The Sin Offering
We have looked at the different types of sacrificial offerings over the last several months, and we have seen that the thanksgiving, freewill, and Passover lamb were all peace offerings. The peace offering was never offered for sin, yet Scripture tells us that Yeshua (Jesus) is our Passover Lamb. So as we are approaching Passover, we must ask ourselves, “If Yeshua is our Passover Lamb, how is He our sin offering?” Let’s first look at sin to see exactly what it is.
Sin
“Sin” is a word that comes from the Greek which means to miss the mark, as in archery. Sin is a transgression of the Torah. Sin is Lawlessness (1 John 3:4). Whether committed knowingly or unknowingly, sin keeps us from having a proper relationship with God. Sacrifices were God’s way of bringing a person close or drawing him near. The sacrifice was for the sole purpose of worship. So when we become defiled by known or unknown sin, we too must offer up an offering to become right again with God. But you may say, “That is the Old Testament,” or, “That was done away with; we now have Yeshua (Jesus).” Well, let’s take a close look and gain some insight into all of this.
The Sin Offering
A person who brought the sin offering was not offering up his offering voluntarily as with the peace, grain, and burnt offerings. A sin offering was required when a person inadvertently committed a sin that would require him being “cut off” from the community. There was a sin offering for the nation and for the individual. The priest would offer a sin offering for the sins of the nation for different reasons. For example, if the priesthood declared that something was according to the Torah but then later realized that no, it was not, this would require a sin offering. Even though it may have been the sin of the priesthood, it was still carried out by the whole community. Then there was the sin of the individual. Maybe a person unintentionally broke a commandment of Torah; he would bring a sin offering when he realized his sin. Other types of sin offerings are a woman who has given birth to a child, a leper after being cleansed, a nazarite who came into contact with a corpse, and a nazarite who has completed the term of his vow.
These people are all required to offer up a ?Chattat?, or in English, a sin offering. Why are these people required to give a sin offering when there is no sin committed? It is for the sole purpose of purification. You see, a sin offering was made to purify the Sanctuary from certain types of Levitical impurity and from the spiritual stain of sin. A person’s sins spiritually contaminated the Sanctuary, even if a sinful or unclean person entered into a holy place unknowingly. It would have to be purified, and the sin offering removed the stain. The sin offering was never made for atonement. A person did not bring an offering to clear his conscience or to acquire forgiveness. Hebrews 10:4 tells us, “For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” Now if this sacrifice did not pertain to us, then why was Yeshua our sin offering?
You see, there is the cleansing of the flesh and there is the cleansing of the spirit, the soul of man that lives on. Hebrews 9:13-14 addresses this issue, telling us that the blood of bulls and goats may cleanse the flesh, but only the blood of Yeshua can cleanse our conscience from dead works so that we may serve the living God. Yeshua’s offering was done in the spiritual realm. How?
Yeshua our Sin Offering
No man can come to the Father except through Yeshua. 2 Corinthians 5:21 tells us, “God made Him who knew no sin to be a sin offering on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness (or in right standing) with God in Him.” Yeshua’s shed blood purified the altar in Heaven, and so it was done to cleanse us spiritually (Hebrews 9:22-26). When we come to God in prayer, we come in the name of Yeshua (Jesus) and we draw near by His sacrifice, washed in His blood to cleanse us of our sins. This is why it is important for us as believers to understand the temple service and the duty of the priesthood; for we too are a royal priesthood serving at the altar of God. We must understand that God and purity go hand-in-hand. His sanctuary is holy, and we are to be holy before God, for we are the temple of the Holy Spirit. No offering, be it the sin offering, guilt offering, or the offering made on the Day of Atonement, can bring cleansing without repentance from one’s sin and, of course, all we do must be done in faith in Yeshua’s sacrifice for us.
“Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in the time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). “Let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience” (Hebrews 10:22). “Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:19).
As we approach Passover, let us remember that Yeshua is our Passover lamb, our peace offering, and as Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 5:6-8, “Do you not know that a little leaven (sin) leavens the whole lump of dough? Clean out the old leaven (sin), that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened (without sin); for Messiah our Passover Lamb also has been sacrificed. Let us therefore celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” Yes, believers can celebrate Passover because Yeshua is our Passover lamb (peace offering) and He is our guilt offering, our burnt offering, and our grain offering. He is our sacrifice by which we draw near to God.
Tweet this!