And Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the people of Israel, and all their transgressions, all their sins. And he shall put them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is in readiness. The goat shall bear all their iniquities on itself to a remote area, and he shall let the goat go free in the wilderness. Leviticus 16:21-22
Ever hear of the term “scape goat?” This is the passage it comes from. It is an innocent person upon whom blame is placed. It describes the guy who takes the fall. It is the little brother who gets blamed for breaking the vase his older siblings crashed into while rough housing. Or the medium level executive who has been set up to swing in the breeze once the corporate ladder of corrupt crumbles when he or she was just doing their job.
There are times in all of our lives when we wish we could blame someone else, point the finger at another person and shift the limelight to them. Some people are prone to blame everyone else for what goes wrong in their lives. It is never their fault. Perhaps they were criticized too much as kids, or blamed for everything no matter if they were at fault at not. So now they shun from taking responsibility. They look for a scape goat to clear their conscience.
The good news is, none of us have to do that. Christ died for us and, when we come forward honestly to confess them, separates our sins as far as the east is from the west. He is the sacrificial, blemish-less Lamb, which is better than a scape goat. If anything is sitting heavily in your heart, place it in God’s hands. Like the man in Leviticus who stood in readiness, our Lord is there to receive your deepest regrets and most hurtful confessions. Then, He will whisk away the guilt and pain, sending it off to a remote place far away from you. Forgiven. Done. Time to move on.
Yes, there are consequences for our actions. But with a clear conscience and forgiven soul, we can, by the mercy of God, face those circumstances head on and not look to shift the blame. Plus, we will be open to finally receive healing and grace. No more will we say something has “got our goat.”
