Yom Kippur
September 2012
Yom Kippur (September 25, sundown) or Day of Atonement is the holiest day of the year. It is the time when Jews feel closest to God. Leviticus 16:30 says: For on this day He will forgive you, to purify you, that you be cleansed from all your sins before God.
In Leviticus 23:26-28, the Lord spoke to Moses saying:
Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD. And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God.
What had Moses to atone for?
Remember that while Moses was busy talking to God at Mt. Sinai, the people began to worship the Golden Calf in Moses' absence. Moses was enraged when he saw what happened. He smashed the tablets with the 10 Commandments on the ground, destroyed the golden calf, ground it to pieces, mixed it with water and made the impious drink it (Exodus 32:19-20).
Moses then returned to the mountain and persuaded God not to destroy His people, but to forgive them. When God did so, it became the first Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). With a second set of divine commandments, Moses again returned to his people from the Mountain-top.
Yom Kippur continues to be celebrated as the Day of Atonement, 8 days after the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashana.
Yom Kippur is marked by a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer. Its central themes are atonement and repentance.
The Jews believe that God inscribes each person's fate for the coming year into a book, the Book of Life, on Rosh Hashanah, and waits until Yom Kippur to "seal" the verdict. During the day of repentance, a Jew tries to amend his or her behavior and seek forgiveness for wrongs done against God and against other human beings. At the end of Yom Kippur, a Jew considers himself absolved by God.
Other than prayer and fasting, we Christians should also remember on this day what Yeshua did on the cross for the atonement of our sins. Chapters 8-10 of Hebrews point to Yeshua as the great High Priest. He went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption," (Hebrews 9:11-12).
Prophetically, Yom Kippur is the long-awaited judgment, where Messiah will take the stick of Judah and the stick of Israel in His hand, will forgive their sins, and will make them one nation again forever. It is on this feast where the High Priest intercedes for the people before God in order that their sins might be forgiven. Yeshua is our High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. He will intercede for all the people left on earth after the terrible time of the Day of the Lord. After Yeshua judges Israel, He will then judge the rest of the people on earth. Yom Kippur will be that much-awaited day when Yeshua will rule and reign in Jerusalem.
~Lisa Maki~
In Leviticus 23:26-28, the Lord spoke to Moses saying:
Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD. And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God.
What had Moses to atone for?
Remember that while Moses was busy talking to God at Mt. Sinai, the people began to worship the Golden Calf in Moses' absence. Moses was enraged when he saw what happened. He smashed the tablets with the 10 Commandments on the ground, destroyed the golden calf, ground it to pieces, mixed it with water and made the impious drink it (Exodus 32:19-20).
Moses then returned to the mountain and persuaded God not to destroy His people, but to forgive them. When God did so, it became the first Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). With a second set of divine commandments, Moses again returned to his people from the Mountain-top.
Yom Kippur continues to be celebrated as the Day of Atonement, 8 days after the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashana.
Yom Kippur is marked by a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer. Its central themes are atonement and repentance.
The Jews believe that God inscribes each person's fate for the coming year into a book, the Book of Life, on Rosh Hashanah, and waits until Yom Kippur to "seal" the verdict. During the day of repentance, a Jew tries to amend his or her behavior and seek forgiveness for wrongs done against God and against other human beings. At the end of Yom Kippur, a Jew considers himself absolved by God.
Other than prayer and fasting, we Christians should also remember on this day what Yeshua did on the cross for the atonement of our sins. Chapters 8-10 of Hebrews point to Yeshua as the great High Priest. He went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption," (Hebrews 9:11-12).
Prophetically, Yom Kippur is the long-awaited judgment, where Messiah will take the stick of Judah and the stick of Israel in His hand, will forgive their sins, and will make them one nation again forever. It is on this feast where the High Priest intercedes for the people before God in order that their sins might be forgiven. Yeshua is our High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. He will intercede for all the people left on earth after the terrible time of the Day of the Lord. After Yeshua judges Israel, He will then judge the rest of the people on earth. Yom Kippur will be that much-awaited day when Yeshua will rule and reign in Jerusalem.
~Lisa Maki~