This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 1 John 4:10 (NIV)
The atoning sacrifice means "mercy seat". It is the same word as the Old Testament word atonement, which means "to cover."
Maybe you remember a movie called “Raiders of the Lost Ark”. The story was about the Israelite Ark of the Covenant. On top of that ark there was a highly decorated lid topped with two cherubim of solid gold, facing each other and looking down upon the lid of the box. The ark itself was made of wood, and covered inside and outside with gold. The lid was called the mercy seat. It was here that the God met the nation of Israel in the person of the high priest. Once a year, the high priest came into the Holy of Holies, bringing blood to be sprinkled on the mercy seat. That is the only way they could meet with God. God loved them, but they couldn’t come to Him any way they wanted. The blood was sprinkled to atone for the sins of the people and the nation was accepted by God for another year, and then they would need to go through it again the next year.
In the verse in 1 John 4, the Lord Jesus Christ is called "the atoning sacrifice for our sins". Jesus is Himself the mercy seat because He died for us—Romans 4:25 says that "He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God.” Jesus covers our sins so that we can meet with God and be accepted by Him forever.
-Pastor Dino Griffin
The atoning sacrifice means "mercy seat". It is the same word as the Old Testament word atonement, which means "to cover."
Maybe you remember a movie called “Raiders of the Lost Ark”. The story was about the Israelite Ark of the Covenant. On top of that ark there was a highly decorated lid topped with two cherubim of solid gold, facing each other and looking down upon the lid of the box. The ark itself was made of wood, and covered inside and outside with gold. The lid was called the mercy seat. It was here that the God met the nation of Israel in the person of the high priest. Once a year, the high priest came into the Holy of Holies, bringing blood to be sprinkled on the mercy seat. That is the only way they could meet with God. God loved them, but they couldn’t come to Him any way they wanted. The blood was sprinkled to atone for the sins of the people and the nation was accepted by God for another year, and then they would need to go through it again the next year.
In the verse in 1 John 4, the Lord Jesus Christ is called "the atoning sacrifice for our sins". Jesus is Himself the mercy seat because He died for us—Romans 4:25 says that "He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God.” Jesus covers our sins so that we can meet with God and be accepted by Him forever.
-Pastor Dino Griffin
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