When you look at the feasts days of the Lord in the book of Leviticus 23, It has always amazed me that the 6th feast (Day Of Atonement) was placed just before the last feast (Tabernacles). It seems to me that such a feast, in my mind, should have been the first feast, if not the second, instead of (Passover) since ‘atonement’ was the thing provided that made Passover possible.

If you think about it, ‘passover’ was when the Israelites left Egypt and passed through the Red Sea. When they had made it over on the other side of the Red Sea, it closed up killing Pharaoh’s Army. This was truly the ‘passover’. The night before when they kill the lamb and smeared it’s blood on the door posts; and roasted the body of the lamb; they had to eat every bit of it, that was the ‘atonement’.  The atonement was completed by the shedding of blood and the burning of the lamb’s body.

What is the ‘atonement’? The popular answer among churchmen is ‘covering’. Atonement is a covering in a generic sense. However, in Christ ‘atonement’ is much much more. Many tend to diminish ‘atonement’ from being a new testament application and only see it to be a ceremonial practice in an old testament setting. The ceremonial practice of atonement only covered the sins of the people and could never take them away. Present theology teaches that ‘In Christ’ sins are taken away and therefore there is no need for a covering. Supposedly, this is the school of thought that dismisses the atonement or the need for covering in the new testament.

Well in light of the truth that is in Christ, it would be insufficient to limit the word atonement to just mean a covering; and it would be insuffiecient to say there is no need for a blood covering even with the knowledge that Christ has put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. The atonement is, but not limited to being a covering. For Christ became the sin of the world in His body and received the penalty for sin in our place upon Himself. And yet still the blood of Christ was fixed eternally in the heavens as a cleansing cover for the benefit of our sinful, un-regenerated flesh bodies.

While the need for blood is very vital, atonement goes beyond the application of blood. We must examine and know what God instructed beyond extracting blood from the sacrificial victim. It was the body of that animal that became the sin of the sinner. It was the body of that animal that was to be burned on the altar until there was nothing left but ashes. The body of the animal served as the substitute for the body of the sinner and his sin. The atonement is not just the blood being carried and put in place but the atonement includes the termination of the body of sin (of the sinner). Literally  . . . the death of our flesh . . . .  is also in the atonement!

Col 2:11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:

Your circumcision (Death of flesh at the cross) took place before you could accept Jesus as you savior.

Ro 6:6   Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with [him], that the body of sin might be destroyed,

Again our crucifixion, (of our flesh), took place way before our new birth in Christ.

The DEATH of Jesus was imputed to us.

WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN A DEATH CREDIT

We will not find full life in him until we accept His death as our own.

It was our death being accomplished by His death

If we are not dead by the death of Christ then we are subject to the law.

Ro 7:1   Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth?

The law incarnate or in flesh, was nailed to the tree. If flesh was crucified then the law was also, seeing that it was no longer needed in the absence of sinful flesh. Man’s flesh was the target of the law. Once the flesh was terminated at the cross the assignment of the law was terminated as well.

Col 2:14  Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

The church must see itself dead with Christ in this world yet alive unto God. The only justifiable outcome for sin is death. As a means of justice being served, God had to see our death for sin before he could give us life.

Ro 6:7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.

2 Co 5:14   For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:

Col 2:20    Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,

So then your response to this truth is to: “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” This is the mindset of faith, to proceed in the advantage of having a heavenly disposition in Christ, that I might enter into the fulness of redemption.