Christ and Satan

One of the most beautiful jewels that we have in nature is the diamond. And normally a jeweler cuts 58 different faces or facets to each diamond. And I like to use that analogy because the Bible is that way. It's this precious diamond that we can look at, a feast like today's, the Day of Atonement. And there are so many facets. We never tire of exploring all the wonderful meanings that this day has. And it's God's mind at work. That's why we give Him thanks for giving us understanding. The Jewish people are keeping this day those that are religious. They call it Yom Kippur. And they're at their synagogues. But to them, it's just an Old Testament feast because they rejected Jesus Christ, who is the center of this feast. They don't have the spiritual understanding to grasp the spiritual meaning of this day that gives us such great joy despite having to fast. This day has great joy as they mark them brought out in the first message, as it tells us in Psalms 111 verse 10. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. A good understanding have all those who do His commandments. So you can't just practice them in the Old Testament. You also have to give them the New Testament meaning. As you put them into practice, more understanding comes. Notice in Matthew 13 in verse 10, Jesus Christ told His disciples that they were blessed because God's Spirit was opening up their minds. They were understanding biblical truths. He says in Matthew 13 verse 10, He says, And the disciples came and said to him, Why do you speak to them in parables? He answered and said to them, Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For whoever has this understanding, to him more will be given. And he will have abundance, but whoever does not have understanding, even what he has, will be taken away from him. Verse 16, notice what it's talking about. But blessed are your eyes, for they see in your ears, for they hear. For assuredly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desire to see what you see and did not see it and to hear what you hear and did not hear it. Yes, how many of the ancient Israelites would have loved to have the understanding that we have today on this day? Eventually, God could have revealed it. If the high priests and others would have been faithful, they would have accepted Christ as the Messiah, why they would be keeping the feast with all of this great meaning. It would have been wonderful. But because of the rejection of Jesus Christ, God called more people into his plan. And now they are the ones who have this gift of understanding that is not anything to do with our special calling or our skills. It's all to the glory and honor of God. And yes, we are given more understanding as we put these commandments into practice. The Day of Atonement is one of God's commandments. He established it as part of his law. And so as we come to a greater understanding and we see that the Day of Atonement is just not about a religious rite that has to do with two goats and something in the Old Testament.

No, it has to do with the present time. And those two goats are still very much in our days functioning what they represent because the Day of Atonement has to do, first of all, and principally with Jesus Christ, and secondly, with the second goat representing Satan the devil. Now, we wouldn't understand this unless we would be keeping the feasts of God and the plan of salvation because the Jewish people do not have access to such a chapter as Revelation 20. They rejected all of this further revelation. It is when we see Revelation 20 and we know each feast is symbolic of an event that God is carrying out. The first one, of course, with the Passover has to do in the Old Testament with the Passover in Israel where the death angel passed over the children of Israel and they were freed from that slavery. And so it symbolized the freedom of God's people at that time. And then we know in the New Testament it has to do with Jesus Christ dying on that very Passover day when he had given up his life for our sins, the true Passover sacrifice, the true Lamb of God. And so because we keep these feasts, we have the spiritual understanding.

And then afterwards comes the second feast, the Days of Unleavened Bread. After Christ has died and been offered as a sacrifice for our sins, then there's a separate people that are no longer leavened in the world, that have been deleavened through the sacrifice of Christ, and that would become the church.

People now that are removing sin and they have access to the forgiveness of sin through Jesus Christ. Then we come to Pentecost, the third great event which occurred during that year. The Passover, Days of Unleavened Bread, and 50 days after that Sabbath of the Passover week, you have 50 days and what do you have?

Pentecost, the receiving of God's Spirit. These three events have already taken place. But the fourth event, the Feast of Trumpets, with the trumpet sounding, the arrival of Jesus Christ on the earth, has not occurred yet. So we are chronologically between the third and fourth feasts of God. And then after Christ comes back, which is described in Revelation 19 and Revelation 20, the next event is when a powerful angel takes hold of Satan and binds him and throws him into that bottomless pit for a thousand years so he can no longer deceive people on the earth.

So of course, now we understand what God was representing with this symbolism, the ritual, the two goats, and how separate one is from the other. So we need to first of all understand what the term Day of Atonement means, because there is a bit of confusion about this term. So you are the students. You are learning to teach others. You need to know the truth.

You need to know how to explain it as God teaches all of us, as I have received it, so I pass it on to you. So in the Hebrew, Day of Atonement is Yom Kippur. And that Yom means day. Kippur means covering, the day of covering. That's what the Bible says. It doesn't say what is being covered. You have to read the ceremony to understand it. Leviticus 23, starting in verse 26. Leviticus 23, starting in verse 26. And some people have been attending for a long time and maybe didn't know this.

Verse 26, it says, And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Also the tenth day of this seventh month shall be the day of Atonement, day of covering, Yom Kippur. It shall be a holy convocation for you. That's what we're doing today. We're meeting as a holy convocation. You shall afflict your souls and offer an offering made by fire to the Lord.

Now we do it not with a sacrifice, but we do it with an offering, monetary offering. And you shall do no work on that same day, for it is the day of Atonement, to make Atonement for you before the Lord your God. So here's where there's a little bit of confusion. And the term Atonement is actually a term invented in English that doesn't mean covering. It's a term that was chosen and put in the Bible here, because it reflects the reconciling aspect, how God reconciles us to it.

But for instance, in Spanish, it's more accurate. It's called the day of expiation, the day of expiration. And expiate means to remove, to again cover and remove from the presence. So Atonement is a word that sums up two aspects. It does mean to atone means to pay for something, to satisfy. Vine's dictionary says about Atonement, to cover over, atone, propitiate, pacify. Capar is first found in Genesis 6.34, where it is used in its primary sense of, quote, to cover over. Here God gives Noah instructions concerning the ark, including what he says, quote, cover it inside and out with pitch.

That's the first time capar is used, where we get the root word for kippur, to cover. So what are you supposed to do? You're supposed to cover the ark with pitch inside and out. Most uses, Vine goes on to say of the word, involve the theological meaning of covering over, often with the blood of a sacrifice in order to atone for some sin. In other words, to pay the penalty for some sin. The noun caporit is used for the term mercy seat, throne of mercy. This slab of gold represented the throne of God and symbolized his real presence in the worship there.

On the day of atonement, the high priest sprinkled the blood of the sin offering on it. Apparently symbolizing the blood's reception by God. He receives the sacrifice for the sins. And so that way they are removed. They are expiated. They are blotted out. So we have to understand that the term atonement, chosen in English, was done because it implies being reconciled or being at one by being forgiven.

But again, when we say day of atonement, atonement is a term that doesn't represent covering. It represents reconciling, being reconciled. The dictionary definition in Webster's dictionary for atonement means reconciliation, being reconciled. Now that is part of the day of atonement. But again, we have to understand that it's better to use a term like expiating or removing of sin.

Now as you remove sin, then you become reconciled to God. That's the second step. Reconciliation has to do with the first goat represented in the day of atonement. Notice in Leviticus 16. It says about the high priest, He shall take the two goats and present them before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. Then Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other lot for the scapegoat. And Aaron shall bring the goat on which the Lord's lot fell and offer it as a sin offering. But the goat on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat shall be preserved or presented alive before the Lord to make atonement. See, here it's not talking about reconciling so much as paying for a sin and to let it go as the scapegoat into the wilderness. Now there's a problem with the word scapegoat in English.

Again, we don't have in other languages this issue. According to Webster's dictionary, the scapegoat means an innocent person that is blamed for doing a wrong thing. So it's a person that takes the blame when he hasn't done it. Sort of like this goat is innocent and so somehow he gets the blame that he doesn't deserve. That is not correct. Again, sometimes the translators use these words and they give it the wrong impression. Because that second goat does not represent an innocent being that is being blamed for those sins. This is representing a being who is absolutely guilty and the high priest's hands are being laid on him because he deserves as representing Satan the devil. In Spanish, we don't have such a term as scapegoat, which actually is an abbreviated version of the escape goat. The goat that escapes. But it doesn't escape. There's a mighty person and he's got him bound and he takes him to the desert. And there he is loosed, not because he escapes, but because it is the time to banish it into the desert. What he represents.

The Kyle and Delish Old Testament commentary says about this word, the Hebrew word for scapegoat is azazel.

It says, the fallen angel azazel is the devil himself, the head of the fallen angels, who was afterwards called Satan. For no subordinate evil spirit could have been placed in antithesis or in front of God as azazel is here. Here you have one representing God, and actually Jesus Christ, and the other one is representing Satan. So it says here that he is the ruler or head of the kingdom of demons. And so we couldn't fully understand this ceremony unless we had Revelation chapter 20. Because let's read here in Leviticus 16 what it says. It says verse 21.

It says, Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, confessing over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all the transgressions concerning all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat, and shall send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a suitable man. The goat shall bear on itself all the iniquities to an uninhabited land, and he shall release the goat in the wilderness. So if we look in Revelation chapter 20, we see the event. This is symbolizing. Revelation chapter 20, after Christ returns, verse 1, it says, Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit, and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the devil. So it represents a zaizel, which means the expelled or banished one, and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years. So it's not just putting him in there. He is bound, just like that goat was tied up, and he was taken forcibly into this uninhabited area.

Verse 3, And he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. But after these things, he must be released for a little while.

And then after that event, we have the beginning of the thousand-year reign of Christ, mentioned here in verse 4. And I saw thrones, so Satan has been removed. Now Christ comes with his team to rule.

And they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Christ gave them that authority and responsibility. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus, and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands.

And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years. So we see again the symbolism of the Old Testament opening up the understanding of the New Testament event. What is going to take place at that time? And so, of course, we reveal this great understanding because the world doesn't know it.

They don't believe in Christ coming back and setting up his kingdom. And also, they don't believe that Satan is going to be bound for a thousand years. But we understand it. We go to the feast to represent that time when Satan will no longer deceive the nations. If there aren't any nations on the earth, how could he deceive them?

So there are nations on the earth, and they're going to be protected from Satan's deceit. He is just like a great big amplifier of music. When you have maybe somebody playing a guitar, it has a certain amount of power. You can hear it. But then if you put a big amplifier and some speakers, that can multiply it a hundred or a thousand times. Well, Satan is like the great amplifier. He amplifies attitudes of hate, of lust, of envy, of ingratitude, whatever it is, vanity. He really ramps up that amplifier. And so, of course, during that thousand-year period, we're no longer going to have that. People are not going to be induced to sin. But again, as important as Satan is, representing that second goat, the first goat is the one that represents Jesus Christ. And that is the central focus of the Day of Atonement. It isn't Satan. It's Jesus Christ. What he's going to carry out in this day. And so, let's go back to Leviticus 16 and focus on the first goat, which is so encouraging, because he's the one that defeats Satan in the end. Leviticus 16, it says in verse 9 of Leviticus 16, And Aaron shall bring the goat on which the Lord's lot fell. In other words, God is the one that chooses which goat represents him. And we have talked about Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. People don't know that they're following the God of this world. They think they're following the representative of the first goat. And actually, they're following the second goat, which is very similar in appearance. Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. And so, it is God who knows and chooses. And then it continues on here. It says, But the goat on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat. And again, the word here should be a zaizel. The one who represents the guilty, the goat that carries the guilt here of Satan, shall be presented alive before the Lord to make an atonement upon it, and to let it go as the scapegoat into the wilderness. And God makes an atonement, and in that sense, it does talk about that once Satan is blamed for his part in deceiving mankind, then we can have that at one whim with God. We can finally reconcile, because he's not going to be around anymore. Continuing on, it says in verse 15, Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering, which is for the people. See, it's something that is for the people's benefit. Bring its blood inside the veil, do with that blood, as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat, again, kippur, and before the mercy seat. So he shall make atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions for all their sins.

And so he shall do for the tabernacle of meeting, which remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness. And so this is one of those main stories in the Bible, the story of Christ and Satan, the two goats, the first goat and the second goat. Yes, there would be conflict. Yes, there would be adversaries here. Notice the first scripture that mentions it is in Genesis chapter 3 verse 15. Genesis chapter 3 verse 15.

After Satan was in the midst there and deceived Adam and Eve, God tells Eve verse 15, and I will put enmity between you and the woman. Actually, yeah, talking here about to Satan, I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed. That's here in capital letter because it's talking about Christ.

He, talking about Christ, shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel. So there would be a fight, there would be a conflict. Satan would bruise Christ's heel at his crucifixion, but he couldn't destroy Christ. He was resurrected three days afterwards. And then it's going to be Christ's turn to bruise Satan's head. That's what he's going to do at his coming, symbolized by the Day of Atonement.

Christ had already, as that goat, symbolizes the first one, he had already been willing to sacrifice himself for the sins of mankind. 1 Peter 1, verse 17, It says, And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one's work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay, here in fear. Some, instead of they, put pilgrimage. Because this is spiritual pilgrimage we have through our lives.

He goes on to say, Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, we who came out of a false system know very well. We were following an aimless life. We had no idea what the true purpose of life was.

Following the traditions of our parents, he said, But he has redeemed us, verse 19, With the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot, he indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you, who through him believed in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

He had already been predestined to sacrifice himself. He knew that. That's why that first go represented Christ, dying so that we could receive forgiveness of God, and before that holy of holies, that covering seat, the blood was sprinkled, representing God accepting the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for our sins.

In 2 Corinthians chapter 5, in verse 17, we see this clearly explained.

2 Corinthians 5 verse 17, it says, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, you begin a new life. Old things have passed away, behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, and how a person can be at one with God. So that's the term reconciliation has to do with atonement. Continuing on, he says, verse 19, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. A person can receive forgiveness. A person can be at one with God. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ. As though God were pleading through us, we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God. Be at one with God.

In other words, for he made him, talking about Christ, who knew no sin to be sin for us, to substitute for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in him. So basically, a lot of the ceremony of the Day of Atonement is explained right there, how God is reconciling us to himself through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Also, in Hebrews 9, Hebrews 9, verse 6, this same theme is explained further.

Hebrews 9, verse 6, it says, talking about the tabernacle, for now when these things had been thus prepared, the priests always went into the first part of the tabernacle, performing the services. But into the second part of that tabernacle, the high priest went alone once a year during the Day of Atonement.

Not without blood, which he offered for himself and for the people's sins, committed in ignorance. The Holy Spirit indicating this, that the way into the holiest of all, was not yet made manifest while the first tabernacle was still standing. That wasn't a complete understanding of God's will.

It was symbolic for the present time in which both gifts and sacrifices are offered, which cannot make him who performed the service perfect in regard to the conscience. You need to have God's Spirit to be cleansed in that way. They didn't have access to that, except for a few of God's servants, which concern only with foods and drinks, various washings and fleshly ordinances, talk about sacrifices, imposed until the time of Reformation. But Christ, like that first goat in the Day of Atonement, came as high priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is, not of this creation, not with the blood of goats, like those that were there, and calves, but with his own blood. He entered the most holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this reason, he is the mediator of the new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgression under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.

And so again, we see today the importance of that first goat. So we've learned a couple of things. First of all, remember that the day of atonement, the word atonement is something that just means reconciling, but that the actual term has to be covering, what is removing the sin from the people. The second thing is that the word scapegoat is also not appropriate because that represents Satan. And the scapegoat is used now for a person that is innocent and is blamed as being guilty. So that's something that we also need to understand. That that's not a good translation of the term as zaizo, which means the banished one, he who has been expelled. And we've learned also that, of course, the second goat represents Satan and how he is going to be expelled. He is going to be taken to a place that is going to be banished there. Notice he's not killed. Just like in Revelation, it doesn't say he's killed. He is bound and then taken to a place where he can no longer have any activity or influence on the earth.

And we have learned that the first goat is the central focus of the day of atonement. That has to do with Jesus Christ, his sacrifice, being able to remove those sins before the Holy of Holies, as that blood was sprinkled on that mercy seat, the covering.

So representing God for giving us through Jesus Christ's sacrifice.

With this understanding, we can prepare better for this coming feast, which represents the next stage, the coming of the kingdom of God. And we are going to have so much joy. We are going to love because it represents serving God's people for a thousand years. And brethren, I can say for myself, the most important question that I have before God is, how did I serve you? And how did I serve the brethren? God will answer that. But you know, those are the two most important things when we go before Him. Because it doesn't matter how people served you, how people treated you, that's separate. That's something that God will deal with others. It's how we served Him and how we serve God's people and the people that are around us, our neighbors, our community. How did we deal with this? So brethren, the Day of Atonement has a lot to teach us. And I hope the next time around somebody tells you, oh yes, it's about atonement. You can tell them, well, it's a little bit more than that. Because actually the term atonement isn't the one that defines the covering of sin. It is the covering and then the reconciling of people to God. And that scapegoat is not the one that is innocent, but He is very guilty and that term is not the appropriate one when we're talking about Satan and that second go. So brethren, I know that people are preparing. We ourselves tonight have to do the final packing because we have to leave early tomorrow morning for the feast in Puerto Vallarta to serve close to 700 people there. Please pray that everything goes well in all the feast sites, that Satan will no longer be bothering us because you know how it is right before the feast. Satan is always up to his old tricks trying to discourage us, trying to keep us down. Brethren, we have so much ahead of us. I'd like to just end with one final scripture. We have time. Romans 8. Romans 8. I think it's very appropriate to end the Day of Atonement.

Romans 8, in verse 31.

What then shall we say to those things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or peril or sword? And then he says, verse 37, Brethren, have a wonderful feast wherever you go.