If any of the common people sin by violating one of the Lord’s commands, but they don’t realize it, they are still guilty. When they become aware of their sin, they must bring as an offering for their sin a female goat with no defects. Leviticus 4:27-28 NLT
One of the surprising discoveries that careful readers make is that the sacrificial system so carefully described in Leviticus 1-7 does not make any provision for intentional sin. You might argue that the morning and evening burnt offering does so, but that is for the sins of the nation all the time, and not for a person’s one-time offense. No, the “system,” including the Day of Atonement (Heb 9:7), is for ignorant or unintentional sins.
One reason this is surprising is that most of us do not feel that atonement is necessary for those kinds of “sins.” In fact, much of the time we do not even believe they are sins. But think of it this way: I say something to you quite innocently and (in Biblical parlance) your “face falls.” I say, “What’s the problem,” and you explain that because of something in your background what I said was deeply wounding. What should I say? I should say, “Forgive me!” Without meaning to, I have sinned against you. Well, how many sins does it take to kill us? Think of it this way: how many pinholes can there be in a spacesuit before it kills the astronaut? One! And it doesn’t matter whether it got there intentionally or not. It will still kill him. So it is with us. Any deviation from God’s holy perfection is deadly.
Now think of where the system’s description falls among the covenant documents. It comes after the people have been graciously delivered from Egypt, and after they have willingly sealed the covenant with a blood oath. What are the sacrifices for? People who want to live like Hell and still go to Heaven? Of course not! They are for people who are grateful for grace, and mean, by grace, to follow every one of his covenant instructions. But God knows that, ignorantly or unintentionally, they will fall short and has graciously made a way to stay in his favor. For us, that is the blood of Christ. Praise his name!
