Yom Kippur 2019

Jews Praying in the Synagogue on Yom Kippur 
by  Maurycy Gottlieb, 1878
Note the solemnity of the moment.
Image in the Public Domain
Jews Praying in the Synagogue on Yom Kippur
by Maurycy Gottlieb, 1878
Note the solemnity of the moment.
Image in the Public Domain

Yom Kippur 2019

There are many things that separate man from the beasts: intelligence, communication skills, sophisticated social order; the list goes on but the one I want to point out here is not so flattering. The animal kingdom is much better at facing reality than humans are. When an animal sees something good to eat, it eats. When an animal finds a safe place to rest, it rests. When an animal senses danger, it does something about it. It either fights or flees. This is where humans fail. Too often when we sense danger, we ignore it. You want proof? How about cigarette smoking, alcoholism and obesity. But there is a far greater danger that countless millions ignore every day:

(Heb 10:30)  For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.
(Heb 10:31)  It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

“Oh, but we don’t like to concentrate on that in our ministry. We’d rather talk about the love of God.” How very human of you. You see danger, you ignore it.

The cynic will accuse God of being dark and vengeful and repressive because He says things like, “The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked” (Jeremiah 17:9) or “all have sinned and come short of the Glory of God” (Romans 3:23) . We wonder why God is being so mean. Why doesn’t He just ignore it like we do? Suppose you’ve been driving all night through the Mojave desert. It’s dark. You’ve been on the road for hours and you decide to pull over just to get a little sleep. A few hours later, you are rudely awakened by a sheriff’s deputy banging on your window and shouting at you. You think, “Now, can’t he see that I’m tired and need some rest?” Next thing you know you hear a freight train speeding toward you. In the darkness and due to your unfamiliarity with your surroundings you parked your car on active train tracks. In a flash, that cop goes from obnoxious blowhard to live saver.

God is pointing out your desperate, sinful condition because it is placing you in danger. The Bible makes it clear: We are helpless, hopeless sinners. As much as God loves us all…and He does love us all, He will not ignore sin. Now, this is not the place to discuss “why”. In fact, if you accept that He will not ignore sin than the “why” question doesn’t matter because once you come to the conclusion that God is holy and you’re not you will be driven to the REAL question, “What can I do about it?” Well, your mood isn’t going to improve because the answer to the question, “What can I do about my sin separating me from God” is…nothing. But, ironically…and with God there is SOOO much irony…ironically, though God is ALWAYS the offended party, He is also the only one who can make things right and the ENTIRE Bible is a record of His remedy. By the way, the only way you can make sense of the Bible, the only way the Bible will bring you joy is if you look at it as a picture of “The Atonement”. The Bible isn’t a history book, although there is history in it. The Bible isn’t a morality guide, although there is morality in it. The Bible is not a world peace plan, although there is peace in it. God’s Book is a prescription for removing sin and reuniting His people and the Seven Feasts of Israel are all of that in miniature.

Today we talk about one of the most well-known of all the Seven Feasts: Yom Kippur; in the English, The Day of Atonement. God gave this Feast to His children to demonstrate all of what we’ve said thus far: He will not tolerate sin; it must be paid for; and we will NEED a substitute…a PERFECT substitute as payment. In the Old Testament, God established an elaborate system of offerings designed to do two things: Atone for sin and to tell a story. Join us for this podcast as we find out what that story really is. Spoiler alert: It’s Jesus!

But before you begin, make sure that you are prepared in your mind, heart and spirit. Take a few moments and go to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to allow you to see wondrous things out of His Law (Psalm 119:18). Plead with God…pleading means it’s important to you…show God that what He requires is important to you so PLEAD with Him to send His Spirit to fill you with His Truth.

Atonement Part 3-Covering

The Mercy Seat (Illustration from the Holman Bible)
The Mercy Seat (Illustration from the Holman Bible)
Image in the Public Domain

Atonement Part 3-Covering

We’re still at it. We’re still trying to pry open the meaning of this word atonement. And, by the way, we’re really more interested in WHY the word atonement was created. “Atonement”, you should know by now, is an invented English word. (I realize ALL words are invented but you get my meaning.) However, it isn’t abundantly clear who invented it. Some say William Tyndale made it up; some say there is evidence that it existed before Tyndale began using it. We can, however, be certain that William Tyndale is the first person to use it in a Biblical context and, frankly, that’s really the only context we’re interested in, at the moment. The problem we’re facing is how the word is currently defined versus what we are told the word meant originally. There appears to be some conflict between the modern use of the word and what Tyndale intended the word to mean. The disparity seems irreconcilable and that is what has set us on our journey. You see, we don’t hide from controversy. We don’t shy away from what some might consider Biblical disagreement and we don’t blame God or His Word when we, in fact, suffer, simply, from a lack of understanding. Around here we do what we can to figure it out.

So, today we will look at the Old Testament use of the word. Of course, William Tyndale is not, necessarily, known for his Old Testament work. He was actually executed before he could finish his translation of the Hebrew Scripture but it is clear that his New Testament translation influenced later Old Testament English translations, including the King James. Those later translators must have liked his use of the word atonement because it appears quite extensively; more than 80 times, the majority of which occur in the Book of Leviticus. Now, this shouldn’t surprise us because it is in the Book of Leviticus that God deals, administratively, if you will, with sin. In God’s Plan, where sin exists, atonement must be present and that speaks of Christ. Starting to see why we’re taking the time to study this word?

So, once again, I call you to pause a moment and go to God and ask for His help. Pray that He will send His Spirit so that you and He can work out how His Plan fits into your life. Ask Him to open your eyes that you may behold wondrous things out of His Law. (Psalm 119:18)

Atonement Part 2-Because “knowing” is also Important

The Martyrdom of William Tyndale (from Fox's Book of Martyrs)
The Martyrdom of William Tyndale (from Fox’s Book of Martyrs)
Image in the Public Domain

Atonement Part 2-Because “knowing” is also Important

There are lots of things you may want criticize about this ministry and the one thing that I am sure is on most everyone’s list is that we spend so much time on so many details. I happen to agree with that one. We do spend a lot of time on details and (admittedly this next statement is against every podcasting best practice) might I say this lesson is one of the worst offenders. Today we’re going spend a lot of time on only a few things. Why? Why do we focus so intently on these things? Well, because they’re important. I unapologetically argue there is nothing more important than what we discuss on this program week after week. These are the things of life and death. These are things worth living and dying for. That’s why I love William Tyndale so much. Like most Englishman of his time, he loved Mother England but when it became apparent that he would never be able to achieve God’s calling on his life he left behind everyone and everything he knew and for the rest of his life he was a hunted fugitive who eventually paid the ultimate price so that the common man and woman could get to know God better. And do you know why he did all of that? Because he thought it was important.

In this lesson we are still struggling to properly define the word “atonement”. We go over what we’ve been told it means and we ask “Why?”. One of the sub-purposes of this lesson…and frankly every lesson we present is to get you into the habit of wondering “Why”. Some may think that that is sowing dissension or inciting rebellion or even encouraging or facilitating doubt. Nothing could be further from the truth. KNOWING is important to your atonement. You see, we have to “accept” our Salvation for it to be applied to us; right? Can you really accept something you don’t understand? God loves you, but more importantly He wants you to love Him. You can’t love someone you don’t know. You and I should spend every day of our lives getting to know everything about God that we can. KNOWING what gifts He is offering you is the only real way to fall in love with Him and the only real way you’ll be able to give yourself to Him. Is it difficult? Yes. Does it take work? Yes. But you know what I’ve learned through my many years on this earth? Nothing valuable is ever easy.

So, take a moment to ask for God’s guidance. Believe me, you KNOWING these things is more important to God than it is to you. Therefore, He is more than willing to do all He can to get you to a point where you KNOW what your atonement really is. Why we weren’t just born with complete knowledge; I can’t say. Why does God make us toil for understanding; I don’t know. I can guess that it is because He wants you to truly appreciate His Love for you and that takes effort. BUT, He doesn’t expect us to go it alone. He offers Himself as our Guide into all Truth. (John 16:13) So, before you do anything, pray that God’s Spirit will assist you on this journey of discovering the majesty of His Atonement.