Day of Atonement—2017

Deliverance from Satan the Devil
A special day for God, Israel and the world

Fred R. Coulter—September 30, 2017

- Video | - PDF | Audio | [Up]

Greetings, brethren! Welcome to the Day of Atonement! This is the day that all mankind is waiting for, because this is the day that explains why there is evil and who is going to get rid of it!

Down through the ages, men have wanted to get rid of evil and have peace, stop wars, sickness, sin and all of those things, because men—in rejecting God—think that they can accomplish these things. But they fail to realize—or if they do realize—they don't understand the severity of it, which is there is a Satan the devil!

He was the one who originally rebelled against God. After the rebellion of Lucifer and a third of the angels that went with him, then for some period after that—we don't know exactly when it was—God renewed the surface of the earth for mankind. How much instruction God gave to Adam and Eve, we're told a bare minimum. But He did tell them not to eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, for in the day that they eat of it, 'in dying they shall surely die!' They obviously didn't die immediately.

To test them in how they would use their free moral agency, God let Satan come into the Garden of Eden, and he brought his subtle, sweet-sounding beneficial lies! At that point, Adam and Eve were neither hostile against God, nor totally loving Him to qualify for eternal life. But the reason that the choice was given was because mankind is made a little lower than God, and after His image and likeness.

Our choices can be very powerful! What we do can be tremendous or destructive. So, in God's plan there will come a time that there will never be anymore evil. God gave the test to Adam and Eve, and we know that they failed the test. But look at how Satan came, contradicting what God said and offering a benefit that God did not offer in the way that Satan offered it.

Satan said, 'You can decide good and evil for yourself; you're smart, you're good. Look at you! And besides, don't you want to know good and evil?'

That's how sin entered into the world! It says, 'as by one man, sin entered into the world, and by that death!' (Rom. 5). Death passed into all mankind, and also had the nature of the 'law of sin and death.'

With that nature there was still some good in human nature, but not the good that would come from love and obedience to God.

Lev. 23—here we have the command for the Day of Atonement. It's a particularly special day to God, for the children of Israel, for the Church, and eventually for all mankind. The first thing God wants us to learn for the Day of Atonement is that we are absolutely inefficient to ourselves!

• we don't know how to go
• we don't make the right choices
• we are incapable of living forever on our own
• we are incapable of overcoming sin on our own

And unless God—in His love for all mankind—provided everything for all people, we could not continue to exist!

So, this day is a special fast day; a day which we do not eat food nor drink water. That's to show us that we are totally and absolutely dependent upon God for every breath of air, every morsel of food and every drop of water, which God has provided in abundance for all people!

But Satan is still there, and this day pictures when he is removed!

Leviticus 23:26: "And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 'Also, on the tenth day of this seventh month, is the Day of Atonement. It shall be a Holy convocation to you. And you shall afflict your souls…'" (vs 26-27).

We find in Ezra 10 that Ezra didn't drink water or eat food when he fasted to God. Likewise, when even David prayed for his enemies he afflicted himself (Psa. 35:13); David prayed for them!

So, when it says that you to afflict your souls, that means to eat no food or drink any water.

"…and offer an offering made by fire to the LORD" (v 27). Well, today we don't make offerings made by fire. We make offerings from the heart.We give offerings and tithes because we love God and obey Him!

Also, for those of us who are in the Church, God expects the best through His Spirit, and the first. The first commandment is to love God with all your heart, mind, soul and being. He wants you to have Him first

• in your thoughts
• in your heart
• in your mind
• in your whole way of living

By Him we live, move and have our being! Our very existence!

(pause for the offering)

Now let's see the rest of the instructions for the Day of Atonement. This is the Holiest day of all, and we will see that God has given special instructions for this day.

Verse 28: "And [#1]you shall do no work in that same day, for it is the Day of Atonement, in order to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God." No work!

We're going to see that He emphasizes this three times, because it's so important!

Verse 29: "For whoever is not afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from among his people." How does God cut people off? Well, His blessing is withdrawn from them! If they disobey God then an automatic penalty comes upon them. The blessings and cursings are automatic! There are consequences to sin!

Verse 30: "And whoever does [#2]any work in that same day, the same one will I destroy from among his people." That doesn't mean to absolutely ZAP him our of existence, but people can be destroyed because of:

• their sins
• their inability to follow God
• their inability to make right decisions
• living in sin

They destroy their lives! Have you ever heard anyone express, 'You have destroyed me' when something has gone wrong. But they're still alive.

Verse 31: "You shall [#3]do no manner of work. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings."

There again, three times no work. In the space of four verses, that's pretty powerful! So that everyone will observe the day at the same time all together, and so there will be absolutely no question as to when the day begins, and no question when the day ends He says this:

Verse 32: "It shall be to you a Sabbath of rest, and you shall afflict yourselves. In the ninth day of the month at sunset, from sunset to sunset, you shall keep your Sabbath."

Here is the verse that unlocks many other verses. It defines a complete day: "…from sunset to sunset…" The least educated of anyone can understand when the sun sets. You just look out over the horizon and when the sun dips below the horizon—unless you're at the base of a mountain, then you have a little more time—then the day ends and a new one begins. Since time is continuous and the earth is rotating, when there is an ending there's a beginning. You end the day and begin the day at the same precise time.

So, this defines the 10th day. This defines what it means. In The Holy Bible in Its Original Order, A Faithful Version we have it translated sunset, as the Hebrew requires. This way we have the principle of taking it for every day, and know that's how God calculates the time.

Lev. 16 tells us the special ceremony that goes on. This was one of the most Holy days of all, and there was a portrayal in here how God is going to get rid of Satan the devil. Then we will see the fulfillment in the book of Revelation.

So, on this day God said, Leviticus 16:2: "And the LORD said to Moses, 'Speak to Aaron your brother, that he does not come at all times…'" You're only to come in there when I have appointed for you to come in.

Aaron was to do that, because if he did any other day he would die. Think about that! What did God say about destroying someone who didn't afflict themselves? Here if the priests didn't obey God he would die! Remember, God also executed the two sons of Aaron when they put strange fire on the altar. The fire on the altar was started by God, and was to be perpetually continued so that it would always be the fire of God for the burning of the incense, for the burning of the sacrifices. Not man's efforts!

All these instructions are very important! Then God tells Moses how He's going to do it. So, special was this day:

Verse 3: Aaron shall come into the sanctuary this way: with a young bull, for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering."

He didn't bring them in there, but he brought the blood. The burnt offering was wholly burnt on the altar, and he sin offering was burned outside the camp where all the sin offerings were burned.

Verse 4: "He shall put on the Holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen breeches on his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen miter he shall be dressed. These are Holy garments. And he shall wash his flesh in water and put them on."

This is another good example of God giving instruction about something first, but tells you about something that you do before that after He has told you. If we were to write it, we would say, 'And he shall wash his flesh in water and he shall put on the Holy garments.'

You find that pattern in the Bible a lot, and that is a sign of the proper sequence of events in the Bible the way God wants them, a sign that it is God's. When it's translated that way and in that order, that's following what God wants.

Verse 5[corrected]: "And he shall take from the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. And Aaron shall offer his young bull of the sin offering which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself and for his house…. [all the priests and Levites] …And he shall take the two goats… [identical goats; two kid goats] …and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And Aaron shall cast lots on the two goats…" (vs 5-8).

This was a decision that God would make. Only God could reveal which goat was for Him, and which goat was for Azazel, which is another name for Satan.

Verse 8: "And Aaron shall cast lots on the two goats; one lot for the LORD and the other lot for Azazel. And Aaron shall bring the goat on which the LORD'S lot fell, and offer it for a sin offering" (vs 8-9).

We will see this sin offering was to take away the sins, all the sins and transgressions, of the children of Israel, their part in sins. We're going to see something very interesting with the goat for Azazel, because he will not sacrifice it.

Verse 10: "But the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement upon it and sent away into the wilderness for Azazel."

Why would this be done? There is human sin and mistakes! There are Satan inspires sins and mistakes! As long as Satan is in the world there will be sin! We will see that in Rev. 20; just as soon as Satan is let out of his prison, what happens? War! Sin! This is to depict Satan and his part in our sins, showing that Satan is a spirit being and cannot die and must be removed.

The instructions continue, v 11: "And Aaron shall bring the young bull of the sin offering which is for himself, and shall make an atonement for himself and for his house, and shall kill the young bull of the sin offering which is for himself. And he shall take a censer full of coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of fragrant incense beaten small, and bring it within the veil. And he shall put the incense on the fire before the LORD. And the cloud of the incense shall cover the mercy seat that is on the testimony. And he shall not die" (vs 11-13).

What they did later was because they were afraid that the priest would make an error and do something wrong and he would die, and no one could go in there. So, they tied a rope around the priest so, in case he didn't get out of there and died, they could pull his body out. That's pretty serious stuff!

Verse 14: "And he shall take of the blood of the young bull and shall sprinkle with his finger on the front of the mercy seat eastward. And he shall sprinkle at the front of the mercy seat seven times from the blood with his finger. Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering that is for the people, and bring its blood inside the veil…." (vs 14-15). He went out of the veil and back into the Holy of Holies.

"…And he shall do with that blood as he did with the blood of the young bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat" (v 15).

Now, because there is no forgiveness without the shedding of blood that's why Christ came.

Verse 16: "And he shall make an atonement for the sanctuary because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel and because of their transgressions in all their sins…."—each and every one. These sins were forgiven to the tabernacle or the temple. They were not forgiven in heaven above (Heb. 9 & 10).

Verse 17: "And there shall be no man in the tabernacle of the congregation when he goes in to make an atonement in the sanctuary until he comes out and has made an atonement for himself, and for his household, and for all the congregation of Israel…. [at that point]: …And he shall go out to the altar that is before the LORD and make an atonement for it. And he shall take of the blood of the young bull and of the blood of the goat, and put it on the horns of the altar all around" (vs 17-18). That's the altar of burnt offerings.

Verse 19: "And he shall sprinkle of the blood on it with his finger seven times and cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel. And when he has made an end of reconciling the sanctuary and the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, he shall bring the live goat. And Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the sins of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat, and shall send it away by the hand of a chosen man into the wilderness" (vs 19-21).

We're going to see something very interesting concerning the wilderness, because this becomes important that we understand it. Let's look at this again and understand what it's saying here:

The sins were forgiven through the shed blood of the goat for a sin offering—all of them, all their uncleanness. Then they are, again, put upon the goat for Azazel: Satan the devil.

Remember that it says that 'many shall be led into sin (Matt. 24). Well, Satan leads people into sin. We all sin with 'the law of sin and death' and die a physical death because of Adam. Likewise, all sin originates with Satan the devil and comes down and affects all of mankind! Satan the devil being a spirit being does not die. So, this symbolically shows that all sin is accredited to Satan the devil in what he has done.

Verse 22: "And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities to a land in which no one lives. And he shall let the goat go in the wilderness. And Aaron shall come into the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall strip off the linen garments, which he put on when he went into the sanctuary, and shall leave them there. And he shall wash his flesh with water in the Holy place, and put on his garments, and come forth and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people, and make an atonement for himself and for the people. And the fat of the sin offering shall he burn upon the altar. And he that let go the goat for Azazel shall wash his clothes and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward come into the camp" (vs 22-26).

That's quite a thing! This shows the vileness of sin and the uncleanness of sin. It shows that there can be no Holiness as long as there is sin, and as long as Satan the devil—Azazel—is allowed to come upon people.

We'll see what happens to him in just a little bit, but it's interesting and also factual that we will see him in the wilderness. Keep that in mind.

Verse 27: "And the young bull for the sin offering and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the Holy place, shall they carry forth outside the camp…."

You have the temple, the Valley of Kidron and the Mount of Olives. Up on the Mount of Olives there was another altar called the Miphkad Altar. There all the sin offerings would be burned completely and then the ashes pushed down in the Valley of Hinnom. These were not burned in the temple.

Verse 29: "'And it shall be a statute forever to you: in the seventh month, on the tenth of the month, you shall afflict your souls and do no work at all, whether it be one of your own country or a stranger who is living among you, for on that day an atonement shall be made for you, to cleanse you, so that you may be clean from all your sins before the LORD. It shall be a Sabbath of rest to you, and you shall afflict your souls, by a statute forever. And the priest whom he shall anoint, and whom he shall consecrate to minister in the priest's office in his father's stead, shall make the atonement and shall put on the linen clothes, the Holy garments. And he shall make an atonement for the Holy sanctuary, and he shall make an atonement for the tabernacle of the congregation, and for the altar; and he shall make an atonement for the priests and for all the people of the congregation. And this shall be an everlasting statute to you, to make an atonement for the children of Israel for their sins once a year.' And he did as the LORD commanded Moses" (vs 29-34).

There is a certain similarity between the Passover, the 14th day of the 1st month, when Christ was crucified and shed His blood for the sins of all mankind, the sins of the world. But that has not applied to all human beings, yet, because each individual must personally repent before God the Father. Here this was a blanket forgiveness for everyone.

Now then, the Passover and the forgiveness of the sins of those who are in the New Covenant is pictured in the first month, on the 10th day of the month, when Jesus was selected for the sin offering for the world. The Day of Atonement is on the 10th day[transcriber's correction]. He was crucified on the 14th, and was put in the grave on the 15th.

Now then, the parallel is this: In the 7th month Christ returns; the Day of Atonement Satan is bound. Tabernacles begins on the 15th. All of that is possible because of the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. But on the day that God removes Satan the devil, that will open up the way for the forgiveness of the sins of everyone in the world. But everyone must repent and come under the blood of Jesus Christ!

Let's carry this further. Luke 4 is quite a thing! This is when Jesus went out to be tempted by Satan the devil, and this was the 'battle royale' for all mankind. Would Jesus Christ be able, as a human being, to overcome Satan the devil, because no other human being has been able to, or would be able to? But could God, manifested in the flesh, overcome Satan the devil and not sin?

Also remember that all sin was condemned in the flesh of Jesus Christ! He had to have human nature with the 'law of sin and death' in Him and still overcome Satan the devil. That's the only way there would be the perfect sacrifice and the perfect payment for sin when Jesus died.

(go to the next track)

Luke 4 is a very important chapter and contains a tremendous amount of information, knowledge and understanding, as well as when this occurred. It talks about the baptism of Jesus, receiving the Holy Spirit (Luke 3).

Luke 4:1: "And Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness." Where was Azazel let go? In the wilderness!

Some people have said that's Jesus Christ coming before God taking all of our sins away into heaven. The sins are left on the earth. The second goat was Satan the devil who causes all of mankind to sin, and his abode is eventually going to be in the 'blackest of darkness forever.' That's the worst kind of wilderness that could possibly be!

This is south going toward the Gulf of Aqaba, "…and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness For forty days to be tempted by the devil…. [face-to-face, one-to-one, and all of mankind hinged on this right here]: …And He ate nothing in those days; and after they had come to an end, He hungered. Then the devil said to Him…" (vs 1-3).

• think about this in relationship to human nature
• think about the pulls that would be there when fasting for 40 days and 40 nights
• think how weak physically that He would have been

"…'If… [almost a sarcastic note] …You are the Son of God, command that this stone become bread'" (v 3). Show me a miracle! Jesus could have done that, but this was a contest: Who was Jesus going to obey under all circumstance?

Jesus said, 'I did not come to this earth to do My will, but the will of Him Who sent Me. I do nothing of Myself.' That applies right here, because He could have made the stone into bread. But that would have been under the inspiration of Satan, and it would have been His choice to do so. But Jesus didn't do that.

Satan could have said, 'Just think how lovely the smell of that new fresh bread that You would have created out of the rock, and would have tasted. I can run over here and get a little honey out of this beehive and you can have some honey. Just think about how good that would be. Think how weak You are.'

Verse 4: But Jesus answered him, saying, 'It is written…'"—present tense! Whatever is in the Word of God is always—unless it's an historical event—present tense. All His commands are present tense, applying all the time.

"…'It is written… [Deut 8:3] …"Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God"' (v 4)—that proceeds out of His mouth. That's what we have with the Bible.

So, on this Day of Atonement, let's ask ourselves: Are we living by every word of God? This is on an individual level.

Verse 5: "Then the devil led Him up into a high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said to Him, 'I will give You all this authority…'" (vs 5-6).

Satan knew this is what Jesus was going to inherit, but he's going to give it to Him ahead of time. 'Isn't this kind of wonderful of me to do this for You? You don't have to wait; You don't have to go through all of this.'

"'…and the glory of them all; for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I desire'" (v 6). Very interesting, isn't it? Who controls this world?

• Rev. 12 says that Satan 'is deceiving the whole world'
• Rev. 13 says that 'the whole world worships Satan the devil

There are a lot of people out there saying, 'I don't, I'm good.' Jesus said that 'no man is good except One,' and that's God.

Verse 7: "Therefore, if You will worship me in my presence, all things shall be Yours." Satan wants to be worshipped because 'he is the god of this world.'

• with all its sins
• with all its problems
• with all its difficulties
• with all the hatred
• with all the shed blood
• with all the sins in everyone's life

Yes, they choose to do it, but who is responsible but Satan the devil. Think of this: What if Jesus said a little bow won't hurt?

• that's how people think about sin
• that's how people think about Satan the devil

Verse 8: "But Jesus answered and said to him, 'Get behind Me, Satan; for it is written…'" This is a command to human beings, and Jesus was saying this to Himself concerning the fact that He was a human being:

"'…"You shall worship the Lord your God… [Satan will never worship the Lord God. That's not for Satan. No way! That's for Jesus and for us.] …and Him only shall you serve"'" (vs 8-9). Then he led Him to Jerusalem and set Him upon the edge of the temple…"—right up where the highest point was. And from the top of that to the bottom of the Kidron Valley was about 650 feet.

"…and [Satan] said to Him, 'If…'" (v 9). Whenever people are challenged with ifthey have to answer back.

 "…'If You are the Son of God, cast Yourself down from here… [that's a long way down] …for it is written, "He shall give His angels charge concerning You to keep You; and in their hands they shall bear You up, lest You strike Your foot against a stone"'" (vs 9-11)—tempting words, being in the weakest condition possible.

Verse 12: "But Jesus answered and said to him, 'It is clearly stated, "You… [not Satan the devil, because Satan will tempt God all the time; He was speaking to Himself as a human being] …shall not tempt the Lord your God."'"

There's more to it here that fits in with the New Covenant. Let's understand that this was at the beginning of Jesus' ministry, which began in the fall of 26A.D. this was done on the Day of Atonement—a complete fast by Jesus Christ for 40 days and 40 nights—and that year was the 50th year Jubilee; the release of slaves and the return of property to the tribal owners. Very interesting, the great redemption in the Jubilee! That's how Jesus started His ministry.

The way you count the Jubilee is by seven years by seven years to 49, and then on the 10th day of the 7th month is the Jubilee year. What did Jesus do on the Jubilee year? He went to Nazareth where He had been brought up!

Verse 16: "And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and according to His custom, He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath Day and stood up to read." This Sabbath Day was a special day, which is in the Greek the day of the Sabbaths, or the Day of Pentecost, the Day of Weeks!

So, Jubilee is counted by seven-year increments, then the 50th year. Pentecost is counted by seven weeks and then the 50th day. So, on that 50th day Jesus came into Nazareth and what did He do? He gave this spiritual Jubilee! What day will we be resurrected? On Pentecost!

• free from sin
• free from Satan
• free from the world

• filled with the Spirit of God
• spirit beings standing on the Sea of Glass

Also, there's another fulfillment of this, because the Holy Spirit was given on Pentecost. That was the down payment and the beginning of salvation.

So, we have the physical fulfillment of it by Jesus, to be the Savior, to release people from their sins, which began on Pentecost. So, it's combined together, with double emphasis, and here is what Jesus read when He found the place in the book of Isaiah:

Verse 18: "The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me; for this reason, He has anointed Me to preach the Gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal those who are brokenhearted, to proclaim pardon to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to send forth in deliverance those who have been crushed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord" (vs 18-19).

What a year to begin His ministry—on the Jubilee Year—and announce it on the Pentecost during the Jubilee Year. Fantastic! Tremendous! Quite a fulfillment! And also to give us deliverance from Satan the devil. That's what it's all about! Only God can do that!

There are many areas in the Gospels where Jesus cast out demons. We'll see a little later that He gave that power also to His disciple to cast out demons in His name! After showing James, Peter and John the vision of the Transfiguration, Jesus came back down. I'm going to use this as something important for us to understand that there are demon possessions, and demons can be expelled. But it has to be done with prayer, fasting and in the name of Jesus Christ; and give no quarter to any of the evil wicked spirits.

Mark 9:14: "And after returning to the disciples, He saw a great multitude around them, and the scribes disputing with them. And all the people who saw Him ran to Him at once in great amazement and saluted Him. And He asked the scribes, 'What are you disputing with them?' Then one from the multitude said, 'Master, I brought my son who has a dumb spirit to You; for wherever it seizes him it dashes him down; and he foams and gnashes his teeth, and is withering away. And I spoke to Your disciples, in order that they might cast it out, but they did not have the power'" (vs 14-18).

Remember the one who was possessed of Legion, and the demon said, 'Oh, you've come to torment us before the time.' They know the day is coming when they're going to be put away with Satan the devil and be tormented. Jesus wouldn't let them speak. Then He cast the demons out into the swine and they all ran down the steep slope and drown in the sea. We need to resist the devil!

Verse 19: "And He answered him, saying, 'O faithless generation! How long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me.' Then they brought him to Him. But when the spirit saw Him, it immediately threw him into convulsions; and he fell down on the ground and began rolling about and foaming at the mouth. And He asked his father, 'How long a time has this demon been with him?' And he said, 'From childhood'" (vs 19-21).

Let's stop right here! That is also a great problem with young children watching cartoons! Remember that Satan always introduces sin with humor, pleasure or a benefit! Watch the cartoons your children watch. Look at the books that they have.

• What are books for children now? Harry Potter, and many like it!
• What are they taught in school? You have a little friend on your shoulder! That is demonism!
• Why is there so much rebellion with children? They're not disciplined, but also because there are probably a good many of them possessed of Satan the devil and the demons!

Verse 22: "'For it often throws him both into the fire and into the water, that it might destroy him. But if You have the power to do anything, have compassion on us and help us.' And Jesus said to him, 'If you can believe…'" (vs 22-23).

• you've got to believe on Jesus Christ
• you've got to believe the Word of God
• you've got to believe the Truth of God

"'…all things are possible to the one who believes'" (v 23).

This is what you need to take with whatever problems you may be experiencing in your life, be they:

• physical
• mental
• spiritual
• demonic

Whatever it is, you believe in Jesus Christ and the power that He has given to us to overcome all of these things! You use that power!

Verse 25: "Then Jesus, seeing that the multitude was running together, rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, 'You deaf and dumb spirit, I command you to come out of him, and you are not allowed to go into him anymore!' And after crying out and throwing him into severe convulsions, it came out; and he became as dead, so much so that many said, 'He is dead.' But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. And when He came into a house, His disciples asked Him apart, 'Why were we not able to cast it out?' Then He said to them, 'This kind cannot be made to go out by anything except prayer and fasting'" (vs 25-29).

Does Satan want to get in at the top? Yes, he tried to get Jesus! We will see that Satan tried to get Peter.

Matthew 16:21: "From that time Jesus began to explain to His disciples that it was necessary for Him to go to Jerusalem, and to suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and to be killed, and to be raised the third day."

Was it the will of God that He go to Jerusalem and do these things? Yes! Suffer everything! Give Himself as the ultimate sacrifice for the sin of the world. Peter didn't quite understand that at that time. Notice what Peter said and Jesus' answer.

Verse 22: "But after taking Him aside, Peter personally began to rebuke Him, saying, 'God will be favorable to you, Lord. In no way shall this happen to You.' Then He turned and said to Peter, 'Get behind Me, Satan!….'" Satan was influencing Peter with that thought. Just like you go back to King David and we find that he was moved by Satan to number Israel (1-Chron.). We'll see here in just a minute that Satan wanted Peter real badly. Oh, yes indeed! Satan had the name and that was the name that he wanted, and if he could knock off one of the leading disciples, what a coup that would be.

"…You are an offense to Me, because your thoughts are not in accord with the things of God, but the things of men" (v 23).

That's why prayer and study everyday is important, so that you're loving God with all your heart, mind, soul and being.

Let's see that Satan the devil did knock off one of the disciples[transcriber's correction]. But Jesus chose him for that very purpose. Here is a good lesson for us:

Luke 22:1: "Now, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which is called Passover, was approaching; and the chief priests and the scribes were speculating as to how they might put Him to death, for they feared the people. Then Satan entered into Judas, who was surnamed Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve" (vs 1-3). 'I don't like what Jesus is doing, I'm going to betray Him to the priests.

Verse 4: "And he went away, and spoke with the chief priests and the captains about a way by which he might betray Him to them." Notice that there is pleasure in sin for a season.

• Does Satan want you to be happy in your sins? Yes!
• Does Satan want you to receive a benefit for your sins? Yes!

He doesn't tell you that 'the wages of sin are death.'

Verse 5: "And they rejoiced… [happy, giddy: 'all this time we've been wanting him and here comes one of the twelve, and he's going to deliver Him up for us'] …and agreed to give him money." A benefit! He was paid 30 pieces of silver, the price of a dead slave.

Verse 6: "And he promised, and sought an opportunity to betray Him to them away from the multitude." This is why Jesus did not tell the disciples ahead of time where they were going to keep that last Passover. Judas would have gone to the chief priests and would have come to that house, arrested Jesus and took Him off at that time. But that was not in the plan and program and will of God.

This is why Jesus did the Passover this way and didn't tell them. He didn't even tell Peter and John. When He told them to go do the Passover, 'When you go into the city follow a man carrying a pitcher of water. Pray tell, how many men were carrying pitchers of water. This was done so they wouldn't get Jesus until He was arrested in the darkness of the night of the Passover at midnight, by the forces of evil. That was their hour, their day, their power!

What we need to remember is that everything in the Bible has far more meaning and understanding than we even suppose, or even know what we know, yet.

Verse 31—after the Passover: "Then the Lord said, 'Simon, Simon, listen well. Satan has demanded to have all of you, to sift as wheat…. [what a coup that would have been] …But I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and when you are converted, strengthen your brethren'" (vs 31-32).

Notice Peter's answer; he had a powerful lesson to learn! Verse 33: " And he said to Him, 'Lord, I am ready to go with You both to prison and to death.' But He said, 'I tell you, Peter, the cock shall in no wise crow today before you have denied knowing Me three times'" (vs 33-34).

All the other disciples, as the other accounts show, said that was true. We will see that that did happen, and that the Word of Christ was more powerful on Peter than Peter's own good intentions from his carnal ability.

Verse 54: And after arresting Him, they led Him away and brought Him into the house of the high priest. Now, Peter was following at a distance. And when they had kindled a fire in the middle of the court, and had sat down together, Peter sat among them. And a certain maid saw him sitting by the light; and after looking at him intently, she said, 'Now this one was with Him.' But he denied Him, saying, 'Woman, I do not know Him.' And after a little while, another saw him and said, 'You also are one of them.' But Peter said, 'Man, I am not.' Now, after about an hour had passed, a certain other man strongly affirmed, saying, 'In truth, this one also was with Him, for he is indeed a Galilean.' And Peter said, 'Man, I do not know what you are talking about.' And immediately, while he was yet speaking, the cock crowed" (vs 54-60).

Another account says that Peter was even swearing, cursing.

Verse 61: "Then the Lord turned and looked at Peter; and Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how He had said to him, 'Before the cock crows, you shall deny Me three times.'"

I wonder if Jesus looked right at Peter, eyeball to eyeball, and the reality of what he did hit him. That was really an important lesson for Peter to learn, and a really important lesson for us to learn.

• Satan would like to get us!
• Satan would like to come after us!
• Satan would like to destroy us!

But we have be prepared, and we have to be aware of all of the sins of Satan the devil.

2-Cor. talks an awful lot about false prophets and Satan the devil, and what we are to watch out for. Remember Satan the devil coming after the Churches (Rev. 2 & 3). For those who are going to go to a place of safety, Satan comes after them to destroy them. But the earth opens up and swallows up the armies/'water' of those going to a place of safety.

Satan the devil martyrs, and there will be martyrs, and we are going to have to be strong in the Lord for that. Who it's going to be and when it's going to be, we never know! Especially in today's world.

Paul was instructing them that the man who had committed a heinous sin had repented and that they ought to receive him back.

2-Corinthians 2:10: "But to whom you forgive anything, I also forgive; and if I also have forgiven anything, to whomever I have forgiven it, for your sakes I forgave it in the person of Christ; so that we may not be outwitted by Satan…" (vs 10-11). He's very clever with many things:

• false prophets
• sweet words
• enlightenment
• even quoting the Scriptures as we saw with Jesus

"…for we are not ignorant of his schemes" (v 11).

• What happens when you first begin to sin and do not repent?
• What has happened to people who have heard about the Truth, but still want to do things their way and follow Satan?

Remember, this is the age of darkness, the power of Satan the devil, and that's what we are going to be looking at and facing in the future.

2-Corinthians 4:1: "Therefore, having this ministry, according as we have received mercy, we are not fainthearted." We don't want to be fainthearted:

• we need to be strong in the Lord
• we need to be bold in the Lord
• we need to be filled with the Holy Spirit of God
• we need to do the things that are right
• we need to do the things that are true
• we need to yield ourselves to God
• we need to not be lifted up in vanity and self-importance

Remember that putting everything personally and your personal feelings can give Satan an open door.

• whatever hurts
• whatever problems
• whatever bitterness

Get rid of it!

Verse 2: "For we have personally renounced the hidden things of dishonest gain, not walking in cunning craftiness, nor handling the Word of God deceitfully…" That's what all of the Protestant ministers do, and even ministers in the Church of God who exalt themselves above the people, exalt themselves to high and mighty positions. Beware! Those of you who do that! God can take care of you!
"…but by manifestation of the Truth, we are commending ourselves to every man's conscience before God. But if our Gospel is hidden, it is hidden to those who are perishing; in whom the god of this age has blinded the minds of those who do not believe" (vs 2-4).

If you do not believe God completely, wholly, with all your heart, all your soul and all your being you better be careful!

"…lest the light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ, Who is the image of God, should shine unto them. For we do not preach our own selves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake" (vs 4-5).

Satan comes as an angel of light, and his ministers as ministers of righteousness (2-Cor. 11). 'Oh, we have such wonderful sermons on Sunday afternoon. We have such a big crowd there full of all of those who have itching ears that want to hear our wonderful sermons. We make them feel good! Our Sunday services are bursting with happy people.'

Well, the day is going to come when Jesus will say, 'I don't know you!' Here's what we are to do, not only during the Days of Unleavened Bread and the Passover, but all the time:

Ephesians 6:10: "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the might of His strength." That comes:

• with the power of God
• with the Spirit of God
• by studying His Word
• by praying
• by yielding to God
• by believing in Him
• by trusting in Him
  • not trusting in self
  • not trusting in men

But trusting in God!

Verse 11: "Put on the whole armor of God so that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil…. [yes, he is so clever] …because we are not wrestling against flesh and blood, but against principalities and against powers, against the world rulers of the darkness of this age, against the spiritual power of wickednessin high places" (vs 11-12)—because Satan knows we are going to take over the world. Christ is going to bind him. The demons are going to be removed, and the glorious Kingdom of God is coming on this earth.

This is why all the sins are placed on the goat of Azazel, because unless Satan is removed you cannot bring in everlasting righteousness. It's as simple as that! That's why when Christ and all the saints return from the Sea of Glass (Rev. 19), the beast and the false prophet are cast into the Lake of Fire. All the armies have all their flesh fall off of them, and all the bird come and clean up the mess. Isn't it interesting that God cleans up His mess.

Revelation 20:1: "Then I saw an angel descending from heaven, having the key of the abyss, and a great chain in his hand. And he took hold of the dragon, the ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years" (vs 1-2).

God has one more mission, yet, at the end of the Millennium for Satan. We will cover that on Day 7 of the Feast of Tabernacles.

Verse 3: "Then he cast him into the abyss, and locked him up, and sealed the abyss over him, so that he would not deceive the nations any longer until the thousand years were fulfilled; and after that it is ordained that he be loosed for a short time."

This is the meaning of the Day of Atonement!

All Scriptures from The Holy Bible in Its Original Order, A Faithful Version

Scriptural References:

• Leviticus 23:26-32
• Leviticus 16:2-15, 17-27, 29-34
• Luke 4:1-12, 16, 18-19
• Mark 9:14-23, 25-29
• Matthew 16:21-23
• Luke 22:1-6, 31-34, 54-61
• 2 Corinthians 2:10-11
• 2 Corinthians 4:1-5
• Ephesians 6:10-12
• Revelation 20:1-3

Scriptures referenced, not quoted:

• Romans 5
• Ezra 10
• Psalm 35:13
• Hebrews 9; 10
• Matthew 24
• Luke 3
• Deuteronomy 8:3
• Revelation 12; 13; 3; 4
• 2 Corinthians 11
• Revelation 19

FRC: bo
Transcribed: 7/30/17

Copyright 2017—All rights reserved. Except for brief excerpts for review purposes, no part of this publication may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means without the written permission of the copyright owner. This includes electronic and mechanical photocopying or recording, as well as the use of information storage and retrieval systems.