The trespass offering may be likened to washing your hands during the day. You take a shower once in the morning, but you may wash your hands many times during the day as they become dirty. During the day whenever you realize that your hands are dirty you need to wash them again. This is like applying Christ as the trespass offering.
We have to spend some time to see the difference between the trespass offering and the sin offering. In Leviticus 4 there is the sin offering, and then in Leviticus 6 and 7 there is the trespass offering. It is hard to differentiate between what is sin and what are sins or what is sin and what is a trespass.
The Bible illustrates these two in a way which helps us to understand. The Bible illustrates sin as something of ignorance and as something not seen, something hidden (Lev. 4:2, 13, 22, 27; 5:15). Leviticus illustrates a trespass as something quite different. It speaks of deceiving your neighbor or wronging your neighbor or damaging someone (Lev. 6:1-4). That is a trespass. That is not of ignorance, and that is not something hidden from the eyes. That is very apparent and very visible. This is the way that the Bible illustrates the difference between sin and trespasses.
Sin is a hidden invisible problem not seen by people, which you may often do in ignorance. This illustrates sin in our nature. It is hidden from the eyes. Suppose I am a gentleman all day long, doing nothing wrong to anyone. Even my wife couldn’t find any fault in me. This may mean I have no trespasses, but this does not mean I am not sinful. I may be perfect in behavior, in my outward doing, but it does not mean that I am not sinful in my inward nature.
We need to see the light. We are not only sinful in our nature, but also our entire nature is sin. Just like a table may be made of wood, our nature is made of sin. Although I may not commit any trespass all the day long, for the whole day I have been sin. All day long I may have been living just naturally. I didn’t exercise my spirit, I didn’t contact the Lord, I didn’t live Christ, I didn’t walk and have my being in the spirit. I just lived myself. I sat down without Christ. I took a walk without Christ. I ate without Christ. I didn’t offend any others, but it was without Christ. This is something hidden from the eyes. The sinful nature is there, but hidden from the eyes.
If I am in spiritual darkness, I might be ignorant of this sinful nature. Because I was humble, honest, faithful, gentle, so much in order, and caring for others I might consider that I am a wonderful and excellent person. But this would be in ignorance. Once the light came I would realize that this is not Christ. This is myself. This is the produce of Adam, a sinner. I was living Adam; I was living a sinner. Then the invisible sin would become visible in enlightened eyes, and I would offer Christ as my sin offering. The sin offering is for this. I am concerned that even up to now some may still remain in that ignorance, thinking that they are okay, that they are so excellent, so perfect, so nice, so humble, so gentle. This is ignorance.
But I believe at least a number have been enlightened through these years so that you are not ignorant of what you are. Every day you have some realization that you yourself by nature are nothing but the totality of sin. Outwardly you may be okay. Outwardly you may be excellent. But inwardly you are not excellent. Inwardly you are sin. Inwardly you are not only sinful, but sin itself. So every day when you begin a new day, the first thing you must do is offer Christ as a sin offering. Every day we should offer Christ as our sin offering. This kind of offering always cleanses us and reminds us that we are sinners. As you begin a new day you have to remember that you are a sinner. The first person you may see in the new day is your wife. If you realize clearly that you are a sinner, how could you exchange words with her? That sin offering which you offered early in the morning would remind you that you are a sinner. Because you offered Christ as your sin offering early in the morning you would be reminded that you are a sinner. You are not still under ignorance, because you fully realize that you are sin and that every day you need Christ to redeem you.