The Jewish feast of Yom Kippur ended at dark yesterday. The Jews consider Yom Kippur, also known as the 'Day of Atonement' to be the holiest day of the year. It is a time of personal reflection and prayer. It is a day of reconciliation, when Jews strive to make amends with others and to draw closer to God through prayer and fasting. The Day of Atonement was the day the high priest went into the Holy of Holies each year to offer a blood sacrifice for his own sins and the people's accumulated sins. The Book of Hebrews draws on the ritual of the Day of Atonement to demonstrate the supremacy of Christ's priesthood. In Hebrews 9:7-12 the author points out that Christ entered once for all and offered his own blood as a sacrifice for his people. The ritual of the Day of Atonement was a shadow of things to come; now that Christ has come, the ritual is obsolete. The Gospels, similarly, teach that the curtain between the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place split open at the moment of Christ's death in proof that the final and perfect atonement for sin had been made. So, although the ritual is obsolete, does that mean that we should no longer recognize this holiest of days? I think not. Yom Kippur (The Day of Atonement) should be a reminder of what Christ has done for us- how Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice in our place. It should be a day of repentance, prayer, & fasting. Additionally, Yom Kippur points to the day of the Second Coming of Messiah when He will return to earth. That will be the Day of Atonement for the Jewish remnant when they "look upon Him whom they have pierced," repent of their sins, and receive Him as their Messiah.
But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. Heb 9:11-12
Senior Leader Frank Dodson
But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. Heb 9:11-12
Senior Leader Frank Dodson
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