When Does It Start?
If it is the whole community of Israel that has erred and the matter escapes the notice of the congregation, so that they do any of the things which YHWH commanded ought not to be done, and they incur guilt Leviticus 4:13 (JPS Torah Commentary translation)
Guilt – Is a man guilty if he does something without realizing he committed a crime? Our society seems to be of two minds about this question. First, we have the saying, “Ignorance is no excuse under the law.” On this ground, the fact that I don’t know what the law requires doesn’t get me off the hook. But our judicial pleadings often seem to argue otherwise. Many times it appears that my not knowing is grounds for not being guilty. Actually, I am technically still guilty, but the court may “excuse” my behavior because I didn’t know.
The same dilemma presents itself in the Bible. Is a man guilty of sin if he doesn’t know that his act is sinful? You might be surprised by the answer. In an age when we consider God as a kindly grandfather, ready and willing to overlook our lack of holy obedience, we are inclined to believe that ignorance is an excuse. But the Bible says, “No!” Guilt (Hebrew ‘ashem) begins when the offense occurs, not when I become aware of the offense. In other words, God is offended even if I am totally unaware of the offense. The fact that He withholds punishment does not imply that I have not accumulated guilt. It only means that I am unaware that my relationship with Him is in jeopardy. Expiation can’t occur until I realize I have sinned, but I am guilty the moment I commit the act regardless of my consciousness of the guilt. The Bible is in line with our view of “technically” guilty, but the difference is that God does not excuse our behavior. He engineers our circumstances so that we will recognize our guilt and have the opportunity to repent. Of course, if our eyes are blind to the possibility of guilt, then we will miss the opportunity too.
Why is this important? It is important because the biblical view of sin is not about how I feel or what I think. Sin is not a psychological state of mind. It is about the facts of the matter before a holy God. “In the cultic conception, guilt exists whether or not the offender is aware of it at the time. God’s wrath is aroused by the offense against Him.”[1] Now you know why David adamantly prays, “Search me, O Lord, and see if there is any wickedness in me.” He is not asking for God to examine a list of known sins. He is asking God to reveal anything that might be offensive that he is unaware of. That could only include unintentional sins. No man needs to ask God to examine his heart in order to elucidate sins that he already knows will be found there.
Today we have a tendency to ignore this aspect of our relationship with the Lord. We think that as long as we have a clear conscience, we are doing just fine. We don’t consider the possibility that we may have accumulated ritual impurity without knowing it. Our focus is entirely on deliberate choices. As a result, we deal with only part of the separation. And then we wonder why God seems distant.
Perhaps one example will show us how blind we are to the guilt of unintentional acts. A few days ago, Christians celebrated Easter. Easter is a pagan holiday incorporated into the Church calendar. But God has a different calendar. Most Christians are unaware of the command to celebrate Passover because most Christians base their commitment on the teaching of the Church, not the teaching of Scripture. They just don’t know any better.* Of course, that does not remove the guilt. Ritual impurity accumulates when we do not do what God has instructed us to do with regard to His requirements for worship – even if we don’t realize our mistake. When we realize that we have offended the Holy One of Israel, then we have the opportunity to repent.
Now might be a good time. What do you think?
Topical Index: guilt, ‘ashem, Leviticus 4:13
*This position assumes that there is one Torah for all followers of YHWH. Some argue that Gentiles need only follow the commandments given to Noah while Jews subscribe to the Mosaic covenant. I am unconvinced by this argument, but that doesn’t mean I do not allow for the possibility. What it means is that I would rather be wrong in trying to keep all the Torah than be wrong in thinking that I didn’t have to keep it all. This is my fence around Torah. Better to err on the positive than on the negative.
[1] Baruch Levine, The JPS Torah Commentary: Leviticus, p. 22.
Skip,
I have arrived at the same conclusion concerning Torah. I know that G-d will be pleased with my observance of His word. I don’t know that He will be pleased if I choose to disregard His word. Regarding Easter, this year about 40 of us gathered and celebrated Passover on March 29TH. We are attempting to walk the same path that the historical Yeshua walked.
You are my hero.
A wise message indeed.
I am not sure that I am as open minded as you are when it comes to the possibility that Gentiles need only abide by the Noachide regulations. I for one think that notion is just plain wrong.
Scripture calls for one law for both home born and stranger. Scripture also indicates that the foreigner cleaving to Israel shall be treated as a home born. Paul reveals the grafting into Mashaich and adoption into Israel. Revelations declares that Yeshua makes us kings and priests unto ELOHIM …. at what point do we just stop debating and comply with The Word?
Skip is correct in that this issue is the subject of much debate. Some Jewish circles attempt to keep the Gentiles away from Torah as a means of maintaining the wall of partition. Most Gentiles disregard Torah observance because of the notion that “the law” has been completed … has been done away with. Still others disregard the Torah simply because this level of obedience is not desired.
At the end of the day I am not sure that claiming to not have an opinion on the matter is going to count for much!
Drew, I would like to talk to you sometime. Please call as I can’t seem to get an answer on your phone. The best time for me to talk is later in the evening.
Shalom,
Robin
Choosing not to choose is still a choice.
There is really no option for ‘opting out’.
“Better to err on the positive than on the negative.” I totally agree, this has been my motto concerning Torah.
This is one Gentile’s opinion on keeping the Torah: I (being Gentile) have been grafted into the ‘true vine’ as a ‘wild branch.’ The gracious act of grafting this wild branch into the vine had absolutely nothing to do with what I did or didn’t do other than to receive this grace. However, since I am a growing part of this vine now, and I receive my very life from this vine, it is essential that I abide by ALL the wishes set forth by this vine.
Very succintly put, Fred.
Guilty as sin. Adam knew it. Eve knew it. Carl knows it. Guilty. Why? Because “in sin did my mother conceive me”/ “the wicked are estranged from the womb as soon as they are born”/all have sinned and come short of the glory of G-d. “Forgive me Father- for I have sinned.”
Why do I feel so guilty? Because dear ones- I am. I am a frail, fallible, guilt-infested, sinful creature, walking in a dirty world before a G-d who is holy. Daily I sin. I sin in things I do. I sin in things I do not do. I lie, cheat, steal, think wrong thoughts, display selfish behavior, forget G-d’s words, do not follow Torah. I am (gasp!) not perfect.
Is anyone ready to throw stones at this ragamuffin? I stand before the Judge- (right now- this very moment, as I live and breath- a sinner.) I always have been, I always will be.
I sin all that I want to. I sin more than I want to. I don’t want to. Why?
There was a time in my life “sin” did not concern me. I did not know sin. But, nevertheless, I still sinned. As was mentioned in today’s word- “ignorance is no excuse for the law.” G-d’s law (Torah) stands. Pure, undefiled, holy. A bright shining light of perfection. The law of the LORD is perfect. Complete. Final. A white-hot light shining into the darkness of my soul revealing every blot,blemish, stain and wicked thought. Piercing, dividing asunder between soul and spirit. The purpose of the law? To firmly “establish” – “all have sinned.” From Adam on – “all have sinned.” I am included in this “hall of shame.” Carl E Roberts- 1953-____. (sinner), my tombstone could read.
But, (praise His name!), I have a Savior. I have a Redeemer. I have an Intercessor. I have Someone who took my rightful place on Calvary’s Tree. Someone gave their life’s blood to purchase my pardon. Someone spilled perfect blood to “expiate” and to cover and to “atone for” my sin (and my sins!). Is this “cheap grace?” The blood of Jesus Christ- G-d’s Son and the blood of Jesus the Christ/Messiah/Lamb of G-d,Perfect One,Holy One, Righteous One,G-d the Son. Is this cheap grace? Is it? Who hung naked on that tree? -Who was it? Who did “we” crucify? Who gave Himself for our sins? “My sin” nailed Him to that cross. Is this cheap grace? No. No. and no. Who is this King of glory?
My friends I will (now) and forever “glory” in the cross of Jesus (who is) the Christ. Will I forget His Torah? no way. Will I “remember His words” and “abide in Him?” Absolutely. Positively. I (now) delight to do His will. He is the Christ, the Savior, the Redeemer of fallen Adam (unredeemed humanity). I love His invitation. “Whosoever will.” Simply, sweetly, sublimely- “whosoever will may come.”
Out of my bondage, sorrow, and night,
Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come;
Into Thy freedom, gladness, and light,
Jesus, I come to Thee;
Out of my sickness, into Thy health,
Out of my want and into Thy wealth,
Out of my sin and into Thyself,
Jesus, I come to Thee.
Out of my shameful failure and loss,
Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come;
Into the glorious gain of Thy cross,
Jesus, I come to Thee.
Out of earth’s sorrows into Thy balm,
Out of life’s storms and into Thy calm,
Out of distress to jubilant psalm,
Jesus, I come to Thee.
Out of unrest and arrogant pride,
Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come;
Into Thy blessèd will to abide,
Jesus, I come to Thee.
Out of myself to dwell in Thy love,
Out of despair into raptures above,
Upward for aye on wings like a dove,
Jesus, I come to Thee.
Out of the fear and dread of the tomb,
Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come;
Into the joy and light of Thy throne,
Jesus, I come to Thee.
Out of the depths of ruin untold,
Into the peace of Thy sheltering fold,
Ever Thy glorious face to behold,
Jesus, I come to Thee.
-And “whosoever will”, let him take the water of life freely” (Revelation 22:17)
These are the words of Rabbi Shaul (Apostle Paul) -“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.” (Romans 1.16)
when I see the blood- I will pass over you..(Exodus 12.13) -and the blood of Jesus Christ G-d’s Son cleanses from all sin. (1 John 1.7) What can “wash away” my sin?…. What can make me whole again?…. O precious is the flow that makes me “white as snow”, no other ‘Fount’ I know.. -nothing but the blood of Jesus.
“Search the Scriptures –These are they which testify of me”– (John 5:39)
“He expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.” (Luke 24:27)
“Behold, the Lamb of G-d who takes away (expiates!) the sin of the world! (John 1.29)
“Is anyone ready to throw stones at this ragamuffin?”
Hi Carl,
You’ve certainly given us a lot of good stuff to ponder today!
“Guilty as sin” sounds like something my mother would say.
When she sensed someone was lying 🙂
I’m guessing that your comment above alludes to the Breaking of Sabbath in the Book of Numbers.
Numbers 15:32 While the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, a man was caught gathering wood on the sabbath day.
Numbers 15:33 Those who caught him gathering wood brought him before Moses, Aaron, and the whole community.
Numbers 15:34 He was kept in custody, because the penalty he should undergo had not yet been fixed.
Numbers 15:35 Yahweh said to Moses, “This man must be put to death.” The whole community must STONE him ourside the camp.”
The whole community took the man outside the camp and stoned him until he was dead, as Yahweh had commanded Moses.
“When we realize that we have offended the Holy One of Israel, then we have the opportunity to repent.”
Is REPENTANCE a process as well as a present-time decision?
As long as I am taking steps in the direction of being obedient to what has been revealed from the law, I am walking in the light that I know and thus G-d will honor the motive of my heart?
I was looking for a quote from a fellow by the name of Skip Moen and I was able to locate it! Here it is (and I agree!)- “Repentance is a way of life, not a one-time event.”
Even the ability to repent is a gift from G-d! Of all the gifts I could ask for, I believe the gift of repentance to be one of G-d’s greatest gifts! -Why?
As far as I know (I may be wrong) but the only time (that I can recall) G-d (the Father) ever being in a hurry is in the story of the lost son found in Luke 15:11-32. Luke 15.20 says this: “And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him.” I absolutely love (love) this story… (why?)
Because I am the “lost son!” I am the one who was feeding with the pigs and wandered far away from the Father! I am the one who realized his pitiful condition and “repented” and returned unto the Father and I am the one who was embrace by a love so powerful and a forgiveness so complete -it changed my life forever!
Sometimes this story is called the story of the prodigal son when actually it is a story about the “prodigal” Father! “Prodigal” means “lavishly abundant or “recklessly extravagant.” Look at what the “prodigal” Father gave to the sinful son who had gone astray. Amazing grace! The story again is found in Luke 15. -Read it and weep. The story of my life (and hopefully yours as well) found right here in this amazing parable.
The Father ran to meet him. -Amazing.
Let us ask the question again, “is repentance a good thing?” Absolutely, positively, yes.
Luke 15.7 Jesus said, “I say unto you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that
repenteth,”
Ring the bells of Heaven! There is joy today,
For a soul, returning from the wild!
See, the Father meets him out upon the way,
Welcoming His weary, wandering child.
Yes, brother Skip! Hallelujah! – (Exodus 34.6) “And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness,”
Our compassionate and gracious Father, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness..give unto me according to your word the grace-gift of repentance. Deepen my walk with you YHWH, and enable me and empower me to walk in love, redeeming the time, showing compassion to those who are in need. G-d of all truth and G-d of all comfort I humbly ask this in the only saving name of Jesus (who is the) Christ. Amen.
What do we specifically have to do to observe Passover?
That’s a good question; we don’t want to get stoned 🙂
We use a book entitled “A Family GuideTo The Biblical Holidays With Activities For All Ages.” The ISBN is 0-9701816-0-4. It has suggestions for celebrating all the Biblical holidays including food recipes.
“Ritual impurity accumulates when we do not do what God has instructed us to do with regard to His requirements for worship – even if we don’t realize our mistake. When we realize that we have offended the Holy One of Israel, then we have the opportunity to repent.
Now might be a good time. What do you think?”
Hi Skip,
I’m hoping our daily prayers, which for me contain the phrase “forgive us our trespasses (debt/sins),” are adequate to cover the ritual impurity that accumulates when we do not do what God has instructed us to do with regard to His requirements for worship.
The lesson today called my attention to the fact that when I’m praying I’m not usually asking for forgiveness for sins that I have intentionally committed, because when I think of sins, I tend to think of the following types of behavior:
“trespass, treachery, slander, presumptuousness, violence, lying, scoffing, rebellion, blasphemy, oppression, extreme wickedness, corruption.”
Rather, when I’m praying, I’m trying to get into the here and now and align myself with God’s will. so that I can find the strength to adequately help raise my children in my complicated dysfunctional family situation.
Unfortunately. I am far removed from most of the Jewish rituals.
“‘Al Ḥeṭ.”
In the post-exilic period the inclination toward idolatry was eradicated, and the disposition toward fornication was weakened (Yoma 69b). The list of sins in the confession of Yom Kippur gives an idea of the rabbinical conception of sin.
The “‘Al Ḥeṭ” was extended from the simple formula in the Talmud (Yoma 87b) to that of the Geonim, which includes the Ashamnu. The “Ashamnu” is in alphabetical order and enumerates the following sins:
“trespass, treachery, slander, presumptuousness, violence, lying, scoffing, rebellion, blasphemy, oppression, extreme wickedness, corruption.”
HI Jimmy,
Exodus 12:15, “Matzah” this is the unleavened bread commanded to eat during passover. Also remember to remove any leaven in your house on the first day. Like breads, crackers, and not really sure what else. I’m sure you could look it up, leavened products are called “chametz” From my understanding after the tenth plague when the Israelites quickly gathered their stuff to leave Egypt they did not have the time to allow their bread to rise. So we eat the “Matzah” unrisen bread to symbolize this hurry.
Matzah also has a spiritual significance, it is the symbol of humility and the rejection of arrogance. When making Matzah you use flour and water containing no yeast and the Rabbis teach that the cooking process should be less than 15 to 20 min. to keep the bread from rising. So by not allowing the bread to rise is a reminder to us not to become “puffed up”. This is a good reminder for us to stay humble ad guard ourselves from becoming arrogant. I know I’m prone to becoming puffed up, I would much rather do this than forget that I’m becoming puffed up and have to face God’s way of working it out of me. That hurts:)
I think passover is also a time where it is good to remember the freedom we have compared to when the Israelites were in Egypt as slaves. Freedom as well as poverty, some people invite guests into their home, its like a custom and inviting poor people or people who do not have much into your home is considered a great act of kindness.
Passover involves all kinds of cool stuff, I gave a few examples above to show that it is not just something we are commanded to do, there are great lessons involved in celebrating Passover. Passover along with all the other holidays help us to keep our hearts toward God and His Torah. There is much work involved in these Holidays but like anything else in life it takes work to see results. If your interested in learning more, I found the book “Jewish Holidays” “A Brief Introduction for Christians” to be a great help in learning about this stuff. Its written by Rabbi Kerry M. Olitzky and Rabbi Daniel Judson.
Hope this helps answer your question, remember all this stuff we are commanded to observe is for good reason. God is not interested in us jumping through hoops for His own entertainment, He wants us to stay close to Him. If we drift away from Him things become chaotic and He knows that. So much of this is set up for our own well being, not another command I check off on God’s to do list.
Thanks Keith. Very helpful!
Me alumbra aún más su artículo, Dr. Moen. Y también me asusta pensar cuántas veces me he alejado del Señor por esos pecados escondidos de mi rebelde corazón. ¡Gracias! por abrir esa ventana que me permite ver mi imperfección ante Su Santidad. Le bendigo.