As God leads us through conversion, He challenges our understanding of Him, sharpening our vision through the Scriptures. A significant aspect of this process involves accepting the harsh reality of Christ's sacrifice, particularly the laying of iniquity upon Him. In Isaiah 53:4-6, it is prophesied that He has borne our griefs, carried our sorrows, was wounded for our transgressions, and bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. The Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all, fulfilling the type seen in Leviticus 16:21-22, where the high priest confesses the sins of Israel over the azazel goat, placing all iniquities on its head before it is sent into the wilderness to bear them. Further, Isaiah 53:11-12 declares that by His knowledge, God's righteous Servant shall justify many, for He shall bear their iniquities, having poured out His soul unto death and borne the sin of many. I Peter 2:24 confirms that He Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, enduring extreme suffering, shame, reproach, anguish, and piercing during those hours, not merely facing death but bearing the full weight of sin's consequences. This bearing of sin was not abstract but a real, recorded fulfillment of prophecy, taking place as He hung on the tree outside the gate, as noted in Hebrews 13:12. Moreover, II Corinthians 5:21 reveals that God made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Galatians 3:13 adds that Christ became a curse for us, redeeming us from the curse of the law by hanging on the tree, echoing the role of the azazel, which became a representation of sin and was cursed by being led outside the camp. Thus, Christ fulfilled this dreadful role, becoming sin and a curse while bearing our transgressions during His prolonged suffering, ensuring that we might be healed spiritually and reconciled to God through His sacrifice.

Jesus Christ, in His profound sacrifice, bore the weight of humanity's sins upon His shoulders. As He hung on the stake at Calvary, He experienced the ultimate separation from God the Father, a consequence of carrying the iniquities of all mankind. This isolation was evident in His anguished cry, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" In that moment, He was utterly alone, enduring the pain and anguish of sin's penalty, which is death, to ensure that humanity could be reconciled with God. His life, of greater value than the sum of all human lives, paid the price for every sin—past, present, and future. Through His death, the penalty was fully met, as He proclaimed, "It is finished," signifying that His redemptive work was complete. Jesus Christ, having taken on human flesh, shed His blood and gave His life, not merely as a spirit, but as a true human, to atone for the sins of the world. This act of ultimate love and obedience to the Father's will stands as the foundation of hope for eternal life for all who believe in Him.

On the Day of Atonement, we are commanded to afflict ourselves through fasting, as God regards this as a means of humbling ourselves before Him. This act of fasting draws us near to God, acknowledging our deep need for Him. Moreover, it allows us to express not just sympathy, but true empathy for the immense sacrifice Jesus Christ accepted on our behalf. The Father laid the iniquity of us all upon Him, as foretold in Isaiah 53:6, where it is written that all have gone astray, each turning to their own way, yet the Lord placed our sins on Him. During His crucifixion, as recorded in Matthew 27:45-46, darkness covered the land from the sixth to the ninth hour, symbolizing the sins of all mankind—past, present, and future—being laid upon Him. At that moment, the Father, unable to be connected with sin, had to disconnect from His beloved Son, causing Jesus to cry out, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" This separation was a profound pain for both the Father and the Son. Jesus became sin for us, though He knew no sin, taking on this burden in obedience to the Father. Through His brutal death and divine resurrection, He declared His great love for us, whom He regards as His friends. Fasting on this day also becomes a true act of thanksgiving to both the Father and the Son for the life They are giving us, as They have removed our sins as far as the east is from the west.

The Scriptures clearly affirm that Jesus Christ bears the iniquities of mankind, as it is written that our iniquity was laid on Him (Isaiah 53:6). He bore our sins and took them away, fulfilling the role of the live goat in Leviticus 16, which was to carry all the iniquities of the children of Israel to an uninhabited land, completely removing them from view (Isaiah 53:11-12; I Peter 2:24; Hebrews 9:28; Colossians 2:14; Hebrews 10:4). In the ritual of the Day of Atonement, the high priest laid both hands on the head of the live goat, symbolically transferring the sins of the people, which were still outstanding despite the blood of the first goat, indicating that these sins needed to be resolved through this act of complete removal (Leviticus 16:21-22). The fulfillment of this goat points directly to Christ, leaving no room or need for any other being to accomplish this purpose. If God had not provided both access to Him through Christ's blood and the forgiveness of sins through the bearing of iniquities, we would either be separated from Him by unresolved sin or lack the relationship necessary to grow in His image (Isaiah 59:2; Hebrews 8:10-12; Hebrews 13:10). Through Christ's singular sacrifice, we have both access to God and the removal of our sins, achieving true atonement as we are transformed into His likeness.