September 25, 2023

Yom Kippur (the Jewish Day of Atonement) ends today at sunset.   This second fall feast is the most solemn of all the Jewish festivals.   The "days of awe" lead up to this - a time of repentance and contrition for the Israelite nation.   We should be mindful during this time of the glorious return of Jesus Christ.  Yet, let us not relegate the anticipation, excitement, and preparation to a date on the calendar.   As a Christian, our "days of awe," where we are contrite for our sins, should be continuous.  As Christ said, “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.  For as were the days of Noah, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.  For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark,  and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.  Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left.  Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken and one left.  Therefore, stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.  But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into.  Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect."  (Matthew 24:36-44 - emphasis added).  
Stay awake; be ready!  

The high priest, alone, could go into the Holy of Holies on this day.  Most of the time, the high priest  wore garments made from gold, blue, purple and scarlet thread.  On the day of Atonement, though, he wore only white.  This was symbolic of purity and the need for forgiveness represented by this day.  As Christians, we can see how these garments were prophetic.   You can imagine the condition of the white robe after blood was sprinkled on the alter - the high priest's garments were stained with blood.   We get a glimpse of this in Revelation 19: "Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses"  (Rev. 19:11-14).  

Jesus is our high priest who entered in to that holy place to not only administer the sacrifice covering our sins, He became the sacrifice.  May this time of year be one of worship and awe at our great Savior as we continue to anticipate His return!