The Necessity of a Blood Sacrifice

Leviticus 17:11 ESV
For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it for you on the altar to make atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes atonement by the life.

If you've ever attempted to read through the Bible, you probably had the same reaction many Christians do when they reach the book of Leviticus: What are all these animal sacrifices about? This ancient sacrificial system of worship seems so foreign to us. Can you imagine having to bring a lamb for slaughter every time you want to confess your sin?

We tend to look back on all those bloody sacrifices and think, I’m sure glad that doesn't involve me! But if we pass too quickly over them, we’ll miss seeing what our salvation cost the Savior. You see, He was our blood sacrifice. Redemption wouldn't have worked if He’d simply died for us in His sleep, because “without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness” (Heb. 9:22).

The Israelites had the continual reminder of the cost of sin. But today, having never experienced the slaughter of thousands of animals, we often take our salvation lightly, not realizing what it required. The flogging and crucifixion of Christ was a bloody, messy scene. The horror of it should move us to tears of sorrow and gratitude for what He did to buy our salvation. Without the shedding of His blood, we’d be bound for hell and eternal separation from God.

Now, instead of dragging a lamb behind us to the altar, we rely upon the Lamb of God, who offered Himself as the sacrifice for our transgressions. His blood washed away our sin so we can one day stand in heaven, singing praise to the Lamb who purchased us with His blood (Rev. 5:9-10). How wonderful is our redemption, and how good is our God!

Reprinted from: http://www.intouch.org/read/magazine/daily-devotions/the-necessity-of-a-blood-sacrifice

Who Was Jesus?

We are using the 1^st 4 books of the Bible (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) as our witness.  They tell the story from 4 perspectives.

His Birth

·         He was conceived

o   Somewhere 4-6 BC (Dionysius Exiguus miscalculated)

o   Born to Mary who was probably 15 or 16yo

§  Was engaged to Joseph

o   Angel Gabriel told her she would bear a child from the Holy Spirit (Luke 1)

§  Also told Joseph

§  Mary was a virgin

o   Fulfilled prophesy

§  Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)

§   https://answersingenesis.org/jesus-christ/birth/fulfilled-prophecies-at-the-birth-of-christ/

·         He was born

o   Caesar Augustus decreed a census, so they went to Bethlehem

o   No room in the inn (Luke 2)

§  Born in a stable in a manger

o   Wise man looking for King because of star in the East

§  Probably before he was 2yo

o   Herrod was the Roman governor of Judea

§  Massacre of the Innocents (Matthew 2)

·         Killed all boys under 2 in Bethlehem

·         Fearing an insurgence of the Jews looking for their king

o   Joseph & his family fled to Egypt

§  An angel told him to leave

§  Then he told him to come back when Herod died

o   Jesus grew up like any person

§  He had to learn in the temple

§  But he was filled with wisdom

His Life

·         Synoptic gospels tell the tale

o   Apostles: Matthew, Mark (Peter), & John

o   Luke - physician and a disciple of Paul

·         Key early events

o   Jesus baptized

§  Heaven opened & the Spirit descended on him(Matthew 3)

§  Starts his ministry at around 30

o   40 days/nights of fasting in the wilderness

§  Temptation by Satan

o   Jesus’ disciples

§  Fisherman, said they would be fishers of men

§  Tax collectors, the lowest of the low

o   First miracle (John 2)

§  Turned water to wine at a wedding

o   Went home to the temple

§  Read he fulfilled the law & they chased him out

·         Teachings

o   Sermon on the Mount

§  Likely a collection of sermons

§  Reset the way they thought of the law

·         The standard was so high that it could not be met

·         Established even the ‘holy’ as sinners

o   Parables

§  Taught in the form of stories

§  Good for the oral culture of the day

§  Used a lot of agrarian metaphors

o   Miracles

§  Too many to capture

§  Feeding the 5000

§  The Transfiguration (Moses & Elijah)

§  Healing, casting out demons, raising Lazarus from the dead

o   Greatest is the least

§  Countercultureal

§  Pharisees & Sadducees hated this

His Death & Resurrection

·         The beginning

o   Judas sold him out

o   Peter denied him

o   Pharisees orchestrated with Pilate

o   Jesus went to pray in the garden & sweat blood

·         The crucifiction

o   Greatest for of Roman torture

§  No one ever survived

o   Meant to embarrass

o   Old testament blood sacrifices

§  He took the punishment for our sins

·         The resurrection

o   On the 3^rd day

o   The impossible nature of it

§  Roman guards

§  Dead is dead

o   Appeared for 40 days before he went to heaven

o   'Sold out' the apostles

§  All died as martyrs

The Books of Genesis & Exodus - Illustrated

Old Testament Survey

Last night we spent a little over an hour hitting the highlights of the Old Testament, in chronological order.  Hopefully this will help you get your hands around the historical nature of the events and the story of the Jewish people (the Israelites, the people of God).

When I read the Old Testament, I'm always struck at how sinful people are and how loving God is.  People have always been sinful & made bad decisions, but God still used some of these people & redeemed them in the process.  When people repent, God's mercy shines.

Below is a list of the events we discussed.  Click the link at the bottom to see the full list.

http://biblehub.com/timeline/#ot

Also, we talked a little about the Caanities & their moral corruption.  You can read more about that here:

https://bible.org/article/canaanites-genocide-or-judgment 

If Jesus was Jewish, why aren't Christians Jewish?

Of the major world religions, Christianity and Judaism are likely the most similar. Christianity and Judaism both believe in one God who is almighty, omniscient, omnipresent, eternal, and infinite. Both religions believe in a God who is holy, righteous, and just, while at the same time loving, forgiving, and merciful. Christianity and Judaism share the Hebrew Scriptures (the Old Testament) as the authoritative Word of God, although Christianity includes the New Testament as well. Both Christianity and Judaism believe in the existence of heaven, the eternal dwelling place of the righteous, and hell, the eternal dwelling place of the wicked (although not all Christians and not all Jews believe in the eternality of hell). Christianity and Judaism have basically the same ethical code, commonly known today as Judeo-Christian. Both Judaism and Christianity teach that God has a special plan for the nation of Israel and the Jewish people.

The all-important difference between Christianity and Judaism is the Person of Jesus Christ. Christianity teaches that Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies of a coming Messiah / Savior (Isaiah 7:14; 9:6-7; Micah 5:2). Judaism often recognizes Jesus as a good teacher, and perhaps even a prophet of God. Judaism does not believe that Jesus was the Messiah. Taking it a step further, Christianity teaches that Jesus was God in the flesh (John 1:1,14; Hebrews 1:8). Christianity teaches that God became a human being in the Person of Jesus Christ so He could lay down His life to pay the price for our sins (Romans 5:8; 2 Corinthians 5:21). Judaism strongly denies that Jesus was God or that such a sacrifice was necessary.

Christianity has a close relationship with Judaism, both historically and theologically. Jesus, the twelve disciples, the author of most of the New Testament, and the members of the earliest Christian churches were all Jews. Jesus' family followed Jewish customs and Jesus frequently quoted the Hebrew Bible. Jesus' followers believed him to be the Messiah, a Jewish figure predicted in the Jewish Bible. (See Christian Beliefs main page and Judaism beliefs main page)

Despite its Jewish origins, it was not long before Christianity regarded itself as something other than a new Jewish sect. The first Christian council, convened by the apostles, concluded that pagan converts to Christianity did not have to follow Jewish ritual laws. Soon, converts to Christianity were almost exclusively pagans and Christianity moved further away from Judaism. Today, theological disagreements between Christians and Jews remain, but efforts are being made towards greater understanding and respect between the two great faiths. The following chart compares the origins, beliefs and practices of Christianity and Judaism.

Reprinted from: http://www.religionfacts.com/christianity/charts/christianity_judaism.htm & http://www.gotquestions.org/difference-Christianity-Judaism.html