5 Vital Lessons We Should Learn from the Day of Atonement

On September 14, the Churches of God will again keep the Day of Atonement as commanded by God Himself. It is the day which pictures the removal of sin from this world, the bounding of Satan (the author of confusion and deception), and the reconciliation of the whole world to God!

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This Day is truly magnificent and together with the other festivals of God, it should teach us vital lessons that we must keep in mind and translate on our daily lives.

In this post, I will share with you the 5 vital lessons from the Day of Atonement.

Vital lesson # 1. Satan is the author of sin

In every effect, there is a cause. Satan is considered as the god of this world.

2Co 4:4  They do not believe, because their minds have been kept in the dark by the EVIL GOD OF THIS WORLD. He keeps them from seeing the light shining on them, the light that comes from the Good News about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God.

Eph 2:2  that you once practiced as you lived according to the ways of this present world and according to the RULER OF THE POWER OF THE AIR, the spirit that is now active in those who are disobedient.

Satan deceived the WHOLE WORLD!

Rev 12:9  The huge dragon was thrown out—that ancient serpent, named the Devil, or Satan, that DECEIVED THE WHOLE WORLD. He was thrown down to earth, and all his angels with him.

Vital lesson # 2. God will have the final victory!

Though in this present age, we can see sufferings and untold stories of sadness in every corner of the earth because of the universal influence of Satan, time will finally come when Jesus will banish away Satan and establish the most-awaited Kingdom of God here on earth.

Rev 20:1  Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key of the abyss and a heavy chain.

Rev 20:2  He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent—that is, the Devil, or Satan—and chained him up for a thousand years.

Rev 20:3  The angel threw him into the abyss, locked it, and sealed it, so that he could not deceive the nations any more until the thousand years were over. After that he must be set loose for a little while.

So anytime you feel overwhelmed and discouraged by this life’s problem, you can always turn to the glorious prophecies found on the pages of your Bible. You can peek at the end of the Book and see what will the end of all these suffering. By doing so, we can REFOCUS again to the coming Kingdom of God and acquire renewed hope, faith, and trust to God.

Vital Lesson # 3. We must humble ourselves

The Day of Atonement is observed by having a holy convocation and to afflict our soul (Leviticus 23:27). To afflict one’s soul means to fast or literally to abstain from food and drink (Psalm 35:13, Esther 4:16, Ezra 8:21).

So why should we fast? Fasting is a sign of humbling ourselves. In this world where man has built spiritual tower of Babylon within their hearts as a sign of their rebellion against their Creator, humility has become rarer than precious stones. People think highly of themselves, they become affluent, and self-reliant. They thought that they can be better off without God.

Thus, fasting is a way to admit to ourselves that we are nothing but dust from the earth, like a vapor that quickly vanishes away to the thin air.

By abstaining from eating, we become very reliant to God to give us strength. We quickly realize that we are nothing without God. We need to humble ourselves before God so we can be used by God.

Many biblical personalities are first humbled by God before He used them. Thus, we must be humbled before God can use us in this life and the life to become.

Vital lesson # 4. Fasting is asking for God’s will to be done

One of the most common mistakes that we commit is to use fasting as a means to bend God to our want, rather than asking God to reveal to us His will. Fasting is significantly done to ask God’s mercy and forgiveness for our sin. It is a sincere desire to be forgiven by God to the point that we are willing to physically suffer and discomforted.

Vital lesson # 5. The Day of Atonement prepares us to Feast of Tabernacle and Last Great Day

After the Day of Atonement, we will keep the Feast of Tabernacles (Sept. 19-25) and Last Great Day (Sept 26).

I can still remember what Mr. Evasco, our pastor, once told us on the Day of Atonement. He said, “By eating sin entered into the world, and by fasting sin is removed from the world.” This made a great sense to me!

The Day of Atonement will lead us to the glorious millennial reign of Jesus and His people on earth. While it is true that we cannot earn our salvation no matter how much we perform righteous works and how often we fast, it is also true that we cannot be accounted worthy without keeping God’s commandments which include the Day of Atonement.

As we are humbled on the Day of Atonement, we can now be more prepared to enter God’s Kingdom and be counted worthy to be part of His Family!

Conclusion:

There are many more lessons that we should learn from Day of Atonement aside from the lessons I mentioned. I hope this coming Saturday, we will be able to keep it the way God intends us to. Let us remember these lessons and keep the Day of Atonement with humility and the focus to God’s coming Kingdom!

Additional Reading:

The Azazel Goat and Atonement

Binding of Satan Pictured in the Day of Atonement

Atonement Face to Face With God

Free Booklet:

Holidays or Holy Days: Does it Matter Which Days We Observe?

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