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A Living Sacrifice The Sin-Offering and Christian Sacrifice He shall make atonement for the priests and for all the
people David Stein In the mind of an ancient Israelite who had committed sin, the way to expiate that sin was to offer an animal sacrifice. The Law defined clearly the procedures for such sin-offerings. But the final expectation of that Israelite was removal of the sin and a consequent cleanness in the sight of God. Generalizing, we may understand the biblical concept of the sin-offering as the procedure or means for the removal of sin. Under the Law, people attained typical cleansing. There was no actual removal of sin. As the apostle Paul wrote, the blood of bulls and goats could not take away sin (Hebrews 10:4). The Old Testament types were intended to depict a later reality where sin would truly be eliminated. As a practical matter, there are two components to the removal of sin. Sin is a breaking of God’s Law so there must be a corresponding satisfaction of God’s Law. This legal aspect is the first component. Second, we note that sin has a corrupting effect. This is readily apparent in the condition of mankind today. Physical deterioration, evidenced by sickness and death, as well as mental deterioration, shown by poor judgment and wicked acts, is an effect of sin within human beings. The antitypical sin-offering must remove every vestige, every effect of sin, to cleanse the human family. So the second component is the restitution of mankind to perfection. When we speak of ransom and restitution, we are talking about the two components of the sin-offering. The legal satisfaction of justice was provided solely by the ransom sacrifice of Jesus. That is the ransom price. With Jesus’ death, Adam and his descendents may be freed from the sentence of death by virtue of Jesus paying it with his own perfect and sinless life. But simply releasing prisoners from death does not complete the work. They must be reeducated; their hearts and characters must be restored to the divine image. This is the work of the kingdom! And the kings and priests who will oversee this work will be eminently qualified to carry it out successfully. But how are the kings and priests qualified to do this? They go to school, the school of Christ. Just check how often the acquisition of knowledge is mentioned in the New Testament, especially by the apostle Paul: “And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment” (Philippians 1:9). Learning through Suffering The knowledge required is a knowledge of God, his character, his plan, his son, and the call to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. But the knowledge the church acquires in the school of Christ is not only head knowledge. It is also, and surely more importantly, an experiential knowledge. This type of knowledge comes when one suffers unjustly. It comes when we grieve over the sad history of sin. It comes when we see the innocent die and note the futility of life in the eyes of so many. The role of suffering as a teacher is the main reason why the church is called to suffer, just as their head: “And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together” (Romans 8:17). The experience of suffering has changing power in the life of the sufferer. Certain necessary lessons are learned only through suffering. Everyone who will be part of the rulership of the kingdom must suffer and learn something from that suffering, including Jesus himself! Paul writing of Jesus says “learned he obedience by [from] the things which he suffered” (Hebrews 5:8). Jesus’ time on earth as a man changed him! He had been an obedient servant for billions of years before coming to earth. Now, obedience cost him and he grew by the experience. Jesus was a perfect man; his integrity and moral fortitude had always been present in him. But the difficult suffering experiences deepened his knowledge of the human condition and proved his devotion to God and the principles of righteousness. If the head must have these experiences, so must the body. The church differs from Jesus in that its members are not born perfect. Rather they partake of the same imperfection that they one day hope to remove from mankind. So their experience involves learning from failure, something Jesus did not have to contend with in his own experiences. Consequently, when a Christian decides to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, it means presenting oneself as a sacrifice unto death and beginning the lessons associated with that sacrifice. Any similarity to the sacrifice of animals under the Law is fully intended. Enrollment in the school of Christ begins qualifying one to be part of the antitypical sin-offering. Membership in the body of Christ constitutes a life of self-sacrifice: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service” (Romans 12:1). Symbolic Daily Dying One’s sacrifice, and the suffering it entails, facilitates growing into the character of Christ. That character is requisite for one to be given the honor of the divine nature. So it is imperative that one live a life of sacrifice. But how does one do that? Paul gives us a hint in the words, “I die daily” (1 Corinthians 15:31). This symbolic dying emphasizes the type we are fulfilling. While our sacrifice is unto death, we are “living” sacrifices. By denying ourselves the normal and appropriate accommodations of the flesh and sacrificing our time, talents, wealth, and energy in the service of God, we not only show our love of God and our desire to serve him, but the attendant experiences cause us to grow in the character of God and Jesus! This self-denial is a sacrificial “sweet-savor” to God: “For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish” (2 Corinthians 2:15). Let us reiterate here that it is the future participation of all members of the church in the uplifting of mankind for which the daily Christian life of sacrifice is fitting them. They will be intimately involved in the removal of sin from the human race, the very purpose depicted in the original typical sin-offerings! These members will do this by the wise and knowledgeable application of the ransom merit to the world. It is that same merit which is applied to them in the present Gospel age. Practical Considerations All church members, like the rest of the world, wrestle and struggle with sin in their lives. As we strive day by day to lay down our lives in Christian sacrifice and service, we have daily reminders of our weaknesses. But this brings us to a point of sympathy with the world of mankind which is fully in bondage to sin and death. This growth of sympathy is a direct result of our own Christian struggle and works to qualify us in the school of Christ. Comprehending that the church members are to be part of the antitypical sin-offering enables us to understand some of the difficult teachings of Jesus. Jesus taught us to love our enemies. As we encounter such enemies in our lives we suffer because of them. Our flesh wants to hate them and teach them a lesson and get even for any and all transgressions against us. But our new minds, fashioned after Jesus Christ, are able to see these enemies in a different perspective. We can understand to a certain extent that they are products of a sinful environment. And to that extent we can have sympathy for them and, by God’s grace and spirit, be able truly to love them in spite of the pain they cause. Again, this is a practical result of our sacrifice unto death and affirms our will to participate in the offering for sin, inasmuch as we learn to exercise mercy and patience with these people, knowing that shortly in the future they will no longer hate us but love us! Godly Philanthropy We must develop that same perspective and attitude toward the world of mankind as Jehovah had and Jesus did. Of God’s view of mankind we read: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” (John 3:16,17). This shows the depth of love that God had for his human creation. He was the first and greatest philanthropist, a Greek word meaning “lover of mankind.” Jesus’ love for his heavenly Father as well as a corresponding love for the human family, moved him to leave everything he had in heaven and come to earth to die to pay for the redemption of mankind. So when we consider the call of the church to follow in the footsteps of Jesus, we must recognize the same motivations: love of God, love of Jesus, and love of humankind. If we are to be a part of the antitypical sin-offering for the removal of sin from mankind, we must be thoroughly immersed in love. Like Jehovah and like Jesus we must become true philanthropists! This truth helps us understand these words of Paul: “Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? why are they then baptized for the dead?” (1 Corinthians 15:29). Consequently, in living our lives day by day, we must look for the opportunities providence places before us to see how we can sacrifice for others. It is this consciousness of the need to be of service to others that sanctifies us for the purpose of God. Are we daily looking for such opportunities, or are we captured by the anxieties of our own life to the exclusion of service to others? To be servant-minded in this sacrificial way is to be like God! And God graciously gives the consecrated these opportunities for service if they are faithful enough to perceive them. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). This is, of course, a matter of faith. The deeper trust we have in the leadings of the holy spirit of God, the more we will see his hand and the greater participation we will be able to have in the sin-offering sacrifices of this Gospel age. So each member of the church needs to review his life and ask, “Am I a lover of mankind? Am I laying my life down for the benefit of my fellow members of the body of Christ and for the world as I have opportunity?” Paul gave us this counsel: “As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith” (Galatians 6:10). Whether a sacrifice for one’s family, one’s brethren, friends in the world, strangers in the world or enemies, all such sacrifice constitutes a godly love of right and deep desire to bring others closer to God. This is the teaching of the doctrine of the church’s share in the sin-offering, the ultimate goal of which is to remove sin and all its effects. One’s spiritual light is often best shone in acts of kindness and sacrifice for others. And the after effect on the recipients of these actions nearly always takes them in the direction of righteousness and brings them closer to God. For the church, the experiences of dying daily are ultimately harvested in the first resurrection, when they are united with their head and the full process of the restitution of mankind to perfection begins. “Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself: that in the dispensation of the fulness of times he might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth; even in him” (Ephesians 1:9,10). But as long as the members of the body of Christ are still in the flesh, the sacrifice must continue. And as the ancient Israelite was moved to slay an animal for his sin to get right with God, we must lay our lives down in death each day in matters small and great to participate in the cleansing of mankind. Let us encourage each other in the activities of sacrifice, and develop the mindset worthy of followers of Jesus. As “philanthropists” in the image of Christ, let us submit more and more to the leadings of God for his ultimate glory. |