This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: Atonement is to be made once a year for all the sins of the Israelite. And it was done, as the Lord commanded Moses. Leviticus 16:34
The word atonement means to "cover over". So the offering made by the priests, the blood shed was to "cover over" the Israelites sins. A ransom had to be paid - and adequate recompense for the offense!
The need for atonement arose because of the sin of the Isrealite people. The Atonement Sacrifice would cover all the sins not yet covered by sacrifices made through the year. There had to be an Atonement Sacrifice so that they would be forgiven and God's wrath would not overtake them.
Because God desired to save the Isrealites, forgive their sins and reconcile them to himself, He furnished a way of salvation by allowing the priests to make sacrifice and blood offering. In doing this, their sins were covered.
The Rituals of the Day of ,Atonement were specific and had to be carried out exactly! It was a serious time. The Day of Atonement was a solemn day in which the people fasted and humbled themselves before the Lord. This attitude of the people expressed the seriousness of sin. The Day of Atonement also had to be repeated every year. One sacrifice was not enough!
The fact that they had to be repeated yearly, showed that there was something "incomplete" about them. They were not sufficient for all time. But.... there came a Lamb, a once and for all sacrifice.
What Christ did on the cross was our once and for all Day of Atonement! Hallelujah to the Lamb!!!
He represented the atonement, forgiveness, reconciliation and cleansing we so desperately needed. Jesus sacrifice was our "covering over" of sins, the sacrifice that turned away God's wrath, reconciling us to Him. The Most Holy place where the priest entered in the Old Testament is now God's Throne in heaven, where Christ as our High Priest can enter in.
Jesus Christ death on the cross was our "complete and perfect" sacrifice for us. There is no more need for any sacrifices... once and for all... Christ was enough!
Father God, I thank you for this time in Leviticus. Thank you for enabling me to keep reading when it was tough and the kids just didn't want me to! Thank You for revealing such amazing things to me! But most of all, I thank You for Your son Jesus! I praise His Holy Name for being the Lamb that came to take away the sins of the world, but even still, my sins! May I realize daily that sin is not to be taken lightly. To live in a way to honor the sacrifice made for me. Hallelujah to the Lamb! I praise You!
Thank you for reading along. I would love to hear from you!
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