As we move on into Chapter Six we find several instances in which a person might defraud his neighbor and need to make restitution to his neighbor and ask God for forgiveness.
"The Lord said to Moses: 'If anyone sins and is unfaithful to the Lord by deceiving a neighbor......" (Leviticus 6:1-2a) We'll pause this sentence right here to point out that a sin against another human being is also a sin against the God who created them.
I was just thinking yesterday that in my fifty years on this earth I've never before seen as much hatred and division as I'm seeing in our nation since the pandemic struck. Think of the shortages that occurred in stores due to hoarding or the intense arguments that have ensued regarding the safety measures and the hatred some are feeling toward those whose political views are different than theirs. These are examples of not loving our neighbor as ourselves. These are examples of not doing unto others as we'd have them do unto us. These are examples of sins against our fellow man and sins against the God who created them. I'm not trying to politicize the pandemic or give medical advice; I'm just saying that whatever we do needs to be done in love. The Apostle James, the half-brother of Jesus, sums this thought up by saying that if we claim to love God, yet hate any of our fellow human beings, we are lying to ourselves about our love for God. (1 John 4:20) He says if we can't feel any love or compassion for our neighbor who is right in front of us, we can't really love the God whom we have never seen. This is a good time for all of us to check our attitudes toward those who hold different opinions than we do regarding the current situation in our country. I've seen and heard things I never thought I'd see and hear but it's important for us to remember that the same God who created us also created the person whose views differ from ours.
In today's passage the Lord is going to mention some other examples of a person not loving his neighbor as himself. He says, "If anyone sins and is unfaithful to the Lord by deceiving a neighbor about entrusted to them or left in their care or about something stolen, or if they cheat their neighbor, or if they find lost property and lie about it, or if they swear falsely about any such sin that people may commit---when they sin in any of these ways and realize their guilt, they must return what they have stolen or taken by extortion, or what was entrusted to them, or the lost property they found, or whatever it was they swore falsely about." (Leviticus 6:2b-5a) The person in the wrong must make restitution to the person they wronged. On top of that they must pay additional damages as we'll see below.
"They must make restitution in full, add a fifth of the value to it and give it all to the owner on the day they present their guilt offering." (Leviticus 6:5b) The person in the wrong must pay an additional one fifth to the person he wronged. He must make things right with his neighbor before he can make things right with God. The Lord Jesus agrees, for He said if a person brought an offering to the temple and while there realized he had wronged someone, he was to immediately go and make things right with that person and then come back and present his gift to God. (Matthew 5:23-24) If we're at odds with someone, by extension we're at odds with God their Maker.
After making things right with his neighbor, the person is to take his offering to the tabernacle and make things right with the Lord. "And as a penalty they must bring to the priest, that is, to the Lord, their guilt offering, a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value. In this way the priest will make atonement for them before the Lord, and they will be forgiven for any of the things they did that made them guilty." (Leviticus 6:6-7)
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