ICS Daily Devotions
How Do We Approach God?
Hebrews 11:4 (NKJV) By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks.
God was pleased and looked upon Abel favourably because he obeyed and carried out the offering based on God’s requirement. Abel was seen as righteous and Cain as unrighteous. Abel acted in faith according to what was taught to him. The most excellent sacrifice to approach God was solely through the sacrifice of an animal with the shedding of blood. Cain, on the other hand, attempted to use his own effort by offering the produce of the land obtained through his sweat and labour. Cain did not do what was stipulated by God. It was actually an act of self-righteousness, which was like filthy rags before God.
Likewise, we need to obey, acknowledge, submit and have faith in the way that God has established for us to approach Him through the blood of Jesus Christ. We need to come before God by faith based on what Jesus has done for us on the cross of Calvary.
The High Priest Aaron used to enter into the Holy of holies on the Day of Atonement with the blood of goats as a sin offering yearly. However, the Day of Atonement was also a day to remind them that their sins were not completely removed but merely covered by the blood of animals and therefore, it was a yearly reminder. The blood of animals could not remove the mark of their transgressions completely. The Day of Atonement pointed to the work of Jesus Christ in bringing us eternal redemption because the sacrifices of goats and calves had their setbacks.
Any attempts from us to approach God based on our own strengths will have an outcome just like Cain’s. They will not work and we cannot redeem ourselves with our own strengths, good works or deeds!
Jesus is the Lamb of God who has taken away the sin of the world. Once Jesus’ blood was offered at the heavenly tabernacle, God does not remember our sins and lawless deeds anymore. He completely blots out from our accounts all our sins and therefore, we have no past as they are under His blood. We do not need to keep offering sacrifices of animals, tormenting ourselves or trying all earthly means to appease God because Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice who obtained eternal redemption for us.
The difference between the earthly High Priests and Jesus as our High Priest was that Jesus sat down at the right hand of the Father after He offered up His blood whereas the earthly High Priests had to offer up animal blood yearly. As Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice, no more sacrifices were needed. It is complete. The redemption of mankind is DONE. There is absolutely nothing we can add to it in order to approach God. We can have a clean and cleansed conscience because through the blood of Jesus Christ, we have His righteousness. We approach God by faith that Jesus has completed the work of redemption! This pleases God!
Sermon Series: What Pleases God?
