No Favoritism-Leviticus 14; Psalm 40:1-10; Proverbs 10:11-12

These are the regulations for anyone who has an infectious skin disease and who cannot afford the regular offerings for his cleansing. – Leviticus 14:32

 

If you want to make God happy, what’s the price? Can He be bribed? If one man brings Him a car, what will God do with another man’s Hot Wheels collection? Laugh?

 

No. Seeking God’s forgiveness and clearance is not about bribes. It’s about atonement. Atonement is admitting to God that we deserve to be judged and bringing an appropriate sacrifice to take our place in being judged. It involved three sacrifices, each with a different message: I am guilty; I have sinned; I will give everything to please You, God. Atonement is weighty. Atonement is costly. Just to seek atonement for infections—not even moral sins!—required two male lambs and a ewe lamb.

 

But some people couldn’t afford that much. Did that mean that their lives could not be atoned?

 

No. God allowed them to bring less than the usual offerings. Two of their three sacrifices no longer needed to be lambs, but could be doves or pigeons. Does this imply that these people were inherently lesser, since their lives could be atoned with lesser offerings? No. It simply shows that God is not a God of favoritism. He allows all people to seek and find His forgiveness.

 

After all, the sacrifices were never able to completely atone for the people; it is impossible for animal sacrifices to take away sins (Heb. 10:1-4). By allowing poorer people to have access to atonement, God was speaking the same message of inclusiveness that He spoke when Jesus Christ died on the cross to offer salvation to all people—even Gentiles! Until Jesus died, even the best sacrifices being offered were not really enough. Everyone, rich or poor, needed to understand that atonement was costly, so some had to bring more costly sacrifices than others to feel the weight of their need. But everyone also needed to know that atonement was available for them, so some could bring less costly sacrifices than others—otherwise, atonement would have seemed to be out of reach!

 

Ultimately, none of the sacrifices was enough. Only Jesus was able to atone for our sins by His death. But His death was the same as the sacrifices offered in the Old Testament: atonement was both costly and available to include all people, no matter what their status in life.

 

Father, thank You that You have provided a sacrifice so costly that I could never have paid for it, a sacrifice for my atonement. And thank You that this sacrifice of atonement is available for me—not just for me, for anyone! Rich or poor, male or female, Jew or Gentile, ruler or ruled! I am poor, yet my life is atoned for through Jesus Christ! You are so good!