Here’s one of the most valuable practical lessons we can learn in dealing with damaged relations.
We now turn our attention to the trespass offering (from Lev 5:14 to 6:7). Earlier we remarked that all sin is primarily against God. However, many of the consequences are felt by those around us. And it is this that the trespass offering addresses. There is both a vertical and horizontal component. Godward, “he shall bring to the Lord as his trespass offering a ram without blemish from the flocks” (5:15). There is the principle: God first. But that is not all. “Then it shall be, because he has sinned and is guilty, that he shall restore what he has stolen, or the thing which he has extorted, or what was delivered to him for safekeeping, or the lost thing which he found” (6:4). The ram of expiation addresses the guilt. Then the money of restitution addresses the damages. But wait! There’s more. “He shall restore its full value, add one-fifth more to it, and give it to whomever it belongs, on the day of his trespass offering” (v 5). Not only was the offended God recognized as needing an honest confession of the trespass, but the person wronged should be compensated for their loss, AND a double tithe was added. In this way, the person was richer after the trespass than they were before. What a great principle this is! People who have been hurt by others’ sins often say, “I can forgive, but I can’t forget.” Here’s how to completely remove the offense. Confess to the person you have offended exactly what you have done. Ask for forgiveness. Then insist on taking them out to lunch. Bring along a nice gift with a card that says, “Thanks for forgiving me, friend.” If you enrich them in some way, it won’t be the offense they remember when they next see you; it will be your kindness to them. Get the relationship moving again, better than it was before.