Jesus Our Yom Kippur
Rev. Lonnie C. Crowe
Yom Kippur or the Day of Atonement is the most solemn and important holy day of the Jewish calendar. In the Old Testament, the Day of Atonement was the day the High Priest made an atoning sacrifice for the sins of the people.
After the blood sacrifice was offered to the Lord, a goat was released into the wilderness to symbolically carry away the sins of the people. This "scapegoat" was never to return.
Truly, "Surely he hath borne our Griefs and carried our Sorrows; Yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of GOD and afflicted." (Isaiah 53:4)
Yom Kippur was the only time during the year when the high priest would enter the Holy of Holies to make atonement for the sins of all Israel. Atonement literally means The Tabernacle and the Temple gave a clear picture of how sin separates us from the holiness of God. In Bible times, only the High Priest could enter the Holy of Holies by passing through the heavy veil that hung from ceiling to floor, creating a barrier between the people and the presence of God. Once a year on the Day of Atonement, the High Priest entered and offered a blood sacrifice to cover the sins of the people.
Atonement means "covering.” Under the Law, sin was covered awaiting the day of atonement, the day Jesus said, “It is finished.”
However, at the very moment when Jesus died on the cross, Matthew 27:51 says, "the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom;
Hebrews chapters 8 and 9 beautifully explain how Jesus Christ became our High Priest and entered heaven (the Holy of Holies), once and for all, not by the blood of sacrificial animals, but by his own precious blood on Christ himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins; thus, he obtained for us eternal redemption! As believers we accept the sacrifice of Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of Yom Kippur, the final atonement for sin.
The disciple Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:18-19, “For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver. He paid for you with the precious lifeblood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.”
The atonement of Jesus Christ is absolutely the most precious gift God has offered us.
We must acknowledge that Jesus Christ is God; that He came to earth as a man in order to live the sinless life that we cannot live; that He died in our place, so that we would not have to pay the penalty we deserve.
We confess our past life of sin -- living for ourselves and not obeying God.
We admit we are ready to trust Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord.
We ask Jesus to come into our heart, take up residence there, and begin living through us.
The atonement of Jesus Christ brings us close to God.
Through the blood of Jesus, we enter into a covenant relationship with God.
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
Ephesians 2:13: Through Jesus’ blood, we have perfect peace.
Philippians 4:6-7: Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
The atonement of Jesus makes our sanctification unto God possible.
"Sanctification" means a separation unto God from evil things. The word of God is also said to sanctify (Jn. 17: 17). However, without Jesus' shed blood, sanctification would not be possible. Through Jesus’ atonement, we are justified before God.
Ephesians 2:8-9: For by grace, you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast Justification is a declaration that we are right with God.
As a result of Jesus’ atonement, we can have forgiveness.
Paul wrote to the Ephesians, "In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace" (Eph. 1: 7).
Christians are a forgiven people
I Jn. 2: 12: I write to you, little children, Because your sins are forgiven you for His name’s sake.
When God forgives, He forgets.
Acts 3: 19: Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord,
Because of the atonement of Jesus, when we are obedient, God will supply all of our needs. Philippians 4:19: And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
Because of the atonement of Jesus Christ, we can come boldly before the throne of God. Hebrews 4:16: Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Through the blood of Jesus, we have healing. Human blood brings healing to the physical body. The white blood cells are the body’s first line of defense against bacterial invaders. When bacteria enter the body, white blood cells are produced in great numbers. They travel to the infection and surround the bacteria.
The blood of Jesus does the same for the body of Christ. When Satan invades, the Holy Spirit stands ready to come to our aid and bring the needed healing. The Lord desires that we walk in divine health. If we stay in close communion with Him, we will find our spiritual man will not become sick and depleted, needing continual healing.
With the healing of our spiritual man, comes the healing of our physical bodies.
Chuck Pierce: “Without salvation, there is no restoration! There is no hope for getting back on the track God intended for us, both collectively and as individuals, from the foundation of the earth. God has an intended destiny for every human being. The first step to entering into that destiny is salvation through Jesus Christ—not just saying the Sinner’s Prayer and letting it go at that, but allowing the forgiveness, healing, prosperity and restoration to penetrate every part of our lives.”
Isaiah 53:5: But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.
Because of the atoning work of Jesus Christ, we can overcome. Our Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) was completed on the Cross.
God’s love poured out in Jesus on the cross is our only hope to have forgiveness and change. His love bought us out of our slavery to sin. His sacrifice seals our covenant with Father God.
Romans 10:9,10: "...If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, you shall be saved; for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation."
Our Rosh Hashanah and our Yom Kippur are the result of our being born again into the family of God. The Feasts of the Lord are all about Jesus.
