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SACRIFICE
-- FROM PAGAN TO BLOODLESS,
FROM HARSH GOD TO ALL-BENEVOLENT
by
Karl Roebling
Jesus
and his all-benevolent yet omnipotent God
overcame the sacrifice/scapegoat system —
which is the same as the carnal (material)
mind (alias the devil) system, based as it is on a harsh deity
The concept
of a terrible God or power is at the root of all humankind's problems.
Tribal people fearfully sacrificed to the death-dealing but unthinking
nature forces, spirits, gods or god -- to head off murdering.
Later,
when the powers were believed to have a reason -- man's abundant
sins -- for killing. This led to scapegoat-type sacrificing where
the sinners picked anyone but their guilty selves to die.
Let's
see below how the sacrificial concepts and practices developed by
stages into their current complexity and centricity even in Christianity.
That package constitutes all evil or the carnal (material, "enmity
against" the real God) structure and operations. Jesus -- instead
of ratifying it as many believe he did -- overcame it in order to
free us, being bloodied in battle in the course of winning on our
behalf.
 From
the beginning, thunder and lightning terrified tribal groups huddling
in caves for protection against the death-imparting sky forces which
-- no doubt about it -- were deadly. ("Thor" -- seen even
in fairly recent European history -- is a lightning and thunder
"god.") Also ranking high among the forces which early
(and later) humans feared most, were volcanos, harsh winters and
floods.
At first,
the forces weren't considered to be "thinking beings"
with whom one could work out a "deal." Gradually, though,
human characteristics were given to the array of mainly nature forces,
spirits or gods. Tribal priests, shamans and witch doctors, claiming
to be the only ones able to contact the mystical entities, invented
religions to assuage them (and to elevate the priests).
As humanity
settled on fertile plains and began to grow crops and animals for
food, harsh winters had to be placated. Too, spring floods from
snowmelts meant they had to deal with river gods. Violent summer
rains impacted herds, crops and people. Something was causing
the problems. Religions struggled with how to make deals with the
forces, spirits, gods and goddesses.
"Feeding
the appetite" -- the first approach to murderous forces
The frightening entities obviously killed until satisfied, after
which spring came, or the thunder-and-lightning storm passed, or
the volcano simmered down. The "logical" approach to obtaining
abatement was to "feed" and thus partially sate the appetite
of the forces by preemptively killing crops, animals or humans before
or during religious rituals, and offering them. "Here's what
you want, don't kill us, here's our increment of dead things, we're
on your side, go somewhere else." Of course, none of this worked,
yet concepts and activities were expanded not abandoned.
 Forces
were evil, with good only when placated, then later both evil and
good
At first the forces were all-evil, with any "good"
only a temporary abatement of evil. But today, most believe Deity
is both evil and good, with evil the ultimate to keep humans behaving,
and sacrifices -- particularly the sacrifice of Jesus -- easing
evil, leaving good.
How
"dealing" developed -- the forces became reasoning
As "gods" developed (in our minds), they were thinking
(at least part of the time), not just chaotic. And thus, deals could
be worked out for protection.
Over
time, tribal religions (and the later cultured religions), developed
with the assumption that deadly forces or even the One God had
reasons for killing -- and thus deals could be worked out. Tribes
were sinful -- murdering, lusting, stealing. From this, guilty consciences
accepted the priests' sin-imputing "law of sin followed by
death from above" (which is built into every human psyche anyhow).
Tribes bought the idea. The forces, spirits, gods -- even the later
One God -- were depicted as accusing, and then demanding punishment.
"Righteous murder" (a super-dichotomy of the carnal mind)
by deities became central.
"Paying
demands" -- the second approach to the murderous forces
Paying punishment demands was more specific and definite than the
former guesswork, but punishees still faced the usual death-monster
requirement of death.
But so
what? Just throw the sinners into the murder machine, right?
No? No
-- all were sinners. But all agreed on one thing -- get someone
else.
"Get
someone else"-- the ingenious plan for who gets punished
Of course, the king rose and said, "The buck stops here.
I'm head of this tribe, so I will offer myself and die." No?
No again. The kings said to hell with all that, get someone else.
(Frazer's Golden Bough has some kings killed to "save"
their people -- voluntarily and involuntarily. But mainly, the historic
killing or flagellating is in rituals only, the king then
getting credit for "saving" his people.)
The whole
tribe wouldn't pay (do you want a revolution?). And the priests
of the very system they invented weren't going to pay. "Get
someone -- anyone -- else."
Therefore,
prisoners from other tribes, also defectives, maybe some civil prisoners
for tribal offenses, were caught up in human death-blood sacrifices.
The
guilty don't pay
In the sacrifice-for-guilt scapegoat system, please note that
the guilty don't pay!
Human
scapegoats loaded with sins of the tribe are killed to carry the
sins into the Great Beyond.
In an
old Israelite ritual, bits of cloth representing tribal sins were
stuck to an actual goat before it was driven off a cliff to die.
Or a priest could impart the sins to the goat. In all scapegoating
primitive or complex, innocence or guilt is not a factor.
In a Kirk Douglas movie about the French Army in WWI, a man chosen
by lot from the bottommost rank paid the price for a crime.
This
type of system was supposed to pay and cleanse -- but could
do neither.
"Praise"--
the third approach to the murderous forces
In addition to feeding appetites and paying punishment demands,
a third approach was to praise in the sense of, "Look,
Big Guy, you are great, and furthermore, we're on your side
-- killing. We're flattering by imitating, bringing you dead things
-- and we expect protection."
In praise
-- mainly harvest -- festivals, a portion of the hard-won crops
and herds was burned in total waste, after some first going to the
priests.
There
had to be the hypocrisy of only pretending to like the gods and
system.
Of course,
sometimes there's thanksgiving or praise for bounty, with no death.
Today we see some praise for the all-good God to whom we are slowly
waking. But if the Deity is seen as both good and evil, the praise
-- although often sincere -- is still somewhere in the old system.
Next,
perfection was required in substitutes
Since people brought their worst crops, animals or even humans
to be destroyed -- and since that poor quality might be the thing
keeping the system from "working" -- perfection
became the requirement. (This also improved the quality of the priests'
cut.)
Innocence
was the next requirement
Since perfection didn't stop hard winters, etc., innocence
was tried in human sacrifices. Virgins and children were ritually
tossed into rivers or volcanos, slain on altars. Even into European
times, a baby might be dropped into the hole for the centerpole
where a home was being built. This would "protect" by
saying, "Hey, we have already sacrificed, we're on your side,
we're friends, not foes. So there's no need for more murdering --
you bloody god or spirit."
"Acts
of God"
We still call awful natural disasters "acts of God" in
contracts (and still say God committed genocide in the Flood, because
He didn't like human behavior). But nature forces are not gods or
goddesses, have no reasoning powers.
Most
deities of old weren't perceived as creator, father or mother, but
just remote and often mean as hell, relaxing only after inflicting
disasters and killings. Some of these old positions are still in
modern creator, father and mother concepts of God.
Some
"God says" rules were codified on earth by "the law,"
laws, and religious doctrines, the breaking of which could bring
destructive "acts of God" -- or death from the religions.
The central
carnal mind "mechanism" of "the law of sin [followed
by death from God]" mischaracterizes God, and victimizes in
the name of religion. In healing the man sick of the palsy, Jesus
first removed that negative pin-down package of thought from the
man's mind, then said that was the key to divine healing (Lk. 5:18,20,23;
Mat 9:2,5).
Psychology's
tripartite psyche in action
Some psychologists have said the primitive god-system with guilt,
supervision-accusation, and fear of punishment is built inside
of us (and is not "out there" somewhere). The low-life
libido entices the little ego into naughty thoughts and acts. Then
the all-seeing all-knowing superego pounces! It torments the guilty
ego with accusations, then extracts payments (this last according
to the distinguished Dr. Edmund Bergler). Hmm. Well, it's something
to think about.
 Anselm's
(c. 1100) interpretation of the Cross popular today
The super-scapegoat voluntary sacrifice of the King in order to
pay demands of a punishing God and save the people, is central to
today's popular concept of the Cross. Instead, Jesus overturned
the ancient sacrifice/scapegoat system.
Jesus
had disciples, taught a secret (Mat. 13:35) message that healed
(13:15), later said we didn't get it all (Jn. 16:12), promised the
Spirit would teach his full message (Jn. 14:26) -- and Revelation
(10:7) speaks of the "mystery" of God being at last ended.
However, if Anselm's theory were right, there would have been no
need for any of that, because the ancient system was understood
by all in ancient times -- and since.
The world
had no reason to attack Early Christians if they were in line with
its sacrifice/scapegoat system -- but instead they were brutally
attacked. They were engaged in overcoming evil, in doing Jesus'
works, in at least trying to "raise the dead" -- things
which flew in the face of what the world believes to be the ultimate
power, death (and death woven in with God).
Didn't
Jesus break our "prison" (Isa. 42:7; 61:1; Lk. 4:18) of
death? And start us doing his works (Jn. 14:12), in his victorious,
not victimized, steps?
Jesus
underwent death "that through death he might destroy him that
had the power of death, that is, the devil," and thus "deliver
them which through fear of death were all their lifetimes subject
to bondage" (Heb. 2:14-15).
Jesus
overcame the entire sacrifice/scapegoat system, but we reinstalled
it
Jesus on the Cross is said by religions to have been a super-example
of the ancient sacrifice/scapegoat system, when instead he was overcoming
that entire system and its death-dealing-God concept. Jesus'
all-good God heals sin. His Deity at-one (Jn. 17:20-23) with its
spiritual creation (Paul said "not seen" and "invisible,"
but sometimes "clearly seen") overcomes and replaces death.
We each have a spiritual identity in Spirit's image "hid with
Christ in God" -- which we will progressively find and use
as we "see him as he is" (I Jn. 3:2). This pulls us out
of the carnal (material) mind's death-trap.
So why
did God have Jesus show us something on the Cross that looks like
the sacrifice/scapegoat system when the intent was the overcoming
of that system?
For good
reasons. One, the population could mentally connect with it (and
still does). Then further growth can occur (despite many theologies
that block growth).
Two,
only by taking the undeserved blows from the world (not from
God), and going to the bottom of death (Eph. 4:9-10; Acts 2:31)
was Jesus in position to overcome all evil.
The death
phase was passive on his part, the Resurrection active -- overcoming
all evil one time. He "abolished death" (II Tim. 1:10).
Three,
in order for us to get out, we must know every aspect of the carnal
mind's package of all evil, and what Jesus did, and how we too
overcome evil, as he instructed us to do. We don't do the parts
he did "once for all," but everything else.
Jesus
change character?
That Jesus murders in the end-time would mean that Jesus Christ
was not the same "yesterday, today and for ever," and
that the fountain could, after all, give forth both sweet water
and bitter. The sword in Jesus' mouth (Rev. 19:15a) is the Word
"sharper than any twoedged sword" (Heb. 4:12) that he
teaches but we don't yet grasp, that harmlessly, beneficially
yet definitely divides, ministers, heals, changes, and leads to
the end of all evil. (The dead flesh shown in Revelation is
from the carnal mind's warring, blamed on God.) Can anyone imagine
Jesus as a world terrorist and mass murderer?
Jesus'
God is all-good, yet omnipotent, not weak, revealing a higher venue,
healing sin and ending evil.
A deity
that kills is either the ancient 100 percent savage force or the
Genesis 3:5 "good and evil" God, with evil as the ultimate
power.
Unchangeable,
all-benevolent, invariably helpful God
When starting from the divine Kingdom standpoint, and our spiritual
identity, we find a path on which to work our way out of our human-being
"natural" (or dust-created) man's sins (even beneficially
smelt them out if necessary, as in Malachi 3:2-3) in front of the
loving God. We climb as we complete rungs here and in hereafters.
If only
pardoned (we are, but more), we still have our sins and sinful nature;
however, our higher identity shown by Jesus harmlessly cleans
and transforms us in time.
Do we
really want to unload our sins onto Jesus-and have a harsh God beat
and kill him in acts which patently are "enmity against God"
(Rom. 8:6a, 7a)?
 Progressive
Bible
Doesn't the Bible show us progression from primitive concepts
of powers and deities and their related religious practices, to
the all-good God with overcoming power in our hands, also harmless
but definite transformations for us up and out, and evil's end?
Human
sacrifice (see Isaac) changed to animal sacrifice (the ram). The
smearing of blood on the doorposts showed an advance in human concepts
in the direction of a protective God-concept. We might connect using
old ideas, but are then led progressively higher. After honoring
the Passover at the Last Supper, Jesus then went out and overcame
the entire sacrifice/scapegoat carnal mind enmity-against-God antiChrist
(harming Jesus) system. Jesus bled in battle to free us.
And he
told us to do his works (Jn. 14:12).
The
lamb of God
But doesn't the "lamb of God" refer to Jesus as a super-Lamb
offered in a sacrificial blood-and-death connection to God?
The old
sense of the symbol exists, and people connect there even today.
But there's a higher sense of that symbol, and progress in that
direction is expected. The "natural" mind (I Cor. 2:14)
doesn't at once grasp steps of higher meanings, but they exist,
and -- importantly -- enable us to enter the paths of overcoming.
We're
supposed to put on the new, put off (harmlessly) the old, work in
the "new and living way" (Heb. 10:20) (not death way).
Jesus took "away the first, that he may establish the second"
(Heb. 10:9). There isn't any death in God.
The
Lamb Jesus presented overcomes by perfect purity from above -- by
the Light that clears out darkness in the bloodless "warfare"
of the Spirit.
Jesus'
taking on of the whole death-system package is the deepest personal
sacrifice in all time. His Resurrection is the greatest overcoming
in all time, and is intended to lead us out.
Christians
still have their sins in various quantities and depths, and sinful
natures in varying degrees, but they have an overcoming-way out.
We keep
thinking the ball is in his court, and he is going to do something.
In fact, he's done something, and the ball has long been in our
court -- yet he works in conjunction with us to accomplish the tasks
he assigned to us. (Jn. 14:12; Mat. 10:7-8; Mk. 16:17-18; Acts 1:8;
Rev. 2:7, 11, 17, 26; 3:5, 12, 21; 21:4, 7.)
Evil
reacts when death itself is threatened
When we proceed against death itself, evil kicks up a storm.
In the
Bible, God says, "I create evil," but that means God's
all-benevolent pure presence arouses evil to fury. That pattern
is seen throughout the end-time.
In Revelation,
vials of angelic perfection that eliminate evil, are poured onto
earth, but evil reacts so violently that it seems even to John that
the vials instead hold plagues from God's wrath. Evil likes to blame
God. But God doesn't send plagues, He heals them; doesn't change
from Love to wrath. The wrathful "god" is the carnal mind,
the devil cast from heaven "having great wrath" (Rev.
12:12).
Evil
sends every woe, but as we are "labourers" in conjunction
with the completely clean God, all evil is ended by Revelation 21:4,
7.
SEE MORE
on www.KarlRoebling.com,
also www.Atonement-Real.com
©
2008 Karl Roebling. All Rights Reserved
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