Bible Study: The Day of Atonement

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Today is Sunday February 07, 2010, and we are reading through the Bible in a year. Today's message comes from the reading of the Book of Leviticus, chapters 16-18. If you would like to read the chapters along with us here online you can Click Here to read them or copy & paste this URL onto your browser: http://www.readytofollow.com/bible-february-7

Title: Bible Study: The Day of Atonement
While we may not understand all the laws and commands that God has bestowed upon us, every one of them are made in order to keep us holy and righteous before God. Now, some of the laws that we read about in the Book of Leviticus may not apply to us today, (Praise God!) but the morals of the laws still apply. As I have said before, God did not stop at just ten commandments, He lists more here in today's reading. However, one of the most uplifting chapters in the book is chapter 16. Here God explains the Day of Atonement or forgiveness. “Thus shall Aaron come into the holy place: with a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. He shall put on the holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired: these are holy garments; therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on. And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house. And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat. And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD's lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering. But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.” - Leviticus 16:3-10. The Day of Atonement was the one day a year that the high priest could make an atonement for the entire congregation for their sins of the past year. In addition to the normal sin, trespass, and peace offering were two goats. One was offered to God as a sacrifice, the other one was a scapegoat. A scapegoat is a person who takes the blame for others, when Aaron put his hands upon the scapegoat, he placed all the sins of the entire congregation on the goat and when he let it go into the wilderness all the sins went with it, which took all the sins of the people away, making an atonement for their sins. Today, the Day of Atonement represents Jesus Christ, who has not only given us a way to atone for our sins, but escape them as well. Jesus, who is our high priest, not only became the sin, trespass, and peace offerings, but the scapegoat as well. When we call on Jesus and confess that we are a sinner and need Him, Jesus makes an atonement for us, He died on the cross and shed His blood to make a permanent atonement for us. He also carried our sins away when He resurrected from the dead 3 days later. Praise God! This means that every sin that we committed has been carried away, never to be seen again. Praise God! And this is forever, we no longer have to go year by year and offer up a sacrifice because Jesus took care of all that for us. Now, that does not mean that we are exempt from repentance when we sin, but it does mean that anything we do when we call on Jesus for repentance get carried away and forgotten. Many have confessed their sinful past lives. Real peace comes in knowing that through the blood of Jesus our past no longer counts against us. Praise God!

Just as I have said in my last message, God addresses every issue known to man, if we think that what we have seen, done, or are still doing is something new to God, think again. There is not one thing in this life that God has not seen already over the centuries, this includes every immoral, lustful, and abominable act such as eating dead animals, blood, fornication, incest, bestiality, homosexuality, and even giving into brutal lusts within a marriage bed. God stresses to the Israelite's that they are not to do the things that they had saw or done while they were in Egypt, that He is their people and they needed to start acting like it. “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, I am the LORD your God. After the doings of the land of Egypt, wherein ye dwelt, shall ye not do: and after the doings of the land of Canaan, whither I bring you, shall ye not do: neither shall ye walk in their ordinances. Ye shall do my judgments, and keep mine ordinances, to walk therein: I am the LORD your God. Ye shall therefore keep my statutes, and my judgments: which if a man do, he shall live in them: I am the LORD.” - Leviticus 18:1-5. Once again, I will stress that many of these laws are no longer valid to us as Christian's, but the concept of the law still applies. Although I have not listed the passages, if you read the chapters, you will understand what I am saying here. Think about it, do you know how many diseases come from eating an animal that has died for whatever reason? Whatever disease an animal has or even eats gets into our bodies when we eat it. Why do you think there are so many sick and obese people out there? It really is our diet, even the healthy foods that we think are good for us are making us sick and obese because of what is in the animal and even the grains and produce we eat as well. As for all immoral acts done with our bodies, this includes the substances that we put in them as well, you know what they are and you know that you are doing wrong. That is why people who live in the world stay away from God, they know it is wrong.

We are children of God, just like the Israelite's, that means that we are to start acting like it and not do the things that we see or have done while we were in the world either. Yes, we may have done some things while in the world that we were ignorant to, but that does not mean that we can still do them now. “Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ? shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an harlot? God forbid. What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.” - I Corinthians 6:15-20. It is time to put away all the things that defile our bodies and treat it with respect. I have been in the world and have seen and done many things that defiled my body, but now I know and respect that my body is the Temple of God and needs to be treated like one. Think about it, does anyone really respect a person who lives immorally? I never known anyone to. Praise God that He has forgiven every act that we have done with our bodies and that Jesus made an atonement for them. He always forgives those who slip up once in a while, but be careful not to take advantage of God's mercy and grace as He will not take too kindly to that either. Remember, He knows our hearts and what our agendas are and will not condone anyone for disrespecting Him by seeking salvation just to continue to live in sin.

Enjoy the rest of your day/night and God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina

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