Selfish vs Selfless God

Psalm 50, 51:16-19

Psalm 22 - God/Jesus as Shepherd

Shepherds of old would count all their sheep into the fold and then lie down at the opening as a gate so that any wolves who wanted to get in would have to deal with the shepherd first. So too did Jesus lay down to guard us from the death of sin and he took that death in our place.

Questions - Selfish God

Why was a sacrifice required?

Psalms 50, 51 say that the sacrifice God required was a repentant heart...so then what was the deal with the lambs and why did Jesus have to die?

Why did God harden Pharaoh's heart?

First lamb sacrifice came in Exo. 12:21 for the Hebrews to mark their doors so that the Angel of Death would pass over their homes. They were instructed to do this yearly, as a reminder of what God had done for them to get them out of Egypt. It was a reminder of their covenant with Him. It was to mark them as His people.

Not "take this" -> "you're forgiven" but "I'm forgiven" -> "take this"

Old testament -> turn from God and be totally separated

New testament -> turn from God, you will still have eternal life because Jesus took the death for you