S1 EP5 | “Die Another Day” – Why Yom Kippur Still Matters

No, they’re not talking about James Bond and how he repeatedly lives through harrowing situations to “die another day.” In this episode of A Jew & A Gentile Discuss, Carly and Ezra talk about the intriguing Jewish mindset on the holiest day of the Jewish year: Yom Kippur or the Day of Atonement. Yom Kippur is a solemn day of denying oneself for the sake of focusing on God. This annual holiday is another day of intentional dying to self.   

Carly and Ezra are in the middle of a three-part series as they talk about Yom Kippur, the second of the Jewish Fall Feasts. Carly, the Gentile of the two, asks Ezra some key questions about this solemn holiday that really isn’t a “feast” at all. 

• What is Yom Kippur? 
• Where do we find this Jewish Feast in the Bible? 
• When is Yom Kippur 2020, and what happens between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur? 
• Why do you, as a Jewish believer in Jesus, still observe Yom Kippur when you know Jesus came to atone for your sins? 
• Do Christians need to observe Yom Kippur? 
• Did Jesus observe Yom Kippur? 
• What does Jewish observance look like today? 
• If Christians wanted to observe Yom Kippur, how would they do that? 
• What would you say is the main takeaway for a Christian about Yom Kippur? 
• What’s your most memorable Yom Kippur moment? 

Ezra’s answers contain a whole lot of great information expounding on why this day is so important in Jewish life. Their discussion touches on Hebrews – the New Testament book that talks the most about the Day of Atonement – plus the Old Testament’s idea of sin, and where the road diverges between Jewish observance and Messianic Jewish observance of Yom Kippur.  You’ll also learn: 

• How Christians should understand these Jewish holidays 
• What foreshadow of a future prophetic event Ezra believes Yom Kippur holds when it already appears to be fulfilled by Easter 
• Where the idea comes from that makes Jewish holidays begin at sunset 

Ezra also explains the concept of “complete ceasing” and the Jewish idea of “denying oneself” on Yom Kippur and how it relates to the title of this episode.