Let Go and Let YHWH - new teaching!

Emet Ministries

Let Go and Let Yah

www.emetministries.org

By Daniel Rendelman

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The tenth day of the seventh Biblical month is a special occasion for repentance and revelation called the "Day of Atonement" or "Yom Kippur." It's also a time of letting go.

Originally, it was on Yom Kippur that the High Priest would take bloody offerings beyond the veil of the Tabernacle. The blood of a slain bullock would be sprinkled on the mercy seat of the Ark of the Covenant and the sacrifice of a male goat would be made as a sin offering for the people. Some of this blood was then also taken into the holy of holies as well. Next, the High Priest took another goat (called the "scapegoat"), laid his hands on its head, confessed over it the sins of Israel, and then released it into the desert where it symbolically carried away the sins of the people until it died. This was a pretty intense service that provided a "kippur" or "covering" for sin until the sacrifice of Y'shua took away the sins of the world. Though the Temple does not stand today and these offerings are not made, we are still to remember the day with worship and withdrawal.

"This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month you must deny yourselves and not do any work-whether native-born or an alien living among you-because on this day atonement will be made for you, to cleanse you. Then, before YHWH, you will be clean from all your sins. It is a Sabbath of rest, and you must deny yourselves; it is a lasting ordinance. The priest who is anointed and ordained to succeed his father as high priest is to make atonement. He is to put on the sacred linen garments and make atonement for the Most Holy Place, for the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and for the priests and all the people of the community. This is to be a lasting ordinance for you: Atonement is to be made once a year for all the sins of the Israelite," Leviticus 16:29-31

"YHWH said to Moses, "The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. Hold a sacred assembly and deny yourselves, and present an offering made to YHWH by fire. Do no work on that day, because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before YHWH your Elohim. Anyone who does not deny himself on that day must be cut off from his people. I will destroy from among his people anyone who does any work on that day. You shall do no work at all. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live. It is a Sabbath of rest for you, and you must deny yourselves. From the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to observe your Sabbath," Leviticus 23:26-32.

Yom Kippur is a solemn holy day of prayer and repentance that is usually accompanied with a fast. The Hebrew phrase for "deny yourself" or "afflict your souls" is "inul nefesh." The word "nefesh" is translated in several verses as "soul" and in several verses as "appetite." This is where we learn to afflict our appetites by fasting on Yom Kippur. Yet skipping lunch is not the point of Kippur. The physical world should mirror the spiritual, as we let go of the pleasure of food while we simultaneously let go of sinful actions and thoughts. The theme of letting go permeates Yom Kippur and is indeed applicable for us today. "Let go and let god" is good advice. Aren't there things that you need to release and hand over to YHWH on the Day of Atonement and other days of the year?

Leviticus says that people had to let go of their sin on Yom Kippur. Hands were laid upon a goat while the nation confessed their sins and transferred their wrongdoings upon the creature. Then the animal was set free to wander into the dessert until its eventual death. Some commentators even believe the goat was forced to walk to its demise over a rocky cleft. Either way, the goat was let go which represented the people letting loose of their sins. They couldn't expect to be forgiven if they held on to their wayward actions. On Yom Kippur, from sundown to twilight, sins were confessed and vows were made to return to YHWH. The same is true today. We must, we absolutely must, let go of the things that are holding us back from fullness with YHWH. Like the Hebrews of history, we need to confess our sins and trust YHWH to take away our unrighteousness. Letting go of toxic behavior may seem easy in theory but habits are hard to break. It's difficult being slow to speak. It's a challenge to release unforgiveness. Yet the service of our heart is what YHWH really seeks. He never really wanted the blood of bulls and goats. YHWH has always desired our submission and our refusal to satisfy self. "Let us lay aside every weight and sin which so easily entangles us and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us," Hebrews 12:1. Think about the danger if shoe laces that are untied. The loose laces might seem insignificant but they can easily entangle you and trip you up. We must let go of anything and everything that would cause us to fall.

The High Priest had to let go of his duties as well. For an entire year the Cohen HaGadol prepared for his own Yom Kippur worship. His penalty was death if he made a mistake and he had no guarantee that an accident wouldn't happen. The Priest had to do his best, let go of worry and fear, and hope that his actions were good enough. He couldn't go behind the veil with sin in his heart or shakes in his hands. This mirrors the many things in our life that we have no control over as well. All you can do is prepare, do your part, and hope that everything works out. This is true for family, finances, and issues of faith. We must, like the High Priest, walk in obedience as we trust YHWH to come through for us. This means we "lean not on our own understanding" and place our trust in YHWH's goodness. When life is turned upside down let go of your grip and trust the grace of YHWH to catch you. There is a difference between letting go and giving up. Don't give up!

Letting go and trusting YHWH is the only way that we can progress in our walk. The Scriptures are full of examples of people who let go and got bless. Consider the father of the prodigal son who let his firstborn go but had their rocky relationship restored. That's what Yom Kippur can do for you today. Reflect on David who let go of his right to be king; the disciples who let their careers go in order to follow Messiah; Joseph who let go of revenge to feed his brothers; Hosea who forgave the sins of his adulterous wife Gomer, and even the mother of Y'shua who let go the rights to her own body to carry the baby in her womb. YHWH uses people who unleash their will to His divine plan. Abraham let go of his promised son Isaac and was willing to sacrifice him upon an altar. A widow let go of her last meal to feed the prophet Elijah. And even YHWH, though knowing the fate that would follow, let His only son enter our world to be beaten, ridiculed, and crucified.

The story of Jonah is usually read and discussed on the Day of Atonement. This is another account of letting go. Bad things happened to Jonah until he let go of his harsh attitude towards the people of Nineveh and finally surrendered to YHWH's plan. Jonah was kicked off a boat in the midst of a storm and then swallowed alive by a whale. He stayed in the belly of the fish for three days and three nights until Jonah finally let go of his own sinfulness and declared "Salvation is of YHWH." It was then that the animal spat him out. When Jonah let go of his stubbornness he was released. Why did Jonah have to go through all of this? Why do we have to face so many trials and tests? Perhaps what happens in life gives us the opportunity to let go and let YHWH or hold on and try to handle life ourselves.

This Yom Kippur, let's not repeat the mistake of Jonah. During this season we need to let go of the grudges, the bitterness, and our supposed right to hurt others for hurting us. This is what Yom Kippur is really about. Remember that in Leviticus 16 we are told to "deny yourself" or "afflict your soul." This can be done by refusing to eat. It can also be done by refusing to become hard hearted. Honestly, does it hurt more to miss a meal or to forgive the person whose harmful actions have held you captive?

The Torah speaks of a unique time of letting go every fifty years, called a Jubilee or "Yovel" in Hebrew. During this period all debts, loans, and obligations are to be forgiven. The Yovel year is when total and complete forgiveness is to be granted to anyone and everyone for any and all reasons. Plus, anything that had been lost is automatically restored on the Jubilee. If you had sold a tract of land then it would be returned to you during the Yovel. It is interesting that it is on Yom Kippur that the Jubilee starts. Yes, every fifty years, on the Day of Atonement a shofar is to sound to proclaim the time of letting go has come. Leviticus 25:9-13, "Then have the trumpet sound everywhere on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement sound the trumpet throughout your land. Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you; each of you is to return to your family property and to your own clan. The fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you; do not sow and do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the untended vines. For it is a jubilee and is to be holy for you; eat only what is taken directly from the fields. In this Year of Jubilee everyone is to return to their own property."

For Torah observant believers, the Jubilee is to be a way of life. Release and restoration, letting go and letting YHWH, should be something we do every day in preparation for a grand Jubilee that is coming when Messiah returns. "Bear with one another and forgive each other just as Messiah has forgiven you," Colossians 3:13.

It is only when we let go of our grip that we also free our hand to receive. The well known verse Psalm 46:10 could be easily understood to reinforce this idea. Most people know this passage as "be still and know that I am YHWH." However, it could read, "let go and then you will know that I am YHWH." Surrendering control will lead us to know YHWH better. We will also realize that we are not our own because we have been bought with a price. There is absolutely nothing that has happened, is happening, or will happen to you that you and YHWH can't handle together.

YHWH wants to fill us with blessings and restore what has been lost, yet our stubbornness stops us from experiencing YHWH's best. Yom Kippur is the time to transfer your guilt or your grudge to Y'shua. Like the Israelites of old, place your hand out and confess your ways so that you can receive forgiveness and a new start.

For more teachings from this author visit www.emetministries.org.