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Yom Kippur

© Virginia Marin

Yom Kippur, like all of the ancient Biblical Holy Days, is nice for Christians to understand. According to an article at The Refiner's Fire, some Christian churches find that the Day of Atonement has special significance for the New Testament Church also; so much so that they observe the day as well as the fast. http://www.therefinersfire.org/yom_kippu... I have no information on specific congregations who practice this, and I have never, myself, been aware of any Christian churches who do so. Three areas of this High Feast which apply to Messianic Jews, and any Gentile Christian who may observe Yom Kippur are:

• Fasting
• Messiah Jesus, the High Priest
• The Scapegoat

The first area involves that of fasting. Anyone who has been required to fast for whatever reason, or those belonging to Christian churches whose members fast at certain times, Lent, for example, know how difficult it is to do so. In ancient times, a Jew who refused the Atonement fast was cut off from the community (Leviticus 23:29). The New Testament equivalent would be refusing to repent, resulting in the person forfeiting eternal life (Luke 13:3). Fasting, then, was outward proof that the person was serious about repentance, and repentance was, and is, vital for forgiveness. Rabbi Paul, a Messianic Jew and Apostle to the Gentiles, observed the fast of the Day of Atonement (Acts 27:9).

The next part involved the high priest. Only once a year, on the Day of Atonement, Aaron the high priest, and brother of Moses, entered the Most Holy Place of the Tabernacle to offer ceremonial sacrifices for the forgiveness of the people (Hebrews 9:7). The Old Testament observance was a look into the future of Jesus Christ, our High Priest (Hebrews 9:11).

The third part of the Day of Atonement centered around the Azazel goat, or scapegoat. The scapegoat symbolized the condemnation of Satan for the sins of all humanity, and his being put away in an eternal wilderness from which he will never return (Revelation 20:10). The sending of the scapegoat into the wilderness is a Jewish ceremonial preview of Jesus Christ sending Satan into the abyss.

In conclusion, the Day of Atonement signifies three of the most vital aspects of Christianity:

• Willing repentance of those to be saved
• Completed sacrifice of Messiah for sin
• Final guilty verdict on Satan as the source of all evil, and his sentence in the eternal abyss

This is Dubh Sidhe