The Day of Atonement

Tomorrow marks the holiest day of the year on the Jewish Calendar, The Day of Atonement. This is the last of the 10 days of the Days of Awe, recognized by the Jews as the beginning of the year on the Hebrew Calendar. During biblical times during the time of the Levitical priesthood, once a year at this time, the High Priest would enter the Tabernacle into what was described as the Holy of Holies, the holiest section of the Tabernacle. The Holy of Holies is where the Ark of the Covenant resided, which represented the very Presence and Glory of God. This was not something to take lightly. If the High Priest did not enter the Holy of Holies exactly how God prescribed, they may not come out alive. This is why the High Priest would wear a string around his legs with bells, so that those who were outside, when they stopped hearing the ringing of the bells, would know he had died and could "pull him out" with the string as opposed to going in and getting him, thus subjecting themselves to death as well.

When the High Priest would enter the Holy of Holies, he would take the blood of sacrifice from the animals (a lamb or a goat) and sprinkle it upon the Altar which was on top of the Ark of the Covenant. This Altar was described as The Mercy Seat and was positioned between the two Cherubim. The sprinkling of the blood was for the Atonement of the sins of the people before God. Once the High Priest carried out this function, then the sins of the people of God were forgiven for an entire year, until the Day of Atonement for the next year. This was an annual ritual that the Jews observed every year under the Mosaic Law.

Of course as Christians we don't have to recognize this practice ritually, because Jesus now serves as our High Priest and has made Atonement for our sins once and for all (Hebrews 7). However, even though we don't recognize this day ritually, we still need to celebrate it spiritually and celebrate the Atonement of our sins accomplished through the Blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus the Christ. Once again, this is still a time for Self-Examination, Introspection and Repentance. Jesus died to reconcile us back to the Father. And one of the things I am learning is that if you're going to walk with God and work with God, you're going to have to be willing to Repent, even of things you didn't think you needed to repent from. That's why this Season is so Sacred. This is why that even as Christians, we need to recognize and celebrate these Holy Days, not because they're Jewish, but because they were ordained by our Heavenly Father and the Times and Seasons that He has ordained have not been altered. Let us honor God and honor the Son by taking seriously this Holy Day. Let us examine ourselves thoroughly and allow the Holy Spirit to truly put the search light on our hearts on this Day of Atonement.