Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Leviticus 16:21 Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, confess over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, concerning all their sins, putting them on the head of the goat, and shall send it away into the wilderness by the hand of a suitable man.
PORTRAITS OF THE PASSION: THE SCAPEGOAT
As we continue on our way through the living art gallery of the Old Testament, we come to another portrait. It's a goat. I don't know much about goats. I do know that they have a reputation for eating just about anything. I know that a certain breed of goats is known as the fainting goat, due to the fact that when frightened its legs will stiffen up and cause it to fall over. And I've also heard that more people in the world drink goat's milk than cow's milk.
In the Bible, sheep seem to be favored over goats. God's people are sheep, while unbelievers are referred to as goats.
The scapegoat of our text is a portrait of Jesus. As part of the ceremonial law the High Priest would place his hands on the scapegoat, in this way transferring the sins of the people onto the goat. The cursed goat would then be driven out into the desert, forsaken by everyone. Left to die.
Jesus became our scapegoat on Calvary's cross. The sins of the entire world were transferred to Him. Our sins literally became His sins. He bore our sins in His own body. He who never sinned became sin for us. He became a cursed goat for us, and so was driven from the presence of His Father. He was left to die, completely forsaken by man and God.
Look closely at your Scapegoat, Jesus. What love! He was willing to bear all sin and be forsaken by God! What does it mean for you? Forgiveness! Life Eternal! The peace of knowing that because God forsook His Son, He will never forsake you!
