Leviticus 16
For we get into God's word as we continue a serious in Leviticus. I just some proof that we didn't just ate the whole time in Singapore, but it should come up. Some of you might remember Gabriel 10. He preached at up the street a couple times in the past two years while he was studying at college that he's back in Singapore. Now, he's a pasta pastor of a church in Singapore called The Crossing Church, and we went to visit Gabe on Sunday a week ago and it was fun because he was doing a kids talk during the servicer storm in his elements have seen something good coming weekend songs. I was good stuff was actually really good to visit. This church is called The Crossing Church and with the day that we went. They celebrate the 10th anniversary 10 years anniversary. So I started 2009 with 18 adults and four six kids in a house and 10 years on their three congregations thousand people and going really well. So the Lord is doing Lots of good stuff in Singaporean in this Crossing Church. So please keep Gabe in your prayers as he think about a Hitman if you think about Singapore if you go across the lake to visit them to become to Leviticus 16 plus price.
Emily father it's such a privilege to gathereth. Are you all saved for giving Saints? Such a privilege that we can come to your word together freely that your word is clear that you speak to us reminding us of your son Jesus and the hope that we have in him. So father is we come to this passage in Leviticus some things that might be a bit strange a phone to a slowed. I pray that you would make it clear that once made the Holy Spirit be working in and through US convicting us of yoga School repair things in Jesus name. Amen. Every country has their own particular annual National Day marking a significant occasion in the history of the people. Was it be for Australian Independence Day Bastille Day st. Patrick's Day abolition From Slavery Day from the Queen's birthday. The closest thing UK has to a national day to the emperor's birthday in Japan. But for this group called The Hebrews the Israelites their annual national day was and still is called Yom Kippur or the day of atonement it celebrated at the end of September. Usually I beginning of October this year on the tenth day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar and it wasn't like Al national days today about independence. It wasn't about a birthday. It wasn't celebrating an old saying it wasn't about freedom in that worldly sense. But on this say Yom Kippur the day of a time. It's the juice they performed and elaborate ceremony. That's all about being in God's presence living under a holy. God being right with the Creator God. It's a ceremony that somehow allowed a holy God that we just song about To live and to dwell and have his presence among sinful mankind a ceremony that Jews continue to practice even today for thousand years after Express is cheated and the ceremony is where we come to in Leviticus chapter 16. There's a couple things to point out before we look at this passage at this chapter. The ceremony it's right at the center of Leviticus is one of the middle chapters. I bet if you remember the structure from a couple weeks are the sacrifices in the beginning and the end chapters 1 to 7:23 to 27 As you move in 1/8 to 10 and 21 to 22 to get the price that you move it again last week chapters 11 to 15 next week 18th, 2006 clean and unclean the next topic and the Central Park. Of this book is the day of atonement. It's also the center of the pentateuch and it's in the middle of Leviticus and Leviticus is the middle book of the pentateuch. I left the first five books Genesis Exodus Leviticus Numbers Deuteronomy, and it's known to the Jews as one collection called the Torah all the books of the law. It's also the center of Israel's annual calendar. It's their national day. It was more important than all the feasts and festivals and it was celebrated or remembered for thousands of years. And this ceremony answered is Ralph's central question. It's a question that was left open since Genesis 3 and the full of man. If a question that's yet to be answered fully since God saved Israel From Slavery to be his people in Exodus the central vital question. What does it take to be right with God? What does it take to live in God's presence to relate with a holy God to have God dwell among the people and it's still essential question for us today. If God is out there if he is indeed Creator and the ruler of the universe and life is more than just an accident of atoms and molecules then what does it take? What does it take to be right with this guy? How can we relate with this high and mighty Lord of all we're going to focus mostly on the first part. That's one to 22 and we're going to look at this question. What does it take to be right with God? What does this ceremony? Tell the Israelites about being right with God and finishing off with what does all this stuff mean for us today? Couple weekends ago at home doing some backyard work at home. Mostly Angelo to be honest. We made a deal before we got married that I would do most of the cooking. She does most of the backyard wood. So she loves all the power tools. But Angela she bought her some of that big ant kill spray then if you know, I'm talking attitude like a 1 liter bottle with a hose and nozzle and they use around the house to spray this actual stuff, but it's the instructions while we try to put it together and we try to make it work out cells and it wasn't working Angela had a good deal what her brother came around and then I had to go and we mucked around for about 15 minutes at all this ant kill spray leaking on my hand out before anyone decided to look at any of the in Directions fiery thought that we could do it our way. We could make it up on an iron without following the way that was set out and as we pick up Leviticus 16 verse one who reminded of the extra life back in chapter 10 2 weeks ago disregarding God's way they were approaching God the runway and we sold the deadly consequences of that verse 1 says the Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Erin when they drew near before the Lord and died and the Lord said to Moses tell your tell Aaron your brother not to come at any time into the holy place inside the veil before the mercy seat that is on the Block so that he may not die for I will appear in the cloud Over The Mercy Seat You see approaching God is a big deal and no regrets I have for you and for eye for Israel to be able to push God freely to be able to have a right relationship with him to block in his glorious presence before its run but on a doing it out or anyway disregarding God's way it's deadly this highlights how different we are to God the distance between humanity and the Heavenly and that's what Leviticus if you've been seeing. This has been hammering to Israel and to us all these 15 chapters up to hear. You see all these laws. These rituals have been saying that we humans with sinful with duddy unclean with the filed with impure with distant far away from God. We are falling down Humanity. We need a substitute. We need a perfect sacrifice. We need a perfect priest. An order of iron just between ourselves. We are in a hopeless situation just like native and we Face death doing things out of way least 20-30 without God. That's why God says tell Aaron not to come in. Big and God's glorious presence is a dangerous thing for sinful mankind that Holy place inside the valve that the chapter talks about. I was The Mercy Seat. This place is called the holy of holies. It's where God dwells among his people God's presence. And they have anybody that capture The Human Condition well, sinful people wanting to do things the right way and the results of entering God's presence was that sort of behavior is deaf. You see approaching God our way leads to death, but we still today we make up our own ways to come to God today, whether it's doing good to outweigh the bad and now lives striving to be good person in order to be right with God. We think that if we do the right rituals, whether it be coming to church baptism communion with take it off the list that we're right. We give the ride of right amount of money away as a transaction to receive God's blessing with learned enough of the Bible. So, you know it back to front and all the things that good in that place, but we can often do them with a V that doing these things will make me right with God create in me a relationship with God will somehow changed God's view of me from being angry to Happy. Is he getting right with God and out on strip? It's a hopeless cause it doesn't deal with a spin out on clean this out full in this it leads ultimately to death. But if now anyway isn't going to cut it, so what do we do? What do we do? Well, there is hope for Humanity because God keeps going here. He keeps going in versuri. There is a way to enter God's presence and to be right with him verse SRI, but in this way, Aaron shall come into the holy place. See Leviticus is or even giving us Snippets of God's way of approaching him of being right with him. But Leviticus 16. This chapter is like a combination of all of these. It's the sermon it's the main ritual. It's the special day with God's way for people to be right with God is sure is reminded is remembered and it's achieved in some tangible way and Front Street on which at this chapter is laid out like an instruction manual a guide to the ceremony and it begins inverse 325. It's like any Ikea instructions or manuals is got a list of pots and Scott steps to prepare for the ceremony have a look. It says but in this way, I shall come into the holy place with a bull from the head for sin offering and a RAM for a burnt offering and he shall puts on the hallway linen carts, and she'll have the linen undergarments on his body and it shall try the linen sash around his waist and where the living Tevin these are the holy garments Michelle bathe his body in water and then put them on and they shall take from the congregation of the people of Israel to mail go karts for sale offer and wine RAM for burnt offering.
Give me find what are the animals that were needed for the day to see a bull and a ram for the priests sacrifices and we see two darts and another round for the people sacrifices. And we also see the preparation for the priests a live-in cards been in undies living Sash and Tevin and a little bubble bath and it sounds like an impressive get up Ashley dressing down from the usual colorful and shiny clothes. If you remember an exodus to plain and simple what Pure Clean Service slavish clothes, you see the priest was dressing as a servant symbolically pure and clean before God and I'm bought the half of the people. It might be reminding us of another 7th priest figure. We keep going out of the next part is the 6 to 10:00 and here we find the old service the overall plan of the survey and you have it in front of you. I paint the Big Brush Strokes at Aaron's offerings the two goods for the people. That one becomes a sin offering and the other is alive and sent away and that's the overall plan for the next part bus 11 is the detailed plan. So everything from the 6 to 10 is that actually referred to a gay inverse 11222, but in more detail and you need to know this as you read through all you got to get confused you think that does double offset saying it again and again,
And that's to keep steps here in this detailed plan the fastest about cleansing the Tabernacle at the moments are Angela has two aunts from Indonesia visiting us in Brisbane and visiting family means cleaning the house. I don't know how strong this is in Aussie couches about four agents. You mentioned this family visiting and that means the next few days. The next week is all about hands on deck cleaning the house, but he a cleansing the Tabernacle. It's much more than about cleaning the house. It's not just about getting things tidy dusting the cobwebs making sure the kitchen is spotless UC cleansing the Tabernacle building. It's about getting rid of the smell and the stench of sin. I remember last week if you were here at clean and unclean unclean cannot mix with holy and it needs to be ritually cleansed first and you see it invests 629 + vs 11219. There's two parts to this cleansing thrust and offering on the half of the priest 6 is expanded verse 11 to 14 and just to summarize the priest takes the bull makes a sin offering he grabs a sensor or a lamp and some incense. I got inside the veil to the holy of holies and sprinkles blood from the offering on The Mercy Seat in the holy of holies. And the second part is an offering on behalf of the people. That's 79 and its expanded invest 15 to 19 and to Sunrise again, the priest take the guts that was designated by the lots to be a sin offering for the people. He kills it as an incense in the calls. I still smirking away in the holy of holies. The priest goes inside the valley again sprinkles Blood on the various elements and makes a tournament for the Tabernacle the holy of holies the in a century and the tent of meeting which is the outer Century if you read verse 16 Then I shall make atonement for the holy place because of the uncleanness of the people of Israel and because of their transgressions old Essence and so he shall do for the tent of meeting which dealt dwells with them and them it's all day uncleanness invest 18 Penny shall go out to the Ulta that is before the Lord and make a tournament for it and she'll take some of the blood of the bull and some of the blood of the guts and put it on the horns of the outer wall around all of these offerings to cleanse the Tabernacle from the uncleanness of the people. The unclean is caused by the sin and the Rebellion against God. UC thin is serious. God is Holy. This is what it takes to be right with God and it's three things quickly to point out. How fast is the holy place? The priest is going in to the in a century of the Tabernacle. This is where God dwelled Among the people no one was allowed in this room. Only the high priest only once a year only in this ceremony. You see all of this stuff yet. It's about God's presence with the people being right with God living with God. The second thing tonight if the incense and the sensor not how distant sinful people are from the holy God. We cannot be in his direct presence because of that sinful condition, even the high priest probably the most important person in Israel. He needs protection. He needs a smoky Cloud sea so that the priest doesn't die in The Glory of God's presence. And the sad thing is a turning the building. I did an essay in Leviticus 16 in Boston College, and it was so weird when it hit me the building needs a time. It's the element the Alta The Mercy Seat needs cleansing and a tournament is Heath in is so serious. It's so dirty. So defiling that it even makes the building on clean and the Tabernacle needs to be cleaned so that God cannot dwell with them the God can live among them so that the people can enjoy right fellowship with God. So the first kiss that was cleaning or cleansing the Tabernacle to get rid of sin. Last year, some of you might have walked into my church office, but I bought a second-hand monitor for my church office monitor died about a month in so this big 27 inch Dell monitor it sat in the corner of my office for a whole year is big stupid useless monitor. I put it out about a month ago for the curbside collection to pick up and within 10 minutes. I saw you coming pull up and grab my monitor and I saw all this happening I said, goodbye good riddance. See you later. Finally got rid of that stupid useless thing. And this is what we see in this part the next part of the ceremony. This is probably the high point of the holiday when the people they say goodbye to send see you later sent it sent away have a reed for Vista 20.
And when he has made an end of attorney for the holy place and the tent of meeting and the ultra fish represent the live goods and Aaron shall I both his hands on the head of a life cut and confess over all the iniquities the sins of the people of Israel and all that transgressions all the sins and it shall put them on the head of the gut and send it away Into the Wilderness by the hand of a man who is in Readiness the gutshot bear all the old are inequities on itself to remote area and I shall let the good go free in the wilderness.
See it's a very visual illustrative striking and unique ritual get it pretty clear. It's a pretty straightforward meaning so off the everything is being cleanse the priest take the 2nd guards is sometimes called the scapegoats remember acting this out with Jeff. I don't know if he remembers at figs when we were in high school and the lot fell on me. I was the scapegoats and the priest places his hand on the guts and the City of the people is transferred onto the guts and a good to sent away Into the Wilderness of far remote place far far away as of they'll invest 10 in 216. And on the side if you have any questions about this wood as a zelle, it's got three likely meetings. I want is a demon in the wilderness second one is a word that means complete destruction. And the said it's a wedge esta mean rocky place a rocky cliff and I would go with the third option if I had to choose but either way the meaning of the passage. If not in jeopardy. The Garth text on the scene of the people and is let go to run far away is gotten rid of the Tabernacle is cleansed and the people that right with God unclean barrier. No sitting area at least for another year when the ceremony happens all over again as it says invest 29 And it shall be statutes Thief River. That is the seventh month on the 10th day of the month. You shall afflict yourselves and showed you know, what either the native or the stranger to surgeons among you go on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you you shall be clean before the Lord from all your sins.
So just to summarize today's question is being what does it take to be right with God and as we arrive at Leviticus 16 Racine two ways of being right with God has Al way mankind making it right with God doing it. Anyway, it's a hopeless way it leads to death, but God he makes away and it involves a pure perfect seven priests rs.325 performing sacrifices for the people and on behalf of the people lesson 6 to 9 and 11 to 19. It involves getting rid of sinful good that's 10 does 2222 and it's an ongoing recurring ceremony that needs to happen again. And again, that's 29 and 30. And like we've already said this Leviticus passage, it's still perform today by devout Jews full thousand years later. And the question. I think Still Remains What does it take to be right with God? Because I'm dad leaves with walk through this passage. You can feel the tension as you read it through even the Israelites. I reckon felt it the awkwardness of the ceremony not knowing how it all actually what but seeing that the own way was doomed leading to death, but thankful that God somehow makes away. But we see the priest. Sinful human being like ass do white clothes really making pure does a bubble bath really make him spiritually clean. We see the sacrifices if an animal really a real substitute can it really cleanse us and pay for us since we see the Skype good good number to that sent away. It's a great visual symbol, but it's in really gotten rid of is it really far away? And we see this happen every year. Yeah after you why again and again and again, is this really the final ultimate solution? But while Leviticus it begins to address the problem Wilson ball begins to ask the question of being right with God. It's not the final answer to send God's word keeps going. It actually points to a greater fulfillment a real answer that actually makes sense a perfect Forest. It wasn't since I was actually pure and perfect. One who's really clean and holy making a perfect sacrifice on behalf of the people not an animal but a perfect person who pays the price for sin. West Indies actually pay for warehouse in is actually dealt with eliminated taken from far away. Never to return. And once for all not ongoing an event a ceremony that actually what that is effective once full and a New Testament tells us that all this points to and it's the field in the person and work of Jesus have a listen to Hebrews 7 + 26 to 28 should be on the screen. Where was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest? Holy innocent Einstein separate from sinners in exalted above the heavens. He has no I need like those High priests to offer sacrifices daily verse for his own sins. And then for the rest of the people since he did this once for all when he offered up himself For the law of points man in their weakness as high priest, but the word of the earth which came later than the law appoints the sun. He was being made perfect forever and keep on going to Hebrews 10. Forfeit the Lord has brought a shadow of the good things to come instead of the true form of these realities. It can never by the same sacrifices that are continually offered ever make perfect to those who draw here. Otherwise would they not have ceased to be offered since the worship is having once been cleanse would no longer have any consciousness of sins? But it is sacrifices. There's a reminder of sins every year. It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. Consequently, when Christ came into the world. He said sacrifices and offerings. You have not desired but a body have you prepared for me in burnt offerings and sin offerings. You've taken no pleasure. And by that we have been Sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all and every priest Ann's Deli at his service offering repeatedly the same sacrifices which can never take away sins. But when Christ offered for all-time a single sacrifice for sins He sat down at the right hand of God waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. You see the author of Hebrews tells us Jesus is the perfect Christ. He's the perfect sacrifice for his work on the cross sin is actually gotten rid of and his work is once for all. So what does it take to be right with God for sinful dirty? Unclean hopeless rebellious Humanity in his dying for you. He told down the veil between Mankind and the holy of holies the place but God's presence throat that dangerous place for sinful mankind to be the veil was torn as Jesus died allowing us free access into God's presence a writes a real relationship with the god of the universe. Do you know it? Do you trust in Jesus in his Priestly work and is saving sacrifice on behalf of mankind in his getting rid of sins your sins on the cross his once for all offering. It's a thin it's a serious problem. I have this problem you have this problem Israel had this problem all of humanity suffers from the serious effects of sin. and we have to choose each of us have to choose our way or God's way our way of trying to fix it ourselves with Noreen the problem all of these being hopeless at but he read that God has given us away and Jesus Is God solution Leviticus points food to this a perfect. Priest a perfect sacrifice on behalf of mankind sin is properly dealt with You see we read between the lines of Leviticus and Jesus is saving work is front-and-center.
So you right with God this morning, I a trusting in God solution in Jesus. Have you maybe let your eyes wander a bit. Do you need a reminder this morning? Does it help you appreciate Jesus our lord and savior even more. Cuz we finish up this morning in light of being right with God through Jesus. God's people we should know that Outlook has changed dramatically with change from hopelessness to a shortcut from sorrow and sin to Joy in Salvation. And this Outlook should be evident in our lives. Today. We are people of Joy people of Hope people of thankfulness people with good news of life to share that we can be right with a holy God. Let me read from Hebrews to close. Therefore Brothers since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus. By the New and Living Way that he open for us through the cutting that is through with flesh. And since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a True Heart in full Assurance of Faith with a hot sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let's pray.