Only God can make the Ultimate Sacrifice for our sins.

“The next day Moses said to the people, “You have sinned a great sin. And now I will go up to the LORD; perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.” So Moses returned to the LORD and said, “Alas, this people has sinned a great sin. They have made for themselves gods of gold. But now, if you will forgive their sin—but if not, please blot me out of your book that you have written.” But the LORD said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against me, I will blot out of my book.” (Exodus 32:30-33)”

Religion is about making sacrifices to appease the wrath of the gods/god or to get his/her/its blessing. We do this through giving stuff that we value. In more primitive religions people gave fruits and chickens etc. More sophisticated ways of sacrificing to God could be giving Him money or giving up something we like, like sex etc.

Another even more subtle way of ‘making it up to God’ is by doing good deeds. Somehow we think God needs us to be good and if we are good, it makes up for the sin we have done. There is nothing wrong with sacrificing things or trying to be good. However, trying to sacrifice anything to God to atone for our wrongdoing is absurd.

Why would good deeds merit reward from God since He needs nothing from us? Or what could we possibly give in exchange for our souls that have become corrupted because of the sins we have committed? This is why some religions in the past have resorted to human sacrifice because deep down inside human beings know that nothing is more valuable than a human being. The religions around Ancient Israel even gave their children as human sacrifices to their gods. Thankfully, the more nobler religions have realised that sacrificing your own life to God is better than offering up someone else!

Moses offered to sacrifice his life for the sins of the people of Ancient Israel. In effect Moses says to God, ‘These people have sinned greatly. You are right to be angry and blot them out. But I have come to offer you my life as a sacrifice of atonement for their sins. Pour your righteous anger on me and not on them.’ This was incredible love by Moses for his people. As Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13) But God refuses Moses.

God will not accept Moses’ offer of his life as a sacrifice. Instead, God says that ‘whoever sins against me will die for her own sins.’ This is fair and just. How can it possibly be fair for someone to die for someone else’s sins? No one can die for another person’s sins and so God refuses Moses’ offer. And if the Bible ended there, every single one of us would be headed to an eternity of ‘paying for our own sins.’

Thank God for Jesus! The reason God refused Moses’ offer and the offer of every single one of us to make atonement for our sins, is because God Himself came to earth and in the Person of Jesus Christ, He gave Himself up for our sins. Talk about love! God so loved the world He gave His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.