‘If anyone of the common people sins unintentionally by doing something against any of the commandments of the LORD in anything which ought not to be done, and is guilty, or if his sin which he has committed comes to his knowledge, then he shall bring as his offering a kid of the goats, a female without blemish, for his sin which he has committed. And he shall lay his hand on the head of the sin offering, and kill the sin offering at the place of the burnt offering. Then the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger, put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and pour all the remaining blood at the base of the altar. He shall remove all its fat, as fat is removed from the sacrifice of the peace offering; and the priest shall burn it on the altar for a sweet aroma to the LORD. So the priest shall make atonement for him, and it shall be forgiven him.' (vv.27-35)
Here in chapter 4 we see the purpose and the procedures for, "the sin offering." In it God speaks to Moses concerning the sin offerings for: a priest, a ruler of the people, the nation itself, and the common man or woman. Most commentators regard this sacrifice (the sin offering) as the principal expiatory offering in ancient Israel. It made the offender against the holiness of God fit to receive the Divine forgiveness. Sin-offerings were instituted for the purpose of putting an end to the separation between man and God that had been created by sin and of restoring them again to the benefits of God's covenant of mercy and salvation. One can only imagine what all that must have looked like on a daily basis.
Christians today are under the “new covenant,” where there is no longer a blood sacrifice needed for sin (Heb.10:18). Priests no longer stand making repeated sacrifices for themselves and then people to restore fellowship with God. For Jesus offered Himself once for the sacrifice of all sins forever, and is seated at the right hand of God making intercession for us (Heb.10:11-14).
Therefore, all we need to do is come to Him, confess our sin, and ask for His forgiveness. For Jesus, our great High Priest, has already offered a pure, unblemished, blood sacrifice for us on the cross at Calvary.
The Truth: “Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He consecrated for us, through the veil, that is, His flesh, and having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” (Hebrews 10:19-22)
