what is morally wrong. Much uncleanness is contracted by the unavoidable necessities of daily life. Dealing with a dead animal, the monthly cycle, childbirth, intimacy, many natural, even good things produce ceremonial uncleanness. Gordon Wenham in his commentary gives us a helpful diagram. [G.Wenham, NICOT, p.19, 26]

←← SACRIFICE ←←

← Sanctify ← Cleanse

[holy] [clean/common] [unclean]

Profane → Pollute →

→→ SIN and INFIRMITY →→

The normal or ordinary state of things is that which is clean or common. That which is clean can become unclean by the pollution of sin or infirmity. Even normal things can bring pollution and make someone who is clean unclean. But through the appropriate sacrifice, what is unclean can be cleansed and made clean. That which is clean can be set apart to be holy. But the unclean must never come into contact with the holy, or death will result. Our goal is to avoid becoming unclean where possible, but to always seek to be cleansed from uncleanness. To remain willfully or by negligence in a state of uncleanness is to ultimately be cut off from God's people. The issue in verses 2-3 seems to be either uncleanness that was contracted unknowingly, or uncleanness that was contracted and forgotten about. Uncleanness that is not dealt with by the appropriate sacrifice then brings guilt.

Failure to Fulfill a Foolish Vow

The fourth category of sin in this passage deals, like the first one, with oaths. In the first, a person is obligated under oath to testify and fails to testify. In this, a person has obligated himself by taking a rash oath and failing to fulfill it.

Leviticus 5:4 or if anyone utters with his lips a rash oath to do evil or to do good, any sort of rash oath that people swear, and it is hidden from him, when he comes to know it, and he realizes his guilt in any of these;

The classic example of a rash oath is Jephtha in Judges 11.

Judges 11:30 And Jephthah made a vow to the LORD and said, “If you will give the Ammonites into my hand, 31 then whatever comes out from the doors of my house to meet me when I return in peace from the Ammonites shall be the LORD's, and I will offer it up for a burnt offering.”

When Jephtha returned home victorious, his daughter, his only child, came out of his house to meet him.

Deuteronomy 23:21 “If you make a vow to the LORD your God, you shall not delay fulfilling it, for the LORD your God will surely require it of you, and you will be guilty of sin.

We have a tendency to speak bigger than we know. We tend to make promises that are not in our power to keep. Proverbs gives us wisdom.

Proverbs 20:25 It is a snare to say rashly, “It is holy,” and to reflect only after making vows.

And Ecclesiastes says:

Ecclesiastes 5:4 When you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow. 5 It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay.

Jesus taught:

Matthew 5:33 “Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.’ 34 But I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, 35 or by the earth, for it is his footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil. (cf. Mt. 23:16-22; James 5:12)

What we say matters. We are to be people of our word. “... if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man” (James 3:2).

Confession for Sin

Leviticus 5:5 when he realizes his guilt in any of these and confesses the sin he has committed,

There is guilt in sins of omission whether we realize it or not. But when we realize our guilt, we are to confess our sin. Confession. This word means to expose or reveal. Confession is the opposite of concealment. When this word has God as its object, as is often the case, it is translated praise or thanksgiving. When it has man as its object, it is translated confess. Exposure of the true nature of God naturally leads to praise; while revealing true character of man necessarily leads to confession of sin. O God, give us eyes to see ourselves as we truly are, as you see us.

Psalm 32:1 Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. 2 Blessed is the man against whom the LORD counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit. 3 For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. 4 For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer. — Selah

5 I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not cover my iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and you forgave the iniquity of my sin. — Selah

In Solomon's prayer of dedication of the temple, he asked God to

1 Kings 8:30 ... listen to the plea of your servant and of your people Israel, when they pray toward this place. And listen in heaven your dwelling place, and when you hear, forgive. 33 ...because they have sinned against you, and if they turn again to you and acknowledge your name and pray and plead with you in this house, 34 then hear in heaven and forgive the sin... 35 “... because they have sinned against you, if they pray toward this place and acknowledge your name and turn from their sin, when you afflict them, 36 then hear in heaven and forgive the sin … 38 whatever prayer, whatever plea is made by any man or by all your people Israel, each knowing the affliction of his own heart and stretching out his hands toward this house, 39 then hear in heaven your dwelling place and forgive and act and render to each whose heart you know, according to all his ways ( for you, you only, know the hearts of all the children of mankind), ...46 “If they sin against you— for there is no one who does not sin—... 47 yet if they turn their heart ..., and repent and plead with you ... saying, ‘We have sinned and have acted perversely and wickedly,’ 48 if they repent with all their mind and with all their heart ... 49 then hear in heaven your dwelling place their prayer and their plea, and maintain their cause 50 and forgive your people who have sinned against you, and all their transgressions that they have committed against you... (cf. 2 Chronicles 6:21-39)

Confession is clearly a heart issue. Merely going through the motions of offering the appropriate sacrifice without a contrite heart is an abomination to God. Confession is acknowledging and exposing the affliction of my own heart, turning from sin, turning to God, acknowledging his perfect character. Confession is a heart issue, turning toward God, seeking him.

Forgiveness in Christ

But ultimately forgiveness is not about us. Forgiveness comes from God. We see in Leviticus God's heart to forgive his people who come to him in confession. A lamb or a goat was to be offered for sin. But if one could not afford a lamb, he could bring two doves or two pigeons. But if anyone could not afford two birds, he could bring about 2 lbs. of flour. God desired to make a way for everyone to come.

Today, we come with empty hands. Today we bring no offering but a broken and contrite spirit, because the once for all offering has been sacrificed, the perfect Lamb, without spot or blemish, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (Jn.1:29).

When Paul preached Jesus in the synagogue in Pisidian Antioch, he said:

Acts 13:38 Let it be known to you therefore, brothers, that through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, 39 and by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses.

We have a better, a more effective sacrifice. We have Jesus!

John says:

1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

1 John 2:1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.

Walk in the light. Confess your sins. He is faithful and just to forgive and to cleanse.

1 John 2:12 I am writing to you, little children, because your sins are forgiven for his name's sake.

Pastor Rodney Zedicher ~ Ephraim Church of the Bible ~ www.ephraimbible.org