Sermons in the Year 2025
The Day of Atonement

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All Scriptures quoted in this article are from the New King James Version (NKJV), unless otherwise noted (https://www.biblestudytools.com/nkjv/).

Dear Church,

In the Old Testament, God established seven appointed festivals that the people of Israel were commanded to observe. These seven festivals are fully recorded in Leviticus chapter 23, with four taking place in the spring and three in the fall. Each of these festivals foreshadows a spiritual ministry that the Lord Jesus Christ would carry out for humanity.

The Day of Atonement is the sixth festival, following the Feast of Trumpets, and falls on the 10th day of Tishrei, the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar.

As we approach this year’s Day of Atonement—from sunset on October 1 to sunset on October 2, 2025—let us take the time to reflect together on its meaning.

The Day of Atonement is one of the most solemn and significant days for the people of Israel. It is a day set apart for the rites of atonement, for purifying the nation from sin, and for restoring their relationship with God. It is the only day of the year when the high priest may enter the Most Holy Place in the Tabernacle or Temple to offer the blood of the sin offering on behalf of the entire nation.

The main significance of this festival is the forgiveness of sins through the sacrifice of an innocent life. The purification rites emphasize the holiness of God and humanity’s need for repentance. This festival also carries a prophetic meaning, pointing to the complete redemption in the Lord Jesus Christ in the New Testament era, available to all who sincerely repent of their sins and fully trust in His atoning death.

Thus, the Day of Atonement serves as a foreshadowing of the Gospel’s redemption for all humanity.

“And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world.” (1 John 2:2)

The Day of Atonement also foreshadows the Gospel’s redemption specifically for the people of Israel, after the Church has been raptured out of the world by the Christ. This redemption will be completed in the End Times, when the people of Israel have been spiritually resurrected and recognize that the Lord Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ, whom God promised to give them. This event was revealed to the Apostle Paul, and he shared it with God’s people in Rome.

“For I do not desire, brethren, that you should be ignorant of this mystery, lest you should be wise in your own opinion, that blindness in part has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: “The Deliverer will come out of Zion, And He will turn away ungodliness from Jacob; For this is My covenant with them, When I take away their sins.”” (Romans 11:25–27; referencing Isaiah 59:20–21; 27:9)

Furthermore, the Day of Atonement also foreshadows the separation of those who are not part of salvation from God’s people, as seen in the judgment at the end of the End Times (Matthew 25:31–46) and in the final judgment (Revelation 20:11–15). This incident is represented by the scapegoat, also called the “sin-bearing goat,” which carries the sins of the people and is sent into the wilderness in the Day of Atonement ritual (Leviticus 16).

The Sabbath of the Day of Atonement symbolizes the rest from all punishment for those who are in Christ, that is, those who are in His salvation. They are the ones who do not live according to their own desires but live according to the Word of God.

“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.” (Romans 8:1)

The Day of Atonement is observed on the 10th day of the seventh month according to the Hebrew Calendar (usually falling in September or October on the Gregorian Calendar) and is a day of fasting, rest, and fellowship.

Leviticus chapter 23 records God’s instructions to Moses regarding the observance of the Day of Atonement, emphasizing the affliction of the soul—that is, fasting—rest from all work, and the offering of sacrifices.

Leviticus 23:26-32

26 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

27 “Also the tenth day of this seventh month shall be the Day of Atonement. It shall be a holy convocation for you; you shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire to the Lord.

28 And you shall do no work on that same day, for it is the Day of Atonement, to make atonement for you before the Lord your God.

29 For any person who is not afflicted in soul on that same day shall be cut off from his people.

30 And any person who does any work on that same day, that person I will destroy from among his people.

31 You shall do no manner of work; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.

32 It shall be to you a sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall afflict your souls; on the ninth day of the month at evening, from evening to evening, you shall celebrate your sabbath.”

Leviticus chapter 16 records the ritual of the Day of Atonement, which can be summarized as follows:

The high priest would wash himself, put on holy garments, and then carry out the main steps:

• Offer a bull as a sin offering for himself and his household (Leviticus 16:6, 11).
• Offer two goats on behalf of the people of Israel. One goat was sacrificed as a sin offering, and the other, called “the Scapegoat” (Azazel), had the high priest lay both hands on its head so that it would bear all the sins of the people and then be sent away into the wilderness (Leviticus 16:7–10, 20–22). In the Vietnamese Traditional Bible, it is transliterated as A-xa-sên; in English translations, it is referred to as “Azazel” or “scapegoat.”
• Bring the blood of the offering into the Most Holy Place and sprinkle it seven times on the Mercy Seat above the Ark of the Testimony as a sign that the people are fully forgiven by God (Leviticus 16:14–15).

The blood of the sin offering atones for the people and purifies the Tabernacle from defilement, according to God’s standard and requirement.

“For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.” (Leviticus 17:11)

The “scapegoat” being sent into the wilderness symbolizes the permanent removal of sin from the people.

“As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us.” (Psalm 103:12)

The fact that only the high priest could enter the Most Holy Place once a year to offer the blood of atonement demonstrates the absolute holiness of God. No one may approach Him at will.

The phrase “affliction of the soul” means refraining from following the desires of the flesh and instead practicing strict discipline: fasting, self-examination, repentance, and confession before God. The command for the people to fast on the Day of Atonement signifies that humanity must humble themselves, submit fully, and focus solely on seeking God’s mercy and forgiveness.

The term “atonement” in the Old Testament literally means “covering,” implying that the blood of the sin offering in the Old Testament temporarily “covered” the sins of the people before the righteousness of God. The atonement ritual in the Old Testament foreshadowed the true atonement that the Lord Jesus Christ would accomplish in the New Testament. In the position of the high priest, the Lord Jesus Christ offered His own life to God as the once-for-all sin offering for all humanity. Therefore, the Old Testament atonement ritual no longer needs to be performed.

God’s Word affirms:

Hebrews 7:23-28

23 Also there were many priests, because they were prevented by death from continuing.

24 But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood.

25 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.

26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens;

27 who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.

28 For the law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.

This passage of Scripture emphasizes that the high priestly ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ is eternal and perfect, with a once-for-all sacrifice sufficient to atone for the sins of all humanity.

Therefore, any teaching in religious organizations that says God’s people must give money, perform good works, pray, attend services, or do anything beyond trusting in the atoning death of the Lord Jesus Christ to receive God’s forgiveness and cleansing from sin is false doctrine. Specifically, the teaching of “purgatory,” which claims that the soul must undergo further purification after death, contradicts this truth. The Bible does not teach such things but instead affirms that He saves “to the uttermost those who come to God through Him” (Hebrews 7:25).

The Day of Atonement carries profound meaning regarding forgiveness, purification, and reconciliation with God through the blood of the sin offering. In the Old Testament, it was an annual ritual to maintain a holy relationship between God’s people and God. In the New Testament, it points to the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ has eternally completed the work of atonement. Today, in Judaism, the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) remains a day of repentance and fasting. In God’s Church, it serves as a reminder of the salvation accomplished through the cross.

This is the salvation God gives to humanity through the death of the Lord Jesus on the cross. This salvation includes the following truths:

1. Atonement is completed: There is no need for annual sacrifices or any other works of merit, because the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus is once-for-all sufficient (Hebrews 9:26–28).

2. Forgiveness and justification: Anyone who sincerely repents of their sins and fully trusts in the atoning death of the Lord Jesus is immediately forgiven by God and declared righteous. A righteous person is counted as not guilty. Such a person is cleansed by the Lord Jesus, indwelt by the Holy Spirit, granted the Spirit—that is, God’s power—and led to live a new life pleasing to God.

3. The call to holiness: Having been redeemed and sanctified, those who receive God’s salvation must continue to live in holiness according to God’s Word.

4. Eternal hope: Those saved in the Church age look forward to the day when the Lord Jesus will return to take the Church out of the world. This is when the redemption of God’s people’s bodies will be fully realized (Romans 8:23).

God’s people in the New Testament are no longer bound to observe the Day of Atonement or any of the seven festivals God appointed in the Old Testament. However, they may commemorate any festival to remember what Christ has done or will do for them, according to the meaning of that festival.

Commemorating the Day of Atonement reminds God’s people to reflect on the truths of salvation and also directs their hearts toward the day when Christ will come to grant them the full redemption of their physical bodies. On that day, the bodies of God’s people that have died will be gloriously resurrected, and the living bodies of God’s people will be transformed. Then, the entire Church will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air, receive His rewards, and enter heaven, living eternally in joy and happiness with Him.

May the Word of God sanctify us and strengthen us. May we all stand firm in faith and remain faithful to the Lord until the day Christ returns. May the love, grace, and fellowship of the Triune God—God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit—cover all of you. Amen!

Timothy Christian Huynh
10/01/2025

Note:

About Using “God” or “the God” and “holy spirit”

Wherever the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts of the Bible use a definite article with a noun to denote GOD, we translate it into English as “*God” or “the God” to refer to God the Father. We understand that “God,” without a definite article, was used as a collective noun for all and any of the three Persons of the Godhead. And “God,” with a definite article, was used to refer to God the Father.

In the Greek manuscripts of the New Testament, the term “holy spirit” (πνευματι αγιω) without the definite article “the” (το) is used to denote the power of God, which is given by God the Holy Spirit. “The Holy Spirit” (το πνευματι το αγιω) is God, and “holy spirit” (πνευματι αγιω) is the power that comes from God.