Day 10

There are three relevant concepts to discern from the passages in today’s Bible study – 1) that we have access to God through Christ because of His sacrifice as an atonement for our sins; 2) We can gain a more complete understanding of God than “the man upstairs;” and 3) because of the “atonement” Christ achieved, (that Moses wanted to achieve), we can boldly “draw near with a true heart in full of assurance of faith.”
In Exodus 32:30, Moses is planning to go before LORD, interceding on behalf of the children of Israel who had just constructed a golden calf idol to worship instead of the one true God.
The following day Moses said to the people, “You have committed a grave sin. Now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I will be able to atone for your sins.” (NIV – make atonement for your sins)
Moses wanted to atone for their sins, but he was not capable of doing so despite all of his righteousness and favor with God – Jesus was the only pure and worthy sacrifice to make atonement once and for all. In Exodus 30:34 God responded to Moses that He would (still) render judgement (despite Moses’ desire to make atonement) when it was time.
The atonement, or sacrificial significance of the act of atonement, was originally by means of the blood of a lamb or goat – which was required before entering into the presence of God behind the veil inside the tabernacle, and eventually the temple. So – “sacrifice was required in order to be in the presence of God.” Even so, it was only the priests who would ever go behind the veil. Christ did what no animal sacrifice, or human priest could ever do:
“that He might make atonement for the sins of the people” (Heb 2:17)
“He has appeared once for all at the end of ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself” (9:26)
“we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (10:10)
Without having a true appreciation, and understanding of the atonement of Christ, it is not possible to boldly seek the face of God. It is possible to devotedly seek after God without this understanding, but when that is the case, the seeking will include either an inappropriate presumption (“the man upstairs”), or a fear that we are ultimately unacceptable. We will never understand our right to the access granted and confirmed in Hebrews 4:16
“Therefore let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us at the proper time.”
We cannot persist in the notion that Christ’s sacrifice is what “got us in the door” to heaven. How utterly simplistic and limiting! Atonement is surely inclusive of the accurate conclusion that “Jesus died for our sins.” But are we on our own after that? No – We have access behind the veil! We are able to go directly before God.
Hebrews 10:19-22 “Therefore, brothers, since we have boldness to enter the sanctuary through the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way He has opened for us through the curtain (that is, His 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, our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water.”
Moses, sought to make atonement for his people, but he was no more able than we are. Christ was able – and did. He made that atonement in His sacrifice on the cross, and it is through that we have access now to the presence of God! – Not just fire insurance.