This is Spoken Gospel. We’re dedicated to seeing Jesus in all of scripture. In each episode, we see what’s happening in a Biblical text and how it sheds light on Jesus and his gospel. Let’s jump in. In most English literature, the climax of a story comes near the end.
But in Hebrew literature, which is what the Old Testament is, the main point often comes in the middle. The middle point of Leviticus is the Day of Atonement. And since Leviticus is the middle book of the Torah, this chapter is the middle of the middle.
The Day of Atonement is so important because that is the day a human got to go into God’s presence in the Holy of Holies. This is the center of the tabernacle, behind the innermost veil, where God’s actual presence was. There are two main sacrifices made on this day.
The first is a bull for the priest’s sins and the cleansing of the tabernacle. Its blood is brought into the Holy of Holies behind the veil and put on the mercy seat, which is like God’s kingly footstool. The second sacrifice involves two goats.
One goat is a sin offering for all the people. Its blood is also brought into the Holy of Holies to cleanse it on behalf of all the people’s sins. The second goat was brought in front of the tent where the high priest
Would lay his hands on it and confess the sins of all the people. The goat was then taken outside the city and released into the wilderness, never to return. The picture is a powerful one for the people of Israel. Their sin has literally been taken away from them.
As Christians, we have an even better Day of Atonement because Jesus is our new high priest. What the High Priest had to do every year, Jesus was able to do once for all. Now, we only need one Day of Atonement: The day Jesus died on the cross.
The Day of Atonement brought one priest behind that curtain once a year. But after Jesus died on the cross, the curtain in the temple was torn in two. Jesus’ sacrifice gives eternal access to all who believe. Israel had to be constantly reminded of their
Never-ending problem of sin by this and other rituals. But because Jesus has offered the last and final sacrifice, we can be sure that our sin has been dealt with permanently. That is why we no longer have to practice any sacrifices. It is finished!
So why is this in the middle of Leviticus and in the middle of the Torah? Because one of the Bible’s main points is God’s desire to live with his people. And the Day of Atonement shows us how he makes this possible.
It also tells us that, in Jesus, the cross now sits at the middle of everything we do. I pray that the Holy Spirit would show you the God who makes a way to dwell with us and forgive us. And that he does this finally and fully through
Jesus dying for us on the cross – our once-for-all Day of Atonement.
Christians call the death of Jesus good news. But how can the death of the only perfectly innocent man be good? While understanding everything that happened when Jesus died is challenging, and realistically, probably impossible to understand completely, when we look at what the Bible has to say
About it, we can begin to see that Jesus’ death is not only good news, but also something beautiful. At the heart of the reason behind Jesus’ death is this concept of atonement, which means, basically, to reconcile or make peace between sinners and God.
And right at the white-hot-center of the atonement is Jesus substitutionary death on the cross. Without Jesus as our substitute, taking our place and dying for our sins, there is no gospel. He did what we cannot. But there is more to the atonement than only Jesus’ death as a substitute. For example:
Jesus’ death on the cross, the atonement, is the supreme demonstration of God’s love for sinners. First John 4 verse 10 puts it this way, that “Love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.”
The atonement also shows how seriously God takes sin. Jesus’ death satisfies every requirement for God to be able to forgive the failures of humanity. And the atonement puts Christ’s cosmic victory over sin, Satan, and death on display through His resurrection. Jesus “disarmed the rulers and authorities and disgraced them publicly; he triumphed
Over them in him,” as Colossians 2:15 says. While we can come to these aspects of the atonement and see them as being in conflict with one another, we need to remember that all of them are found in the Bible.
All of them work together to show the beauty and good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection. And so every aspect of the atonement is worthy of our attention, our admiration, and ultimately our gratitude because it is only through the death and resurrection of Jesus that we have peace with God.
[Gary Petty] You’ve heard of the famous Ark of the Covenant. Archaeologists, historians and treasure hunters still hope to someday find this ancient artifact. The Ark was originally housed in a tent or tabernacle during the days of Moses. The high
Priest would go into the tabernacle once a year and enter a chamber called the holy of holies. This chamber housed the Ark of the Covenant which contained the Ten Commandments written on two tablets of stone. Before entering this sacred place the high priest would bathe and put on a special clothing,
A turban and a breast plate containing 12 precious stones. Once in the holy of holies he would sprinkle on the Ark the blood of animals that were sacrificed for the sins of the people. This mystical ritual took place on the Day of Atonement. In the Jewish community this
Day is known as Yom Kippur. Among all of the fantastical rituals of this day there is one that may seem most bizarre. Two goats would be presented to the high priest. One would be sacrificed. The other led into the wilderness to be released.
Do the ceremonies of the Day of Atonement have any relevance to Christians? You may be surprised to discover that the ancient rituals of the Day of Atonement reveal the gospel. Today let’s explore the Day of Atonement and the Gospel. What we’re going to talk about today will help you experience a deeper understanding
Of the gospel of Jesus Christ, why He came the first time as a sacrifice for sin and what will happen at His Second Coming. So what do the ancient rituals of the Day of Atonement have to do with the gospel?
The answer to this question is found in the New Testament book of Hebrews. Hebrews is a fascinating book. It was written to Jewish Christians during a time when the temple still existed in Jerusalem. In the temple the rituals of the Day of Atonement given to Moses around
1,500 years earlier were still meticulously observed by the Levitical priesthood. Just like the ancient tabernacle the temple was divided into two rooms. The smaller room, the holy of holies, could be entered only once a year by the high priest where he would
Sprinkle blood on the lid of the Ark which was called the mercy seat. This bloody sacrifice was a substitute for the penalty of the people’s sins before God. Notice this passage from Hebrews 9. “But Christ came as High Priest of the good things
To come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place [or holy of holies] once for all, having obtained eternal redemption” (Hebrews 9:11-12).
What a remarkable statement! Here we discover the real meaning of the temple ceremonies. The holy of holies, or Most Holy Place, was a symbol of the very throne of God “the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands…” The blood of animals sprinkled
On the mercy seat, which remember was the lid of the Ark of the Covenant, was symbolic of the blood of Jesus Christ as the substitute for the penalty of the sins of all humanity. The New Testament book of Hebrews shows us that all of these temple ceremonies reveal the work of Jesus Christ.
Yes that’s right, Jesus Christ. This is why the Day of Atonement isn’t just a Jewish observance. It is a proclamation of the gospel and it is vital that Christians understand the meaning and glory of this day. The symbols of the sacrificial animals aren’t difficult to understand when we know the work
Of Christ to bring salvation to the world. For most of you this makes sense. But there is something else said in the verses that we just read that we shouldn’t overlook. Let’s reread this statement again. “Christ came as High Priest of the good things to
Come…” Jesus Christ by offering Himself as the atonement for the sins of humanity is both the sacrifice AND the High Priest who performs the sacrifice. The writer of Hebrews goes on to say, “For Christ has not entered the holy places made
With hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us…” (Hebrews 9:24-28). This means that the holy of holies, the real holy of holies, the Heaven of Heavens, is
The throne of the Almighty God described as a sea of glass with myriad lights and thundering sounds, angels darting in and out of the presence of God and there Jesus Christ as God’s High Priest intercedes for us, you and me, every day. What the ancient Levitical high priest
Did on the Day of Atonement was like a dramatic play showing what Jesus Christ does for humanity continually before Almighty God. What does this really mean for you? It means that the ancient rituals of the Day of Atonement have importance for Christians
Today. This is not just a Jewish day. It’s a Christian day. What the high priest did on this special day reveals what happens when you repent before God, turn your life over to Him and accept Christ’s sacrifice as your atonement. When
You accept Christ sacrifice as the penalty for your sins you are given the privilege to literally enter the holy of holies. This means that when you pray you are in the very presence of God. Let’s look at how the writer of Hebrews sums up his explanation about Jesus as High
Priest. “Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way…having a High Priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith…Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without
Wavering, for He who promised is faithful” (Hebrews 10:19-23). The Day of Atonement is all about the gospel! It is about the grace offered by God revealed in the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and the work the resurrected Christ is DOING right NOW
As the High Priest at the throne of God. Today’s program isn’t just about some ancient, irrelevant customs involving priests in strange clothing sacrificing animals. It is about what Jesus Christ is doing today as the High Priest of Almighty God. It’s about having the assurance
That your life matters to God. He is offering you the privilege to have a loving relationship with Him as Father and Christ as Savior and High Priest and it is Christ’s role of High Priest that is revealed in the Day of Atonement. But what about the strange ceremony involving the two goats?
Surprisingly, understanding the symbolism of this ceremony helps Christians understand the world that you and I live in. Aaron, the brother of Moses, was the first high priest of the physical tabernacle. On the Day of Atonement he was told to bring two goats to the door of the tabernacle. There
He was to cast lots and one goat would be chosen “for the LORD” and the other was to be designated as what is commonly translated in English the “scapegoat” (Leviticus 16:6-10). The goat chosen for God was to be sacrificed for a sin offering. That’s just another
Obvious symbol for the sacrifice of Jesus for sin. What the priest was to do with the second goat was different than any other ceremony done throughout the year. Aaron was to lay his hands upon the second goat, confess over it all the sins of Israel, and then have the
Goat led into the wilderness where it was to wander in the wastelands (Leviticus 16:21-22). So what does this second goat represent? All sin sacrifices involve the killing of an animal with purification through blood. But this goat is not killed. This is very important. As God deals with the sin of humanity
He will also deal with the originator of sin. I know many people don’t like to hear the word sin. It’s considered too judgmental. Yet the Bible, this book that all Christians say to follow, is filled with definitions
And explanations about sin. Sin is what separates us from God. If we have no sin then Christ’s sacrifice was in vain. Without the bad news of sin, the good news of the kingdom of God has no meaning. Where does this lie that the gospel is not about sin, where does it come from?
It comes from the originator of sin. Listen to what the Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the
Glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them” (2 Corinthians 4:3-4). Satan is real. He is the god of this present age. As the originator of sin he doesn’t want you to know about the gospel message revealed in the Day of Atonement. He wants
You to reject Jesus’ message that there is something dramatically wrong in your life. He doesn’t want you to repent of sin and turn to God as your Father. He doesn’t want you to experience God’s love and healing and discover your Creator’s purpose for your very life.
Let’s go back to the book of Hebrews. Listen to what Hebrews says about the work of Jesus Christ. “Inasmuch then as the children [that’s us, human beings] have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who
Had the power of death, that is, the devil, and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage” (Hebrews 2:14-15). Christ left His eternal abode to come to this earth. Unbelievably to become like us to conquer
Death and Satan who has the power of death. Death entered into human experience because God has allowed Satan to be the present god of this age. Satan has deceived humanity, kidnapped us from our Father and deceived us into thinking that sin doesn’t matter.
In reality it is sin that separates us from God, makes our lives miserable, and eventually kills us. To be an authentic Christian, you are going to have to learn about sin. Accept your sin. Repent and ask God for forgiveness. You will also need to understand that Satan is real
And that he is the originator of sin. In the ceremony of the two goats one goat is slain as a sin offering picturing the work of Christ. The second goat is dragged into the wilderness and separated from the people.
This ceremony involves a second goat and is a prophecy that has yet to be fulfilled. A prophecy explained in the book of Revelation shows where John had a vision of Christ’s second coming and concerns this time period we’re talking about. John wrote, “Then
I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and
Shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things he must be released for a little while” (Revelation 20:1-3). We’ve seen that Satan is the god of this present age and Jesus came to conquer him.
Jesus will return to remove Satan freeing us from the kidnapper. Christ returns to confine Satan to the wilderness, the second goat of the Day of Atonement ceremony. In Revelation, we do see that Satan is released for a little while after the millennium but then God removes
Him forever. These prophecies concerning Satan are an important part of the gospel of the kingdom. Christ is returning in power to remove Satan and establish God’s kingdom here on this earth. As we’ve seen the Day of Atonement is really about the gospel of the kingdom of God. There
Are three major points we’ve discussed. First, the animal sacrifices performed on this day teach us about the gravity of sin and the price paid by Jesus Christ to save us from sin. Secondly, the work of the High Priest represents the present work of Jesus Christ in reconciling humanity to God.
And thirdly, the two goats represent Jesus as the sin offering and Satan as the originator of sin who will be cast into the wilderness by Jesus when He returns. I’m now joined by Steve Myers and Darris McNeely as we continue our discussion of the Day of Atonement and the Gospel.
So how would you answer someone who came to you and said oh the Day of Atonement that’s just a Jewish observance, has nothing to do with Christianity? [Steve Myers] Well you hope that people would ask that question. Is it a Jewish thing or
Is it a Christian thing? And if they’re honest with themselves, they should check their Bibles. Get into your Bible. Look at Leviticus 23. It lists these days of God and it doesn’t say they’re Jewish, it doesn’t say they’re just for the Israelites. It
Says there very specifically these are the Feasts of the Lord and so that starts us down a path to realize this was something for all mankind. It wasn’t just for a specific group of people but for everyone. So I think if people are honest with themselves and start
Looking at the real evidence that’s there they’ll see that these days that carry over into the New Testament Church and you’ll find them referenced throughout the New Testament as well. So they’re for everybody and they are for today as well.
[Darris McNeely] Even the Day of Atonement is mentioned in the book of Acts as kind of a place marker of the Apostle Paul on his way to Rome. Luke the recorder, the writer of Acts, refers to several of the Holy Days but even the fast of the Day of Atonement
That Paul was on his way to Rome during that time. Steve makes a good point. These are days that, frankly, are for all mankind. They are God’s feasts for the world and frankly even today a lot of people are beginning to look at the festivals and understand that
They do have a significance and meaning for people today and as you are bringing out about the Day of Atonement, Christ is right in the center of the meaning of the Day of Atonement when you look at the book of Hebrews and all. So one needs to be very careful not to just
Kind of shove this off as something Jewish because where that’s been done by people in the past it leads to some other problems of anti-Semitism or difficulties there and you want to be very very careful about that, that Christ was of the Tribe of Judah and
There is a very important role for those people in the overall plan of God but these days are not just Jewish. [Gary Petty] What I find so important about the Day of Atonement as a Christian is the
Idea of Jesus Christ as the High Priest and of course that’s brought out in the New Testament. That wouldn’t have been brought up in the Old Testament. So here in the New Testament we have this teaching that Jesus Christ is the High Priest and He now acts
As High Priest. He is the High Priest every day before God interceding for us. We don’t need another intercessor. No human being needs any other intercessor except Jesus Christ because He is the High Priest. So when you study what the High Priest did in the Old
Testament and especially on this day, when he was the only one who could go into the Holy of Holies and intercede for the people. We have a high priest that intercedes for us every day so that we can go into the Holy of Holies. That’s just incredible! And it’s New Testament.
[Steve Myers] Yes, and I think that contributes to the really amazing part about the Day of Atonement. You read just the Old Testament you’ve missed this great spiritual intent of the day. Yes there were certain physical aspects in the Old Testament that they did
These physical rituals but they showed the way to the spiritual intent of this and even Christ said He came to show the fulfillment of the law. To show the important aspects of the spiritual side of things and so to recognize Christ as our High Priest and then
You see these connections to Old Testament practices, it changes everything that we have access to God and prior to that time of Christ’s death and crucifixion and resurrection we didn’t have that. We didn’t have that and now we do. We can go directly to God by our High Priest Jesus Christ.
[Darris McNeely] You make a very good point Gary. In your program you talked about the work of the High Priest on the Day of Atonement. Out of the Book of Leviticus chapter 16 there is a reference to it as a Holy Day in chapter 23 of Leviticus but chapter 16 really expands
On it. But as you just said, the fullness of that understanding is brought out in the book of Hebrews. You can do a study and as we have all done giving sermons to Christians on the Day of Atonement as we’ve observed that, we can give a sermon and teaching about
The Day of Atonement without ever turning to the Old Testament. By staying in the New Testament in the book of Hebrews explaining the full meaning as it’s been fulfilled by Christ He is our High Priest. Hebrews walks a person right through that. It is through
And through a festival for those who are under the New Covenant today and have a relationship with Jesus Christ. The Day of Atonement is right in the center of it and frankly you cannot have a fullness of the relationship with Jesus Christ unless you understand the
Meaning of the Day of Atonement and keep it in the spirit and the intent that the New Testament shows. [Gary Petty] Now you just said about observing the Day of Atonement. I think most Christians would be shocked that there’s actually other Christians, and there are. As you said there
Are Christians all over the place who are beginning to discover this and do this. So how has observing the Day of Atonement, which the three of us do, how has that helped you in your Christian walk? [Steve Myers] When you think about the book of Hebrews, as we were talking about, Hebrews
9 would be section of scripture to read through that really makes that spiritual connection, that we do have a High Priest and if Hebrews hadn’t been written and recorded for us we wouldn’t know that Jesus is our High Priest and so it makes that point that we
Have a Savior. That through His death and His resurrection we can be justified. We have access to the Father and so we wouldn’t know that and it would change really everything. It changes everything when we recognize that very fact that as our High Priest we have
Direct access into the throne room of God and we have that Intercessor in our Savior. [Darris McNeely] Another way that it really has always hit home with me is understanding that on that day as you brought out on the story of the two goats in Leviticus 16, when
You turn to Revelation 20 and you see the binding of Satan at a time after the return of Christ, prior to Christ beginning to restore this earth to what it was, Satan is bound and the Day of Atonement shows us that on that day, or that day pictures that event
Really, described in Revelation 20 of Satan being bound and his influence being removed from this earth. The god of this world, the god who has deceived the world, that Revelation 12 talk about, will be removed and people will have the scales of deception lifted off
Their eyes and also they will begin to understand God. Also by keeping the Day of Atonement you know why there is evil in this world today. Great question that people struggle with and blame God for, cannot have faith because of the evil that has stalked the earth. It’s
Because of Satan. Christ labeled that. There will be a day he will be chained and bound and the source of evil will be removed from humanity and it will be a different world where people will have the opportunity to know God. That’s what it’s meant to me
To through the years, understand that, share it, teach it with other people so they understand the world as it is today, why it is, and have that hope that there will be a better time. [Gary Petty] So as a New Covenant Christian we obviously do not do what the Old Testament
Did as far as Levitical priesthood and sacrifices in the temple and all that. What is it you do on the Day of Atonement though, that is special? [Steve Myers] Well we get together. It’s a commanded assembly it’s a time that we
Collectively come together as God’s people and we worship Him, we honor Him, we praise Him, we have a church service, and we recognize these great truths. We recognize we’ve got a solution for sin in our Savior Jesus Christ. The fact we’ve had our minds opened to this
Truth, there’s coming a time when He’s going to open everyone’s mind. Everyone will have an opportunity at one point to understand, really, the solution to sin and it is such an amazing promise that it represents a very specific part of God’s plan.
[Darris McNeely] Well, it’s a day to worship God in spirit and in truth and again I just go back to a point I made. You cannot really have a fullness of a relationship with Christ until you keep the Day of Atonement. That’s what it means to me.
[Gary Petty] To help you understand more about how the ancient day with its ancient rituals of the Day of Atonement reveal the message of the gospel, we would like to send you a copy of our free Bible study aid: “God’s Holy Day Plan: The Promise of Hope for All Mankind.”
This important, free, easy-to-read booklet explains how our Creator has a wonderful plan for humanity which He reveals through an annual cycle of festivals described in the Scriptures. I highly encourage you order your free copy by calling toll-free, 1-triple-eight-886-8632. That’s 1-triple-eight-886-8632. If a representative doesn’t answer your call right away, please
Try again a little later when the lines are less busy. So jot down the number right now 1-triple-eight-886-8632. Or, you can go online to beyondtoday.tv or write to us at the address shown on your screen [Beyond Today, PO Box 541027, Cincinnati, OH 45254].
When you order your free copy of “God’s Holy Day Plan: The Promise of Hope for All Mankind” we’ll also send you a free subscription to our thought-provoking Beyond Today magazine. It’s absolutely free of charge. Six times a year you’ll receive articles on subjects
That will help you build your relationship with God and change your life for the better. Other fascinating articles will help you better understand current events in the light of Bible prophecy. So, call right now, 1-triple-eight-886-8632. Also, when you visit beyondtoday.tv, be sure to watch BT Daily. These short daily videos
Cover a variety of Bible topics and current events. BT Daily is a terrific way for you to obtain additional knowledge about Bible prophecy and God’s awesome plan of salvation. And, you can watch BT Daily and our 30-minute Beyond Today programs anytime on YouTube, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Roku and other streaming-enabled devices.
[Steve Myers] Hi! I’m Steve Myers. We would love to have you come and visit and worship with us. We have hundreds of congregations around the United States and across the world. We’re committed to growing in our relationship with God the Father and Jesus Christ, as well
As fellowshipping with each other. We’ve found God’s way is the best way to live. We’re looking forward to meeting you soon. Come and join us! [Gary Petty] The ceremonies of the ancient Day of Atonement can seem strange to those
Of us living in the modern age. A priest wearing a turban, bloody animal sacrifices, a holy room containing the Ark of the Covenant and a ceremony involving two goats. We began the program with this question, “Do the ceremonies of the Day of Atonement have any relevance for Christians?”
In this short explanation we’ve been able to see that the answer is YES. The Day of Atonement is really about the gospel. Once again, the three main points we covered today: 1. The animal sacrifices performed on this day teach us about the gravity of sin and
The price paid by Jesus Christ to save us from sin. 2. The work of the High Priest represents the present work of Jesus Christ in reconciling humanity to God. 3. The two goats represent Jesus as the sin offering and Satan as the originator of sin
Who will be cast into the wilderness by Jesus when He returns. Join us next week on Beyond Today as we continue to discover the gospel of the Kingdom. We also invite you to join us in constantly praying, “Thy kingdom come.” For Beyond Today I’m Gary Petty. Thanks for watching.
[Narrator] For the free literature offered on today’s program, go online to beyondtoday.tv
Well, we know He’s the Savior of the world because there’s only one Savior for the world. The world has only one Savior but we also know the atonement is limited. We all know that, right? The atonement is limited because people go to hell.
Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “Many will say to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and I will say to them, ‘Depart from Me, you workers of iniquity. I never knew you.'” Jesus talked more about hell then He did about heaven.
We know that hell is a reality, and we know people go there and perish forever. So we all believe in a limited atonement, right? Not everybody’s going to be saved. You either believe in a limited atonement, or you believe in a universal atonement, and
If you believe in a universal atonement, to be logically consistent, then there’s no hell and no one will be in hell. Everyone will be in heaven. If you’re going to affirm an unlimited atonement, then you really are going to end up as a universalist,
Because if He actually died for the whole world then the whole world is saved. So, we don’t, we can’t go there because there is a hell and it’s full of people, in fact, most people. So the atonement is limited. Then the question is, who limits it?
Do we limit it or does God limit it? And the answer to that question biblically is crystal clear. God limited it. He limited it to the elect. Either God determined whom He would save and take the glory or God just threw atonement
Out there as some nebulous option and hoped some people would grab hold of it and become a part of His redeeming purpose. The Bible does not allow for that. So, you just need to remind yourself you believe in a limited atonement. Now, you ask the question, are men sovereign or is God sovereign?
And the Lord said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the veil before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat.
Thus shall Aaron come into the holy place: with a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. He shall put on the holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen britches upon his flesh,
And shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired: these are holy garments; therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on. And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats
For a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the scapegoat, and the other lot for the Lord.
And Aaron shall bring the bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and shall make an atonement for himself, and for his house, and shall kill the bullock of the sin offering which is for himself:
And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the Lord, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the veil: And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the Lord,
That the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not: And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward;
And before the mercy seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times. Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the veil, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock,
And sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat: And he shall go out unto the altar that is before the Lord, and make an atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the blood of the goat,
And put it upon the horns of the altar round about. And when he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat: And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat,
And confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness:
And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities unto a land not inhabited: and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness. And he shall wash his flesh with water … and offer his burnt offering, and the burnt offering of the people,
And make an atonement for himself, and for the people. And this shall be an everlasting statute unto you, to make an atonement for the children of Israel for all their sins once a year.
The Day of Atonement, or Yom Kippur, is the most holy and solemn day of the Jewish calendar. It is the only day when the high priest could enter the Holy of Holies, the most sacred place within the Tabernacle and ancient temples.
It was the only day when the high priest reconciled Israel with God and symbolically brought them back into the presence of the Lord. No other day, and no other ancient ritual comes closer to the full meaning and purpose of the atonement of Jesus Christ.
The fall season of festivals begins with Rosh Hashana, the beginning of the Jewish New Year. Rosh Hashana marks the start of a ten-day period of repentance and preparation for the Day of Atonement. During these ten days, Israelites would seek to draw closer to God in preparation for these sacred rituals.
On the Day of Atonement, all of Israel would be forgiven for their sins of the previous year, thus allowing them to be cleansed and prepared for the Feast of Tabernacles or Sukkot to occur five days later. Feast of Tabernacles was the final and most joyous of the three major Jewish feasts of
Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. The Day of Atonement followed a complex, yet beautiful ritual, symbolizing that all of Israel now had been forgiven and was able to re-enter the presence of the Lord through the high priest. The ritual began with the high priest, dressed in his normal colorful golden garments,
Offering the daily morning ritual of sacrifices and burning of incense on the altar of incense. He then would wash his flesh and change into simple white robes. The act of washing and changing clothes would actually occur five separate times throughout the ritual. The wearing of just the white robes could symbolize the Savior
Who leaving His heavenly throne, “laid aside all the glory … [and] put upon Himself the plain robe of humanity … becoming like one of us.” The color of white is also a powerful symbol of purity, representing the absolute purity of the true Great High Priest, even Jesus Christ.
Next, the high priest would bring two goats into the Tabernacle or temple and cast lots for each of them. One lot was for Azazel, or the scapegoat, and the other was for the Lord. A red ribbon was tied around the horns of the scapegoat to distinguish it from the other goat.
The high priest would then take a bullock, or young bull and place his hands on its head, symbolically transferring his own sins and the sins of his fellow priests to the bull. He would then slit the throat of the bull and catch the blood in a dish to be saved for later services.
He then would bring a burning coal from the altar of sacrifice and incense into the Holy of Holies through the veil for the first time. Here dressed in all white, the high priest would burn the incense before the Lord. The room would fill with smoke,
The cloud of smoke often being a symbol of the presence of God. The high priest then would exit the Holy of Holies, wash again, and take the blood of the bull and re-enter the Holy of Holies for a second time.
He would then sprinkle seven times the blood of the bull on the Ark of the Covenant. The shedding of the blood of the young bull represented that the high priest was forgiven and reconciled to enter into the presence of the Lord.
The high priest would then kill the goat that was chosen for the Lord, again saving the blood in a dish. He then would enter the Holy of Holies with this blood for the third and final time. As he did before, he would sprinkle the blood of the goat seven times before the ark.
As the goat was the offering for the people, this act of bringing its blood into the Holy of Holies represented that all of Israel was symbolically able to enter the presence of the Lord, through the high priest and because of the shedding of the blood of the sacrifice.
Just as the high priest could only enter by blood, so too it is only by the shed blood of Jesus Christ that we can enter God’s presence. As the high priest exited the Holy of Holies,
He would then sprinkle the combined blood of the bull and the goat before the veil of the Tabernacle. He would also use the blood to cover the four horns of the altar of incense. The remaining blood would be poured out at the base of the altar of sacrifice in the outer court.
The high priest would then return to the scapegoat and place his hands upon its head symbolically transferring the sins of all the people to the goat. He then would utter the sacred name of the Lord, which was never to be said except on this holy day, “Oh, Jehovah! I intreat Thee!
Your people, the House of Israel, has been iniquitous, sinned, and erred before you. Oh, then Jehovah! Cover over, I intreat Thee, upon their iniquities, their transgressions, and their sins!” The goat was then taken outside of the Tabernacle and led into the wilderness.
The guiltless goat, dependent upon its owner for its care and protection, would become lost and die in the desert. Perhaps no symbol of the Savior is more powerful than the scapegoat. Innocent of any wrongdoing, just like this goat, the Savior has had laid upon Him the sins of the world.
As Isaiah so beautifully stated, “All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” Modern readers often gloss over the significance of the Day of Atonement as simply an outdated,
Archaic ritual of death and covering of blood. However, as one better understands each of the aspects, it teaches a powerful message of the atonement of Jesus Christ. The word atonement, or kaphar in Hebrew, actually means to cover. Thus, as the high priest literally covers with blood the ark,
The veil, and the altars of the Tabernacle, he symbolically shows that atonement has been made, and that the way is now open to progress back through the Tabernacle because of the shedding of blood. From the scriptures we learn that when the Savior went to pray and suffer in Gethsemane,
He first left eight disciples at the entrance, then took Peter, James, and John further into the garden, and then by Himself, went further in to pray. Though it is impossible to know the exact reason for this three-level progression the
Savior creates within the garden, it has a strong correlation to the three levels of the Tabernacle with the outer courtyard, the holy place, and the holy of holies. It is as if the Savior desired to recreate these three levels, to show that He was officiating
As our Great High Priest and interceding on our behalf. How beautifully the symbolism of the Day of Atonement teaches us that it is only through the shed blood of the Lamb of God, even Jesus Christ, that we can once again enter the presence of the Lord.
It is only because He took upon Himself our sins and iniquities, that we can be forgiven and our burdens made light. Because of Him, we can have our sins covered over, blotted out, or atoned for. The book of Hebrews teaches, “But Christ being come an high priest …
Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.” How wonderful it is that unlike ancient Israel, who only could be forgiven once a year,
We can daily come to the Lord, lay our sins and guilt upon Him, and continually be forgiven and cleansed because of His atonement!
As we come this morning to the Lord’s table, I want us to think about the meaning of the death of Christ. For years now we have been working our way through the accounts of the gospels, Luke and now Mark.
And maybe this morning to divert ourselves from that a little bit and think perhaps more theologically about the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, we’ll enrich us and enrich our experience at the Lord’s table today. I want to begin by inviting you to turn to Revelation chapter 5…Revelation chapter 5.
We’ve engaged in worship this morning, the worship of our Lord Jesus Christ. We have sung of His love and our love to Him. We will do this forever, by the way. This is only a preview of what will be our experience every moment, every sleepless moment of eternity we will be praising Him.
The book of Revelation gives us a glimpse into the praise of heaven. In verse 9 of Revelation 5 we hear the very expression of praise that is lifted up. It is a new song, the heavenly song, the new song being the song of salvation. That’s a phrase borrowed from the Psalms.
And the words go like this. “Worthy are You,” and this is sung to the Lamb that is slain mentioned in verse 6. “Worthy are You to take the book and break its seals for You were slain and purchased
For God with Your blood, men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation, You have made them to be a Kingdom and priests to our God and they will reign upon the earth.” And then it goes on in verse 12, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and
Riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.” Again in verse 13, “To Him who sits on the throne, namely God, and to the Lamb be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.” And the elders in verse 14 who represent the church fell down and worshiped.
Worshiping is the occupation of heaven. And the worship will be directed at God out of gratitude for His saving plan effected through the sacrifice of Christ. You go back to verse 9 with me for a moment and keep in your mind this statement, “You
Were slain and purchased for God with Your blood, men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.” What this tells us is that the core and the heart of heavenly praise is gratitude for Christ’s purchase of sinners for God.
When we come to the communion table, the Lord’s table, we are looking at the cross and we are looking at the great event, the great historical reality of Christ paying the price to purchase for God His people.
Now when we talk about the death of Jesus Christ then we are talking about an actual purchase. We’re not talking about a potential purchase, we’re not talking about a general sort of act on Jesus’ part that may in the future become a purchase. We are talking about a real purchase.
It is the act of Christ dying on the cross that pays the price to God, purchasing the people who will be redeemed from every tribe and tongue and nation. Now what I want you to put in your mind is that the death of Jesus Christ is an act by
Which He purchases His people. It is not a potential act, it is an actual act. It is not a general act, it is a particular act. Now all of that is very, very important because if you ask the average person for whom did Christ die?
I think if you asked the average Christian, for whom did Christ die? If you asked most pastors, for whom did Christ die? The answer would be, “For everybody, for everyone.” That’s the typical belief. You hear people say, “Christ died for the whole world,” that means He died for every human being.
And He wants you to receive that gift of His death personally on your own behalf. Jesus paid the debt on the cross for everyone’s sins, He paid the debt in full, He loves everyone equally. He wants everyone to be saved.
And He waits for the sinner to turn a potential atonement into an actual atonement, or to turn a general atonement into a particular atonement, and the sinner can do that by an act of the sinner’s will. So much of evangelism is driven at the sinner’s will, crafted, manipulated to bring the sinner
To a certain place emotionally, psychologically that he will activate his own will and accept what Christ has done and therefore turn a potential and general atonement into an actual and particular atonement. So that view is that Jesus’ death on the cross was a death for everyone in general…listen…but
A death for no one in particular. Okay? That’s the view. That is the standard view. We would call it an Arminian view but it’s the standard view, He died for everyone in general and no one in particular.
In fact, you have the most popular Christian book in the last ten years, the author says, “I can lead anyone to Christ if I find the key to that person’s heart.” So it all depends on our technique and how good we are at identifying what moves people psychologically and emotionally.
Now let’s think about that a little bit. We need to work on sinners to get them to receive the salvation already purchased for them. That’s the idea. That’s the popular idea. The fallout of that idea is pretty serious. That means that hell is full of people whose salvation was purchased, right?
That if in fact Christ paid for the sins of everyone who has ever lived, their sins were paid for. He died for their sins. He was a substitute for their sins, therefore hell is full of people whose salvation was purchased, whose sins were paid for by Christ.
The Lake of Fire then will be filled with eternally damned people who suffer forever for their sins, even though those sins were already paid for. Christ then atoned and bore the punishment for the sins of the people in hell in the same way He did for the sins of the people in heaven.
So the only difference between the people in heaven and the people in hell is that the people in hell are suffering double jeopardy on a legal level, their sins already being paid for in full and yet they’re there suffering for sins that have already been paid for,
And they’re there because they didn’t have the sense or somebody didn’t make the right approach to activate them emotionally and mentally to turn the potential atonement of Jesus into an actual one. Therefore, the people in heaven can spend eternal life congratulating themselves, or
Congratulating whoever it was that moved them emotionally or psychologically to make the right call. Does that sound like biblical theology? Did Jesus Christ do the exact same thing for all the people in hell that He did for all the people in heaven?
And is the only difference that the people in heaven are in heaven because they of their own will activated a general atonement and turned it into a specific one, or a particular one? That is strange theology, that Jesus died for the sins of the redeemed and He died for
The sins of the damned. That He paid the penalty for everyone in full and the sinner is in hell because of the sinner’s failure to make the right call on his own condition. The bottom line in that is you have just not only created chaos at every level of soteriology
But particularly for our discussion, you have redefined the atonement. And if there’s anything we want to understand when we come to the Lord’s table, we better understand the atonement. We could talk about the foundational doctrine to understand with regard to salvation and that is total depravity, right?
The sinner is unable and unwilling, that he’s a block and a stone, he’s a rock, he’s dead, he’s blind, he’s in the darkness, he’s alienated from the life of God, he doesn’t desire God, he doesn’t seek God, he doesn’t want God.
There’s no way to get to the right decision to activate the atonement on his behalf if it depends on him. So, we have a major problem if we think that the sinner has the wherewithal within himself
To crawl up out of his own casket, spiritually speaking, to open his own blind eyes, to throw off the blindness that Satan has imposed upon him, to literally overturn the normal dominating lust of his own heart and somehow make the right move toward Christ.
This is a failure to understand the essence of depravity. What it really means is, the sinner is both unable and here’s the most important one, unwilling. He can’t will it and he couldn’t do it if he could will it.
You can’t make the final atonement up to the sinner or you have Jesus dying for everybody in general and nobody in particular. And therefore you’ve redefined what it means that He purchased us. The notion that God loves everybody so much that He gave His Son for everybody but only
In some kind of limited way, some kind of marginal way, some kind of half way is contrary to what the Bible teaches. And the idea that God has done in full for the people in hell, the very same thing He’s done for the people in heaven, is just not possible…just not possible.
The Bible says that all people are dead in trespasses and sin, alienated from the life of God, doing only evil continually, unwilling and unable to understand, repent and believe. They have darkened minds, blinded by sin and Satan, hearts full of evil, wicked and desiring
Only the will of their father who is none other than Satan, unable to seek God. Now how do you get from there to finding in yourself the power to activate a sort of potential atonement that Jesus has offered? We have therefore the power of salvation in the hands of the sinner.
That’s just not consistent with Scripture. John 1 doesn’t take long looking in the gospel of John to find this out, chapter 1 verse 12, “As many as received Him, as many as received Him”..listen…”to them He gave the exousia, the power to become children of God even to those who believe in His name.”
Look, if anybody believes in His name, if anybody receives Him, it is because He gave them the power. They were born, verse 13 says, not of blood, that is not because of some inheritance humanly speaking, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man but of God.
If anyone receives, if anyone believes, it is because it is the will of God by which God Himself has given the power to the sinner to become His child. Ephesians 2:8 and 9, “For by grace are you saved, through faith that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.”
It is, 1 Corinthians 1:30, by God’s power that you are Christ’s, by His power so that if you glory, you glory in Him. If you have life, it is from God. If you have light, it is from God. If you have sight, it is from God.
If you have understanding, it is from God. If you have repentance, it is from God. If you have faith to embrace Christ, it is from God. It is the work of God. God alone can give life. God alone can regenerate.
And it is the power of God alone that brings salvation to the sinner. Now to whom does God do this? For whom does He do this? It is for those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life from before the foundation of the world.
By His eternal choice bound up in the glorious truth of sovereign election, God has determined to save certain people and it is for those certain people that Jesus paid an actual price, that Jesus rendered an actual atonement, that He was an actual propitiation or covering,
Or satisfaction for the wrath of God, that He provided a specific and particular redemption for His people…for His people. A potential atonement, the result of that would be…who would be saved? No one, really, if it was left to the sinner because the sinner is unable.
Just to seal this a little deeper perhaps in your mind. I want you to look at John chapter 10, John chapter 10, the importance of this particular passage cannot be overstated. John 10 verse 11, “I am the Good Shepherd, the Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.
I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.” Verse 14, I am the Good Shepherd, I know My own and My own know Me. Even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father and I lay down My life for the sheep.
I have other sheep which are not of this fold, not Jewish but Gentile, I must bring them also. I must bring them.” Why? “Because they are My sheep.” How did they become My sheep? They are a love gift from a sovereign Father to Me.
“All that the Father gives to Me shall come to Me,” John 6. “And they will hear My voice and they will become one flock with one shepherd.” I mean, this is just a monumental statement. “I know My sheep. My sheep will know Me. My sheep have been called and identified by My Father.
I receive them, they are My own, it is for them that I lay down My life.” Later in this same chapter, over in verse 25, Jesus answered His enemies and critics by saying, “I told you and you do not believe the works that I do in My Father’s name.
These testify of Me, but you do not believe because you are not of My sheep.” Wow! “My sheep hear My voice and I know them and they follow Me and I give eternal life to them and they will never perish and no one will snatch them out of My hand.”
That cannot be more specific, can it? Therein you have the words of the Lord Jesus Christ testifying to a specific atonement, a particular redemption an actual substitutionary sacrifice for His sheep. He knows them. The Father has identified them. They belong to Him by virtue of the Father. They are drawn to Him.
They come to Him. It is for them He died. Now maybe this is some new thinking for you as you’ve heard, “For whom did Christ die?” and maybe thought you could just give the standard answer, “He died for the whole world.”
It has to be this, that He died for those who would believe because they would repent and embrace Him since the Father would give them life because the Father had chosen them. Those who believe are those whom God calls. Those who believe are those whom God calls and grants repentance and faith.
Those who believe are those whom God calls and grants repentance and faith because they are those whom God chose before the foundation of the world. So someone would say, and I’ve been accused of this, and I accept it, “You believe in a limited atonement.”
That’s like a swear word to some people, limited atonement, or swear phrase. I do believe in a limited atonement and I am passionate about a limited atonement. But then so do you. And when anybody says, “I don’t believe in a limited atonement,” I say this to them,
“Then you believe that everyone who has ever lived will be in heaven, right?” Well no. Okay, so you do believe in a limited atonement. Right? The only question for you is, who limits it? Who limits it?
Now if you want to believe that Jesus died and paid the penalty for all the sins of all the people who ever lived, then I’ll promise you this, all the people who ever lived would have to show up in heaven to confirm your belief because if Christ indeed pay the sacrifice
In full for their sins, they will be in heaven unless Christ paying for your sins is something that is in itself impotent. You don’t really want to land with an unlimited atonement or you’re going to end up as a universalist and you’re going to deny the reality of hell.
But that’s a little hard to deny, isn’t it? Since Jesus talked more about hell than He did about heaven, and talked about a Lake of Fire and weeping and wailing and grinding of teeth and outer darkness, people gnashing in pain and suffering.
In so many places in the Bible it talks about everlasting destruction. Read 2 Thessalonians chapter 1 verse 7, it talks about the Lord Jesus being revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire dealing out retribution on those who
Don’t know God and those who don’t obey the gospel and they will pay the penalty of eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord and the glory of His power. That’s a devastating statement. And it was our Lord Jesus who said in John 8:24, “You’re going to die in your sins because
You believe not in Me, you’re going to die in your sins.” And again in the gospel of John, “You’re going to die in your sins and where I go you’ll never comes.” Where are you going to go? You’re going to go into that horrible place called hell.
“If you believe not,” John 3 says, “you’re going to be judged.” “But if you believe, you will not be judged.” Why? “Because your sins have already been judged.” So if you believe, that’s evidence that your sins have been paid for by Christ. Your sins have been judged.
If you do not believe, then you will be judged for your sins. Look, the atonement is limited. It is limited in its efficacy. It is limited in its efficiency. It is limited in its application. It is limited obviously. The only question is, who limits it?
And the only right answer is that God limits it and that He limited it in this sense, that it was an actual payment in full of all the sins of all the people who would ever believe. And the people who would ever believe would believe because of His mighty work on their
Hearts based upon His sovereign eternal purpose. Sinners have to believe, but they can’t. They have to repent, but they can’t on their own until they are enabled by God. When people ask me about my favorite Bible verse, a couple of them come to mind but very
Often this one, 2 Corinthians 5:21, “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” He became sin for us, Paul says, for us. He’s writing to the church.
Now with that thought in mind, from 2 Corinthians, that same passage, back up in that same chapter to verses 14 and 15 and this will help. Paul writes, “The love of Christ controls us, having concluded this,” and here comes the point I want you to see, “that one died for all.”
Now stop there. “There it is,” you say. “There it is, He died for all.” Okay, that’s what it says, I admit. But who is the all? The New Testament also says that all thought that John the Baptist was a prophet, does that mean everybody on the planet? No.
Anytime “all” is used, there is a point of reference. All of a certain people that fit into a certain category then is defined for us. “One died for all, therefore all died.” Hum….so He died for all who died. And then verse 15, and again, “He died for all.” Who?
“So that they…this is the all…who live might no longer live for themselves but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf.” Oh…so He died for all and who are the all that He died for? All who died in Him.
And He died for all, and who are the all that He died for? All who live in Him and it was for them that He died and rose again on their behalf. There is the specificity of the atonement. There is the actuality of the atonement.
There is the particularity of the redemption of Christ. He died for all, the all being for all who died in Him. He died for all, all being those who live in Him, remember Romans 6 that we are buried in His death and we rise in His resurrection?
For all who died for Him, He died. For all who rise in Him, He died. It is for them He died and rose again. I want you to understand, folks, there is reason that every moment of a sleepless eternity
You are going to be praising God for your salvation because it is all a work of God, from beginning to end. And the work that Jesus did on the cross was not a potential atonement that you activate,
It was not a general atonement that you particularized by an act of your will, it was a specific atonement. We all understand that it was limited, the only question is was it limited by the sinner which not only gives the sinner way more power than the sinner has, but diminishes the essence
Of the atonement and turns it in to some partial thing that has to be completed by human faith. Or is it better to say, “God limited it with consistency with His own elective sovereign purpose so that it was limited to be applied only to those who throughout history would
Believe because they were given life by God Himself and for them He provided an actual atonement. I do not believe that Jesus Christ on the cross did the same thing for the people in hell that He did for the people in heaven. He died on our behalf.
Dear friend, you understand what it conveys to your mind and your heart to think about that? Those who say the atonement is unlimited don’t mean it. They really mean it’s limited to those who believe but then that’s not unlimited. Of course it’s limited.
But those who believe in an atonement that is unlimited really believe in an atonement that’s limited, but they also not only get their terms limited and unlimited confused, they get the word atonement confused. In a sense, they would turn the sacrifice of Christ on the cross into something like
An Old Testament animal sacrifice. Did an Old Testament animal sacrifice save anybody? No…no. The Old Testament animal sacrifice didn’t save anybody. Was anybody in the Old Testament saved? Yes, they believed, repentant in faith. There had to be a heart issue that gave personal meaning to that sacrifice.
So is that the same with Jesus? Did He die like an animal? And in His death was there no particular atonement? But if people get their hearts right, then somehow it can be applied to them? That is such a convoluted view of the atonement that it begs discussion.
Christ did not pay for the sins of all the people who have ever lived in some impotent way, only to be given power by the sinner, but father He gave an actual atonement, a total atonement, a complete atonement bearing in His own body our sins, Peter says, in full
For all who would believe and all who would believe believed because of the power of God, not by the will of man but by the power of God. Hell is not full of millions of people whose sins were paid for in full, they just weren’t
Clever enough, wise enough, emotionally moved enough, psychologically stimulated enough to actualize that atonement. Hell is the place where unbelievers go and an atonement was not provided for them. That doesn’t lessen their culpability. In the mysteries of God’s mind, beyond our ability to understand, the sinner is still fully responsible for his rejection.
So, you can’t limit the atonement’s power. You can’t limit the atonement’s effectiveness. You can’t make it potential rather than actual. It is a real true, full and complete provision for sin for all who will believe and all who will believe will believe by the power of God.
Look at Isaiah 53, just a good place to see this laid out so magnificently in the Old Testament. Isaiah 53:4, this is talking about the language of real actual substitution. “Surely our griefs He Himself bore, our sorrows He carried, yet we ourselves esteemed Him
Stricken, smitten by God and afflicted, but He was pierced through not for His own transgressions but for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities. The chastening for our well being fell upon Him and by His scourging we are healed.” It is an effective atonement that Messiah will accomplish.
It is an effective atonement. At the end of verse 6, “The Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.” Verse 11, end of the verse, “My servant will justify the many as He will bear their iniquities.” For many…
At the end of verse 12, “He bore the sins of many and interceded for the transgressors.” It is a real atonement, a real sin bearing. He is a genuine substitute sacrifice, feels the full fury of the wrath of God.
The angel said to Joseph, Matthew 1:21, “Call Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” Now somebody is going to say, “What about…what about all the references in Scripture to the world? God so loved the world, gave His only begotten Son.” And there are many.
John 1:29, John the Baptist says, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” What about that? Well, first of all, you don’t believe that He takes away the sins of the entire human race through all time, right?
That’s universalism and we know that can’t happen because there is a hell and there is judgment and the majority of people go there and the minority go to heaven. So world has to mean something other than every human being that’s ever lived. And the simple answer is, it means humanity.
He is the Savior of the world in the sense that the world only has one Savior, right? Whoever in the world who will be saved will be saved by the one Savior who is the Savior of the world. The world meaning beyond the narrow borders of Jewish life, even the Gentiles, humanity
In general. He is the only Savior the world will ever know. You say, “But wait a minute, there’s another verse.” First John 2 says, “He’s the propitiation for our sins and not for ours only but the sins of the whole world.”
Well if He’s propitiation for our sins, and also the whole world, then in what sense is that true? That’s not…that’s not difficult to interpret because you have an almost identical grammatical construction in the eleventh chapter of John out of the most unlikely mouth of the high priest, John 11.
Caiaphas is speaking and he says, “You know nothing at all,” verse 50, John 11, “do you take into account that it’s expedient for you that one man die for the people and the whole nation not perish?” He was really talking politically there.
Verse 51, “Nor did He…Now He did not say this on His own initiative, but being high priest that year he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation…listen to this…and not for the nation only, but in order that He might also gather together into
One the children of God who are scattered abroad.” That’s the same basic construction. He died not only for the nation Israel, but for those nations scattered abroad. And that’s exactly the same construction that John picks up, He died for our sins as Jews
And not for ours only but for the nation, the ethna, the Gentiles, the world. So we can sort of let Caiaphas be our interpreter and let John be our interpreter of Caiaphas. Well somebody is going to inevitably say to me, “What about 2 Peter 2:1? False prophets that arose among the people?”
What people? The church, the redeemed. “False teachers will come among you.” They’re in the church. “Who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.” Okay, can we conclude one thing?
Whatever it means, the Master who bought them, it doesn’t mean they were saved or they wouldn’t be destroyed, right? They weren’t real believers or they wouldn’t have been destroyed. So some people say, “See, here you have then people for whom Christ has paid the purchase
Price who are obviously not believers, they’re going to be destroyed. Doesn’t this contradict the argument?” The Master who bought them? What could that possibly mean, in what sense did He buy them? Let me show you the best answer to that. Deuteronomy 32, does that seem like a long trip to interpret that verse?
Listen to this. Here is a parallel illustration and it may well have been in Peter’s mind because it is such a familiar, familiar passage, the song of Moses. Deuteronomy 32, this is an indictment. Moses poetically refers to God redeeming Israel as a people collectively but affirms the apostasy of many Israelites.
Verse 5, “They have acted corruptly toward Him. They are not His children because of their defect. They’re a perverse crooked generation. Do you thus repay the Lord, O foolish and unwise people, is not He your Father who has bought you?” Do you understand that? What do you mean He bought you?
He redeemed you out of Egypt, right? He redeemed you out of Egypt. He brought you to the promised land. He’s brought you all the way here and many of you, most of you are corrupt and apostate, but you are in the congregation of those who were redeemed from Egypt, the same is going
On in Second Peter. You’re in the church, you’re a part of the redeemed community. You’re a part of the church and almost in a sarcastic way, you deny the very Master who redeemed you, only in that superficial sense.
You know that Paul said, “Not Israel is Israel,” and certainly not all the church is the church. Well, I know that’s a lot to digest. But when you come to the celebration of the Lord’s table, I want you to understand that
What you’re celebrating is a mighty work of God that started in eternity past on your behalf. And you need now and forever you will praise the Lord for this astounding sovereign gift of grace. Let’s bow in prayer. Father, we come to You now with grateful hearts beyond words to express.
We have been caught away, again, in the raptures of the realities of salvation. We thank You that because we were chosen, because an actual price was paid, we are therefore secured forever for we could never perish because you have taken the full judgment in our place.
We thank You, Lord Jesus Christ, that You suffered on the cross in just a few hours of darkness, an eternity of punishment on millions of souls. You took the full weight of divine wrath for those who would believe. We thank You, Lord, for this real gift, this true atoning work.
We will praise You forever that You were slain in order to purchase us., pay the price for the ones that the Father had determined in eternity past to give to You. We want to be Your people in every sense, true and faithful, to that grace and that love, amen.
We all long for the world to be good for people to live in peace act with love and justice but there’s a problem something compels us humans to constantly wreak havoc and destruction instead and we call this evil and from the Bible’s point of view, evil ruins
Things in at least two ways. There’s a direct effect of our evil like when someone steals from another person they’ve created injustice therefore they owe something to make it right but there’s another indirect effect of evil because they’ve also ruined the environment of the relationship creating a lack of
Trust there’s emotional damage it’s like vandalism and they need to make that right too. Now many people believe ‘Hey God is good he should be the one to just get rid of all the evil in the world.’ But let’s be honest I mean the evil that I see everywhere
Out there it’s the same evil that’s inside of me. We have all contributed and we keep doing it. So this kind of puts us in a bind if God’s going to rid the world of evil, he’ll have to get rid of us. And this is what’s so remarkable about the story
Of the Bible. This God is so good that not only is he going to rid the world of evil he’s going to do it without destroying humanity. So how is he going to do that? Well early in the story of the Bible we’re introduced to this practice of animal sacrifice which I
Know seems weird to us but for the Israelites it was a very powerful symbol of God’s justice and of His grace. So remember I’m a contributor to the evil that’s in the world I should be removed. But God is allowing this animal’s life
To be a substitute. It symbolically dying in my place. And the biblical word for this is atonement, which means to cover over someone’s death. But there’s a second part to this ritual remember evil also causes this relational vandalism and in the Bible this
Idea is described as polluting or defiling the land and making it unclean so the priest would symbolically wash away the vandalism by sprinkling the animal’s blood in different parts of the temple. So the animal’s blood is cleaning things? Well, remember this is a symbol and it’s a symbol that we’re not
Used to. The blood represents life and the sprinkling of the blood is this representation of how God is cleaning away these indirect consequences of evil in their community. In the Bible this process is called purification and so the temple in the land now become a clean space where God and His people can
Live together in peace So this ritual makes things right between Israel and God? And more than that! The Israelites experience God’s love and His grace through these symbols and by being forgiven ideally this would compel them to become people of love and grace that’s the ideal but
It wasn’t always happening right so the prophet Isaiah for example he talks a lot about this he opens his book by saying that the continual sacrifices of the Israelites had become meaningless because they were also allowing great evil in their midst. Ignoring the poor and the oppressed even the Israelite
Kings were distorting justice. But Isaiah looked forward to a day when a new king from the line of David would come and deal with evil but in a surprising way the King would become a servant and not just serve but also suffer and die for the
Evil committed by his own people and his life would be offered as a sacrifice this is the promise of Jesus believed he was fulfilling he’s the king of Israel suffering and dying on the cross. In fact, Jesus himself used Isaiah’s words when he said
That he came to serve and give his life as a ransom for many. And that word ransom refers to the sacrifice of atonement and so all over the New Testament we hear about how Jesus’ death was an atoning sacrifice for us. It covered the debt that
Humans owe God for contributing to all of the evil and death in His world but the new testament authors also talk about Jesus death as providing purification and so we hear about Jesus’ blood as a symbol of his life having this ability
To wash away the vandalism that evil has caused in and around us so we can now live at peace with God so that’s the meaning behind Jesus’ death but there’s more to the story. Yeah, the New Testament makes this powerful claim that Jesus’s death was not final he rose from the dead
And so he’s the sacrifice who broke the power of death and evil which means that he lives on to offer his life to anyone who will accept it he is the perfect sacrifice to it which all the previous sacrifices were pointing all along. So because of Jesus
The early Christians stopped participating in the ritual animal sacrifice. But they were given new rituals there are two that Jesus taught his followers to perform the first is called baptism. Just as Jesus died so going into the water becomes this personal connection you now have to his death and
In coming out of the water you so to speak come back to life with Jesus baptism is the sacred ritual that joins your story to Jesus’s death and resurrection the second rituals called the Lord’s Supper which is a reenactment of Jesus’ last meal with his disciples and he use bread
And wine to portray his coming death as a sacrifice and so now followers of Jesus they take the bread and the cup regularly to remember and to participate in the power of Jesus’ death and in his life so these rituals they remind us of
God’s love and encourage us to live a life love and grace but they do more than that they connect us to a new life source the very power that brought Jesus back from the dead is the same power that can deal with the evil in our own
Lives and transform us into people who lead lives of love and peace. Hi this is Tim! And this is Jon! And we believe the Bible is telling one overall story from beginning to end and so we’re making videos about each individual book
Of the Bible its unique design and message and then how it fits into that overall storyline we also make videos we take one biblical theme we trace it from the beginning of Scripture all the way to the end. We are a non-profit and we
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