A Perfect World 3 - Perfect PRICE

State the NEED

Man’s Problem = Sin

Man was with God

Man’s sin SEPARATED himself from God

· Sins of COMMISSION – doing bad

· Sins of OMISSION – not doing right

· To him that knows to do right and doeth it not, to HIM it is sin.

Guilty of Sin

· We are all guilty of sin (James 2:10).

· The word ‘guilt’ appears over and over again in (Leviticus 4:3,13,22,27; 5:2,3,4,5).

God Demands Justice from the entire world

· We are all guilty but are unable to pay for our crimes against God.

Romans 3:23 NLT

23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.

· If God were to meet out absolute justice to planet earth on those terms, then all of us would be incinerated immediately.

God’s Penalty for Man’s Sin = Death

· There is a penalty for sin (Lev 5:5–6).

· the penalty for sin is death (Romans 6:23).

Romans 6:23 NLT

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord.

Man is DEFILED, God wants us RECONCILED

Forgiveness Requires (Demands) Atonement for sin (Leviticus 4:31,35; 5:10,13)

God’s Provision for Man’s Sin = Atonement

God loves mankind so much that He did not want to be without him.

Therefore, God made a way for reconciliation

Leviticus 23:26–28 (NLT)

Leviticus 23:26–28 NLT

26 Then the Lord said to Moses, 27 “Be careful to celebrate the Day of Atonement on the tenth day of that same month—nine days after the Festival of Trumpets. You must observe it as an official day for holy assembly, a day to deny yourselves and present special gifts to the Lord. 28 Do no work during that entire day because it is the Day of Atonement, when offerings of purification are made for you, making you right with the Lord your God.

HOLINESS – The holiest day in the Jewish year

Atonement = Reconciliation, Amends

· repairing a wrong or injury

· One definition of atonement is ‘the action of making amends for a wrong or injury that brings two parties together as one’ – hence the word ‘at-one-ment’.

· the reconciliation of God and humankind through Jesus Christ

· The Day of Atonement is a divine appointment between you and God - when you meet before the Ark of the Covenant and honor Him with sacrifice.

Atonement is God’s Reset Button

· reset to the garden of Eden (birthday of the World, celebrating God as the Creator)

· return to a pristine state

Atonement in the OT = sacrifices

· The elaborate sacrifices described in this passage were preparing the people for the one perfect sacrifice of Jesus who died for you and me (the guilty) so that we might receive the mercy of God.

Atonement Requires Confession of Sin

Jewish people traditionally observe this holy day with an approximate 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue services.

On this day forgiveness of sins is also asked of God.

prayer services also include private and public confessions of sins

· confess that sin before God

· regretting having committed the sin

· resolving not to commit that sin in the future

Atonement Requires a Perfect Sacrifice

Atonement Requires a Perfect High Priest

OT = One man

OT = EVERY YEAR

· This was one gracious day a year given by God that each individual could receive forgiveness. The high priest entered the holy of holies to make atonement for the nation by sacrificing animals including two goats. (Represents Jews and Gentiles)

· During the time of Jesus, the High Priest was to perform a complex set of special services and sacrifices for Yom Kippur in order to attain Divine atonement.

· These services were considered to be the most important parts of Yom Kippur because through them the (High Priest) made atonement for all Jews and the world.

· During the service, the (High Priest) entered the Holy of Holies located in the center of the Temple, the only time of the year that anyonewent inside.

· Ministry required special purification and preparation, including five immersions in a ritual bath, and four changes of clothing.

Jesus is our Atonement!

· The Day of Atonement has deep theological significance in the New Testament.

· the Day of Atonement was specifically fulfilled when Jesus died on the cross

· Only Jesus can make us (America) at one with God.

Jesus is Our High Priest (sinless)

One man = JESUS

One time = JESUS

Hebrews chapters 8-10 pointed forward to Christ's work as priest.

Hebrews 9:7 NLT

7 But only the high priest ever entered the Most Holy Place, and only once a year. And he always offered blood for his own sins and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance.

Hebrews 9:11–12 NLT

11 So Christ has now become the High Priest over all the good things that have come. He has entered that greater, more perfect Tabernacle in heaven, which was not made by human hands and is not part of this created world. 12 With his own blood—not the blood of goats and calves—he entered the Most Holy Place once for all time and secured our redemption forever.

Acts 13:38–39 NLT

38 “Brothers, listen! We are here to proclaim that through this man Jesus there is forgiveness for your sins. 39 Everyone who believes in him is made right in God’s sight—something the law of Moses could never do.

· Jesus made atonement for your sins

· Ultimately, it is only Jesus who made the perfect atonement for our sins (Hebrews 2:17).

· Jesus Cleanses vs covers sin (1 John 1:9)

Jesus was the perfect Atonement Sacrifice

· The sacrifice had to be ‘without defect’ (Leviticus 4:3,28,32).

· Ultimately, it was only Jesus – who was without sin – who could be the perfect sacrifice (Hebrews 5:9).

Hebrews 5:9 NLT

9 In this way, God qualified him as a perfect High Priest, and he became the source of eternal salvation for all those who obey him.

Jesus died as a sacrifice of atonement

· Yom Kippur focuses on Christ's sacrifice and atonement for sins.

· The OT Law demanded an elaborate sacrificial system of ‘sin offerings’ (Leviticus 4:3,29,33,34; 5:9,11,12).

· A lamb was brought as a sin offering (Leviticus 4:32).

· The guilty person had to lay their hands on its head.

· The lamb died as a sin offering to take away sin.

Jesus is the Lamb of God

· Jesus is ‘The Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’ (John 1:29).

· Jesus died as the ‘sacrifice of atonement’ (Romans 3:25) for your sin and mine.

·

Jesus’ blood was shed for you

· The priest had to take some of ‘the blood of the sin offering... and pour out the rest of the blood’ (Leviticus 4:34).

· The blood represented the life of the animal (17:11).

· Pouring out the blood was symbolic of the fact that the animal had died.

· This was in the place of the person making the sacrifice.

· The blood of Jesus was poured out for you and me (Matthew 26:28).

Matthew 26:28 NLT

28 for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many.

Jesus has made God’s mercy available to all

· The words ‘forgiveness’ and ‘forgiven’ appear over and over again (Leviticus 4:20,26,31,35; 5:10,13).

· ‘Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness’ (Hebrews 9:22).

Hebrews 9:22 NLT

22 In fact, according to the law of Moses, nearly everything was purified with blood. For without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.

· Through Jesus’ blood, forgiveness of sins is possible (Ephesians 1:7).

Ephesians 1:7 NLT

7 He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.

· As a result, God’s mercy is available for you and me.

The Blood of Jesus Perfects your Spirit

The Day of Atonement is a divine appointment between you and God - when you meet before the Ark of the Covenant and honor Him with sacrifice.

Prayer of thanks

Lord, thank you so much that I no longer have to go through these elaborate processes to obtain mercy and forgiveness. Thank you that total forgiveness is available for me through Jesus. Thank you that in your great love for me you are ‘rich in mercy’ (2:4).

Prayer for GRACE

– to change, break the cycle, that sins be smaller, fewer and farther between