Day of Atonement

Now on the tenth day of this seventh month is the day of atonement – Leviticus 23:27

Full reading: Leviticus 23:26-41

I went to Atonement Lutheran Elementary School from preschool through fourth grade.  There I learned at a fairly young age how to spell Atonement (at-one-ment), but in many ways I’m still learning what atonement means.

The dictionary definition of atonement is:

1.

satisfaction or reparation for a wrong or injury; amends.

2.

(sometimes initial capital letter) Theology. the doctrine concerning the reconciliation of God and humankind, esp. as accomplished through the life, suffering, and death of Christ.

Atonement is often equated with forgiveness, but it is also so much deeper than that.  Atonement is not just the store owner forgiving the robber, but for the store owner to be willing to serve the robbers jail sentence in order to set the robber free.

Not only are our sins forgiven through Jesus’ death on the cross, but any and all debts, transgression, or sins have been covered, reconciled, payed off, and time has been served.  We are not only forgiven, we are also free from any sentence, grounding, punishment, or time in hell that would have been needed had it not been for Jesus dying on the cross.

This can be sticky theological ground, one of those places where by saying somethings slightly different people may call you a heretic.  But I also think that this is densely packed theological ground and sometimes it is best in such situations to keep things simple.

So I’ll leave you with a simple example.  Imagine you are a child who just broke your neighbor’s window.  Which is better: having your parents forgive you but they make you work off the debt to repay the window, or having your parents forgive you and but they pay off the window and take the blame as your parents?

The second is Atonement.

Gracious Lord, thank you for the forgiveness we have received from you.  We know we are sinners and are incapable of freeing ourselves from the debts caused by our sins.  So thank you, for forgiveness, for reconciliation, and for the undeserved atonement we have received through your son Jesus Christ.  Amen.

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