Devotional

Atonement

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. -Ephesians 2:8-9 

When Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they were overcome with guilt. They hid themselves in a remote corner of the garden and tried to cover themselves with fig leaves. Leaves hid their shame, but their sin required a sacrificial covering. The sacrifice of innocent animals to provide garments of skin as a covering for Adam and Eve foreshadows the substitutionary atonement of Christ. It points toward judgment upon the innocent for the sake of the guilty.

Under the new covenant, we are required to be clothed with Christ rather than with our own good works (Eph. 2:8, 9). Christ, by His substitutionary atoning death on the cross, provides the covering we need. The sacrificial animals were only a type of the infinite Lamb of God, Creator of everything, whose death atoned for everyone who would believe. 

Whenever there is sin or shame in our lives, it can be dealt with only in Christ Jesus. He alone can bring forgiveness and release from condemnation. And He will for everyone who believes. Come to Him today. 

Genesis