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, His appointed times are all about Jesus.

 

Junia the Woman Apostle

Taken from:

https://www.faithward.org/women-of-the-bible-study-series/junia-the-hidden-apostle/

“Greet Andronicus and Junia, my relatives who were in prison with me; they are prominent among the apostles, and they were in Christ before I was.”  – Romans 16:7

Introduction to Junia, the Woman Apostle

It’s possible that you’ve never heard the name Junia before. There are at least two reasons for that. For one thing, she is only mentioned in one verse in the last chapter of Romans. For another, for generations, Junia was systematically removed from our Bibles. 

You read that right! For almost 2,000 years, scribes, commentators, and teachers changed her name from Junia to a masculine version of the name: Junias. Theologian Scot McKnight articulates the reason why they did that: 

Junia was a woman, and she was an apostle. But since a woman couldn’t be an apostle, Junia became the male Junias … [T]here was no evidence in ancient manuscripts that anyone understood Junia as a male, no evidence in translations she was a male, and there was no ancient evidence that Junias was a man’s name. But, still, the church got into a rut and rode it out until some courageous folks said, “Oh yes, Junia was a woman and she was an apostle, and we’ve been wrong, and we’re going to do something about it.”¹

Junia has spent centuries as the hidden apostle, but it’s time we changed that!

Digging Deeper: Who Was Junia in the Bible?

Even though her story is recounted in just one verse, we can learn five things about Junia from Romans 16:7.

First, Junia is in some way connected to Andronicus. Scholars aren’t certain, but Junia was most likely either married to Andronicus, or they were brother and sister. This was a woman with a family.

Second, like Paul, Junia was a Jew who had become a Christian. In fact, the end of the verse tells us that Junia had actually come to faith in Jesus before Paul did.

Third, Junia’s faith had been tested. The text tells us that Junia had been imprisoned with Paul. To be sure, first-century prisons were not pleasant places, particularly for a woman. So we can conclude that Junia would have been all too familiar with suffering for her faith. 

Fourth, Junia was an apostle. In the New Testament, there was perhaps no higher honor than to be commissioned as an apostle. When you think of biblical apostles, you probably think of the twelve who walked with Jesus. Or perhaps you think of others who are labeled as apostles in the Bible: people like Paul, Barnabas, Silas, Apollos, Timothy, and Epaphroditus. Add Junia to your list. She’s an apostle.

Finally, not only is Junia an apostle, she’s outstanding among the apostles. For Paul, Junia is someone that the entire Roman church should acknowledge and honor. Further, she’s someone that we should acknowledge and honor. 

Reflecting on her excellent apostleship, fourth-century church leader John Chrysostom said this about Junia: “And indeed to be apostles at all is a great thing. But to be even among these of note, just consider what a great tribute this is! But they were of note owing to their works, to their achievements. Oh! How great is the wisdom of this woman, that she should be even counted worthy of the appellation of apostle!”²

She Is Called and We Are Called

As we think about our lives and leadership, Junia has at least three things to teach us:

For one thing, alongside other women who partnered with Paul, Junia’s apostolic ministry illustrates God’s Genesis 1 mandate that women and men would together steward God’s mission in equal measure. What does partnership with someone of the opposite gender look like in your ministry? How can you live out that partnership more effectively?

Next, Junia was a leader who had suffered for the sake of the gospel, something that our brothers and sisters in today’s persecuted church around the world have experienced as well. She—and they—can teach us from their experience. How are you suffering for your faith? How might God be calling you to take more risks in order to advance the gospel?

Finally, even though she was “prominent among the apostles,” Junia had her identity systematically erased for two millennia, because the ecclesiastical system couldn’t imagine that a woman could be an apostle.

https://www.faithward.org/women-of-the-bible-study-series/junia-the-hidden-apostle/