For Whom did Jesus Come?

For Whom Did Jesus Come?

Yom Kippur Message

 

Yom Kippur is the Jewish Day of Atonement. It’s the highest of holy days in the Jewish Faith. It’s the day when observant – and even non-observant Jews – call to mind their sins; A day when Jews humble themselves with fasting and prayer, and appeal to God for forgiveness.

 

The holy day has its roots in the Jewish Scriptures, specifically Leviticus chapters 16 and 17. On this day the high priest receives two sacrificial animals from the congregation. One he slaughters, catches its blood in a basin, and sprinkles it on the lid of the Ark of the Covenant – a gold-lined box kept in the special room in the Tabernacle – and later in the Temple. The special room was called the holy of holies. Into that room the high priest entered only once a year – with the blood of that sacrificial animal. It is important that we know the name of the lid of the Ark was called the “Mercy Seat.” The Hebrew word for Mercy Seat translates to the Greek word used by the New Testament writers – propitiation. The word means to a make atonement for, to remove sins and the associated judgment for those sins. It has the idea of appeasing God’s wrath against the sinner because of his or her sins.

 

For example, here is Romans 3:23-25  “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation [e.g. an atoning sacrifice] in His blood through faith.” 

 

The apostle John tells us in his first epistle: “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation [e.g. an atoning sacrifice’ for our sins.” (1 John 4:10)

 

In other words, Jesus became our substitutionary sacrifice, the heavenly Mercy Seat upon which His own blood was sprinkled for the remission or removal of our sins.

 

Hebrews 9:11-12  “But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect  tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He  entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.” 

 

But there is more to Yom Kippur than the one sacrificial animal. Then the priest took the second sacrificial animal, placed both his hands on its head and transferred to it all the sins of the people. Then it was let out into the desert, never to be seen again.  In other words, God was telling the people their sins were being removed from their midst by the sacrificial animal sent out to the wilderness – or as the Psalmist tells us in psalm 103, God removed the penitent’s sins “as far as the east is from the west.”

 

And so, Yom Kippur was a picture of what God would do on Good Friday, when the sins of the world were placed on the body of Messiah Jesus, who spilled His blood to cover our sins.

To those of you who remember that wondrous prophetic passage in Isaiah 53, you will immediately recognize the connection: “But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The   chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.”

 

So, on this day of Yom Kippur, let me make what might be some startling statements. Number one: Jesus didn’t come to save everyone. He only came for sinners. He only came for the humble, the penitent, for those who know they need a savior. Here is what He said in Matthew 9:12-13 “It is not those who are healthy who need a physician, but those who are sick . . . (now verse 13) “For I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

 

From time to time I go back in my memory to Yom Kippur in 1972. The holy day fell on September 18 of that year. I was sitting in my navy barracks, thinking about my Jewishness, and my relationship with God. And the thought suddenly dropped into my mind of what I had done exactly one year earlier, on Yom Kippur 1971.

 

I’d awaked that day deciding to fast and pray and be holy – at least for that one day out of the year. And I did fine all morning. But then my girlfriend unexpectedly rang the doorbell. It wasn’t long before we ended up in bed.

 

That memory now haunted me on Yom Kippur 1972. How could I be unable to live a holy life devoted to God for even ONE DAY out of 365?

 

Just one day.

 

When God opens our eyes to our sins, we usually do one of three things. We ignore what He shows us. Or we make excuses for ourselves. Or we acknowledge our sins and beg His forgiveness.

 

Fast forward to today, Yom Kippur 2020. Oh, I am so grateful to God that He not only showed me my sins, but that He permitted me to seek His forgiveness in 1972. I did not yet know anything about Jesus at the time, except that He was the Gentile’s God. I did not yet know He is the Jewish Messiah – the Jewish atonement for sins. The atonement for MY sins.

 

I still remember getting on my knees in 1972 and saying to God, “Forgive me my past sins and look with tolerance on my future sins.”

 

Yom Kippur 1971 convinced me I could not consistently live a godly lifestyle, not even for 24 hours. In 1972, the memory of bedding my girlfriend on the most holy day of my Jewish faith convinced me I was undeniably trapped by sin. I could only hope when I prayed that simple Yom Kippur prayer in my navy barracks that God would be kind enough to forgive me.

 

And – He was.

 

A few months later, on December 25, 1972, He showed me Jesus had become my atonement. He was the Jewish Messiah. It was in Jesus that God would forgive my moral failures – not only the one on Yom Kippur 1971, but He would forgive ALL my sins. Every last one of them. The small ones and the monstrous ones. In Messiah Jesus, who died as the atonement for my sins – I could be eternally forgiven, cleansed, and made right with God.

 

But I really do not want this story to be about me. It needs to be about you. It needs to be about anyone willing to admit to God that they’re trapped in sin, that they need a Savior, an Atonement for their sins.

 

God did not turn me away when I came to Him in humility. Neither will He turn anyone who comes to Him for forgiveness.

 

Jesus came for sinners. He did not come for those who think they do not need His forgiveness. You might remember the story Jesus told of the self-righteous Pharisee and the humble sinner.

 

Luke 18:10-14 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself: ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other people: swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, the sinner!’ I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

 

But there is still more to the question, For Whom Did Jesus Come? And so, Point number two: Jesus came for those who recognize their utter insufficiency to live an abundant and full life apart from God. Many of you might remember Simon and Garfunkel’s song, “I Am a Rock.” Here are some of the lyrics:

“I've built walls; A fortress deep and mighty that none may penetrate . . .

I am a rock. I am an island. “I am shielded in my armor, hiding in my room, safe within my womb. I touch no one and no one touches me. I am a rock. I am an island. And a rock feels no pain. And an island never cries.”

 

Jesus came for people who live songs like that, but who do not WANT to live like that any longer.  Jesus says to all of us, “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)

 

Now let me also say this. Jesus said His yoke is easy – but it is still a yoke. He said His burden is light – but it is still a burden. Why is it a yoke and a burden? Because following Messiah Jesus was never meant to be easy. Jesus said, “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.  (Matthew 7:13-14)

 

You and I do not have to look any further than our own lives to demonstrate what I am saying the Bible says is true. It has been hard for us over these many years to walk the narrow way and to bend low through that small gate. And don’t expect it to get easier as we get older. That’s also why the Lord Jesus tells us to persevere and we will receive the crown of life.

 

Point number three: Jesus came for sinners, not the self-righteous. He came for the weary and the burdened, not for those who strut through life in their own strength.

 

And Jesus came for those who walk in darkness, who are confused, who are unsure of the correct path toward the Celestial City.  Matthew tells us when Jesus settled in Capernaum He fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, “The people who were sitting in darkness saw a great Light, and those who were sitting in the land and shadow of death, upon them a Light dawned.”

And what did Jesus, the Light of the world do when He settled in Capernaum? How did He direct the people OUT of their darkness and into His light? Matthew tells us: From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:16-17)

 

Next, my final point for this message: Jesus came for those who search for TRUTH, for those who are unsatisfied with diluted truth and half-truths – which are not truths at all. Truth is both hard in its reality and sharp in its clarity. The Holy Spirit warns us against listening to teachers and preachers who tickle the ears with words we want to hear instead of words we NEED to hear. Here is what St. Paul wrote to Timothy: “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths. (2 Timothy 4:3-4)

 

I came across this word of warning by a mid-20th century preacher, A W Pink (d.1952). What he said reads like something any of the New Testament writers said:

 

“To turn away from the lifeless preachers and publishers of the day may involve a real cross. Your motives will be misconstrued, your words perverted, and your actions misinterpreted. The sharp arrows of false report will be directed against you. You will be called proud and self- righteous, because you refuse to fellowship empty professors (i.e. false Christians). You will be termed censorious and bitter if you condemn in plain speech the subtle delusions of Satan. You will be dubbed narrowminded and uncharitable, because you refuse to join in singing the praises of the ‘great’ and ‘popular men’ of the day.”

“More and more, you’ll be made to painfully realize that the path which leads to eternal life is narrow and that few there are who find it. May the Lord be pleased to grant to each of us a hearing ear and an obedient heart [and] take heed to what [we] hear and read.” (Bible teacher and evangelist, A W Pink, d. 1952)

 

Conclusion:

1. Jesus didn’t come for everyone. He came only for those who know they are trapped in sin, and who want to be set free from their sins.

2. Jesus came for those who recognize their insufficiency apart from God to live a meaningful life, an abundant live of hope and confidence. Jesus came for those who are restless and who are willing to take His yoke and His burden upon themselves.

 

3. Jesus came for those who know they are walking in darkness and want the Light of life.

 

4. And Jesus came for those who want nothing to do with diluted truth or half-truths. Jesus came only for those who seek His truth – hard and sharp as it is.

 

Application: Did Jesus come for you? Are you determined to persevere in your walk with Christ, to keep fighting the good fight, to finish your course, and to keep your faith? If we seek Him, He will certainly strengthen and encourage you and me to do so.