Aaron didn't lead a bull and a ram into the Most Holy Place. The bull and the ram were brought to the door of the Tent of Meeting and presented before the Lord. The bull would be used for the first atonement of the day, and the ram would be used for the final atonement of the day. The first part of the atonement was made by blood, and the final part of the atonement was made with consummation of fire.
The life of the bull was taken, as an atonement for the high priest, who was to enter into the Holy of Holies, and for his sons, who had been anointed to minister in the Holy Place. Its blood was carried into the Tent of Meeting by the high priest, who sprinkled it seven times before the mercy seat in the Most Holy Place, as an atonement by blood.
He shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the bronze altar before the Lord [the altar of burnt offering in the courtyard of the Tent of Meeting], and his two hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the veil into the Holy of Holies. And put the incense on the fire in the censer before the Lord, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the ark of the Testimony, lest he die. He shall take of the bull's blood and sprinkle it with his finger on the front, the east side of the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat he shall sprinkle of the blood with his finger seven times...Thus he shall make atonement for the Holy Place because of the uncleanness of the Israelites and because of their transgressions, even all their sins; and so shall he do for the Tent of Meeting, that remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness. Lev. 16:12-16 Amplified.
The strict instructions given by God for the work of the sanctuary, were not given because God had an attitude of strictness, and was going to kill anyone who stepped out of line. His motives are far different than this. Father wanted to do them good, but He had to draw out their hearts to good (God), in order for them to be prepared to receive the salvation which naturally flows from Him. They were a generation of slaves, and without salvation they would end up killing themselves, and everyone else, in the hatred and jealousy that is common to man. Great spiritual forces are at work in high places for both good and evil, and a man's heart is the generator of his good or his ill effects. The truth seen in this universe is that men reap what they sow. When men give birth to hatred, hatred comes to them. When men kill, killing will come to them. "Keep thy heart (Holy Place) with all diligence; for out of it are the issues (effects) of life." Prov. 4:23. The sanctuary, set up in the wilderness, was set up not merely to give people religious activities, but to sincerely draw out their heart to God in a higher and nobler purpose. In this, their hearts would draw to themselves the true blessings the Father had for them to receive.
"So shall he do for the Tent of Meeting, that remains among them in the midst of their uncleanness." Lev. 16:16 Amplified. So earnestly did God want to dwell among His people that He said, This atonement is being provided so that your uncleanness can be carried away on a yearly basis, so I can remain in the midst of you. This uncleanness was simply who man was naturally, but if the children of Israel could allow themselves to have their hearts drawn out to the Father, through His simple means of illustration, His intercession could remain in their midst, and He and the people would continually be drawn closer together in their hearts and minds. This would insure the safety of the people, who would now be drawing good effects to themselves as their hearts were drawn out to purity.
At the same time that the bull and ram for the priests were presented to the Lord, three animals were presented for the atonement of the congregation, two male goats and a ram. These animals were used to play out to the congregation in vivid symbolic detail the spiritual result of the daily work, which was receiving its completion on the Day of Atonement.
Lots were cast on the two goats presented to the Lord for the congregation. One lot was cast for the Lord, and the other lot was cast for Azazel, or "removal." The high priest entered the Most Holy Place again, this time with the blood of the Lord's goat, whose life had been taken as an atonement for the uncleanness of the people, which had accumulated in the Holy Place. After applying the atonement of blood, in the Most Holy Place, the high priest went into the Holy Place and applied the blood atonement of the bull and the goat on the horns of the altar of incense. This symbolically cleansed the Holy Place from all of the uncleanness that had accumulated in it, day by day, throughout the year. "Aaron shall make atonement upon the horns of it once a year; with the blood of the sin offering of atonement once in the year shall he make atonement upon and for it." Ex. 30:10 Amplified.
Then, the high priest symbolically took all of the accumulated uncleanness of the sanctuary onto himself, removing it from the sanctuary altogether, as he left. Stopping at the altar of burnt offering, he sprinkled some of the blood atonement seven times on the horns of the altar, to "cleanse it and hallow it from the uncleanness."
The high priest then transferred all of the uncleanness he was carrying on himself onto the "goat of removal," confessing it over his head, and thus in figure making him now bear it.
And when he has finished atoning for the Holy of Holies and the Tent of Meeting (Holy Place) and the altar of burnt offering, he shall present the live goat; and Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat and confess over him...all their sins; and he shall put them upon the head of the goat, the sin-bearer, and send him away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is ready, fit. The goat shall bear upon himself all their iniquities, carrying them to a land cut off, a land of forgetfulness and separation, not inhabited! Lev. 16:20-22 Amplified.
The goat then bore all of the sins and uncleanness away, and they were regarded as forever separated from the people. Thus the "goat of removal" would symbolically play out the result of the atonement of blood that had been made for the Tent of Meeting. This goat is referred to as the scapegoat in the KJV, "the goat used for sacrifice for the sins of the people." The name scapegoat literally means, "ENTIRE REMOVAL, to go away, be gone." Strong's Concordance. The "goat for removal" was led away as a visualization of the uttermost degree to which the annihilation of their uncleanness was taken.
This "Azazel" goat prefigured the complete removal of Satan from the land, and from the hearts of the faithful, at the final atonement. It is fulfilled in Revelation 12: "And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon [Azazel] was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." Rev. 12:7-9. The "devil's goat" is removed from the heavenly realm, and given over to the earth. "Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time." Rev. 12:12.
The high priest had entered into the Most Holy Place with nothing of his own to offer before the Lord. He entered with only what was provided to him. It was not with his own blood, but with blood which represented Another's Life-blood to come. It was not with his own fragrance, but divinely provided incense, symbolizing the ascending, sweet smelling savor of One to come, Whose pure essence of Anointing would be made fragrant by the holy, God-lit fire.
After the complete separation of uncleanness by the "goat of removal," the high priest prepared himself to offer the final atonement of the day. The beginning of the Day of Atonement had been marked by an atonement by blood. Now, the final work of the high priest on the Day of Atonement was to offer the ram for the priests, and the ram for the congregation, on the altar of burnt offering, a whole sacrifice unto God. This offering by fire would finish the atonement provided. Finish means, "to come to the end of an undertaking, to end a completion in a specified manner," and consummation by fire was the specified manner that ended the completion of the Day of Atonement. This was an atonement of complete consummation, when the ram for the priest and the ram for the congregation were consumed whole on the altar of burnt offering, by a sacred fire. Total consummation by divine fire was the final place to which the atonement by blood had brought the people.
Aaron shall come into the Tent of Meeting and put off the linen garments which he put on when he went into the Holy of Holies, and leave them there; and he shall bathe his body with water in a sacred place and put on his garments, and come forth and offer his burnt offering and that of the people, and make atonement for himself and for them. Lev. 16:23,24 Amplified.
The climax of the Day of Atonement occurred after all of the uncleanness had been completely removed. This final part of the atonement symbolized that the cleansing had brought the entire congregation to a state of cleanness before God, and now they were prepared to offer a whole sacrifice. This does not only prefigure the complete cleansing from sinful deeds, but from their own selves as well. The people were symbolically made empty of themselves, which would occur in actuality at earth's final atonement, when God's Own are fully prepared to be consumed wholly by Him.
This final atonement was a complete consummation by fire. As in a vivid drama, the wilderness congregation watched the ram provided for them being completely consumed by fire. They witnessed the finishing of the atonement which God had provided for them. The symbolism of this Day of Atonement, which had begun with an atonement of blood, and was ending with an atonement of complete consummation by fire, was an enacted revelation of the "final deliverance," the full Messianic salvation, which would be provided in the two comings of Messiah.
The ram in the thicket, in Abraham's day, prefigured the ram provided by God for the final Day of Atonement. "Abraham said, My son, God Himself will provide a lamb for the burnt offering...Then Abraham looked up and glanced around, and behold, behind him was a ram caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up for a burnt offering and an ascending sacrifice, instead of his son. So Abraham called the name of that place The Lord Will Provide." Gen. 22:8,13,14 Amplified.
Likewise, for the final atonement, the Father provided His divine Lamb, for the atonement by consummation. He was to be completely consumed, sacrificing Himself for us. When the Father told His Son that the marriage He had for Him was to include a physical consummation, there was no ram in the thicket for Him. He WAS the Ram.
Just as the wilderness congregation was given a vivid picture of complete consummation as they watched the ram being consumed, for them, an offering by fire, so THIS wilderness congregation has been given a vivid picture of complete consummation, as we watched Messiah being consumed for us, an offering by divine fire. We watched Michael pioneer an atoning way to complete consummation with God. And in His life since then, we have seen the continual revelation of what it looks like when a life has been completely consumed by God.
Consummation is defined as "completion; end; perfection of a work, process or scheme; the end or completion of the present system of things; the end of the world; death; the end of life; consummation of marriage, the most intimate union which completes the marriage relation."
Michael's atonement by consummation fulfilled every aspect of this definition of consummation. His life is a continual revelation to us of what it looks like to have come to the end of one's own life; what it looks like to be completely dead to one's self; what it looks like to be consummated into the Father, and dwell continually in the completeness of intimacy and oneness of heart and mind with the One from Whom we came forth.
The atonement by blood on the Day of Atonement foreshadowed the first coming of Messiah, when on the cross, Jesus made an atonement by blood. It was here that He completed the founding of the kingdom of God in human flesh. The atonement of consummation on the Day of Atonement, foreshadowed the second coming of Messiah, when on the altar of "offering by fire," Michael made an atonement by consummation. It was here that He finished the consummation of the kingdom of God in human flesh, and revealed the true consummation and complete annihilation of one's life, which the consummation of the ram by fire, prefigured. These two distinct aspects of the atonement - by blood and by consummation - on the Day of Atonement, were a vivid type of the completed Messianic salvation, when type would fully meet antitype in the two comings of Messiah.
One of the definitions of atonement is, "to be an instance of, or serve as an example of, man's oneness with God, embodiment of oneness." Just as Jesus embodied the atonement by blood, so Michael has embodied the atonement by consummation. By the morning and evening lambs, and by the two distinct offerings made on the Day of Atonement, completed Messianic salvation is revealed. From its founding to its consummation, from the shed blood of the Lamb on the cross to the consummation of the "marriage of the Lamb," the divine provision for our complete oneness with God has been finished. Michael's life is continual proof of that to this wilderness congregation.
The sanctuary service had very clear reasons for existence. It was to show the people the sacrificial nature of God, instead of the nature they previously attributed to Him. The pagans, which included the Egyptians, had gods that were somewhat angry at offenses committed. They expected large sacrifices and offerings to appease their naturally hostile nature. Sometimes their gods would fight amongst themselves. Great injury was attributed to the tempers of their gods. The Israelites had been slaves of the Egyptians for many years and their view of God had been seriously corrupted by their associations with the them. The people were to see their Savior in the sacrifice of the Lamb. They were to see their God as One Who had their best interests at heart. It is true that there were very clear instructions as to their activities associated with the service of sacrifice, but they were only designed to help the Israelites see and understand the true character of the One they worshipped. Their God spilled His blood for their sake. He laid down on the altar of sacrifice for their sake. He gave up His life, for their sake. If they would have carefully studied the emblems, and yielded up to the imagery, they would have quickly received Jesus when He came to reveal God to them. They would have understood that God is not a taker of life, but a giver of life.
The evening sacrifice, as previously stated, concerns the coming of Michael and the "marriage of the Lamb." If the Christian church had carefully studied the life of Jesus, and yielded up to it, they would have recognized the loving nature of the Father when Michael was sent to them to consummate the marriage. Instead of making war, and destroying their enemies, they would lie down in the bed of yielding, and the Father's own Spirit of love and sacrifice would have been put in them. Jesus showed the people the character of God, and that He was humble and lowly in heart. Michael showed the husbandry of God, and His special care in regards to His bride. Father has come to claim the bride and take her from her earthly entrapments. She is being removed from her earthly husbands, and being caused to ascend into the heights of His glorious, personal intimacy. Those who can receive the nature of God, will surely have all things fulfilled in them. Their deliverance is come.
Father intends to remove His people from the earth altogether. They would become fit for the realms of light, if they could be brought into the character of the Father. If men could be prepared, and infused with His Spirit of sacrifice and marriage, they would know something of what constitutes heaven. If men are not made aware of these things, heaven to them would be a place of war and oppression, as this world has become. Mankind is a race of revenge and violence, governing its inhabitants from force and fear. Heaven does not come from these principles, but, instead, has given itself for the blessings of all. It has no slaves, and does not seek to take advantage of its inhabitants, as earth does with its people. No one who operates from the principles of earth can ever enter into the "marriage of the Lamb." They will never understand the spontaneous, divine love expressed by all who partake of that marriage. It was God Who came down to consummate the marriage. It was God, in Michael, Who committed Himself to the final act of atonement. It is God Who carries it out in every believing soul.
The sequence of events which occurred on the typical day of atonement have been reenacted with precise accuracy, in the final atonement we have watched unfold here. Just as the high priest could not officiate the atonement by consummation, until the goat of removal had taken his own uncleanness away, so Michael could not be the Atonement by consummation, until after the uncleanness that He had born on Himself had been removed completely, and He was fitted to be the consummation of the Atonement for every man. Before this final atonement by consummation occurred, Michael had to be brought to His own personal consummation of His natural self, as the high priest did in the typical service. He was brought to His natural end. He was made to release all of His self interests, and to release the need for personal fulfillment. Nothing on this earth's plane of existence had any draw for Him any longer. He did not only come to a complete realization of what constituted earth's government, He was brought to a full realization of what constituted the government of His own natural man. This man was burned out of Him by the light and fire of the Father's Own revelation to Him.
After these things occurred, Michael was, by this, prepared for the consummation of "the marriage of the Lamb," which would have been impossible to complete without this emptying having been accomplished. The earth, through this consummation, was removed, and only the heavenly Anointing was seen. This was the complete burning of the Ram provided for the final atonement, not only for the priest, but for the people. This consummation did not occur until the uncleanness of the priest, himself, was removed by the removal of Azazel.
Right before the "goat of removal" separated his uncleanness completely from him, the high priest put blood on the horns of the altar of incense, and also on the horns of the altar of burnt offering. This showed how he had nothing more to offer from himself, but was on the horns (power of God) only. The horns were the place of complete dependence on God. After that complete dependence was formed in the priest, Azazel took all of the uncleanness, seen in self trust, away for ever and for ever. This is the time in which we now live. Behold, and see the salvation of the Father. And Michael said "unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day: for the Egyptians [man's natural nature] whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more for ever." Ex. 14:13.
