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Above and Beyond

Sabbath School Net Posted on by avatar

I spent some time looking for a good example of atonement, this week. It was more difficult than I expected because so many of the examples I found equate atonement with forgiveness – synonyms. I have to admit, that I have thought of them as the same as well. But when I look at the description of the things that happened on the Day of Atonement, there’s something more going on there above and beyond forgiveness.

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See, all the rest of the year (and even throughout the Day of Atonement) sacrifices were happening to forgive individuals of their individual sins – a person would bring his lamb to the tabernacle, lay his hand on the head of the lamb and confess his sin, kill the lamb and then the priest would carry the blood of that sacrifice into the Holy Place. Symbolically then, that’s where the sin of that person stayed, until the Day of Atonement. On that day, the High Priest would offer a sacrifice to effect forgiveness for his own sins, and then he would do something very different. He would take two goats, present them both to the Lord at the entrance to the Tabernacle and then draw lots to tell which goat would be the Lord’s goat (the sin offering) and which one would be the scapegoat.

“Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering, which is for the people, bring its blood inside the veil … and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat. So he shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions, for all their sins; and so he shall do for the tabernacle of meeting which remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness. There shall be no man in the tabernacle of meeting when he goes in to make atonement in the Holy Place, until he comes out, that he may make atonement for himself, for his household, and for all the assembly of Israel. And he shall go out to the altar that is before the Lord, and make atonement for it, and shall take some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the goat, and put it on the horns of the altar all around. Then he shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times, cleanse it, and consecrate it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel. “And when he has made an end of atoning for the Holy Place, the tabernacle of meeting, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat. Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, confess over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, concerning all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat, and shall send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a suitable man. The goat shall bear on itself all their iniquities to an uninhabited land; and he shall release the goat in the wilderness.” Leviticus 16:15-22

What I learned this week is that the goat that becomes the Lord’s goat has not had any sins confessed over it and no hands laid upon it, so it is “sinless.” That way its blood symbolically cleanses away all of the sins that have been piling up in the sanctuary all year long. Then all of those sins are confessed over the scapegoat, who is not killed but led out into the wilderness never to be seen again – essentially carrying with it all of those sins that had been in the sanctuary. So now, the sanctuary is cleansed of those sins for another year. Atonement is not about forgiveness because those sins were already forgiven when the individual made his sacrifice. Atonement is something more. It’s erasing the evidence of those sins. Here’s an example of what I’m trying to say from a book called, Temptations Men Face by Tom Eisenmann.

“Several years ago I heard Bob Sheffield of the Navigators tell a moving story … Before he became a Christian, Bob played professional hockey in Canada. He was tough, loved to fight, and found himself in jail one night after a barroom brawl. Later, Bob and his wife became Christians. They…accepted a temporary assignment with The Navigators…in the States.

“Bob had to apply for landed immigrant status, which would allow him and his wife to continue in ministry in the United States. But because he had a criminal record, his request was denied…. They decided to apply in Canada for what is called the ‘Queen’s Pardon.’ Following thorough investigation, the pardon was granted. Bob Sheffield received the following notice in the mail:

“Whereas we have since been implored on behalf of the said Robert Jones Sheffield to extend a pardon to him in respect to the convictions against him, and whereas the solicitor general here submitted a report to us, now know ye therefore, having taken these things into consideration, that we are willing to extend the royal clemency on him, the said Robert J. Sheffield. We have pardoned, remitted, and released him of every penalty to which he was liable in pursuance thereof.

“On any document from that time forward on which Bob was asked if he had a criminal record, he could honestly answer no. The pardon meant he was released from any possible punishment for the crimes, and the record of the crimes themselves was completely erased.

That is the kind of pardon we have in Jesus Christ. We are set free from any penalty or punishment. When asked, the answer is, ‘no record, pardoned by the blood of Christ.’1

So, since Adam and Eve believed the serpent’s lie and sinned in the Garden of Eden, the sins that Jesus died to forgive have been piling up in the heavenly sanctuary. But since 1844, Jesus has been going through the heavenly sanctuary and putting those sins right where they belong, on the head of Satan. Then during the thousand years when we’re in heaven, Satan will be wandering this empty earth, carrying the ultimate blame for all the sins in the entire history of the world. What that means for each of us who have given our hearts to Jesus is, when our name is called and our file taken before the great Judge, instead of being so big it has to be brought in by the truckload, it contains one pristinely blank page to which God adds a giant WELCOME HOME stamp.

“For my pardon, this I see, Nothing but the blood of Jesus; For my cleansing this my plea, Nothing but the blood of Jesus. Refrain Oh! precious is the flow That makes me white as snow; No other fount I know, Nothing but the blood of Jesus.”2

You and I only have one responsibility in this process – accept Christ’s sacrifice to cover our sin. I do – do you?

  1. Tom L. Eisenman, Temptations Men Face (Intervarsity, 1992), pp. 21-22 ↩
  2. Words & Music: Robert Lowry, in Gos­pel Mu­sic, by William Doane and Robert Lowry (New York: Biglow & Main, 1876) ↩
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Above and Beyond — 32 Comments

  1. Satan will not bear "all the sins in the entire history of the world", but only his sin and the sin of those who have found refuge in the Sanctuary. The wicked will bear the wages of their own sin, having rejected the Lamb of God who would have taken the sin of the whole world had they let Him. The wicked will share in the fire prepared for the devil and his angels.

    The wicked will be any person who clings to or harbors sin in their life. Even one "little" sin. Jesus takes all or none of our sin(notice the singular form)and "cleanses us from all unrighteousness".

    Tragic that any from Adam's race would choose to share in the final destruction of sinners when God devised a way to escape it, before the world began and offered it on the very day sin entered our race.

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  2. Would the atonement be complete without the transfering of sin to the scapegoat? If no would we say then the scapegoat had a role in erasing the sins from the people?

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    • Yes, Whele, according to Lev 16:20, the atonement in the type was complete before the sins were placed on Azazel. (Also see Tuesday's lesson, "Azazel.".) The sanctuary was cleansed when the responsibility for sin rolls back on Satan.

      In the antitype, Satan has nothing to do with our salvation. As I understand it, the typical service demonstrates what will happen to Satan at the end of the pre-Advent judgment: The universe will see that Satan is wholly responsible for sin and God is righteous, thus placing the responsibility for his own sins and the sins of the righteous on Satan before he is condemned to live in the "wilderness" of this destroyed planet for a thousand years, along with his band of fallen angels (also known as demons).

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      • Whele and Inge, as I read Lev 16:10, it seems to clearly state that the goat of removal is "to make atonement with him" (the goat of removal). There is only one way I can reconcile that thought.

        First of all Whele, the sin is no longer on the people, having been placed on the One who died for them, who is Himself faultless, and having already received the penalty for those sins that He took upon Himself for us, He is clear to remove the record of those forgiven sins with the accuser. By removing the accuser, the last reminder of those sins is removed forever.

        Now imagine you are in heaven, standing before the Lord and the accuser comes up and before everyone present brings up your sinful past. Would you feel "at one" with God? Now God has promised to remind us of our sins "no more" (Isa 43:25) and with the accuser removed forever, there is no more reminder, and our reconciliation (at-one-ment) is complete.

        We have a wonderful example of this in John 8, when Jesus removed the accusers of the woman taken in adultery. With no one to accuse (including Jesus who could not, being neither a witness or the woman's husband, who alone could bring her to the law with the other guilty party) she could no longer be accused, and this moved her to confess/repent and from that hour became one of Jesus' closest followers. (See Desire of Ages)

        I believe our at-one-ment with God depends also on the record of our past sins being no longer remembered. Notice, it has to do with at-one-ment, not our salvation. We could be "saved" but still reminded of our past, which would ruin the perfect peace that is promised.

        I believe the removal of the accuser brings a vital component that allows perfect peace with God, though we have already been saved from our sins by His grace. This type reveals how completely God forgives. It will be as if we had never sinned! We will be presented as faultless in God's presence. (Jude 24)

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        • The "accuser" can be removed/erased without sin being placed on it/him. God knows the end from the beginning - and he does not forget. He will cleanse our memory; but what of His?

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        • Hurford, the type reveals only that the record is removed by the removal of the accuser. God has promised "...I will remember your sins no more." (Isa 43:25) and with the accuser of the brethren removed, no one is left who would wish to bring up the past which God has removed from the sinner by the blood of Jesus. This doesn't mean God erases His memory, He just doesn't bring it up. When He sees the righteous character of the redeemed as they worship Him "in the beauty of holiness", their past will be irrelevant to Him, just as the mistakes of your children when little are "forgotten" when they become mature men and women who make you proud.

          The meaning in Isaiah 43:5 can be "mention" or "remind", as in digging up the past, and does not have to designate erased from God's memory. How could that happen to One who is Infinite?

          The sins are removed from sinners who repent and believe in the Lamb of God. The Sacrifice for sin was without sin and does not retain the guilt of those sins, though the penalty was paid for. The record is erased from all thought when the only one interested in bringing it up is removed. The Sanctuary will not remain once sin and all sinners are destroyed, for there will be no more need of it. John saw no more temple in the Holy City. God and the Lamb will be the "temple".

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        • The word kaphar, translated atonement, has many different meanings in Hebrew. (Click on the link and take a look.)

          Lev 16:20 says that the atonement for the tabernacle, and by implication its cleansing, is complete before the sins are placed on the scape goat. In Hebrew the meaning of words depends very much on context, so what does it mean to "make an atonement with him" (kaphar) when it refers to the scape goat?

          I like your comparison of how Jesus removed the accusers from the woman caught in adultery. It is powerful.

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  3. Thank you Lillianne! I think what you are saying, about the evidence of sin being removed is what Paul is talking about in Hebrews 10:2 where he says, "because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins."

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    • William, while I think the verse applies in some sense, what Paul was referring to was not the scapegoat type, but the sin offerings, which purged the sins of those who offered them by faith. He goes on to say that those who relied on the sacrifices, were disappointed. They were only animals, given as a lesson which wasn't learned. Jesus then came and abolished those types and became the Surety for all who believe and receive Him as their Savior.

      It is through God's mercy and grace that we become saved from our sins and from sinning. There was an intentional purpose to all this, but few accept it fully and receive the benefits of salvation as it is intended to be experienced. We are to become free of sin. No, not as it aware of it and boasting about it, but by fully abiding in Christ daily, hourly, fully realizing our need of His constant grace in our lives. We become yoked together with Him and follow wherever He leads. This is how we show faith in His atoning sacrifice, which Israel was to have done by faith in what the types were given to teach. It requires complete surrender of our will and full knowledge and acceptance of God's will for us. There's a beautiful prayer for this experience in Psalm 119:33-40.

      The scapegoat will be useless for any who do not fully experience the salvation which faith in the Sin Offering brings to all who receive Him and believe on His name. (John 1:12)

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    • William, doesn't this add another twist to the story?
      Implications
      1. Isn't Paul saying in Heb 10 that Jesus takes the sin of the worshipers? He died because their sin was laid on Him (not the sanctuary)?
      2. "Sanctuary is where God meets with His people" as you and others argued earlier. So our sin is transferred by the blood to the Church, where God meets with His people. How do you remove sin from the Church?
      3. Is the sin placed on the Sanctuary, where God meets with His people, or on the Sanctuary where the throne of God is?
      4. Now if Jesus Christ takes the sin of sinners who are now accepted as saints, and His death paid the penalty for that sin, isn't that sin already eradicated from existence by the death of Jesus Christ? So why is Satan to now pick up sin when Jesus Christ already paid for it by death. Sin is eradicated by blood; not by a goat that lost its way in the wilderness, isn't it?

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      • Hurford, Jesus had the sin of the world laid upon Him, and in the type, the blood (sin) was placed in various places, including the veil between the holy and most holy places, on the side opposite of the ark of the covenant. It is no longer on the sinner, but kept until God completes His final judgment of all.

        The sanctuary was never the place of meeting as our churches are today, it was only entered by the priest(s) who stood between God and the sinner. The repentant sinner came only to the altar of sacrifice in the outer court. The sanctuary is an illustration of all the components that transforms sinners to saints. It takes an atoning sacrifice to appease the eternal Law, and this was accomplished by a sinless offering. The record of this is kept before God as a witness to all creatures of His willingness to forgive and save by the only means possible; the life of the Law Giver who offered Himself so that the sinner could find atonement again.

        Once every mind is fixed through faith or unbelief, the final judgment will take place and the record of all forgiven sins removed forever. There will be no reminders of past sins, only "faultless" saints who will worship before the Lord in the beauty of true holiness. (Psalm 29:2)

        We cannot take these types too literally, but must see the truths they teach of God and His infinite mercy. Look at the story of Abraham offering Isaac, and how God provided a substitute. That is the essence of the sanctuary, with all the legal details added to satisfy any questions of God's right to save sinners from sin while other sinners must perish with their sin. It's all there, kept as a record until the final day.

        The New Jerusalem will have no sanctuary as it does now.(assuming it is now in the Holy City) It will cease to exist since it will never be needed again. (Nahum 1:9)

        What you need to understand from the sanctuary model is that the veil, upon which the blood of the sin offering is sprinkled, is Christ in type. The sins are seen on the backside (Isaiah 38:17), but not by God on the front side. This represents the sinless One bearing the penalty for the sinful one. The only blood that goes before the presence of the Lord is the sinless blood of the Lord's goat, and the bullock, which were without guilt. The Law is both satisfied and justified, and the record of all confessed and forsaken sins will be forever banished from mention again. There will be no more accuser to bring them up since he will be removed, never to return. I have come to believe that this is shown in the type by the priest confessing upon the scapegoat all the sins that were placed on the sin offering, then sending the scapegoat out of the camp. This is symbolic of the last accuser taking the accusations with him to his final destruction. This shows the completeness of God's forgiveness.

        The "sanctuary" will then be dismantled.

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        • “Upon Christ as our substitute and surety was laid the iniquity of us all. He was counted a transgressor, that He might redeem us from the condemnation of the law. The guilt of every descendant of Adam was pressing upon His heart. The wrath of God against sin, the terrible manifestation of His displeasure because of iniquity, filled the soul of His Son with consternation.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, p. 753.

          So accurate a description of what Our Lord suffered for us. (1Pt. 4:1; Rom.6:7) One who has died or suffered has been set free from sin. How can it be that Christ’s blood, which is His life(Lev.17:11-14; Deut. 12:23; John 6:53,54; Heb.13:20), takes sin into the sanctuary into the presence of His Father who had manifested such wrath against the very sin- sin which separates from God? The blood represents his resurrected life doesn’t it? Rom.6:2-5 “...How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his”.

          Remember these animals were types or symbols. They would not be resurrected at the altar where they were killed. The blood taken into the sanctuary represents the new life. Rom.4:25 “who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification”. We are not justified by Christ taking up our sins from Hades and displaying it in the Sanctuary. If he takes up sin again he would have to die again. But how did sin enter the sanctuary? Heb.1-10 chaps. tell us that the holy place represented their residence and they defiled the sanctuary by "committing" sin.

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        • Kenny, then you must explain Leviticus 16:20,21. It was the blood of the sin offerings that was sprinkled in the holy compartment, often upon the veil. Only the sinless offering of the Lord's goat went into the Most Holy place, being sprinkled onto the mercy seat as an atonement for the sins taken up and paid for by the sin offering.

          Blood does not live outside the body when poured into the ground and sprinkled upon the veil, etc. While it gives the sinner new life in Christ, it is as the priest that Jesus' resurrection might be typified, but not in the sprinkled blood. The law demands a death for sin, not a resurrection. The law, which was transgressed must be satisfied to end this controversy. The guilty blood of death for sin justifies the law of God, while the sinless blood justifies the Sacrifice and gives the right to justify the sinner who believes, repents and is transformed by grace. The new life is seen in the lamps, seven of them. In the transformed sinner, God is glorified by the holy life through the power of the Holy Spirit; the oil in the lamp.

          One other thought, since this all takes place before Jesus comes again, the resurrection would not be seen in the types. The Day of Atonement ends the earthly typical services, but the promise of the resurrection is made sure.

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        • Larry, the "healing" is the proof of faith, which alone will allow the High Priest to remove the record. Righteousness by faith is the fruit of receiving Jesus. See Titus 2:11-14.

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      • You've got it right Huford partially. The scriptures say everywhere that the Branch, Christ, builds the Temple and that's the temple in which the Father longs to dwell and does indwell.(John 17) That temple or tabernacle is the body of Christ with Christ as the head. Now it would seem as though there is another tabernacle or sanctuary that's a physical building with images of the real. Which of these do you think the Father favors?. according to Rev. all that dwell on the earth will be deceived. Those that dwell in heaven are secure.

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  4. I think it is in Leviticus that I have read that a father can offer a sacrifice in behalf of his family.

    This is affirmed by Job when every time his children had a feast, he will wake up early in the morning to offer sacrifice in behalf of his children in order to purify them "because he thought that one of them might have sinned, Job 1:4-6".

    When Jesus Christ was hanging on the cross, one of his last words was, "Father forgive them..."

    Even us when somebody wronged us instead of confronting him, to avoid complication, we just come to God in our knees and pray Father forgive this friend...

    This might not be the right place to post this question but may I get your comments please on these questions for these are also questions about forgiveness.

    Were Job's children purified by his sacrifice? Were those people asked to be forgiven by God when he was hanging on the cross forgiven? Can we ask forgiveness in behalf of the sins of other people and will they be forgiven? Thank you for you answers.

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    • Merwin, Jesus was forgiving those He was dying for, as well as those who were rejecting Him as their Savior, who cried out for His crucifixion, including those who were abusing Him as part of their execution of the sentence against Him.

      Jesus stated simply that "whoever believes and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned." Also, John 3:16 states that "whosoever believeth in him shall not perish...". We also have John 1:12.

      Ezekiel speaks of righteous Noah, Job and Daniel being unable to save any other person, but that all must be saved by their own receiving of God's grace.

      There is no saving another person who doesn't believe. We can pray for them, forgive them and entreat them, but they must choose salvation through faith in Christ's sacrifice for them. All mankind was in His petition that God "forgive them..." as He died for a fallen race, but each sinner must repent and become converted by God's grace, offered freely to "whosoever believeth".

      If it were possible to save others against their will, no one would be lost since Jesus prayed for the whole human race.

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      • Every single being who is saved has been saved against his will. By our nature we are opposed to God. He is saved by God's will.( Jn.1:13). Rom.3 says none seeks after God our thoughts are evil continually. But God "'knows' those who are His"and delivers them. Examples Jeremiah(Jer.1:5) and Paul(Gal:1:15,16). Of his disciples our Lord Jesus said "…thine they were and you gave them to me". How and when did they become God's? and again "all that the Father gives me 'will' come to me and no man can snatch them out of my hand"and will never be cast out.(John 6:37).

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        • Kenny, I think we all hear what you are saying, yet God changes our hearts if we let Him. He does not force us to go to heaven against our will. The Bible and Spirit of prophecy are very clear about that. That is why we must surrender our will.

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        • Kenny, then how is someone lost? We may have been born "at enmity with God" and not subject to His law, but we are always left with a choice aren't we? Didn't Joshua invite the people to "choose you this day..."? Didn't Adam and Eve have a choice? Didn't Abraham have a choice?...etc. I read where Daniel "purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself...", by making a choice that only 4 of the many Jewish captives made. Yet they all made a choice.

          I see all around me people choosing to be lost and a few choosing to be saved by God's grace as they exercise faith in His "exceeding great and precious promises". This is done by submitting our will to His will. Jesus invites all to "take my yoke upon you and learn of me..." but compels no one. We have been shown that there is a power in this earth that will soon compel all to "worship the beast and his image...", but this is not of God, and is in opposition to His government of freewill service.

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  5. These goats have been such a source of consternation (and in some cases worse) for too long! Not that we shouldn't discuss them, but we should have a clearer understanding now that Christ has come lived, taught and died.
    If I made dinner reservations for my wife and I at our favorite restaurant after a particularly busy week when we hardly were able to exchange more than five words, the opportunity for some a-one-ment time would be highly anticipated (maybe even sacred). An attractive waitress soon appears to take our order and our deep, interesting conversation is momentarily interrupted. Our waitress is courteous and pleasant to my wife but extra pleasant to me as she smiles, fidgets with her pen and occasionally touches my shoulder. Soon she and I become engaged in a lively, extended conversation when we discover we're from the same town and attended the same high school at different times. My wife is excluded from the conversation because she's from a different place. I excuse myself from the table, to visit the restroom, but still engaged in an animated conversation with our waitress. I return to the table to find that my wife's mood has totally changed along with a new conversation!
    Sin was, is and will always be a problem of the mind! (Gen 3:3 compared to 3:6 also Js 1:13-15). The operation of which (intentionally or unintentionally) creates separation between our God and us (Isa 59:2). The Tabernacle's intended purpose was, "that I may dwell among them." (Ex 25:8). Christ came so that the "the worshipers, once purified, would have had no more consciousness of sins." (Heb 10:2) "For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins." v.4.
    In the scenario I depicted at the beginning, the interruption in the wife/husband quality time, while INITIATED by the appearance of the attractive waitress, was perpetrated by the husband's THOUGHTLESSNESS. That's not REMEDIED by swapping the attractive server with a male or less attractive one. Now that man has fallen, taking Satan to a wilderness can't and won't address humanity's present problem, which is that our MIND/THOUGHTS are not in at-one-ment with God's. The function of the goats my be best understood in the dual role of our Savior...Beloved of God (Mt 3:17)and at the same time, rejected of God (Ps 22:1-2) (see also Jn 3:14 Christ likened to a serpent on a pole! Really?!)
    Access to that possibility for the entire human family, was secured by Jesus' LIFE and eventual DEATH. (Heb 10:10) Faith in Him brings those who excercise such into a NEW, COVENANT relationship, 16 “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the Lord: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them,”[c] 17 then He adds, “Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”[d] 18 Now where there is remission of these, there is no longer an offering for sin.
    In the object lesson of the goats we should see the goal of our FAITH achieved, "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ." !!(2 Cor 10:4-6)

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    • Lynrol, I would be interested to know more of this idea of the two goats being seen as the "dual role of our Savior". I'm not sure I can understand that idea without some sort of explanation. This would require that Jesus taking every confessed sin upon Himself and being removed from the camp of the saints. Where does that fit in the reality we understand that will take place? Jesus is to sit on the throne forever, and not removed from the presence of God and His people. The goat of removal is taken away, never to return. That is the clear understanding from the type as found in Leviticus 16. It fits the prophetic view of Satan's removal and exile for 1000 years rather well.

      Yes, sin resides in the mind since it is a choice. By God's grace that can change in every soul that resigns itself to the full control of God's Spirit, submitting in all things, by choice, and appropriating the power of God which is given to all who believe. (Romans 1:16) This is the ultimate purpose of the Gospel, revealed in Christ, who's yoke we need to take upon ourselves.

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      • Hi Robert, Lev 16:10 may well have been fulfilled in Mk 1:11-12, "Then a voice came from heaven, “You are My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. ” When compared to Lev 16:21, John, the last of the OT prophets (Lk 16:16) baptizes Jesus "to fulfill all righteousness"(Mt 3:15) and Jesus is immediately driven into the wilderness by the hand of a no more "suitable man" (NKJV) than the Spirit. Scripture tells us, "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." (2 Cor 5:21). He "knew no sin", the Lord's goat..."to BE SIN for us", the scapegoat! This agrees with Jesus' own analogy in John 3:14 (see also John 12:31-33). I cannot give an explanation of the exact mechanism, but scripture states that He was "MADE A CURSE for us" (Gal 3:13). The Messianic Psalm 40:6-12 which speaks in the Messiah's voice, has Him saying in v.12, "For innumerable evils have surrounded me;
        My iniquities have overtaken me, so that I am not able to look up;
        They are more than the hairs of my head; Therefore my heart fails me." In Christ, we see the Beloved of God (and His redeemed people!) but He is also depicted as a serpent, scapegoat, despised to accomplish for us, not just forgiveness, but perfect, enduring at-one-ment in our MINDS through FAITH in the One symbolized in BOTH goats!

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        • Lynrol, I would remind you of the timing in Leviticus 16. The scapegoat is released after the Lord's goat was killed, due to becoming a "curse"(by His own choice) and dying for the sin of this world. This ceremony closes probation and seals the fate of the wicked. Is Jesus then to be led away bearing the record of guilt? Do you see any correlation with Revelation 20 in this?

          In the incidents you cite, this was before the cleansing of the heavenly sanctuary, so the timing is way off isn't it?

          The ceremony is complete and cannot be dissected to fit just any coincidental application. It must follow the type as given in it's order and detail. If you must apply the scapegoat to Christ, it has yet to take place and will be an everlasting removal. The Bible tells a different story, of Jesus coming and being with His redeemed forever, not being removed from them. Only the accuser of the brethren and those who partake of his character will be removed. Read carefully Psalm 37.

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      • Robert, in light of your statement, "It must follow the type as given in it's order and detail." I can see how the chronology of events of Lev 16 could pose some problems in your understanding of some of my statements. Be careful, not to be too rigid to that paradigm, or else other problems might arise. For instance, from the high priest (the widely accepted type of Christ) having to offer a bull as a sin offering for himself prior to even the selection and offering of the Lord's goat (Lev 16:6). Generally, a wider gleaning of Scriptures provides the clearest outcomes (Isaiah 28:10).

        Then there's the "detail" portion of your statement...BOTH goats were sin offerings (Lev 16:5). Sin offerings were REQUIRED to be without blemish (Lev 4:28); the sin offering's stated purpose was to accomplish FORGIVENESS and AT-ONE-MENT between the sinner and his Creator (Lev 4:31); God declared sin offerings to be "most holy" (Lev 6:25). Do any of those details appear fitting of the one who lied, deceived and purposely INTRODUCED pain and estrangement between humans and their Creator and among ourselves? In the parable of the Good Samaritan (Lk 10:25-37) the victim of the robbery and life-threatening assault doesn't NEED the perp killed or captured, he's in need of a compassionate RESTORER, even if he's a Samaritan (another of the dual depictions of our Savior!).

        With respect to your question, "Do you see any correlation with Revelation 20 in this?", while I'm certainly no authority, you might want to consider the opening declaration of the book, noting the word "shortly" (Rev 1:1). Note Jesus' use of the word "now" (John 12:28-32) in V.31. What was Jesus declaring in Mark 3:27, especially when considered along with Paul's statement in Heb 2:14-15?
        I, like the traveler on the road from Jerusalem to Jericho, am a victim in need of present, effective and compassionate intervention from God's Samaritan.

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        • Not to rigid Lynrol? I think the order of the service is clear and intentional since it is being dictated by God through Moses to be followed precisely. The offering of the bullock was due to the fact that Aaron was not sinless as is Christ. The type has it's elements not needed in the reality. Lessons are being taught by finite elements, which limits the ability for perfect representation. The One who is Infinite is teaching the finite eternal truths with these types.

          Two goats were to be taken "as a sin offering", meaning as in the same qualifications as a sin offering, since only one would become a sin offering, and the other removed alive from the camp. While lots are cast in the type, in the reality, Jesus chose to die for us and Satan chose to rebel and deceive as many as possible. Satan was created perfect, sinless and without blemish, but due to his own choice, will take the record of every repentant sinner with him to his eternal destruction.

          I think the teaching is clear and stands as given for us to study, or we could just conjecture away all scripture couldn't we? We need the perfect life/death of Jesus to save us and we need the accuser of the brethren to be removed forever so that the meek "shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace".

          I'm just not seeing how the good-Samaritan illustration changes anything in Leviticus 16.

          Shortly come to pass? If you are the Creator, in which 1000 years is like a day, yes...shortly. We know the letters to the 7 churches spans nearly 2000 years, so shortly is a relevant term wouldn't you say?

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        • Robert, I'm sure we're in agreement that God who gave this parable-in-real-life (Lev 16) was clear that performance of it be exactly according to His dictate. We may also be in agreement that the general goal of this parable-in-real-life is to teach how God views and handles our sin problem. Our (all who read Scripture) problem lies in the interpretation/understanding of the parable's elements.
          In Mt 10:34-36, Jesus fulfills prophecy by speaking to the multitude using several parables. The problem was that no one, including His disciples, caught the meaning. Their advantage, however, was that their interest being aroused by one particular parable drove them to a second audience with their Teacher and He didn't turn them away. I hope that as fellow believers, we too will approach the Teacher's Successor (John 14:25-26) and ask, "What was the Teacher REALLY saying?" Thanks for your contributions to the public discussion.

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        • Lynrol, perhaps we could see the Levitical laws as parables, but the instruction is clear and precise, once the symbols are understood. They are confirmed in prophecy as well. The good news is that the "Teacher's successor" is none other than Christ Himself, as promised. (John 16:13-15; 14:16-18) The Holy Spirit is non other than the presence of Christ, who has promised to be with us "alway, even unto the end of the world." The two, with the Father, are One. It was the same Spirit that gave Jesus the man His heavenly wisdom while we lived as one of us. It would be folly to open this sacred Word without earnest prayer for that same Spirit to teach us the hidden things of God.

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    • Lynrol, very interesting explanation; and very interesting choice of analogy to propound your theology. Would you consider the possibility that your assessment of "thoughtfulness" is the man's cover-up of real vivid or blocked motives, and probably the wife may have a more vivid, less blocked idea of what she just saw? I know one very intelligent, very devoted and used of God young woman who postponed her wedding on similar "thoughtless" actions, and not long after, the relationship dissolved. Ah, that didn't change his "thoughtless"-ness.

      In constructing our theology, might we consider that our world represents an obsessively compulsive rebellious impure blotch in God's universe; and after our God has paid the debt of sin through death, He still has to remove the blotch from his universe? Now I may not be able to give a great explanation or introduce a great analogy, but my God-given sense of justice says this: What Satan did in torturing and murdering the Son of God, and what Satan has been doing in victimizing the "apple" of God's eye, God's little Children, Satan and his imps will have to pay, really pay. Given, as Robert observed, those who chose to reject God, will bear the penalty of elimination for themselves.

      EGW observes that the "Day of Atonement" represents the events surrounding the 2nd Coming of Jesus Christ. That is as solid an explanation as we can find or imagine. Rev 20

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  6. Good work Lillian. May our Father continue to bless your efforts in blessing us with your thoughts and Spirit-led ideas.

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  7. so many people in the world have in mind that SDA give false interpretation about the 1844 issue but this lesson that is the sanctuary give a clear understanding of what Jesus Christ is doing in most holy place.

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