Calvary Chapel Fort Lauderdale Daily DevotionalSample

A Sufficient Substitute There's a principle woven throughout the Old Testament that we need to understand before we can fully appreciate the power of the cross. It's the principle of substitution, and it basically teaches us that God accepts an innocent substitute to suffer in place of someone who is guilty. The whole sacrificial system that the Lord gave to the Nation of Israel was based on this essential principle. Whenever an Israelite would sin, instead of personally putting them to death, there was the option of substituting an innocent animal in their place. The bull, goat, ram, lamb, or dove would be taken to the priest, who would kill and sacrifice it for the sake of the owner's sin. It was a simple system based on a powerful principle: the innocent substituted for the guilty. But there was just one problem with this arrangement, and the writer of Hebrews identifies it for us: For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins. (Hebrews 10:4 NKJV) Although the blood of animals was sinless, it wasn't fully sufficient because animals are inferior to man. God accepted it for a season, but every animal sacrifice was an incomplete story whose fulfillment could only be found in a substitute that was both sinless and superior to bulls and goats. That substitute was none other than God's Son, who was not only sinless but also superior to man in every possible way. As sinners, we have a sufficient substitute who was sacrificed in our place. And His innocent blood was shed for the sake of our sin. - God accepts an innocent substitute to suffer in place of someone who is guilty. Think about it... What does this passage reveal to me about God? What does this passage reveal to me about myself? Based on this, what changes do I need to make? What is my prayer for today?