Topic: Restricted Area [DCLM Daily Manna 1 May 2020 Daily Devotional by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi]
Text: Leviticus 16:1-19
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the LORD, and died;
2 And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat.
3 Thus shall Aaron come into the holy place: with a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering.
4 He shall put on the holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired: these are holy garments; therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on.
5 And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering.
6 And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house.
7 And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
8 And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat.
9 And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD’S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering.
10 But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.
11 And Aaron shall bring the bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and shall make an atonement for himself, and for his house, and shall kill the bullock of the sin offering which is for himself:
12 And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the vail:
13 And he shall put the incense upon the fire before the LORD, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not:
14 And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it with his finger upon the mercy seat eastward; and before the mercy seat shall he sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times.
15 Then shall he kill the goat of the sin offering, that is for the people, and bring his blood within the vail, and do with that blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat:
16 And he shall make an atonement for the holy place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions in all their sins: and so shall he do for the tabernacle of the congregation, that remaineth among them in the midst of their uncleanness.
17 And there shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goeth in to make an atonement in the holy place, until he come out, and have made an atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the congregation of Israel.
18 And he shall go out unto the altar that is before the LORD, and make an atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the blood of the goat, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about.
19 And he shall sprinkle of the blood upon it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel.
KEY VERSE: “And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the vail before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat.” – (Leviticus 16:2)
MESSAGE:
Imagine trying to make an appointment with the president of the United States of America. You telephone the White House, tell them who you are and that you would like to make an appointment. The questions come thick and fast: “Who are you? Where are you from? What is the nature of your inquiry? Can anyone else help you? He’s very busy.” But if the president’s son calls him, that’s not the kind of response he’ll get. It will be, “Oh yes, I’ll put you right through.” That’s the kind of access we have with God.
Aaron’s two sons died in the presence of the Lord after offering strange fire before Him. Aaron was reminded once again of the requirements to approach God in the most holy place. He was to offer a young bullock for a sin offering and a ram as burnt offering for himself and his household, and was also required to wash himself in water before putting on the priestly garments. For the children of Israel, he was to take two goats and cast lot. The one chosen would be offered as sin offering, while the second, the scapegoat was presented alive before the Lord to make an atonement after which it would be released into the wilderness. The blood of the sin offering would be sprinkled on the mercy seat for the cleansing of the people.
From Matthew’s gospel, immediately Jesus died on the cross, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom, opening the presence of God and mankind has now been removed. However, unlike the time of old, today, if we must have access to God, it has to be granted through His own chosen medium, Jesus Christ. He is the Mediator between lost humanity and God. Religion alone cannot save, but Christ.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: Christ’s death has granted us unrestrained access to God.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Joshua 22-24
DCLM Daily Manna was written by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.
