Message 20
(3)
Scripture Reading: Lev. 4:8-15, 19, 21, 26, 31, 35; 6:25; 16:3, 5
Before we consider more aspects of the sin offering, I would like to give a further word concerning sin. In the New Testament sin is a personified matter. It is not something small but is a very crucial matter.
In this universe there are two sources. One is God, and the other is Satan, God’s enemy and adversary (the word Satan means adversary). Satan became God’s enemy and adversary when he entered into a struggle with God for power (Isa. 14). Satan also tempted the Lord Jesus with respect to power (Luke 4:5-7). The whole universe today is a matter of the power struggle between Satan and God. All the world follows Satan and has become a part of this evil struggle. Therefore, under the influence of Satan, all of humankind is engaged in a power struggle. For example, the employees in a certain corporation may be striving for a promotion. This is a small part of the universal power struggle, a struggle that can be found everywhere.
This power struggle is one of the five items whose aggregate is sin. These items are the flesh, sin, Satan, the world, and the prince of the world. The prince of the world signifies the struggle for power. Every human being, including little children, likes to be a prince, a leader, and everywhere on earth today there is a power struggle. As we will see, this power struggle is related to the sin offering.
When we repented to the Lord and received Him as our Savior, we were enlightened to see that we are evil and under God’s condemnation. The more we love the Lord, the more we realize that we are evil. The more a believer prays, the more he feels that he is too evil. Eventually, we are brought to the realization that even today as a Christian seeking after the Lord we are nothing but a totality of sin. We are not only evil and sinful — we are the totality of sin.
If we realize that we are sinful and begin to confess our sins, we may find that the more we confess, the more there is to confess. This was my experience in 1935. One day, having the deep sense that I needed to be alone with the Lord, I went to a secluded place, kneeled down, prayed, and began to confess my sins. My confession went on for a long time. Prior to that time, I did not know how sinful I was or how many sins I had. I saw that everything I had done since my youth was sinful, and I made a thorough confession to the Lord.
We need to pray and take the Lord Jesus as our burnt offering, as the One who is absolute for God. Enjoying Christ as the burnt offering will lead us to take Him as our life supply, as our meal offering, which is Christ in His humanity becoming our daily food. We need to enjoy Him until we feel that we have peace with God, with ourselves, and with everyone. Immediately we will be in the light, and the light will shine within us, upon us, and around us. Then we will realize that we have sinned and that we are sin. This is the experience in 1 John chapter one. God is light (v. 5). In order to have fellowship with Him, we must walk in the light as He is in the light. If we do this, we will realize that we have something called sin (vv. 7-8).
The sin spoken of in 1 John 1 is not an insignificant matter. Sin is God’s enemy, Satan himself, and it involves the power struggle between Satan and God. This power struggle includes us; we are involved in it.
Why are we not absolute for God? We are not absolute for God because something within us is for ourselves and not for God. This is the struggle. A sister may experience this struggle while shopping in a department store. She may want to buy a particular item, but she senses that the Lord does not agree. She begs the Lord to give her permission to make the purchase this one time. Her begging is actually a sign of a struggle between her and the Lord. Satan is hidden within such a struggle.
We struggle with the Lord about many things. We love the Lord, we attend the church meetings, and we participate fully in the church life. On the surface everything appears to be fine. However, only we ourselves know how much we are in a struggle with God day after day. God wants us to be absolute for Him, but we may be willing to be absolute for Him only to a certain degree. We may criticize others for not being absolute for God, but how much are we absolute for Him? Instead of being utterly absolute for God, we engage in a power struggle with Him.
Who can say that he is absolute for God? Since none of us is absolute for God, we need Christ as our burnt offering. Only Christ is absolute for God.
In dealing with sin, Paul was eventually brought to something deeper — not merely to sin itself but to the law of sin (Rom. 7:25; 8:2). Many Christians do not realize that there is such a thing as the law of sin. Do you know what the law of sin is? The law of sin is simply the spontaneous power, strength, and energy to struggle with God. Something within us is living and active; it is crouching in our inner being, watching over us. Whenever we have even a little thought of being for God, something within us rises up to take us over. This is the law of sin. In his experience, Paul found out not only that sin dwelt in his flesh, but also that within him there was a natural power, strength, and energy to resist whenever he desired to be for God. This made him a wretched man (Rom. 7:24). This is the law of sin as the deeper meaning of sin.
We have often been defeated by this thing that is crouching within us. For example, we may want to love the Lord, but spontaneously the law of sin operates within us, and after a short time the thought of loving the Lord disappears.
It was through his experience with the commandment regarding greed, or coveting, that Paul discovered the law of sin (Rom. 7:7-8). All of the Ten Commandments deal with outward matters except the commandment not to covet. This commandment touches the greed within us. Paul did not want to be greedy, but he could not help it. When he tried to obey this commandment, something within him rose up and wrought in him “coveting of every kind.” Paul was thus a victim of the law of sin.
We should not take Christ as our sin offering in a superficial way. Rather, we should take Him as our sin offering to a deeper extent. This will remake our entire being.
Now that we have seen that sin involves a power struggle and that the law of sin is the spontaneous power, strength, and energy to struggle with God, let us go on to consider some further aspects of the sin offering in Leviticus 4.
All the fat that covers the inwards and that is on the inwards, the two kidneys and the fat on them, and the appendage on the liver were burned on the altar of burnt offering (Lev. 4:8-10, 19, 26, 31, 35). This signifies that the inwards of Christ as the tender and sweet part are offered to God for His satisfaction that He may be willing to forgive us.
These parts of the sin offering were burned on the altar of burnt offering. This indicates that God’s acceptance of the sin offering is based on the burnt offering. Without the burnt offering as the base, the sin offering cannot be accepted by God.
The whole offering, including its hide, all its flesh, with its head, legs, inwards, and dung, was burned outside the camp (vv. 11-12, 21). This signifies that Christ as the sin offering suffered reproach outside the Jewish religion — a human organization (Heb. 13:11-13). Christ was crucified outside Jerusalem, which was considered a camp representing the Jewish religious organization.
The sin offering was burned at a clean place. This signifies the place where Christ as the sin offering was rejected by man and where man’s sin is cleared.
The place where the sin offering was burned was a place where the ashes were poured out.
The ashes of the burnt offering signify God’s recognition and acceptance of the offerings. How do we know that God has accepted the burnt offering? We know this by the fact that it has been turned to ashes. Because the ashes are a sign that God has received the burnt offering, the ashes are dear.
The ashes are for the offerers’ assurance and peace in their heart concerning God’s redemption of their sin. The ashes are a sign assuring us that God has accepted our sin offering for the redemption of our sin.
When all the congregation of Israel sinned ignorantly, the elders were to represent the assembly to offer the sin offering (vv. 13-15). This signifies that the elders of the church may represent the church to offer Christ as its sin offering.
The sin offering was to be slaughtered in the place where the burnt offering was slaughtered (Lev. 6:25). This indicates that the sin offering is based upon the burnt offering, and it signifies that Christ is the sin offering for us based upon His being the burnt offering. Christ must be the burnt offering for God’s satisfaction that He might be qualified to be our sin offering.
If we have never enjoyed Christ as the burnt offering, we cannot realize how sinful we are. We heard the gospel and repented, realizing that we are sinful. But we cannot know how sinful we are until we enjoy Christ as our burnt offering. The burnt offering means that mankind, created by God for the purpose of expressing and representing Him, should be for nothing other than God and should be absolutely for God. However, we are not absolutely for God. We need to realize this and take Christ as our burnt offering. Only when we enjoy Christ as our burnt offering will we realize how sinful we are.
If we realize how sinful we are, we will know that our love as well as our hate may be sinful. Ethically, to hate others is wrong and to love others is right. We may think that in the eyes of God loving others is acceptable and hating others is not acceptable. But in the eyes of God we hate people for ourselves and also love people for ourselves, not for God. From this point of view, loving others is just as sinful as hating others. Whatever we do for ourselves and not for God — whether it is moral or immoral, good or evil, a matter of love or of hate — is sinful in the eyes of God. As long as you do a certain thing for yourself, it is sinful.
God created us that we might be for Him. He created us to be His expression and His representation. He did not create us for ourselves. But we live independently of Him. When we hate others, we are independent of God, and when we love others, we are also independent of God. This means that in God’s sight our hatred and our love are the same.
Furthermore, neither our hatred nor our love is from our spirit. Rather, both our hatred and our love are from our flesh, and both are from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. The tree of the knowledge of good and evil signifies Satan. We should not think that only doing evil is of Satan and doing good is not. Doing both good and evil may be of Satan. We need to realize that anything we do out of ourselves, whether good or evil, is for ourselves, and since it is for ourselves it is sin.
I would point out once again that sin involves a power struggle. We may love others for ourselves — for our name, position, benefit, and pride. This kind of love is in the power struggle with God. We need to pray, “Lord, save me from doing anything for my pride, for my name, for my promotion, for my benefit, for my interests.” This is to be saved from the power struggle with God. When we love others for our name and promotion, we are not for God. This kind of love is of Satan; it is in the flesh, and it is sin. Whatever is in the flesh is sin, whatever is sin in our flesh is Satan, and whatever is done there by Satan is the power struggle.
Some may wonder about our love as Christian parents for our children. Our love for our children may be in the flesh. The New Testament charges us to raise up our children in the Lord. However, we may raise up our children for ourselves and our future. This is sin.
Even in the church life we may do things that are not for God but for ourselves. We may do something that is very good, yet deep within our hidden intention is to do that good thing for ourselves. This is sinful. For example, in giving a testimony or in praying, we may want everyone to say “amen” to us. We may offer a high, spiritual prayer, but our aim in doing so may be to receive the “amens.” Such a prayer is sinful because it is not absolutely for God. From this we see that even in our prayer there is the power struggle with God. We desire position, not God.
Because we may have hidden motives in doing spiritual things, the Lord Jesus spoke concerning those who do things apparently for God but actually for the purpose of advancing themselves. Therefore, He said, “Take heed not to do your righteousness before men to be gazed at by them” (Matt. 6:1). Concerning giving alms He said, “Let not your left hand know what your right hand is doing” (v. 3). Concerning prayer He went on to say, “When you pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites; for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners that they may appear to men” (v. 5). Concerning fasting He said, “Whenever you fast, do not be as the hypocrites of a sad countenance; for they disguise their faces so that they may appear to men to be fasting” (v. 16). Even in doing righteousness, giving alms, praying, and fasting there may be a power struggle with God. To do these things for ourselves and not for God is sinful in His eyes. Those who do such things for themselves give no ground to God; instead, all the ground is for themselves.
To take Christ as the sin offering is very deep. The experience of the sin offering is altogether related to our enjoyment of the Lord Jesus as our burnt offering. The more we love the Lord and enjoy Him, the more we will know how evil we are. Sometimes, when we love the Lord to the uttermost, we may feel that there is no place to hide ourselves. Paul had such a realization concerning himself. When he was seeking the Lord, he saw that there was nothing good in himself.
For the priests’ service, the sin offering is followed by the burnt offering (Lev. 16:3, 5). This signifies that we, as the priests of God, after enjoying Christ as the sin offering, must take Him as the burnt offering that we may live Him for God’s satisfaction.
On the one hand, the sin offering is based on the burnt offering. On the other hand, the burnt offering follows the sin offering. The more we enjoy the Lord Jesus as our burnt offering, the more we realize that we are sinful. Then we take Him as our sin offering more deeply than ever, and this causes us to enjoy Him more as the burnt offering. Hence, the burnt offering is before our enjoyment of the sin offering and also after it.
The only way we can know ourselves thoroughly is to enjoy Christ as the burnt offering. By enjoying Christ as our burnt offering, we will realize that we are not for God absolutely. We may be for God to some degree, even to a large degree, but we still reserve something for ourselves.
Whenever we touch the holy things, the spiritual things, and the service of God in the church life, we must bring the sin offering with us. This is clearly revealed in the Old Testament type. Whenever God’s people did something with God, even the most holy things, they needed the sin offering. We also need the sin offering today because we are not clean and pure and we are not absolutely for God. Who among us can say that he is absolutely for God? No one can say this. Therefore, in all that we do for the Lord, we need the sin offering. Even in speaking for the Lord, we need to take Christ as our sin offering, hiding ourselves in Him and asking Him to cover us with His precious blood.
First, the Lord saves us, and then He attracts us to love Him, to take Him, and to enjoy Him. By taking Him and enjoying Him as the burnt offering, our sinfulness is exposed, and we see that we are not absolutely for God as He is. Others in the church life may appreciate us, but inwardly we know that we are not good, that we are not absolute for God. We may love the church and seemingly we have given everything for the church, but we are not absolute for God. There are still reservations within us.
By enjoying the Lord as the burnt offering and the meal offering, we realize that we are sinful. So we take Him as the sin offering and then as the trespass offering. This is what we see in chapter one of 1 John. As we are enjoying the Triune God in the divine fellowship, we realize that we still have sin inwardly and that we have committed sins outwardly. We then receive the cleansing of the precious blood. This becomes a cycle. The more we are cleansed, the more we enter into fellowship with the Triune God; the more we enjoy this fellowship, the more we are enlightened; and the more we are enlightened, the more we realize that we are sinful, even sin itself. It is by this cycle that we are delivered and saved from our self. Actually, we are delivered and saved from sin, from the flesh, from Satan, from the world, from the prince of the world, and from the power struggle. The more we enjoy Christ, the less power struggle we will have with God. Eventually we will give every inch to Him.
