25 September Leviticus 16

The ultimate sacrifice of Jesus

Leviticus 16:21-22 (NIV) “He is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat and confess over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites—all their sins—and put them on the goat’s head. He shall send the goat away into the wilderness in the care of someone appointed for the task. The goat will carry on itself all their sins to a remote place; and the man shall release it in the wilderness”.

This chapter might be the most important one in the book of Leviticus because it discusses the Day of Atonement. On this special day, the High Priest entered the Holy of Holies once a year to offer a sacrifice to make up for his sins and the sins of all the people.

Thanks to Jesus, the price for our disobedience to God has been paid, and our sins are covered and wholly taken away. The New Testament often explains that the Day of Atonement and everything connected was a preview of what Jesus would do. Jesus is the sacrifice that takes away our sins. By God's grace, all the people of Israel’s sins and impurities were dealt with once a year, allowing them to start fresh. God provided a way to cleanse and purify people from every sin so they could stay close to Him. Jesus is the sacrifice for the whole world, making this possible. The writer of Hebrews goes into more detail about this idea in his letter.

Hebrews 9:6-10 (NIV) “When everything had been arranged like this, the priests entered regularly into the outer room to carry on their ministry. But only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance. The Holy Spirit was showing by this that the way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed as long as the first tabernacle was still functioning. This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper. They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings—external regulations applying until the time of the new order”. This is further explained in Hebrews 7:26-28 (NIV) “Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. For the law appoints as high priests men in all their weakness; but the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been made perfect forever”.

In conclusion, Leviticus 16 highlights the Day of Atonement as a crucial event where the High Priest would symbolically place the people's sins onto a goat and send it away, signifying the removal of their sins. This act foreshadowed the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus, who took away the world's sins once and for all. The New Testament, especially the Book of Hebrews, emphasises that while the rituals of the Day of Atonement were necessary under the old covenant, they were only temporary measures. Jesus, our perfect High Priest, offered Himself as the final and complete sacrifice, fulfilling what the Day of Atonement pointed to. Through Jesus, our sins are not just covered but wholly taken away, allowing us to be in a close, purified relationship with God. His sacrifice was once and for all time, making it possible for us to live in the freedom and grace of the new covenant.