A Different Sacrifice - Joey Ferrell
A DIFFERENT SACRIFICE
Sin always required a sacrifice to be absolved (or pressed forward in the case of the OT), sacrifice always required the shedding of blood....except for one particular sacrifice.
In Leviticus 16, there is a depiction of a sacrifice that not only required the blood of a bull and a ram as a burnt offering, but also two goat kids. The first sin offering was to appease God of the sins of Aaron and his family, then he was to take the two goat kids from the congregation and cast lots.
Whichever goat kid that God's lot fell on would be the sacrificial goat kid, but the second goat kid would also be a part of the process of atonement.
This goat is called the "scapegoat." The scapegoat would be released into the wilderness, but not before Aaron was to take the kid, lay both of his hands on its head, confess over it the iniquities and transgressions of all of the children of Israel, "putting them on the head of the goat." The goat would then be sent away with a suitable man to bear those iniquities to an uninhabited land and be released in the wilderness.
I find this passage in Leviticus fascinating. Not just because of this being the only time that I can think of where blood was not shed as a sacrifice, but also the entire scheme of redemption displayed through this sacrifice. On the one hand, the one goat kid would shed his blood for the atonement of sin, and the other hand, the other goat would carry those iniquities "out of the camp, possibly becoming a blood sacrifice another day in another land.
Here is what really shook me up a bit. Today, we use the word scapegoat in a somewhat similar fashion. The definition of a scapegoat has a scriptural meaning as we see displayed in this text, but also has a worldly meaning. The worldly meaning is somewhat grossly similar to the scriptural meaning when you think about it. What we might consider as a "scapegoat" today is one who has laid on him/her the blame for another or many other's actions, words, or deeds...whether welcomed, deserving, or not.
This modern day definition may not have the scapegoat leaving the camp to atone the sins of those that laid blame; however, the weight "laid upon the head" of one who would be a scapegoat would be quite burdensome...and certainly could cause an emotional departure from others.
What I find even more interesting, and it breaks my heart to know is that my sins are "laid upon the head" of the ultimate sacrifice! I am not of the camp of the children of Israel, but stay with me here. My Lord and savior King Jesus fulfilled BOTH of these roles for atonement. Not only did Jesus shed His blood for the remission of sins, Isaiah would say in Isaiah 53:6 referencing that sacrificial Lamb - "and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquities of us all."
I have often remembered the Levitical sacrifices in relation to the cross of Christ, but there is another sacrifice that was made alongside that shedding of blood. And He was the sacrificial Lamb for both of these atoning criteria...for me...for you...for everyone who will call upon the Lord and be obedient to Him in salvation! Glory to the Lamb! Glory to God!
From the field…
It has been a very busy few months and continues to be so for a while.
We have added several new local broadcasts in the recent months that will be listed here as well. New congregations have had us come and give presentations and we have been at multiple lectureships.
The kingdom is growing and you have been a big help to that!
Over the next few weeks, Joey will be traveling to multiple areas to give presentations and meet with church leaderships about sponsoring the local broadcasts, and building relationships in the areas we are not as strong in. Our goal is to fill as many local markets as we can and we have started off really strong this year with now over 40 markets plus nationwide.
Not only that, but we received word recently that we were the most watched religious program in a single run on Sunday mornings on FETV. WOW!
Want to help? You can support this great work in multiple ways. One of those ways is to ask your congregation’s leadership to consider supporting the work financially, or at least having us come to introduce the program and our resources to others.
You can contact us at 931-492-9566 to schedule a field rep visit!
Happy summer and see you next time!
~Joey