A Sanctuary Thought -- Crozier

[Stewart (SDA)]

A thought on Bible atonement.

I expect many people here will know of Mrs. White’s endorsement/recommendation of ORL Crosier’s work on the Sanctuary.

“The Lord shew me in vision, more than one year ago, that Brother Crosier had the true light, on the cleansing of the Sanctuary, &c; and that it was His will, that Brother C. should write out the view which he gave us in the Day-Star, Extra, February 7, 1846. I feel fully authorized by the Lord, to recommend that Extra, to every saint.” (Word to the Little Flock p. 12)

Some may be familiar with this Day-Star article, and if any are interested in some of his basic points I would like to discuss them here. (Mrs. White’s comment that Crozier had the true light on the cleansing of the Sanctuary is significant to me, but as a church I still struggle to find places where we have actually taken that light on-board.)

One of Crosier’s fundamental points was that the atonement was not made on the cross, but rather, that the atonement was accomplished by what the High Priest did with that blood AFTER it was shed.

He wrote,

“The slaying of the victim was not making the atonement:

the sinner slew the victim, Leviticus 4:1-4, 13-15, etc.,

after that the Priest took the blood and made the

atonement. Leviticus 4:5-12, 16-21.”

(p. 19, Para. 1)

Of course in the Spirit of Prophecy we find many references to the Christ’s “atoning blood”. But I find no contradiction to Crosier’s view that –

the shedding of Christ’s blood [as far as the work of atonement is concerned] did not achieve an “ends” in itself, but was rather “a means to an end”.

Perhaps I am being picky to bring up this point, but to me it is important, and perhaps others here may find interest in it.

A comment from the Spirit of Prophecy:

“The precious revelation of God's will in the Scriptures with all their unfolding of glorious truth is only a means to an end. The death of Jesus Christ was a means to an end. The most powerful and efficacious provision that He could give to our world [i.e. the offering of His own life], was the means; the end was the glory of God in the uplifting, refining, ennobling of the human agent.” (7MR 274)

Regards,

Stewart

[John317]

Yes, this is true, dgrimm60.

The sacrifice of Christ was completed at the cross, never to be repeated. But the atonement includes much more than the sacrifice. The atonement will not be complete until Satan is destroyed and sin and sinners are no more. At that time the entire universe will be brought back into total harmony with God. Christ's work in the heavenly sanctuary is also an atonement. It is part of the process by which humanity is bring brought back to at-one-ment with God. Sins are being blotted out and God's character and reputation and the character of his people are being vindicated before the onlooking universe.

[BobRyan]

1 John 2:2 NIV calls the sacrifice at the cross "the Atoning Sacrifice" this is the same language used in the 28FB, the same language used by Ellen White in DA, and the same language we find in Questions on Doctrine.

It says that while the Atoning Sacrifice is completed at the cross -- the process of Atonement must also include the completed work of the High Priest as in Lev 16. A work that according to Heb could not have started until after Christ ascended to heaven.

It ends in as Rev 15:8 points out just before the 7 last plagues are poured out.

in Christ,

Bob

[Stewart (SDA)]

I don’t often have opportunity to get to this site, so my comments are likely to be quite occasional.

But I have some general questions.

The first of which follows.

#1.

Do we agree that the actual “Day of Atonement” began in heaven in October 1844, more than 1800 years AFTER the Sacrificial blood was shed on the cross?

As SDA’s we generally hold that Christ entered within “the second veil”, and began the Day of Atonement work on October 22 1844, don’t we?

But if this is true, then the Day of Atonement work did not take place on the Cross, just as Crozier says.

So, while the "full and complete" Atoning Sacrifice was offered on the Cross, the Atoning work did not begin until more than 1000 years later, when the High Priest literally entered into the Most Holy place.

(My next questions will relate to the difference between the daily atonements and the final, yearly atonement.)

Regards,

Stewart.

[guibox]

I think it is unwise to try and parallel the Christ event with the complete sanctuary service. I think we must be careful on how literal and chronological we interpret the sanctuary under the new covenant.

Christ was a whole fulfillment of many aspects of the sanctuary and it's processes, not a point by point representation of it.

The shewbread represented the 'bread of life'...there is no shew bread in the heavenly sanctuary. Christ is both the sacrifice and the high priest. It was not the blood of the high priest but of the sacrifice that is significant, and yet Christ is both.

So to say that Christ MUST be sacrificed and then must spend the next 2000+ years sprinkling his blood around doesn't seem to be very logical.

I believe that the act of Christ dying and resurrecting sealed the deal. Salvation was achieved and His merits are available. To take the 'cleansing of the sanctuary' so literally that we make Christ atoning for ever makes one believe (as some in the past have) that our salvation is not sealed until our name comes up in judgment and our blood is finally cleansed from the sanctuary.

To me, this is taking the sanctuary too literally. Christ's blood atones 'not like the blood of goats and lambs'. You can't compare the blood and it's work too literally. The blood of Christ and what it does is much greater than the original sacrifices. The process is a wholistic process finding its fulfillment in one fell swoop with the sacrifice of Christ.

Yes, Christ is interceding on our behalf and forgiving our sins as our lives progress. But to say that atonement is not complete due to having to 'cleanse the sanctuary' like the High Priest did, is not accurate, in my opinion.

Hebrews 9 makes it quite clear that all of this work was completed on the cross.

[John317]

That's right. The more I study the Bible, the more I see how right Ellen White was in her understanding of the meaning of "atonement." As SDAs, we are really blessed to have this larger view of the work of Christ. There are many Christians who have no real idea of what Christ is doing today. For them, it is as if Christ has done nothing since he ascended to heaven, and they don't know how to explain why He hasn't returned yet, these 2 thousand years. We should be able to see the close relationship between what He is doing now and His Second Coming.

[John317]

I think it is unwise to try and parallel the Christ event with the complete sanctuary service. I think we must be careful on how literal and chronological we interpret the sanctuary under the new covenant.

Christ was a whole fulfillment of many aspects of the sanctuary and it's processes, not a point by point representation of it.

The shewbread represented the 'bread of life'...there is no shew bread in the heavenly sanctuary. Christ is both the sacrifice and the high priest. It was not the blood of the high priest but of the sacrifice that is significant, and yet Christ is both.

Of course. You're right here.

It is just like when Moses took the oil into the sanctuary in order to dedicate it (Ex. 40: 9), that is not what happens in heaven. Moses represented God, and the oil symbolized the Holy Spirit. In the heavenly sanctuary, there was no need of oil, because the Holy Spirit and the Father were there to anoint the various apartments.

The heavenly sanctuary is not a small building, as the one on earth was. And of course the "apartments" were symbols of God's throne and of the process by which God is getting rid of sin in the universe. Yet we are not to think that the heavenly sanctuary is not literal. It is a real place, just as God is real, and just as Christ is a real man, the God-man. He occupies space. He has a glorified human body. He is just as real and physical now as He was when He ascended to heaven. We don't want to spiritualize these things away. When He returns, it won't be as a spirit-being, as some think, but it will be a physical, literal, visible return of the Man, Christ Jesus.

[BlueBoy1844]

Hi everyone,

I have read the comments in this forum and find them interesting, and at the same time distressing. May I add a little to them?

Below is a direct quote from the article God recommended thru EGW. Crozier gives very good proof that THE atonement (as some people see it) was NOT made at the cross, and indeed could not be.

Here it is:

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BUT AGAIN, THEY SAY THE ATONEMENT WAS MADE AND FINISHED ON CALVARY, WHEN THE LAMB OF GOD EXPIRED. SO MEN HAVE TAUGHT US, AND SO THE CHURCHES AND WORLD BELIEVE; BUT IT IS NONE THE MORE TRUE OR SACRED ON THAT ACCOUNT, IF UNSUPPORTED BY DIVINE AUTHORITY.

Perhaps few or none who hold that opinion have ever tested the foundation on which it rests.

ORLC SANCT The Antitype page 0019 paragraph 1

1. If the atonement was made on Calvary, by whom was it made? The making of the atonement is the work of a Priest? but who officiated on Calvary? - Roman soldiers and wicked Jews.

ORLC SANCT The Antitype page 0019 paragraph 2

2. THE SLAYING OF THE VICTIM WAS NOT MAKING THE ATONEMENT: THE SINNER SLEW THE VICTIM, Leviticus 4:1-4, 13-15, etc., after that the Priest took the blood and made the atonement. Leviticus 4:5-12, 16-21.

ORLC SANCT The Antitype page 0019 paragraph 3

3. Christ was the appointed High Priest to make the atonement, and He certainly could not have acted in that capacity till after His resurrection, and we have no record of His doing any thing on earth after His resurrection, which could be called the atonement.

ORLC SANCT The Antitype page 0019 paragraph 4

4. The atonement was made in the Sanctuary, but Calvary was not such a place.

ORLC SANCT The Antitype page 0019 paragraph 5

5. He could not, according to Hebrews 8:4, make the atonement while on earth. "If He were on earth, He should not be a Priest." The Levitical was the earthly priesthood, the Divine, the heavenly.

ORLC SANCT The Antitype page 0019 paragraph 6

6. Therefore, He did not begin the work of making the atonement, whatever the nature of that work may be, till after His ascension, when by His own blood He entered His heavenly Sanctuary for us.

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[BlueBoy1844]

Here's a quote from Crozier which I posted earlier but it doesn't seem to have taken, so I'm doing it again.

My apologies if you have already seen it.

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BUT AGAIN, THEY SAY THE ATONEMENT WAS MADE AND FINISHED ON CALVARY, WHEN THE LAMB OF GOD EXPIRED. SO MEN HAVE TAUGHT US, AND SO THE CHURCHES AND WORLD

BELIEVE; BUT IT IS NONE THE MORE TRUE OR SACRED ON THAT ACCOUNT, IF UNSUPPORTED BY DIVINE AUTHORITY.

Perhaps few or none who hold that opinion have ever tested the foundation on which it rests.

ORLC SANCT The Antitype page 0019 paragraph 1

1. If the atonement was made on Calvary, by whom was it made? The making of the atonement is the work of a Priest? but who officiated on Calvary? - Roman soldiers and wicked Jews.

ORLC SANCT The Antitype page 0019 paragraph 2

2. THE SLAYING OF THE VICTIM WAS NOT MAKING THE ATONEMENT: THE SINNER SLEW THE VICTIM, Leviticus 4:1-4, 13-15, etc., after that the Priest took the blood and made the atonement. Leviticus 4:5-12, 16-21.

ORLC SANCT The Antitype page 0019 paragraph 3

3. Christ was the appointed High Priest to make the atonement, and He certainly could not have acted in that capacity till after His resurrection, and we have no record of His doing any thing on earth after His resurrection, which could be called the atonement.

ORLC SANCT The Antitype page 0019 paragraph 4

4. The atonement was made in the Sanctuary, but Calvary was not such a place.

ORLC SANCT The Antitype page 0019 paragraph 5

5. He could not, according to Hebrews 8:4, make the atonement while on earth. "If He were on earth, He should not be a Priest." The Levitical was the earthly priesthood, the Divine, the heavenly.

ORLC SANCT The Antitype page 0019 paragraph 6

6. Therefore, He did not begin the work of making the atonement, whatever the nature of that work may be, till after His ascension, when by His own blood He entered His heavenly Sanctuary for us.

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[John317]

Yes, BlueBoy1844, you are right that the atonement continues in the Most Holy Place today. The sacrifice of Christ was once for all and completed on the cross, but the Bible views the atonement as being part of Christ's work today in the heavenly sanctuary. The Investigative Judgment is both a work of Judgment and a continuation of the atonement. See GC 418-422.

[Stewart (SDA)]

...To me, this is taking the sanctuary too literally. Christ's blood atones 'not like the blood of goats and lambs'. You can't compare the blood and it's work too literally... The process is a wholistic process finding its fulfillment in one fell swoop with the sacrifice of Christ.

...

Please may I try to clarify something here Guibox?

You are saying that the complete atonement was accomplished "in one fell swoop with the scarifice of Christ"?

But if this is so then what was it that literally began at the end of the 2300 days (October 1844)?

Did anything change in heaven at that time?

(Of course I'm not suggesting that God changed in any way, but I have understood that the SDA view holds that Jesus' work changed -- On that day He literally began the work prefigured in the Lev 16 ceremonies [The great Day of Atonement]. Do you have a different view on this?)

Regards,

Stewart.

[RonP]

If I may add a thought here. Although the DofA started in 1844 the type shows that a ceremony with bullock's blood took place before the goat's.

And that only happened AFTER all the sins of Israel had been confessed in the usual manner.

As we all know the day starts with sunset so we have been living thru the equivalent of that time, which is when all the earnest seekers after God came and "afflicted their souls".

The actual "cleansing ceremony" has not yet begun.

[Joe_in_RP]

There is a sermon here.

[Joe_in_RP]

This topic is not well understood by our people.

[RonP]

May I submit my understanding of the chapter?

The special “day”

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Leviticus 16:

1 And the LORD spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the LORD, and died; 2 and the LORD said to Moses, “Speak to Aaron your brother, that he come not at all times [during the daily ceremonies] into the holy place [the throne room which is] within the veil before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not [like Nadab and Abihu]: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat.”

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First, the Son of God laid down the rule that only the high priest could come into the first room of the tabernacle during this ritual. Verse 17. Then Aaron was told that his entry into the second room could happen on only one special day each year, and then for only a portion of that day. He was informed that he would need to make several trips into and out from the immediate presence of the Son of God during that time, but would be protected if he followed the rules exactly. This was to be a “special” period because it was a picture of the “day” when the “deaths” occasioned by our actions of sin (transgressions) as the “Israel of God” will be finally separated from us, nevermore to be recorded against our names.

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Leviticus 16:

3 Thus [in this way] shall Aaron come into the holy place [at the right time]: with [the blood of] a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering [the ram was to be used later at the end of the ceremonies].

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There was a need for ritual sinlessness, showing the state we must be in to safely approach the throne of God in the reality, and a change of uniform indicating a change of job for the high priest.

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Leviticus 16:

4 [At a certain point in the day] he shall put on the holy linen [white] coat, and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre [turban] shall he be attired: these are [special] holy garments [stored in the building]; therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on [after removing his ordinary uniform].

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A reminder:

“And these are the [usual] garments which they shall make [for the high priest]. A breastplate [with coloured jewels], and an ephod [an apron type garment], and a [blue] robe, and a [white] embroidered coat, a mitre [a white turban with a gold plate], and a girdle [multi-coloured belt]: and they shall make holy garments for Aaron your brother, and his sons, that he may minister to Me in the priest's office. And they shall take gold, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine [white] linen. And they shall make the ephod of gold, of blue, and of purple, of scarlet, and fine twined linen, with cunning [intricate] work. . . . And beneath upon the hem of it you shall make [artifical] pomegranates of blue, and of purple, and of scarlet, round about the hem thereof; and bells of gold between them round about: . . . And it shall be upon Aaron to minister: and his sound shall be heard when he goes in to the holy place before the LORD, and when he comes out, that he die not.” Exodus 28:4-6; 33-34.

Every day of the year while on duty, except for the few hours involved in this particular ritual, the high priest wore the coloured garments of mercy. The bells and pomegranates on the hem and the bright colours allowed everyone to easily see and hear where he was, and therefore what he was doing. But for the last part of this service he took upon himself the pure white clothes of justice only, operating in silence. Thus he became the Advocate. 1 John 2:1. In this we should see our High Priest fulfilling a special task before His Father. At a certain point in the reading we should see Jesus as the Advocate Priest and God the Father as the Person sitting on the throne of judgment. See Daniel 7:13-14.

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Leviticus 16:

5 And he [our Advocate] shall take of [dedicate for] the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering [and set them all aside for later use].

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The ceremony revolved around those two identical goats. Not the bullock, not a lamb, not the ram, nor a red heifer, but the two goats: and two people – the priest in the sanctuary and a man in the courtyard. It could not commence till the daily rituals were no longer required, so it’s timing depended on the number wanting to confess their sins. Not until all who wanted to had confessed and been forgiven could Aaron change his clothing and begin the last ritual of cleansing. Because the dark part of the day came first (e.g. Genesis 1:5) at least half of the available time had gone before he even contemplated commencing.

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Leviticus 16:

6 And [when the time comes] Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house [to make an atonement = to become right with God in an area].

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The bullock is dedicated at this point, but not yet killed. In the meantime, Aaron turns his attention to the other animals.

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Leviticus 16:

7 And he shall take the two goats, and present them [also] before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation [in the courtyard, under the care of a special keeper]. 8 And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat. [Note that the scapegoat is NOT the LORD’s goat, and that God decides which is His!

9 And [later in the ceremony] Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD's lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering [thus collecting a basin of blood]. 10 But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall [even later] be presented alive [again] before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness. [in the meantime, it remains in the care of the keeper.]

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One goat will die, while the other will live to be set free in a place devoid of men. One is obviously a picture of Christ and His sacrifice for us – the other is not. Unlike the living bird of the leper ceremony which was set free in a cultivated field (Leviticus 14:7), this animal is let go far from human habitation, and, as we shall see, with an additional burden.

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Leviticus 16:

11 And [when the daily confessions cease] Aaron shall bring the bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and shall make an atonement [a confession] for himself, and for his house [his helpers], and shall kill the bullock of the sin offering which is for himself [collecting its blood and moving into the first room].

12 And he shall take a censer [a small open pot like a wok, and, using the tongs, fill it] full of burning coals of fire from off the [incense] altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the [second] veil: 13 and [then] he shall put the incense upon the fire [in the censer] before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not. [He then returns to the first room for the basin of bullock’s blood.]

14 And [on re-entering the second room] he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward [on top of the law which has been broken]; and before the mercy seat [on the ground] shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times.

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Having obtained the evidence of the “deaths” of himself and his sons (the bullock’s blood) in a basin, Aaron enters the first room and places the basin down after having anointed the horns of the altar of incense/prayer with the blood it contains. He does not sprinkle any on the ground.

He then retrieves the censer from the second room where it is stored (Hebrews 9:3-4) and puts hot coals from the altar of incense into it. After that he moves back into the second room of the sanctuary and places the censer on the top of the ark of the covenant, on the mercy seat and between the two cherubim, right under the cloud in which is the Son of God. He goes out and returns once again with very small grains of incense in both of his hands. When he puts the incense into the censer, this makes a great “smoke” which represents the depth of the prayers that will surround him when he brings the “deaths” into the presence of the God of life.

In the reality, this Person is the Ancient of days, God the Father, and Jesus is the High Priest standing before Him. (See Hebrews 8:1-2.) Again, in the reality, this portion of His work has not yet begun because there is still a steady stream of sins being confessed here on earth (the courtyard).

But in the ritual Aaron goes back out into the first room and returns with the basin of bullock’s blood and applies that on the throne and on the ground seven times, showing a completeness. Eastward is the side nearest the curtain, so he is only just inside the throne room. All this is done while the high priest wears the coloured uniform with the names of the tribes of Israel on his shoulders and over his heart, for this is the end of the daily (mercy) services. Exodus 28:12, 29. It signifies that the last confession has been made by the last living Christian and mercy has ceased to plead with sinners, an event which is yet to happen in history.

The “day” has begun, but not the ritual.

The throne that Aaron could see represented the pure white one of justice, for this ritual is a picture of the Judgment Day, when mercy has ceased to plead for the rebellious ones because it is no longer being asked for. Then, for the first time in the ritual year, the “deaths” shown by the blood reach the presence of God. Aaron sprinkles the blood as evidence right onto the throne, and also down on the ground, so that both God and the loyal angels may see and accept.

As we have seen in our study of the ceremonials, when Aaron made the atonement with this animal he had first of all to confess all his sins, and those of his “house” onto it at the end of the daily ceremonies. So here we can see our High Priest showing all the records of death which He has laid upon Himself (the eaten and the transferred), those which came from His “brothers and sisters” (both the past and the present Christians), so that they can be recognised by the Father of the universe. To be able to do this with finality, it is required that the flow of daily confessions should have ceased. This is no problem for the dead Christians, but is something that Christ has had to work hard at with His living people.

In the ritual system the daily services continued until there were no more offerers wanting forgiveness, and then the final cleansing ritual for “leprosy” commenced (there is no set time of day for this ritual to begin). In like manner, when this time comes in the reality the living Christians will have put their entire faith in Him and (to paraphrase the letter to the Jewish Christians) their confessions “have ceased to be offered, because that the worshippers once purged have no more conscience of sins.” Hebrews 10:2. They will stand sinless before their Saviour, for He has saved them FROM their sins. Matthew 1:21 (consider Daniel 6:22.) ALL the “deaths” of ALL His Christians are now in the second room of the sanctuary.

After this Aaron changes his uniform into the pure white of justice and can no longer be heard as he moves around. When this occurs in the reality, we will have to know what Jesus is doing solely from the word of God as shown in these ceremonies. There will be no communications from the Spirit of God during this time, and, like John the Baptist in prison, we will be tempted to believe that God has cut us off, but we have His word that this is not so.

Now comes the central part of the atonement.

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Leviticus 16:

15 Then shall he [Aaron] kill the goat of the sin offering [verse 9], that is for the people [without confession of sin, because he is considered sinless], and bring his blood within the veil, and do with that [sinless] blood as he did with the [sinful] blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat. 16 And [by this] he shall make an atonement [cleansing] for the holy place [the second room], because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in ALL their sins:

and so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation [the first room], that remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness [it had blood sprinkled on the ground and on the horns of the altar during the daily].

17 And there shall be no [other] man in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goes in to make an atonement in the holy place, until he come out, and have made an atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the congregation of Israel.

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Having previously taken ALL the records of death through sin (including those of the living Christians) into the second room with the blood of the bullock for God’s recognition and acceptance, the high priest now removes them from there by the sinless blood of the LORD’s goat. After he does this, he also removes all the pollution of death from the first room. Because the blood used for removal has come from the LORD’s goat, we can see that the high priest has actually taken onto himself ALL the “deaths” which had been transferred during the ritual year. He now bears for the first time ALL the complete tally of the sins of Israel.

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Leviticus 16:

18 And he shall go out to the altar [which one?] that is before the LORD, and make an atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and [then] of the blood of the goat, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about. 19 And he shall sprinkle of the [goat’s] blood upon it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel.

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In this ceremony he is cleansing the golden altar of prayer which had a record of death placed upon it during the daily services, and also earlier that day through the bullock’s blood. Exodus 29:12. To do this he has used both the bullock’s sinful and the goat’s sinless bloods to first place the latest confessions, and then remove into himself, the full weight of iniquity. The placing is done wearing the coloured mercy clothes, and the removal with white ones of justice. (The furniture in the courtyard does not require an atonement because that area represents the earth, which will be cleansed by fire later, so the altar of sacrifice is not cleansed. 2 Peter 3:7.)

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Leviticus 16:

20 And when he [Aaron] has made an end of reconciling the holy place, and the tabernacle of the congregation, and the [golden] altar, he [the keeper] shall bring the live goat [to the doorway]. 21 And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him [transfer to him] ALL the iniquities of the children of Israel, and ALL their transgressions in ALL their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a “fit” [capable] man into the wilderness.

22 And the goat shall bear upon him ALL their iniquities to a land not inhabited [by humans]: and he [the fit man] shall let go [set free] the goat in the wilderness.

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Now we see what happens to the “deaths” caused by Christian transgression. They are, in the end, placed on he to whom they rightly belong, allowing the Christians to be resurrected. It is written, “. . . that through death He might destroy HIM THAT HAD THE POWER OF DEATH, that is, the devil; and deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.” Hebrews 2:14-15. He who brought sin and rebellion into the universe ends up with the weight of transgressions which has been on our Saviour. The guilt and result of sins which have been confessed into the sanctuary (those of Christians) are now his. This does not destroy him immediately, because the goat is let go, alive and free, into the wilderness and, being a goat, is quite capable of survival there. (That’s another story in itself, today we are concentrating on the Israel of God.)

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Leviticus 16:

23 And Aaron shall come into the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall put off the linen garments [the special ones], which he put on when he went into the holy place, and shall leave them there [inside the sanctuary].

24 And he shall wash his flesh with water in the holy place, and put on his [high priestly] garments, and come forth [with the bells ringing], and offer his burnt offering [his ram], and the burnt offering of the people [their ram], and make an atonement for himself, and for the people. 25 And the fat of the sin offering shall he burn upon the altar [in the normal way].

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Having done his special work which required only a few short hours of that day, Aaron changes back into his ordinary clothes and resumes his normal duties which now involve a rededication of all the people during the remainder of that twenty-four hour period. (This last period has great significance in the larger scheme of things for this rededication takes place after the second coming.) Because of His “bells” we may “hear” Christ with the ear of faith before we “see” Him at the second advent. In the reality He will be wearing His kingly robes.

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Leviticus 16:

26 And he that let go the goat for the scapegoat [the “fit” man] shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward come into the camp.

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This person has had a great although somewhat unrecognised job. Although the courtyard was full of people on that day for the special ceremony, he was the only one of the congregation who took part in it. It was he who kept the scapegoat under control (without using force) while the priest moved about his work. It is he who takes and releases him to his own devices, for he has no hatred for God’s enemy, only sorrow. This journey will take a little time, continuing while the high priest is changing ready for the new time. We can also see that the results of those sins will continue to exist till the scapegoat dies, for the “last enemy” to be overcome is death. 1 Corinthians 15:26. .

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Leviticus 16:

27 And the [body of the] bullock for the sin offering, and the [body of the] goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the holy place, shall one [who is in charge of a group] carry forth without the camp; and they shall burn in the fire their skins, and their flesh, and their dung. 28 And he that burns them shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp.

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As usual, when the blood is used inside the sanctuary building, the bodies are discarded outside the camp.

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Leviticus 16:

29 And this shall be a statute for ever to you: that in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month [our September/October, in the northern hemisphere, autumn], you shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country, or a stranger that sojourns among you: 30 for on THAT DAY shall the priest make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that you may be clean from ALL your sins before the LORD.

31 It shall be a sabbath of rest to you [a time of no ordinary works], and you shall afflict your souls, by a statute for ever [it will be a great soul-searching time relying on the Priest and the “fit” man to do their work].

32 And the priest, whom He shall anoint [in the future], and whom He shall consecrate to minister in the priest's office in his father's stead, shall make the atonement [each year], and shall put on the linen clothes, even the holy garments: 33 and he shall make an atonement for the holy sanctuary, and he shall make an atonement for the tabernacle of the congregation, and for the altar, and he shall make an atonement for the priests, and for all the people of the congregation. 34 And this shall be an everlasting statute to you, to make an atonement for the children of Israel for all their sins once a year. And he [Aaron] did as the LORD commanded Moses.

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It is in this manner that the REIGN of sin will come to an end. However, its complete disposal is yet in the future after that.

The high priest goes five times into the second room:

1. to get the censer;

2. to place the fiery censer on the mercy seat;

3. to fill the censer with incense;

4. to bring in the bullock’s blood;

5. to bring in the goat’s blood.

1. The bullock’s blood takes the “deaths” into the second room under mercy.

2. The goat’s blood brings them out to put on the scapegoat under justice.

Bye for now, RonP

Some of the comments in these readings are adapted from books in my library. No recognition is given because they are not intended as authorities, but are used because they express my understanding clearly.

[skyblue888]

Stewart, this is right. His death on the cross was the "condition" for the atonement. It was not the atonement itself. Christ ascended up on High to make atonement and on the 22nd of October 1844 He began the final phase of that atonement.

sky

"Christ's sacrifice in behalf of man was full and complete. The condition for the atonment had been fulfilled." A.A.29, bottom of the page.

"The intercession of Christ in our behalf is that of presenting His divine merits in the offering of Himself to the Father as our Substitute and Surety; for He ascended up on High to make an atonement for our transgressions." F.W.105.

[guibox]

The merits of Christ's sacrifice are bestowed upon the world when they become converted. To say that the 'atonement is not finished at the cross' implies that we are not saved by the merits of Christ's sacrifice but only by His constant intercession.

This is a false view of atonement.

Atonement is the reconciliation of God to man, the act of merit applied against the sins of the converted, making them righteous. This is a one time act and this is what was accomplished at the cross. The intercession of Christ on our behalf is a work of confession and forgiveness but it is not the atonement itself.

AT-ONE-MENT - the bridging of God to man was accomplished at the cross. The enmity was abolished.

Otherwise we are saved, then lost, then saved, then lost with each sin we commit confess if we reduce atonement to the sarcedotal methods of Christ.

[melvin mccarty]

Yes it makes so much sense! Our Savior, the Lamb of God who took away the sins of the world on the cross and did away with sactifice and offering, then went back to heaven and did obsolete first apartment services for 1800 earth years. Can you believe it?.....mel

[RonP]

Here's a thought:

When John pointed to Jesus and said "The Lamb of God which takes away the sin of the world" he was not referring to the daily sacrifice of two lambs as burnt offerings. They had nothing to do with sin for they were wholly burnt up and their blood never entered the sanctuary, it was sprinkled around the brass altar. Exodus 29:38-39. No sin was ever confessed over them

In the sanctuary service sins (plural) were dealt with by the blood (evidence of death) of bullocks, goats and (red) heifers. Hebrews 9:13.

The only lamb dealing with sin (singular) was the Passover lamb. "Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:" 1 Corinthians 5:7.

Thus the "atonement" took place in the home and not on the cross.

[guibox]

I think we must be careful to take the sanctuary service too literally in methodology when applying to Christ.

If what you are saying is true, Ron, than salvation is a yo-yo journey and Christ is running around a literal sanctuary sprinkling His blood around liberally and literally to keep our sins cleansed from us.

Christ entered once and for all, symbolically applying the merits of His sacrifice (which was really done by the process of death, resurrection and ascension)

He is interceding, He is forgiving our sins when we confess them. But to say that the bridge between man and God is continually being built throughout our lifetimes and only when the record is clear and safe are we saved is a false gospel.

We are saved now by the atoning death and resurrection of Christ. We are one in the kingdom and our sins have been forgiven upon confession and conversion.

[Stewart (SDA)]

...If what you are saying is true, Ron, than salvation is a yo-yo journey and Christ is running around a literal sanctuary sprinkling His blood around liberally and literally to keep our sins cleansed from us.

Guibox, just out of curiosity, do you believe that there is a literal sanctuary in heaven?

And, do you think it is actually necessary to "keep our sins cleansed from us"?

(Is Jesus literally engaged in a work to maintain the salvation of His people?)

Regards,

Stewart

[John317]

.... just out of curiosity, do you believe that there is a literal sanctuary in heaven?

Moses was told to make the earthly sanctuary just like the pattern of the one he was shown on the mountain. That early tabernacle was a copy or shadow of the one in heaven. Hebrews 8: 5.

The writer of Hebrews says there is a "true tabernacle" in heaven which the Lord built. Hebrews 8: 2.

The word of God tells us that Jesus went into that sanctuary in heaven. Hebrews 9:12, 24

About A.D. 90, the apostle John testified that he saw Jesus in the first apartment of the heavenly sanctuary, and later he said that he saw the Most Holy Place of the heavenly sanctuary. Rev. 1: 12ff and 11: 19.

Revelation also gives us good evidence that the heavenly sanctuary is the place from which the seven last plagues are sent out into the world. Rev. 16: 1

Therefore, if anything in the Bible is literal, it would certainly appear that the heavenly sanctuary must be very real, literal place.

[guibox]

Therefore, if anything in the Bible is literal, it would certainly appear that the heavenly sanctuary must be very real, literal place.

Really?

So there is a laver for Christ to wash in?

Candlesticks?

Shewbread on the table?

It cannot be as literal as the real sanctuary for the real sanctuary was built to point to Christ in all aspects. The heavenly sanctuary needed no such symbolism.

I believe Hebrews 9 seems to speak more concerning the metaphorical reality of the literal sanctuary and uses sanctuary language to describe what Christ did in relation to what the priest's role was.

For example, Hebrews 9:25,26 takes the literal sprinkling of blood in the holy place by he priest and compares it to the sacrifice of Christ who has 'appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself' and in verse 28 says, 'So Christ was ONCE offered to bear the sins of many'. This is all compared to the priest's atoning role of sprinkling 'every year with blood of others'.

Christ didn't literally go in the holy place and sprinkle His blood. The earthly act was literal, the latter was metaphorical

Why should we take Hebrews 9:12 as literal then too?

[melvin mccarty]

I think that anyone reading the book of Hebrews without pre-conceived ideas or a need to prove something will not arrive at a literal "sanctuary building" in Heaven. Moses was given plans for a literal structure which was to symbolise certain aspects of the plan of salvation but it all pointed to Christ and the cross and was fulfilled by Him at Calvary.........mel

[melvin mccarty]

It seems that the earth got along quite well for a long time with a simple offering of a lamb which fortold the Messiah. Why do you think the COI were given such a complicated works based system? ....mel