Don’t Chase The Goat

“As the goat goes into the wilderness, it will carry all the people’s sins upon itself into a desolate land.”
Leviticus 16:22

Why do so many believers feel forgiven but still live ashamed? In Leviticus 16, God establishes the Day of Atonement and introduces the scapegoat, a powerful picture of sin being carried away from His people. In Don’t Chase The Goat, Pastor Mike O’Connell teaches how this Old Testament moment points directly to Jesus Christ, who did not merely forgive our sin but removed it completely. The scapegoat was sent away, symbolizing that guilt and shame no longer had a claim on God’s people.

Shame is not broken by self-improvement. It is broken by substitution. When Christ took our place, the record of our sin was cancelled and our identity was restored. Many believers continue rehearsing what Jesus already erased, but true Christian freedom begins when we stop chasing what He already carried away. When shame is replaced by sonship, we step into the confidence, security, and new identity that belong to us in Christ.