Tuesday: Enmity and Atonement
Read Genesis 3:14-15. What does God mean when He says to Satan, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers” (Gen. 3:15, NIV)? What hope can we find here for ourselves?
Image © Kevin Carden from GoodSalt.com
The word enmity in Hebrew shares its root with the Hebrew word hate and the word enemy.By eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the couple placed themselves and all humanity at enmity with God (see Rom. 5:10, Col. 1:21, James 4:4). God’s promise here implies that God would set in motion His plan to draw humanity back to Himself, thus shifting their enmity to Satan. Thus, by shifting the enmity from Himself to Satan, God would establish an avenue through which He could save humanity while, at the same time, not violating the principles of His divine government. This is what is known in the original sense as “atonement,” what God has done and is doing in order to ultimately restore what had been lost in the Fall.
What do the following texts reveal about atonement? Lev. 1:3-4; 1 Cor. 5:7; 1 John 1:9.
Theologians sometimes use the word expiation to talk about how this atonement works. The Latin root, expiare, means “to atone for,” and the idea involves reparation for a wrong deed. Someone did something wrong, he or she violated a law, and justice demands a penalty to pay for that wrong. In English, it is sometimes said that the guilty person owes a “debt to society” because of what he or she did.
In our situation we sinned, but in the plan of salvation, the atonement, Christ’s sacrificial death relieves us from the legal consequences of that wrongdoing. Instead, Christ Himself paid the penalty for us. The punishment that legally (yes, God’s government has laws) should have been ours was given to Jesus instead. That way, the demands of justice were met, but they were met in Jesus instead of us. Though sinners, though we have done wrong, we are pardoned, forgiven, and justified in His sight. This is the crucial and foundational step in “ ‘the restoration of all things’ ” (Acts 3:21, NKJV).
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Enmity is what humans, who are not born again , have for God.
"Romans 8:7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be."
Those who are transformed to His image will be like Jesus in this respect...
Hebrews 1:9 Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.
and like Paul..
Romans 7:22 "For I delight in the law of God after the inward man:"
or like What David writes in Psalms..
Psalms 1:2 "But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night."
What a God!!! It is very difficult to find a human being (friend or family) that would pay the penalty for our wrong doing and not leaving us feel guilty. In our Christian walk, we should never lose sight of what our Savior did for us.
Kareen, how do you not feel guilty? I'm working on it, but it's a struggle for me.
Atonement is such a huge concept to grasp, so it is described in many ways in the Bible, restoration of a relationship, cleansing, sight to the blind, finding the lost, getting out of debt, pardon for a crime - it is all that and much much more.
Praise the LORD for His goodness and love for offering us an Everlasting Covenant of Love.
Christ has paid the penalty of our transgressions, but we have to repent truly and believe in Him, then we will be reconciled to God and freed from the penalty of our sins and entitled to eternal life.
Amen Vincent !
Repentance is effective when accepting and realizing the Goodness of God.
That is what it means enmity against against Satan, coming to God is repentance in action .
Someone help: I was once asked a question:
God is Love 1 John 4:8
The Bible teaches us to love our enemies Matthew 5:44
Is it possible that God can have HATRED for Satan? Or are THEY ENEMIES?
Rwanga the text is found in Matt.5:44. It says pray for your enemies. Satan has nothing but hatred in his heart for God and us. Love is referring to your neighbor and God in Matt.22:37-39.
Thanks
I would say that Jesus (and the Father) practice what they preach. God and the Devil are enemies -- each would openly acknowledge that fact -- but from God there is no hatred, no animosity, no contempt. Even toward His most personal of enemies, God is love. That does not change.
Romans 12:21 speaks to me about the on-going war between the two great camps. The Devil is willing to resort to deceit and outright aggression, but those are things that God does not, will not, employ. God ultimately overcomes His enemy in a different way, and in Rom 12:21 He asks us to do likewise.
Sin separates and love restores. Him who became our lamb of sacrifice paid the penalty for sin. Truth is unless we daily turn to Christ we will choose to be enslaved by that which we were freed from
Thank God for His substitution for our sins He paid the complete price that we can be free
Alleluia
It is easy to overlook the fact that the enmity between Satan and mankind is universal and not just found in the converted person. Even though the sinner is the natural enemy of God he is not TOTALLY sold over to Satan as would have happened if God had abandoned our first parents after the fall. At least that is the impression I get from this passage:
"The enmity referred to in the prophecy in Eden was not to be confined merely to Satan and the Prince of life. It was to be universal. Satan and his angels were to feel the enmity of all mankind." {1 Selected Messages 254.1}
What does the bible mean when it says "he shall. bruise your head and shall bruise his heel?was it an authority for. Humans to kill a snake?
McDonald. I wouldn't label it as authority. I believe it is a natural chain of events. The head of humans are created with the power to control the thought processes that are located in the head. The heel would be likened to the tail of a snake or the area that possesses the less threatening end of the snake. The text seems to say that in the struggle between Lucifer and mankind consequences will be realized.
Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me. When we stand in the shadow of the cross and meditate on His grace, then pride, self-righteousness and ungrace toward others all melt away. How precious is our God who dispenses His grace on each of His creations. He teaches us that it is all about love. The power of love that breaks into hardened hearts. Only our God can fill us with His amazing grace that washes over those as undeserving as us.
Those who are not born again are the enemy of God. We tthat received the free gift of salvation should be led to those who are not born again, so that we all can glorify God together. His love is shared in our heart so we should be like Him .
Those who are not born again are the enemy of God. We tthat received the free gift of salvation should be led to those who are not born again, so that we all can glorify God together. His love is shared in our heart so we should be like Him.
God cannot change his law/ character to accommodate sinners, neither can he change a sinner to accommodate his will. But it is the will of a sinner to be renewed n regenerated that God in his love restores the image of godliness to men. it is only through the power of the blood of Christ that God pardons sinners, it is power of his love that pardoned sinners are deemed as holy. What a friend we have in Jesus
Enmity is commonly understood to be a kind of hostility and repulse. But I suggest that enmity also implies a certain dissatisfaction. Even those most deeply employed in the service of evil are dis-satisfied with the 'gains', or the 'rewards', of their evil course. And I would say that the Devil himself feels a certain dis-satisfaction [and deep unhappiness] at his whole life-purpose and life-style.
No-one is ever truly happy in their sin. God has not made it easy for us to destroy ourselves. Sin by its very nature exerts enmity toward [and against] it's servants.
I am trying to reconcile enmity and atonement to the Sanctury day of atonement. I am however confused why a goats blood were used (especially the one that will be sacrificed).
I was thinking the goat which was sacrificed and whose blood was sprinkled on the Arch of the covenant would represent Jesus Christ. People outside would be praying for the acceptance of the sacrifice and atonement of their sins (thereby restoring mankind) The other goat would then be driven to the wilderness (shifting enmity to the devil from God)
My question is why using a goat instead of a lamb for sacrifice? How do we reconcile this to Jesus being referred to as a Lamp of sacrifice when a goat is sacrificed?
I may have misapplied the process itself, bear with me.
Not only a lamb, but a goat and a bull. Lev 16. The goat serves to move our judged sins out of the Sanctuary and put them upon Satan's head. The goat is a feisty rough animal ready for battle. The lamb is docile and immediately submits. The return of Jesus comes in power and triumph. He has finished the atonement. He has secured our eternal victory.
Gari,
When John the Baptist spoke the words, "Behold the Lamb of God...", I think he unwittingly started a tradition that has continued in the churches till this day. (Although perhaps the tradition has its roots more in the book of Revelation, where Jesus is frequently referred to as a Lamb. But in the Gospels He is referred to in that way only by John the Baptist.)
And yet, in the Sanctuary, Lambs were only one of a number of animals offered. (As Michael has mentioned here already.) And even in the Passover, God specified that the offering could either be taken from "the sheep or the goats." (Ex 12:5.)
The Sanctuary offerings included Birds, Sheep (male, female, adult, and young), Goats (male and female), Bulls, and Heifers. In some sense/capacity each of those animals represented Jesus in the sacrificial service.
But yes, that one goat that was chosen "for the Lord" (Lev 16:8) which had it's blood shed and was used to bring about atonement for the people, was definitely a goat.
Gari, another little thought on enmity.
When the Scapegoat was taken into the wilderness, a "fit man" was required to lead him away. The goat did not go willingly. It was not willingly separated from its flock. The Devil is not willingly separated from his "flock"... he struggles and twists and turns, not wishing to b separated from his "people".
Thanks Stewart for the explanation.
Stewart Crafts wrote:
"God has not made it easy for us to destroy ourselves. Sin by its very nature exerts enmity toward [and against] it's servants."
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Stewart:
That's right. Another way to state the first sentence would be to say that God has made every provision for our redemption. But we can, by our choice/s, make it harder for us to be saved or perhaps even destroyed. When we choose evil, it affects our minds adversely. Let me allow EGW to say it in her own words:
"Every act of transgression, every neglect or rejection of the grace of Christ, is reacting upon yourself; it is hardening the heart, depraving the will, benumbing the understanding, and not only making you less inclined to yield, but less capable of yielding, to the tender pleading of God’s Holy Spirit." – {SC 33.2}
If we reach the point where we are unable to respond to the wooing of the Holy Spirit, we might commit the so-called sin against the Holy Ghost and the result is final separation from God. This why the Scriptures remind us, "Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation" (2 Cor. 6:2). “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion" (Heb. 3:15).
The promise of God to put enmity means sinners may experience:
being transformed by the renewing of their minds.
A new song in their mouth
a clean heart and right spirit
washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost
coming unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ: