Memorials in the Bible
A memorial is an object which serves as a focus for memory of something, usually a person (who has died) or an event. The most common type of memorial is the gravestone or the memorial plaque. Also common are war memorials commemorating those who have died in wars.
God has given us many memorials. This week we will look at four of them.
OFFERING TO THE LORD
1) Atonement money
And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,12 When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the Lord, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them.13 This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall be the offering of the Lord.14 Every one that passeth among them that are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering unto the Lord.15 The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the Lord, to make an atonement for your souls.16 And thou shalt take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shalt appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial unto the children of Israel before the Lord, to make an atonement for your souls. (Exodus 30:11-16)
“The ransom is the same for all – despite the economic background one came from or the giftings one could surmise they carry, the price for atonement was the same. Atonement appeases the wrath of God by paying the price for the debt owed, the price of sin. And as we know, the wages of sin is death – or, quite literally, the payment due for sin is death.
So here, we once again see the imagery of a payment, or wage, needing to be paid in God’s economy. Sin has separated man from God, and if given its due course, sin will lead to death and eternal separation. Through the giving of atonement money, payment was made to appease the wrath of God. Yet, this was but a shadow of the full atonement to be made in Christ, because this was not eternal and lasting atonement. In fact, this atonement payment we find outlined in Exodus 30 became the very same annual “temple tax” we read about in Matthew 17:24-27.” (https://newsongpeople.com/btonline/what-is-atonement-money)
Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com
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