Forgiven to Live Sent
Day of Atonement — יוֹם כִּפּוּר
The Weight of Atonement
Yom Kippur is the most solemn day in Israel’s calendar. On the tenth day of the seventh month, the people gathered with fasting, prayer, and confession. It was the one day each year when the high priest entered the Holy of Holies. The air was heavy with silence and expectation. Would the sacrifice be accepted? Would the people be cleansed?
Leviticus 16 gives us the scene. The priest bathed, clothed himself in simple linen, and carried the blood of atonement into God’s presence. He placed his hands on the head of a goat, confessing the sins of the people, sending it into the wilderness. Sin was carried away. Guilt was removed. A nation stood forgiven.
The prophets called the people to live this repentance, not just perform it. Isaiah 58 makes it plain: fasting without justice is empty. Bowing low in ashes means nothing if we crush the poor and ignore the oppressed. God desires a people who repent with their hearts, not just their mouths.
And then Jesus, the Great High Priest, came. He did not enter year after year with the blood of animals. He entered once for all with His own blood. He bore not just the sins of Israel but of the whole world. He became the scapegoat. He carried sin outside the city. He rose again to declare the final word: forgiven, cleansed, free.
When He speaks of judgment in Matthew 25, He pulls the veil back even further. On that last day, He will separate the sheep from the goats. And the test is not hidden; it is love. Did we clothe the naked? Feed the hungry? Visit the prisoner? Show mercy?
Those who have been forgiven extend forgiveness to others. Those who have received love walk in love. Those who have been atoned for live sent into the world.
This Week’s Reading
Torah: Leviticus 16
Prophets: Isaiah 57:14–58:14
Gospel: Matthew 25:31–46
Preface for Reflection, Practice, and Response:
The steps that follow can be walked through personally or with your Huddle. Take them to heart in prayer, or share them in community. Whether alone or together, let the Word move from reflection to practice, from practice to response, and from response to a life lived sent.
Reflection in the Word
Bring these words into your Huddle. Read them aloud. Let them search your heart.
What does Yom Kippur reveal about the holiness of God?
How does the sacrifice of Jesus fulfill and surpass the ancient atonement?
Where in your life have you practiced ritual without true repentance?
Who are “the least of these” in your world today?
Pause. Let silence do its work. Listen together.
Practice the Word
God’s Word is never for information alone. It demands obedience. Use these simple steps:
Confess — Share honestly with the Lord and with each other where sin has taken root. Do not hide.
Repent — Turn. Lay down pride, injustice, bitterness, or disobedience. Ask God to cleanse you.
Believe — Rest in the once-for-all atonement of Jesus. Do not carry shame that He has already carried.
Act — Find one person in need this week. Feed them. Clothe them. Visit them. Serve them in Jesus’ name.
Reflect and Respond
After reading and reflecting, ask each other:
What is God saying to you today?
What are you going to do about it?
Who needs to hear this truth from you this week?
How can we pray for you and walk with you in obedience?
Pray aloud for one another. Speak forgiveness and blessing. Commission each other to live sent.
Living Sent This Week
Do not let this week remain in the room of study. Let it move into the street of mission. Yom Kippur reminds us that sin is costly, forgiveness is holy, and judgment is real. But it also reminds us that Jesus has finished the work.
Because He is our High Priest, we can enter boldly into the presence of God (Hebrews 10:19–22). Because He has carried our sins, we can carry His love into the world.
So go. Live atoned. Live free. Live sent.