Date of message: 25 May 2003
Subject: The Day of Atonement - Yom Kippur
Shalom, Boker-tov (good morning),
Thank you for the many encouraging notes over the past weeks since the
Feasts of Israel series. All praise and glory goes to our Lord Jesus Christ
for His grace and mercy towards us. I am only a vessel through whom the
words flow.
This week I would like to share with you on the most amazing day on the
Hebrew calendar and Yom Kippur is truly a day of observance to all of
Israel as they contemplate the seriousness of their sinful condition.
It is such a holy day to Israel that even today the Israeli Defence Forces
would permit their soldiers to put down their arms and spend the day in
the synagogue. And it was on Yom Kippur in 1973 that Syria took advantage
of the absence of IDF troops at the borders and launched an attack on
the Golan Heights. According to the rules of engagement in any warfare,
it is common that there be an unofficial truce on the holy days of the
warring countries. However, Syria did not observe the rule; instead it
sent a few armored regiments across the border to re-capture land on the
Golan Heights that were lost to Israel during the 1967 six-day war.
Of course, history revealed to us that the Syrian invading forces were
beaten back fiercely by IDF troops who realized what was happening when
they came out of the synagogues. There were various accounts of heroic
action by some of the IDF armored units at the borders and there were
also corresponding accounts from the Syrian side of how the lead tanks
were mysteriously delayed on the slopes of the Golan Heights as they formed
up in battle formation for the attack. It was as if an invisible army
was staying the Syrian forces so that the IDF troops could complete their
worship at the synagogues and return to their posts.
What is the Day of Atonement or Yom Kippur, the Day of Covering? In Leviticus
23: 27 -32, the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: -
27. "Also the tenth day of this seventh month shall be the Day of
Atonement. It shall be a holy convocation for you; you shall afflict your
souls, and offer an offering made by fire to the Lord.
28. And you shall do no work on that same day, for it is the Day of Atonement,
to make atonement for you before the LORD your God.
29. For any person who is not afflicted in soul on that same day shall
be cut off from his people.
30. And any person who does any work on that same day, that person I will
destroy from among his people.
31. You shall do no manner of work; it shall be a statute forever throughout
your generations in all your dwellings.
32. It shall be to you a Sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall afflict
your souls; on the ninth day of the month at evening, from evening to
evening, you shall celebrate your Sabbath."
Nine days after the Feast of Trumpets or Rosh Hashana, the nation of Israel
would gather in the Temple and in the synagogues to observe Yom Kippur
(read Leviticus 16). On this day, the high priest would take the blood
of the bull and sprinkle them on the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant
in the Holy of Holies seven times. This is the only time in the whole
year that the high priest is allowed to enter into the Holy of Holies
and if the LORD accepted the sacrifice, the high priest would live; else
he would be struck dead in the inner chambers.
Once a year the high priest would take the blood of the burnt offering
and bring it before the LORD and make representations on behalf of the
people. If the LORD found fault with the high priest, he would be struck
dead and the whole nation's sins would not have been forgiven. On the
other hand, if the LORD accepted the sacrifice of the burnt offering and
the high priest came out of the Holy of Holies alive, the nation would
have been forgiven their sins until the following year when they had to
repeat the sacrifice again.
Under the Old Covenant, the sins of the whole nation were atoned for by
the blood of the burnt offering and this for only a period of time (one
year). Once a year the high priest would have to enter into the Holy of
Holies and sprinkle the blood and depending on his own acceptance by the
LORD, he might not come back out alive.
The LORD found fault with the Old Covenant. He sent His own Son to die
for the sins of the whole world and when He arose from the dead, He became
our High Priest, entered into the very presence of the Father and sprinkled
His own Blood on the throne of God in heaven. The Father was well pleased
with what Jesus did and He cut a New Covenant with mankind for eternity.
We read in Hebrews 8: 10 - 12: -
10. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel
after those days, says the LORD: I will put My laws in their mind and
write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be
My people.
11. None of them shall teach his neighbor and none his brother, saying,
"Know the LORD, for all shall know Me, from the least of them to
the greatest of them.
12. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and
their lawless deeds I will remember no more."
And again, as if we might miss it, the writer of Hebrews, in Hebrews 10:
16 -17, reminded us: -
16. "This is the covenant that I will make with them after those
days," says the LORD; "I will put My laws into their hearts
and in their minds I will write them,"
17. Then He adds, "Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember
no more."
We have a better covenant that what the Israelites had under the Old Covenant.
For them they had to continually offer the blood of bulls and lambs and
their sins were covered (atoned) for one year. For us, under the New Covenant,
the LORD Himself came and died for our sins once and for all and His Blood
avails for all eternity because of the Person who died.
Our Abba Father is a merciful God; He is slow to anger but rich in mercy.
It is interesting to note that the passage of scriptures that the Israelites
would be reading during the evening meal on the night of Yom Kippur (the
Hebrew calendar starts the day at 06:00 PM on the evening before and ends
at 06:00 PM on the following evening) would be the Book of Jonah. It is
a very interesting book as it tells of how merciful the LORD is in forgiving
a whole nation that had sinned against Him and had repented of their sins.
The LORD had already provided the solution to our sin problem by Himself
dying on the cross for us. His Blood is available to all who would accept
what He had done for them and immediately their sins would have been forgiven.
In the Old Covenant, the sins of the people were only covered and for
one year but praise the LORD, for us His Blood had removed our sins far
away from us.
In Psalms 103: 11 - 12, the LORD promised us: -
11. For as the heavens are high above the heavens, so great is His mercy
toward those who fear Him;
12. As far as the east is from the west, so far has He removed our transgressions
from us.
Have you received Jesus into your heart? It is not difficult. All that
is needed is for you to believe in Jesus and He will come into your heart
and give you eternal life. By believing in Jesus and receiving His Holy
Spirit into our lives, God confers on us the position of sons and daughters
in His Family, special positions reserved only for those whom He loves
dearly (John 1: 12). Rejection of what Jesus had done for us on the cross
signifies the rejection of God's gift of salvation and if one rejects
the Gift, there is therefore no more hope.
The Lord cannot lie. For Him, whatever He speaks come to pass and He had
promised us in the Bible that those who have put their trust in Him will
not be condemned but have passed from death into life (Romans 8: 1).
Pray this simple prayer of faith and invite Him into your heart and immediately
you will experience the peace of Jesus coming your way.
O God our Heavenly Father, thank you that You are ever merciful and so
full of love for us in that while we were still far away from You, You
loved us and sent Your only Beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ into this
world, to take on a human life so that He can be the Sacrifice that You
had wanted all along. Thank you that You have prepared a new heaven and
You are waiting to show it to us.
Lord Jesus, thank you that You loved us so much that You were willing
to die for us on the cross. Thank you that You became that Sacrificial
Lamb for us and because of Your death, the judicial righteousness of the
Father had been satisfied. And now, because You rose from the dead, we,
who believe in You as our Lord and Savior, will no longer have to die
but we receive Your eternal life. Thank you for coming into my heart and
making my heart Your home.
Thank you that what You have accomplished for us on the cross has qualified
me to become a child of God the Father. Thank you that I am now eternally
forgiven, greatly blessed, highly favored, deeply loved and completely
protected in the Lord and in Your most precious Name, Yeshua Ha' Mashiah,
I pray. Amen.
If you have prayed this prayer for the first time, welcome to the Family
of the Father (and it is a very large universal family). It is important
that you are not alone facing your personal trials but that you can obtain
good help wherever you are. Why not take the time to find your own local
Christian family (local church) and worship the Father together? You will
be greatly encouraged when you meet together to worship the Father, for
fellowship and for the study of the Word of Christ.
Start receiving the blessings of the Father as you walk with Him in faith.
It is your inheritance in Christ and He wants you to start enjoying these
blessings right now and there is more from where they come from.
The Lord blesses you and keeps you,
The Lord makes His face shine upon you and be gracious to you and all
your loved ones,
The Lord lifts up His countenance upon you and gives you His shalom peace.
Numbers 6: 24 -26
Have a blessed week ahead, Shavrou-tov
Shalom,
Andrew L W Lee
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