Keep the Sacrifice of Jesus Visible (4/16/12)

Shalom,

Please begin by reading Lev 6:8-13.

This passage explains the responsibility of the priests concerning the altar of burnt offerings. The fire was to be kept burning throughout the day, and the offering left on the altar through the night. Someone stayed and ensured the fire didn't go out. Verse 13, "The fire must be kept burning on the altar continuously; it must not go out."

In the morning one of the priests had to remove the ashes. First, he would put on his priestly linen clothes and remove the ashes to the side of the altar. There are miracles reported during this process. At times the priest removing the ashes from then altar would report that the ashes disappeared when he shoveled them out. Now, this couldn't be a very nice job to do in your "dress" clothes, especially when they're made of linen. Then he's instructed to change before carrying the ashes outside the camp. The "other" clothes he put on aren't specified, but the root word means substitute. He couldn't wear his linen ones outside the tabernacle area.

This was probably the most visible process of the ongoing sacrificial system. Every day you could watch the removal of the ashes. Given that these ashes are taken outside the camp to a "ceremonially clean place," I'm sure you had to be careful about how closely you approached the priest as he did his duty. Every day the evidence of sacrifice for sins was seen by the people who watched this priest remove the ashes. Today we have crosses as symbols to remind us, but I believe this ongoing task was much more noticed by the general population.

Crucifixion was a strong symbol of Roman power. It declared the sovereignty of the Caesars over the known world. And yet Jesus submitted to it knowing he would establish his Lordship through his great sacrifice. A crucifixion was a total loss of power, an absolute degradation of humanity, and a certain tool of death. Jesus used it to point the way to salvation, to make possible the way of salvation. He put himself on display for all to see. His sacrifice on our behalf wasn't done in private, but in the most publicly degrading way.

It's in this display of sacrifice and human weakness that we learn what true power is. Jesus overcame every evil dominion, every evil power broker, and every evil ruler or leader. He was willing to embrace death on behalf of others knowing he would emerge as a glorious King. Just as the ashes are of the sacrifice were put on display every day, Jesus put himself on display for all to see. And in offering himself in this way, all power and authority shifted to his shoulders. Roman power may have still been in place politically, but the spiritual realm was now fully in the hands of our Messiah Jesus.

Our work as his disciples is to ensure that as many humans as possible know of his sacrifice on our behalf. Many people will mock us and call us fools, but that's what Yahweh has already told us would happen. 1 Cor 1:25 says, "The foolishness of Elohim is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of Elohim is stronger than man's strength." The least intelligent part of Yahweh is more intelligent than any human. The weakest part of Yahweh is stronger than the most muscle-bound human. Don't be swayed by man's ideas or opinions. Stay strong in presenting the answer to every man's sin problem.

Sin is the pervading and ongoing problem of all mankind. But we Christians have an answer to that problem. 1 John 2:2 says, "Yeshua himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only ours but also for the sins of the whole world." Everyone, and that means every individual human on the face of the earth, can find release from their condemnation by accepting the redemption found in our Savior's sacrifice. No one's sin is automatically covered. They must seek the mercy available for themselves.

We do need to remember that every sin ever committed by every person who's ever lived will be punished in one of two ways. Either Yahweh's wrath will be satisfied when the unrepentant and unbelieving pay for their own sin in Hell, or his wrath is appeased by our receiving salvation because of Jesus' sacrifice on the cross. So we either accept that Jesus took the punishment we deserve by asking him to cleanse us of our sins, or we pay the price in full by our eternal separation from our Creator.

Atonement is best explained through the Mosaic sacrificial system. These sacrifices teach us that there's a way of escaping the consequences of our sin, allowing us to approach our heavenly Father. We learn that through the death of another, forgiveness is offered. Substitutionary death is what the sacrificial animals gave Old Testament believers. Substitutionary death is what Jesus offers to us now. His sacrifice is sufficient for every sin we ever commit. We don't have to keep offering another sacrifice each time we sin, we can keep receiving redemption and atonement from the "once for all" sacrifice of Jesus (Heb 7:27). Now we must abide by 1 John 1:9. "If we confess our sins, Yeshua is trustworthy and righteous to forgive us our sins."

There are theological arguments about whether all sin is automatically forgiven by Jesus' sacrifice. Yes, the Cross has indeed atoned for all sin and met Yahweh's righteous demand for a blood sacrifice. But no one's sins are removed until they personally admit their human weakness and the necessity of receiving this free gift of salvation found only in Jesus' sacrificial death. The power to forgive all sin is found in what Jesus did in substitutionary death on our behalf. The receiving of that forgiveness only comes when a repentant heart cries out for mercy.

The Way of the Cross is the only means of bridging the deep chasm between our righteousness and Yahweh's. It's impossible to get to Heaven without divine help. People need to be reminded over and over and over again of this compelling truth. Yahweh has condemned the whole world, and judged us all to be wicked. He's absolutely just and right in handing down punishment for our sin. If we refuse his offer of salvation, we're rightly condemned and deserve eternal punishment. But Yahweh didn't leave us without a solution to our problem. "For Yahweh so loved the world" are some of our very favorite words, and they should be (John 3:16).

Our heavenly Father gave us a way to be freed from our condemnation. He gave us the solution to our sin problem. He gave us the way to live a better life, a way to receive eternal life. And it didn't cost us anything. We don't have to personally atone for our sins. We don't have to do penance to be accepted. We have to admit our sin guilt and then receive mercy and grace. Our pardon is just sitting and waiting for us to acknowledge that we've done wrong. Our pardon is already in place, awaiting our guilty plea.

Most humans look at justice as a way of being cruel and inhuman to others. Most figure that justice has to be hard, mean, cruel, demoralizing, and absolute. But Yahweh can balance his justice with his love perfectly. Our heavenly Father is absolutely in power over all mankind, yet he loves us so deeply that he made a way for us to overcome our sin. Yahweh isn't a human who will "exact justice" to appease his sense of betrayal or to get even for harm done. Our Father in Heaven is justice and truth and righteousness. He will do what's right for each and every individual human who ever walked the face of this earth, even if that means removing them from his presence because they refused to accept his pardon for their sins.

Mankind is so wrapped up with the things of this world that many have no clue where they're headed eternally. They haven't realized that where they're going they'll lose all power, money, and authority. They'll be spending eternity in a desolate place of absolute and utter destruction. They're ultimately trading a few years of being their own god for an eternity of suffering. That's why we need to keep placing the sacrifice of Jesus before their faces. We need to give them as many opportunities to receive Jesus as we possibly can.

We've been given a great gift. Yahweh wants to guide us to eternal peace and security. He wants to guide us to eternal riches beyond anything we can think or imagine. The Body of Christ must keep the sacrifice of Jesus in front of everyone's faces to ensure that they have every opportunity to accept Jesus as their Savior. True disciples of Jesus don't sit back and savor their own salvation while ignoring the lost dying all around them. We use our gift. We speak of Jesus. We live as righteous followers of his Word. We put his Words into practice in our daily lives. We offer hope and peace to all who will listen.

We're not speaking condemnation when we tell of the possibilities of Heaven or Hell, but some people hear it in our words because they focus totally on Hell. It all comes down to how they receive our words of ultimate grace and mercy. 1 Cor 2:15 says, "We are to Elohim the fragrance of Messiah among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing." Both the saved and the lost pick up the scent of Jesus on us. But now look at verse 16. "To the one we are the smell of death, and to the other the fragrance of life to life." To the ones who smell death when we share Jesus with them, what we're doing seems cruel and harsh. The scent they pick up will be based on their interpretation of what we speak. If they feel condemned for their sin, they smell some of the fire and brimstone awaiting them. If they smell Heaven, they enjoy life to life."

We can't quit speaking the truth about the sacrifice of Jesus because of anyone's displeasure with our words. We're not condemning anyone, we're showing them the path to complete and total peace. Be a good priest and do your duty. Keep putting the Cross in front of people's faces so they have to acknowledge it's place in their lives.

Blessings & Peace, Mike