The Atonement

The Atonement

By: Ptr. Alfredo M. Inso Jr

Introduction:

Way back to our study last Sunday about “Christ the great High priest” we learned many things by the grace of God. We learned the duties of the preists, they are the ones who made sacrifices for the sins of the people and offered it to God. Most of all we learned from that study and embraced the majesty and the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ as our Great High priest who can symphatize in our weaknesses for He was also tempted just as we are tempted, yet without sin and He is able to save to the uttermost, anyone who will come to God through faith. Second importance of that message is that Christ as our Great High Priest offered not the blood of those perishable and insufficient animal sacrifices, but he offered up Himself as a sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins forever.

The topic for this morning titled “The Atonement” is not different and difinitely not apart from last Sunday’s message in fact it is the very main point of what we talked about last meeting. But in order to understand this message more further we must understand from the Scripture itself what is the atonement, what is the atonement all about, what is the importance of the atonement and why is it important and lastly what will it do for Christ and for His people. We may not again cover all things in detail but we will make sure, by the help of God, to present it clearly and boldly so that everyone will understand and the glory will goes to the Lord. Amen

I. What is The Atonement.

Atonement – Heb. Kaphar means to cover, to appease, cleanse, disannul, forgive, be

merciful, pardon, putoff or make reconciliation. Atonement is to make

satisfaction for sins/offences. It is a necessary sacrifice to make inorder to

take away the offences made and thereby forgiven.

Scriptures: Ex. 32:30; Lev 4:20,26; 5:16; Lev 8:34; 10:17; 14:21;

16:6,10,23;17:11; 19:22; Nu 16:46; 2 Chro 29:24.

Ex 32:30 And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses said unto the people, Ye have sinned a great sin: and now I will go up unto the LORD; perhaps I shall make an atonement for your sin.

Le 4:20 And he shall do with the bull as he did with the bull for a sin offering, so shall he do with this: and the priest shall make an atonement for them, and it shall be forgiven them.

Le 4:26 And he shall burn all his fat upon the altar, as the fat of the sacrifice of peace offerings: and the priest shall make an atonement for him as concerning his sin, and it shall be forgiven him.

Le 5:16 And he shall make amends for the harm that he hath done in the holy thing, and shall add the fifth part thereto, and give it unto the priest: and the priest shall make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering, and it shall be forgiven him.

Le 8:34 As he hath done this day, so the LORD hath commanded to do, to make an atonement for you.

Le 10:17 Wherefore have ye not eaten the sin offering in the holy place, seeing it is most holy, and God hath given it you to bear the iniquity of the congregation, to make atonement for them before the LORD?

Le 14:21 And if he be poor, and cannot get so much; then he shall take one lamb for a trespass offering to be waved, to make an atonement for him, and one tenth deal of fine flour mingled with oil for a meat offering, and a log of oil;

Le 16:6 And Aaron shall offer his bull of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house.

Le 16:10 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.

Le 17:11 For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.

Le 19:22 And the priest shall make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering before the LORD for his sin which he hath done: and the sin which he hath done shall be forgiven him.

Nu 16:46 And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a censer, and put fire therein from off the altar, and put on incense, and go quickly unto the congregation, and make an atonement for them: for there is wrath gone out from the LORD; the plague is begun.

2Ch 29:24 And the priests killed them, and they made reconciliation with their blood upon the altar, to make an atonement for all Israel: for the king commanded that the burnt offering and the sin offering should be made for all Israel.

The Scriptures answered indeed our questions concerning the meaning of atonement and what is atonement all about. In Summary, atonement it is something necessary (very important) a bloody required sacrifice for the sins/offences made by a sinful creature against the Holy Creator God Almighty. The offender (that is the sinner) has something to do, to make amends (that is a sacrifice that can turn away the wrath of God, to appease) towards the offended party (that is God) inorder to satisfy the demands of God’s law and justice, and thereby to atoned his sins, to cover his sins, to pardoned him, to receive forgiveness of his sins and to be reconciled back to God.

Therefore the holiness of God necessitates the atonement and that answers our questions concerning the importance of atonement and why is it important.

Why is it important?

1. Atonement is important because God is infinitely holy and he is a just God (Lev.19:2;

Ps.7:11; Isa. 6:3; Hab. 1:13)

2. Atonement is important because of the sinfulness of man (Ps. 51:5; Jer 17:9; Ro 3:10-

20, 23; 6:23)

3. Atonement is important because God commanded it. (Lev 8:34)

II. Means of the Atonement.

Based on the Scriptures above it is very clear that God is the the one who gave the instruction to Moses and Aaron what they ought to do in making atonement and that includes the means for it (What is to sacrifice and how they are going to sacrifice it) Therefore to do that is not already commanded by God or that is not according to what God had said in His word and to disobey His instructions is hereby an offence, a transgression, a violation, a lawlessness, a sin against the Holy Judge and King Almighty God.

III. Atonement accompanied Sacrifices

Have you not notice whenever the atonement had been made there is always a sacrifice. You cannot make an atoment for your sins apart from a sacrifices wether it is a bloody sacrifices or not in making atonement for sins it is necessary to have a sacrifice. Especially when God reqiures a bloody sacrifices for the atonement of sins. In ancient times God reuired them to sacrifice an animal and its blood inorder to atoned their sins against Him but they repeatedly doing it day after day, month after month and year after year. It’s just only to remind them of their sins and an unsufficient offering

IV. The Insufficiency of the Blood of Animal Sacrifices.

(Read Heb. 10:1-21)

Yes its true that the sacrifices in the Old Testament were given by God inorder to have an atonement for their sins, but it was only a shadow of the reality, a copy of a far more better things to come. Because they never ceased to offer sacrifices that cannot blot out their sins completely and forever. “Fo it is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins” (v.4)

Therefore when Christ came into this world He said:

5 Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:

6 In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.

7 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.

By that will He takes away the first (which is the insufficient bloody sacrifices of animals for the atonement of their sins) to establish the second and now we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ who is the ultimitate fulfillment and the perfect sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins forever once and for all (not unlimited). It is sufficient for His own people, His sheep.

V. Atonement (Reconcilation) through Christ

The significance of the shedding of blood in the Old Testament sacrifices (Lev. 17:10) it points to the bloody sacrifice of Christ on the cross which through it we have now received atonement (reconciliation).

Scriptures are:

2 Co 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed

away; behold, all things are become new.

18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ,

and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;

19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not

imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of

reconciliation.

Eph 2:13 But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the

blood of Christ.

14 For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the

middle wall of partition between us;

15 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments

contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so

making peace;

16 And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having

slain the enmity thereby:

Col 1:20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all

things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in

heaven.

21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked

works, yet now hath he reconciled

22 In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and

unreproveable in his sight:

Heb 2:17 Wherefore in all things He had to made him to be made like unto his brethren,

that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God,

to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.

VI. Christ Suffered and Died to Redeem His People

Isa 53:12 Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

Joh 10:11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.

Joh 12:23 And Jesus answered them, saying, The hour is come, that the Son of man should be glorified.

Joh 12:24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

Ro 5:6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

Ro 14:9 For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.

1Co 15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;

2Co 5:15 And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.

Col 1:22 In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:

Heb 2:9 But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.

Re 5:9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;

VII. Redemption Through Christ

Ro 3:24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

1Co 1:30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:

Ga 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:

Col 1:14 In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:

Tit 2:14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

Heb 9:12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

1Pe 1:18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;

It is very clear what the Holy Scripture says that it is only Christ and through Christ and by His sacrifice and blood we are justified having forgiveness of sins, reconciliation and redemption and sanctification. Redemption from sins and curse from the law by becoming a curse fo us. Oh! what an amazing and glorious and love-bound grace of God!

We are absolutely undeserving and unworthy of all these! God entirely brought His people back into His loving arms by the death of His Son Jesus Christ. May all Christians know this better and in one accord proclaiming this doctrine to the world outside and blows out the soul of those in oppositions!

Conclution:

Therefore as we have now received reconciliation towards the Holy God and our sins were already atoned, pardoned and forgiven through the blood of Christ who became the sacrifice for the atonement of our sins forever. He satisfied the demand of God’s law and justice and God was appeased, His wrath turned away and the people of God who came to Him through faith in His Son Jesus Christ are now justified and sanctified through His blood. Are there still reasons of doubt, and fear and shame why not to stand for Christ and proudly proclaim His Name? May the message torn your hearts into pieces and intimately grab to love Christ more than your life. To Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen