Sermon Tone Analysis

The Need for Yom Kippur

What is the purpose of the tabernacle or temple?

The purpose is so that God might dwell in the midst of the people.

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This is an extrememly important and profound concept that we must remember.

The reason and purpose of the tabernacle is to provide a process and method that would allow the precense of a holy God to permanently live near His people.

And the benefits of Him being near are the blessings of the covenant - guidance, direction, justice, victory in war, abundance of food, etc.

You can see that this simple verse reveals a lot about God’s character and it sets the context for all that is to be found in the tabernacle and its rituals, particularly Yom Kippur.

So, at the core, Yom Kippur is about enabling and facilitating the close relationship between God and His People.

He is a God that redeemed Israel from Egypt with a purpose of dwelling amongst them.

In His love and covenant faithfulness He provides Yom Kippur to continue the relationship and He makes provisions for the errors that will inevitably result.

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Atonement

A key part of the day is related to the concept of atonement.

But what does the word atonement mean?

Atonement comes from the english to be ‘at one’ with another.

To be rejoined in unity and purpose, to have a relationship restored.

I think this concept does have some merit in explaining the rituals of Yom Kippur because at the core, as mentioned, is the desire for God to have a relationship with His people which is the purpose of the tabernacle itself.

And so atonement means removing the barriers and obstacles to this relationship, which is of course sin and uncleaness.

Indeed we fast today because we want to express our remorse for the things we have done that diminish or hinder the relationship we as individuals and as a community have with God.

Most importantly, as beleivers, the fast is a time to express our gratitude toward God for providing His son in our place.

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But to be more specific, in Hebrew, the concept of atonement is expressed with the root כפר (kpr).

From this root comes the verb כָּפַר (kāpar, “to atone”), which is the most frequent word for atonement in the Tanakh, and the nouns כַּפֹּרֶת (kappōret, “mercy seat”) and כִּפֻּרִים (kippurîm, “atonement”).

Root כפר (kpr)

Verb כָּפַר (kāpar, “to atone”)

The nouns כַּפֹּרֶת (kappōret, “mercy seat”) and כִּפֻּרִים (kippurîm, “atonement”)

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Kafar

So, we now know that Kafar is the Hebrew word underlying our english word atonement.

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So it seems reasonable to ask, how did this atonement actually work?

Did the sacrifices cover sins or did they remove sins?

This question utlimately arises from uncertainty of the meaning of the word kafar.

Many have understood that the animal sacrifices only covered sins.

This view is primiarly driven by a theology that views Yeshua as the only sacrifice that truly removes sin.

And so the thinking goes, since Yeshua is the only one that can remove sin the blood of animals cannot accomplish that so they must have only covered sins, as a temporary solution, and it would take Yeshua’s death to ultimatley deal with all the sins that were previously covered under the ‘old testament’.

But that is a lot of theology added to the word kafar.

Tim Hegg has written a paper where he cites other scholarship on the topic, and demonstates the best way to understsand Kafar is not as ‘atonement’ or ‘covering’ but as ‘a wiping’ or ‘wiped away’ or ‘purged’.

If this is the best way to understand the word, and I beleive it is, then we would translate a verse like Lev 16.30 as “For on this day a wiping clean will be made for you, to cleanse you.

From all your sins you will be clean before Adonai.”

So what are we to make of this?

Are we to think that the blood of the animals actually cleansed sin and it is a misunderstanding to believe they only covered sin?

Yes, this is exactly what we should understand from this.

But the misunderstanding is rooted in the assumption that the animal sacrifices we read about on Yom Kippur are dealing with our eternal position before God.

Many make the assumption that when we read the sacrifices will ‘atone for our sins’ that the text is referring to our access to eternal life.

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But this is not the case.

The ritual of Yom Kippur related to the physical presence of a Holy God dwelling in the midst of a physical people.

One of the main reasons for Yom Kippur relates to saving the people so that they would not die living in the very presence of God in an unholy state.

This becomes clearer as we consider the context leading up to Leviticus 16.

For example, we read in the previous chapter about the woman that has a discharge such as menstrual cycle and the means of purifying her from uncleaness;

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It says she is atoned for because of her menstrual cycle.

But is her discharge a sin that we would think prevents her from being accepted into eternal life?

Of course not.

It is a natural occurence and not brought about by her personal disregard for God.

Yet we can see that the text refers to atonement, kafar, a true wiping away, which is provided for her to make her clean.

And why is this necessary?

The very next verse tells us;

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So, it is not simply a covering that takes place, but a true cleansing and removal of the unholiness.

In fact, what this teaches us is that we need to transfer these passages in our mind from the realm of saved and not saved, where our theology has told us to keep them, to holy and unholy or to pure and impure where the context suggests they should be.

Holiness is a concept that is broader than an internal heart position.

Holiness indeed includes the heart, but is broader than that and also relates to the physical nature of us as humans and our world.

This concept becomes clearer as we consider the term Yom HaKippurim.

Kippurim is actually the plural form - why does the Bible refer to it in the plural as Kippurim or ‘atonements or cleansings’?

One plausible answer is because there are many things being cleansed on that day - the people, Aaron, the Tabernacle, the atlar, etc.

As an example:

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Does the taberncale disobey God?

Does the altar hate his brother in his heart?

Then what is the need to cleanse them?

It is because a holy God phsically dwells in the midst of an unholy people, and the lives of the people have stained their surroundings.

So an actual wiping away, not simply a covering, does actually take place but this cleansing affects the physical relationship with God but doesn’t mean a person’s sins have been cleansed in an eternal relationship with God.

The ritual itself does not determine the heart status of an israelite, but it certaily was encouraged to point toward it.

What had effect in a phsyical sense was meant to be an illustration of what was to take place in a spiritual sense.

When Yeshua came, he was the fulfillment of the ultimate purificaiton, of the ultimate method of cleansing the heart before a holy God - and without such cleansing we won’t dwell with Adonai in the world to come.

As I’ve mentioned before, this is where many misunderstand the author of hebrews but it is worth stating again.

The author of Hebrews is not saying that the sacrifices of animals Yom Kippur are or should be replaced.

He is saying that Yeshua’s sacrifice is superior because it cleanses the heart, something the blood of animals could never and were never intended to do.

The blood of animals and goats was for cleansing the flesh he says.

Yehsua’s sacrifice is once for all, but that doesn’t mean animal sacrifices are no longer important or required.

This is why after Yeshua had risen to the father, the diciples are still seen at the temple and still participating in the sacrificial system and it is why sacrifices will be resumed in the messianic kingdom.

It is very important to see Yeshua’s sacrifice as the most importnat and superior to any sacrifie that can be offered, but it is also important not to throw the baby out with the bathwater.

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Stain of Sin

We’ve talked a lot about sin but we haven’t defined it.

What is Sin?

Missing the mark.

OK, But what is the mark?

Falling short of God’s Torah.

OK, so what if someone is called to testify about something they have witnessed and refuse to testify, is that sin?

Or, what if someone touches a dead animal and doesn’t realize they touched it until later, is that sin?

Lev 5:1-6 speaks about various situations persons may find themselves in and instructs the community how to atone for such matters.

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There are four situations grouped together in close succession;

Refusing to testify when material evidence is known.

Unknowingly touching dead unclean animal

Unknowingly touching human uncleanliness