Friday, September 6, 2019

The Atonement

Content:

  • General
  • The Old Covenant in the Bible
  • The New Covenant in the Bible
  • Salvation

General


Atone or Atonement means:
  • To cover up.
  • Pacify.
  • Make propitiation. This word means: turn away wrath.
Adam and Eve disobeyed God and instead believed in Satan, see 
The Biblical Creation and the Fall of Man. Through Adam, sin entered the world. 
We all need atonement, for we have all sinned. (Rom 5:12). Sin completely separates us from God and his love for us. God's plan to save us from our sin involved God the Father sending his only Son to die on a wooden cross. 

God set up a system to remind his people of how bad their sin was by incorporating animal sacrifices. He did this because every time an animal was killed they would be reminded that the wages of sin is death (Rom 6:23). Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins (Heb 9:22). However, the blood of goats and bulls could never pay the price for our sin (Heb 10:11). Animal sacrifices were used to foreshadow a very special sacrifice that was yet to come, when God the Father
offered his only Son, Jesus Christ. Until it was time for Jesus to come, God reminded his people every day that sin causes death, and it's only through death that we can have eternal life. Although animal sacrifice shows how terrible our sin really is, it also shows how deep and wonderful God's love is for us. It shows how far God was willing to go for us to be saved.

God is the creator of the universe and everything in it, he is the sovereign judge of his creation. God is absolutely holy and righteous, without fault or sin. When we sin, we sin against God, he is the offended part. There is a relationship problem between us and God because of our sin. God can’t have fellowship with sin. As the righteous judge of all, he must condemn sin. Because he is absolutely pure, righteous, and holy, he condemns all sin to death. All sin is worth death. Someone must die because of our sin. God is never soft on sin. Mercy isn't a contradiction of judgement. When God shows mercy, kindness, or love, he is no less just.

God is good, all good things come from God, but God is also holy. God loves the sinner because of his goodness but hates our sin because of his holiness, see 
God is holy and God has wrath in God's Attributes. The natural response to sin for God is therefore wrath, see the wrath of God in Balaam and Balak. 

Forgiveness is a big problem for God. The problem of forgiveness is the inevitable collision between divine perfection and human rebellion, between God as he is and us as we are. Forgiveness is for man the simplest of duties, for God it's the deepest of problems. To us forgiveness may not be a big deal, but to God it's a big deal. The reason for this is that God is so perfectly holy. But he is also perfectly love. Both his holiness and his love must be satisfied. God must find a way to forgive us as sinners without compromising his attributes, see God's Attributes. (Isaiah 45:21b).

God therefore introduced the concept of sacrifice. The purpose was to turn away God's wrath because of our sin. God accepted the death of animals as an entry for humans into the Old Covenant. God also understood that the people wouldn't be able to follow the Mosaic Laws of the Old Covenant and therefore needed forgiveness when they failed to do so. It was a sin to disobey these Laws.

God forgave these individuals their sin when they sacrificed the animals because they exercised faith. But it was only a temporary provision. These sacrifices couldn't wipe out sin. It 's impossible for blood of bulls and goats to take away sin
(Heb 10:4). These animal sacrifices pointed to a greater sacrificial death to come, the death of Jesus Christ. This means that all sins before Christ went unpunished
(Rom 3:25), even though the people had been temporarily forgiven, see this explained at time 51:06–53:56 in Bible Q&A With Pastor Paul │March 2024.
Jesus therefore had to die for our sins, to make it possible for us to be saved.

The sin of the Old Covenant individual was temporarily covered by sacrifice of animals. But the sins remained unpunished. All sins committed up to the time of Christ went unpunished, only temporarily covered by the animal sacrifices. The sins were forgiven by the animal sacrifices, but unpunished. Animals can't be punished as stand-ins for humans. God took care of it, once and for all, when Jesus Christ died on the cross. Jesus then bore every sin from the time of Adam (see The Biblical Creation and the Fall of Man) until that day, and for every sin committed thereafter.
This was God's righteous judgment.

The solution is therefore: In Christ, God reconciled the world to himself 
(2 Cor 5:19, 21). One more action is required of us to activate this reconciliation
(2 Cor 5:18, 20b), see Salvation.

The Old Covenant in the Bible
(described in the Old Testament):


Animal sacrifice was practiced in the Old Testament long before the Old Covenant with the sacrificial system was introduced:

"In the course of time Cain brought to the Lord an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell." (Gen (1 Mos) 4:3–5). 
Abel sacrificed his firstborn in his flock. It was a foreshadowing of the coming Christ.

One explanation for why God looked at Abel's sacrifice and not Cain's is that Abel's sacrifice was an animal sacrifice with blood (Heb 12:24). This wasn't the reason. Another more reasonable explanation is that Abel offered a better sacrifice than
Cain, because he offered it by faith (Heb 11:4, 6). See this explained at times:
"Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And when the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma, the Lord said in his heart, 'I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done. While the Earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.'" (Gen (1 Mos) 8:20–22).
After the Flood, Noah sacrificed some of the clean animals.

"And Isaac said to his father Abraham, 'My father!' And he said, 'Here I am, my son.' He said, 'Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?' Abraham said, 'God will provide for himself the lamb for a burnt offering, my son.' So they went both of them together. When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. But the
Angel of the Lord called to him from Heaven and said, 'Abraham, Abraham!' And he said, 'Here I am.' He said, 'Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.'" (Gen (1 Mos) 22:7–12).
This event describes Abraham's test to see if he loved God so much that he was willing to sacrifice his chosen son Isaac for him. Verse 8 (the bold text) can also be seen prophetically when God the Father later sent Jesus to Earth, the only begotten 
Son of God, as a sacrificial Lamb of God for our sins, see 
The Order between Jesus and the Father in the Trinity

In the Old Covenant, it was a question of animal sacrifice where the animals died in the place of man, see Moses; Part 14: Sacrificial System:

"Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight. Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it." (Exo (2 Mos) 12:5–7).
"The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt." (Exo (2 Mos) 12:13).
Every firstborn died in Egypt, even all the firstborn among the cattle died. The blood saved the people of Israel from suffering because they obeyed God's directives.

Lev (3 Mos) 4 describes the Sin Offering in the Tabernacle of the congregation:
  • If the anointed priest unintentionally sins in any of the Lord's commandments and thus brings guilt upon the people, he shall offer for sin that he has committed a bull from the herd without fault to the Lord as a Sin Offering. He shall dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle some of the blood seven times before the Lord before the veil of the sanctuary, and put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense, and all the rest of the blood of the bull he shall pour out at the foot of the altar of burnt offering which is at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.
    (Verse 2–3, 5–7).     
  • If all the congregation of Israel sin unintentionally, then the anointed priest shall dip his finger in some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it seven times before the veil, and put some of the blood on the horns of the altar that is in the Tent of Meeting and the rest of the blood he shall pour out at the foot of the altar of burnt offering which is at the entrance to the
    Tent of Meeting. (Verse 13, 16–18).
  • When a leader sins unintentionally, the priest shall take some of the blood of the Sin Offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of the blood at the foot of the altar of burnt offering. (Verse 22, 25).
  • If any of the common people sins unintentionally, the priest shall take some of the blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and pour out all the other blood at the foot of the altar.
    (Verse 27, 30).
  • If anyone wants to offer a lamb as a Sin Offering, he must bring an unblemished female animal. Then the priest shall take some of the blood of the Sin Offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of
    burnt offering and pour out all the other blood at the foot of the altar. 
    (Verse 32, 34).
See also Sin Offering in Moses; Part 14: Sacrificial System.

It's the sinner who brings the sacrificial animal, but it's the priest who brings atonement through the blood. Two are involved. 

When the priest brings reconciliation in this way, the sinner is forgiven. It's obtained through the blood sacrifice of certain animals. The life of a creature is in the blood (Lev (3 Mos) 17:11). Without blood, there is no forgiveness, that is,
no reconciliation (Heb 9:22). It's not enough to just ask God for forgiveness without blood sacrifice. The blood satisfies God's wrath against sin.

Lev (3 Mos) 16 describes how the rules for entering the Most Holy Place of the Tabernacle were changed. This change was introduced after two of Aaron's sons
had died because they had brought unauthorized fire before the Lord, something
he hadn't commanded them to do (Lev (3 Mos) 10:1–2), see
The Death of Nadab and Abihu in Moses; Part 12: The Aaronic Priesthood.
No part of the regular Sin Offering should be made in the Most Holy Place of the Tabernacle. God would appear in the cloud on the atonement cover (mercy seat),
which formed the cover of the ark (the Ark of the Covenant), placed in the 
Most Holy Place (verse 2). It should only be the High Priest (Aaron as the first)
who performed the Sin Offering in the Most Holy Place of the Tabernacle and
only once a year. The High Priest would then make atonement twice.
The first time for himself, and the second time for the people of Israel.
(Verse 11, 14–16, 18–19, 27, 32–34). See also Heb 13:11–12). 

This means that only the High Priest makes atonement in the sanctuary once a year, on the Day of Atonement; Yom Kippur, the holiest day in Judaism.

For information about the High Priest, see The High Priest in the Bible.

These sacrifices can no longer be made by the Jewish population around the world after the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD. For them is the Day of Atonement a day of prayer. There are certain ritual prayers that are said on this day, and this is the time when a person can go before God and confess his sin. They then think they are forgiven because they ask for forgiveness. No blood is then involved. There is no sacrificial system going on in Israel in our day to remind them that the forgiveness of sins is based on the shedding of blood (Heb 9:22).

The New Covenant in the Bible
(described in the New Testament):


The priesthood that was under the Mosaic Laws in the Old Covenant, is replaced by a new High Priest in a New Covenant (Heb 7:11–12, 18–19). Jesus fulfilled the Laws that were under the Old Covenant (Mat 5:17). He is the new High Priest forever
(Heb 5:5–6, 6:20, 7:20–21, Psalm 110:4). Animal sacrifices under the Old Covenant
Laws can't save us. The sin was treated at the Day of Atonement but only temporarily for a year, and after that the animal sacrifices must be repeated again. The penalty must still be paid. The old sacrificial system wasn't meant to forgive sins completely, but to point to someone who must die on our behalf, who must come in the future. That someone is Jesus Christ, who had to die physically for our sins, see The Crucifixion of Jesus. He is the High Priest who is holy, innocent, blameless, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens (Heb 7:26). 
He only needed to give his life once for our sins (Heb 7:27). 

For more information, see Jesus and the Law.
 
"The Law and the Prophets were until John; since then the good news of the kingdom of God is preached, and everyone forces his way into it." (Luk 16:16).
See also Listen to Jesus. The Day of Atonement in the Old Covenant had to be completed in accordance with the Torah (Pentateuch or Five Books of Moses),
that is, the books: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. 
It was part of the Mosaic Laws and had its time until Jesus officially created the 
New Covenant, when he distributed bread and wine to the disciples as a reminder
to him (Luk 22:20, Jer 31:31–33). This New Covenant was activated when Jesus died on the cross.

"For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ" (John 1:17). "The next day John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him, and he said: 'Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!'"
(John 1:29). "John the Baptist looked at Jesus as he walked by and said,
'Behold, the Lamb of God!'" (John 1:36). 
The only way Jesus could take away sin was by shedding his blood as a sacrifice for our sins. Jesus would give his life and be slaughtered like a lamb. 
John the Baptist therefore calls Jesus the Lamb of God, see John the Baptist
in The Prophecies of Isaiah.

In the Old Covenant of the Jews, the High Priest goes once a year and offers blood for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people. When Christ appeared as High Priest, he entered once for all into the holy places, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with the help of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. (Heb 9:6–12). Jesus is therefore the mediator of a New Covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, because a death has occurred which redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant. (Heb 9:15). According to the Law, almost everything is cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. Thus it was necessary that the copies of the heavenly things be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands which are copies of the true, but into Heaven itself, to now appear in the presence of God on our behalf. (Heb 9:22–24). This isn't just a picture of what Jesus did on the cross for us, when he shed his blood when he died physically on the cross so that our sins could be forgiven. There is also a tabernacle in God's Heaven (Heb 8:1–2, 5, 9:24, Rev 7:15, 11:19, 15:5–8 (NIV), Isaiah 6:1). Jesus entered there the Most Holy Place once and for all with his own blood and thereby obtained eternal redemption (Heb 6:19–20, 9:11–12).
Jesus did that, probably during the time that Jesus' physical body was in the tomb, see The Resurrection of Jesus. Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (Heb 9:22b). Therefore, Jesus had to die physically on the cross.
See this explained at the following times in these videos:
The basis of what Jesus did for us on the cross is found in Genesis, see it explained in time 4:17–20:02 in Understanding Genesis || Guest Speaker Dr. Jason Lisle.

Jesus fulfilled the Mosaic Laws. Animal sacrifice is no longer needed.
(Heb 10:1, 3–7, 10–12, 14).

"In Jesus we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace." (Eph 1:7). "Now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ." (Eph 2:13). 
"Knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot." (1 Pet 1:18–19).
We are redeemed by the blood of Jesus and have been forgiven for our sins.

Boaz was a kinsman redeemer to Naomi and Ruth, as he was a close relative of theirs, see The Book of Ruth. A kinsman redeemer in the Old Covenant is a picture of Jesus, who is our kinsman redeemer (Isaiah 59:20), see Typology.
A kinsman redeemer must meet the following:
  1. He must be a relative by blood (Lev (3 Mos) 25:25, 47–49). 
    God must become a man in order to redeem us from sin. Only one man
    can die for the sin of mankind. The Redeemer must be one of us (Gal 4:4–5).
  2. He himself must be free in order to free someone else from slavery. 
    Jesus had to be a sinless redeemer (John 8:46, Heb 4:15, 1 Pet 2:22,
    2 Cor 5:21). If he had sinned, he would have had to pay for his own sin
    and be disqualified from paying for anyone else's sin. Hence The Virgin Birth
    is so important. See time 10:53–14:16 in 1 John 4:1–6 • Test the spirits.
  3. He had to have means of redemption. He must be able to do it. 
    We have been redeemed through the blood of Jesus Christ (1 Pet 1:18–21).
  4. He had to perform redemption willingly.
    Jesus willingly paid the price for our sins on the cross (John 10:17–18).
"We rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation." (Rom 5:11). The atonement is received by believing
in Jesus and what he has done for us:
  • It’s about God's grace (Rom 3:23–24).
  • Faith without works (Rom 3:28).
  • Through the blood of Jesus who redeemed us from our sins (Rom 5:9).
See also What Happens to Those Who Have Never Heard About Jesus?

Salvation


This salvation from God's wrath over our sins, through reconciliation with God, 
is based on the following:
  • God's grace:
    God the Father loved men so much that he gave his only Son to take away man's sin (John 3:16), see The Order between Jesus and the Father in the Trinity. Jesus, the Son of God, voluntarily took upon himself the sin of man in his physical death (Eph 2:5b, 8).
  • Blood of Jesus:
    The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:7, Rev 1:5b).
  • Our belief:
    That we believe in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, that we trust him.
    That we believe that he has shed his blood and died on the cross for us, bearing our sins on the cross (John 14:6) and that God (The Trinity) 
    has  raised him from the dead. Faith isn't work (Rom 3:27–28, 
    Eph 2:8–9, Titus 3:4–7). We can’t be justified and saved by our own works or by being good enough. Believing is a decision we make. We must receive Jesus into our heart (John 1:12).     Righteousness is imputed to us by doing so. It means getting a right standing with God. We haven't
    earned it, it has been given to us as a free gift when we come to Christ
    (Isaiah 61:10). It's the righteousness of Christ that we literally put on almost like clothing. When we approach God, he receives us in the 
    r    ighteousness of Jesus Christ, see The Parable of the Wedding Feast.
  • Repentance:
    We also need to repent (Acts 17:30–31, Luk 13:2–3) because we are all sinners (Rom 5:8, 1 John 1:8–10).
For detailed information on how to be saved, see Salvation.

See also Some stories close related to the gospels at the end of 
The Four Gospels.
Posted by at