Leviticus 5:1-6:7

Guilt is a reality in each of our lives and we must all learn how to deal with that guilt.  The children of Israel were required to bring a sacrifice in order to atone for their sin.  If they had means, they had to bring an animal from their herd.  If they were a poor family they could bring two birds or even an offering of flour prepared in a specific way.  The point is that they had to deal with the reality of guilt in their lives over the sin that they had committed.  I think that there are some helpful principles in this passage that can help us deal with our own guilt before God and others.

RECOGNITION: Perhaps one of the hardest parts of guilt is simply recognizing that we are guilty.  We all have a tendency to justify or rationalize our actions or shift the blame for our sin to the circumstances of life or others.  As long as we fail to recognize the guilt of our sin we will not be able to resolve it.  Israel had to bring a sacrifice as an offering to cover their sin, but until they were ready to admit that they had sinned they would never bring that sacrifice.  It is essential that we recognize that we are guilty before God and others or we will never deal with that guilt properly.

REPENTANCE: The problem with most of our sin is that we really do like it.  Sin is often very attractive especially before we fall into it.  The problem is that sin always takes us much further than we intended to go and never provides the joy that we imagine that it would.  Even so, we are often very reluctant to turn from our sin and commit to walking in holiness before God.  The sacrifice was an admission of guilt but also a demonstration of a desire to be free from that sin and the consequences it brought.  The way to deal with guilt in our lives is to repent of that sin and turn from the sinfulness that is striving to enslave us.

RESTITUTION: It was not enough for the offender to simply make a sacrifice to God for the sin that had been committed.  Besides the sacrifice, the guilty person was responsible to make restitution to the person offended by the sin he had committed.  We may recognize our sin and even repent of that sin, but we will continue to suffer under the condemnation of guilt until we do all that we can to make restitution for that sin.  There are obviously some sins for which it is impossible to make restitution; however, when it is possible we must make restitution for our offenses against others.

RESTORATION: The results of taking these steps ought to bring about a restoration of fellowship before God as well as between others who have been hurt by our sin.  God uses guilt in our lives because it is what motivates us to take the steps that are necessary towards restoration.  He has provided all the judicial means to forgiveness through the sacrifice of Christ.  We do not need to make animal sacrifices, or pay some sort of penalty in order to satisfy God.  He has paid the penalty of our sin with the blood of His own Son.  It is because of Christ that we can have forgiveness and be free from the guilt of sin.  However, we must recognize our sin, repent of our sin and make the necessary restitution in order to bask in the restoration that was purchased for us by the sacrifice of the perfect Lamb of God.