This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: on the 10th day of the seventh month you must deny yourselves and not do any work – whether native born or a foreigner residing among you — because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the Lord, you will be clean from all your sins. It is a day of Sabbath rest and you must deny yourselves; it is a lasting ordinance.
Leviticus 16:29-31
Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish faith, is a day of cleansing; a day of fasting and praying and abstaining from any physical pleasure or work, to be atoned for any sins in the upcoming year.
Moses explains in detail, this observance, this holy day, to Aaron, so he can teach the other Levites, and this day can be passed down from generation to generation.
Yom Kippur, The Day of Atonement, is actually the culmination of the high holy days in the Hebrew calendar which starts with Rosh Hashanah, the day God writes a person’s name into the book of life.
As we come upon the Lenten season in the Christian faith, we are essentially experiencing the same kind of Holy Days fulfilled through this time of Holiness in Judaism.
When Jesus walked the earth he had to go up on a mountain, much like Moses, and fast and pray for 40 days. In Jesus’ 40 days, he was tempted by every Temptation and came out of this fasting, sinless, never giving into the ways of the devil. Jesus then led his public ministry for three years until he carried His cross to Golgotha to be crucified, buried and risen again on the 3rd day. This day that we call Easter, for the final atonement of all our sins and to give us eternal life.
Anyone who believes in Jesus as their Lord and Savior has been atoned for their sins once and for all. Because of Salvation through Jesus, this cleansing and renewal, Easter is truly my favorite holiday – holy day. To prepare for it, I choose to participate in Lent, and give up some pleasure so I can focus on Jesus when I’m beginning to desire something other than Him. This preparation that starts on Ash Wednesday and concludes on the Saturday evening before Easter Sunday, gets my eyes focused on my savior and reminds me of all he He’s done for me throughout my life.
I understand the desire of Moses to have the Levites practice this day of atonement every year, to have a full cleansing to be able to focus on God and the ability to come into his presence. It comes from a desire deep within us to know him more fully. A desire we’ve had since the garden.
So, as we head into this Lenten season, I challenge you to lay aside something that will force you to focus more on Jesus. When lent culminates, my hope is that you will have a refreshing of your faith and truly come to know and experience the love of your Savior even more. Through Him you have already been written into the book of life, and atoned for, saved, through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.
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