By His Blood!

We want to greet you and thank you for coming to hearthenspeak to read the Word of God with us today. We pray you will be inspired as you gain knowledge and revelation of the Truth of God's Word. We urge you to take it personally. Eric

God is holy in a way that sets Him apart from all mankind and creation. His holiness reflects His majesty, purity, a total separation from sin and complete innocence. The holiness of God is absolute!

How does man measure up in regard to holiness?

Genesis 6:5 (ESV) reads, "The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." Isaiah 64:66 (BSB) reveals, "All our righteous acts are like filthy rags." All of man's efforts at righteousness are inadequate to compare to God's holiness.

God is never complacent toward sin. He gave the command to Adam to not eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Then, He warned Adam by saying, "In the day that you eat of it you shall surely die." (Genesis 2:17). Adam heard and understood the command the Lord had given him. So, on the day Adam ate the fruit, he sinned. Sin is not just a minor mistake, it is rebellion against God's will. Romans 6:23a reveals, "For the wages of sin is death." Although death for Adam and Eve did not come until later, death occurred soon after their sin, when an animal sacrifice was made to clothe them.

Some might say that death was too big of a penalty to pay. After all, God is God and simply could have pardoned Adam at no cost. We need to understand. If God overlooked sin without any moral consequences, the universe would lose it's moral order altogether. We are aware that for many right now, the world is in chaos. Why? Many have rejected God and fulfill the deeds of their father, the evil one, satan. We see it in the sacrificing of babies (abortion); forcing the changing of a gender of a child; a failure to keep the marriage bed undefiled; we see those who steal, kill and destroy; those who riot and burn down parts of cities; those who loot to take what all they can get for nothing; and those who murder others because they have a different belief system. There are a lot of other signs of the perversion in the world. No doubt you could add to my list, however, I am sure you get my point.

Leviticus 17:11 (NLT) instructs us, "for the life of the body is in its blood. I have given you the blood on the altar to purify you, making you right with the LORD. It is the blood, given in exchange for a life, that makes purification possible." The life of the body is in its blood. Hebrews 9:22 (BSB) states, "According to the law, in fact, nearly everything must be purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness."

Blood symbolizes life and death.

Mankind, in our sinful state, could never approach a perfectly holy God without the resolution of the issue of sin's penalty. The shedding of blood that could provide the forgiveness mankind was in need of, had to come for a perfect sinless sacrifice and we already have seen what man's heart is like. However, we have an awesome God!

A covenant is a promise, a contract or a binding agreement. A blood covenant is a solemn agreement established between two parties and is sealed by the shedding of blood. In the Scripture, the blood covenant is an unbreakable bond between God and mankind. The covenant was sealed through a form of sacrifice. Every covenant God established with mankind was a blood covenant.

In Genesis 15:9,10,17 and 18 we read, "He said to him (Abram), "Bring me a heifer three years old, a female goat three years old, a ram three years old, a turtledove, and a young pigeon." 10 And he brought him all these, cut them in half, and laid each half over against the other. But he did not cut the birds in half... 17 When the sun had gone down and it was dark, behold, a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch passed between these pieces. 18 On that day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, "To your offspring I give this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates." The Lord had made the first recorded blood covenant with Abram. The representation of the Lord appeared (a smoking firepot and a flaming torch) and passed through the blood of the sacrifice to seal the covenant.

The Lord changed Abram's name to Abraham because he was to be the father of many nations. In Genesis 17, we read of the covenant the Lord made with Abraham. Verses 7,10 and 11 reveals, "And I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring after you. ... 10 This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you." Once again we see this was a blood covenant wherein the circumcision was the source of the blood. Also note, this covenant was an everlasting covenant. This is meaningful to us because. we are counted in those generation as Abraham became the Father of our faith.

After God had given Moses the Ten Commandments and laws, he shared the words the LORD had spoken to the people and they agreed to be obedient. Moses wrote the words the Lord had spoken down and called them the Book of the Covenant. He read them to the people again and once again they agreed to be obedient. Therefore, Moses had the priest prepare burnt offerings and sacrifices. Half of the blood, he threw against the altar and sprinkled the people with the other half. We read in Exodus 24:8 that when Moses sprinkled the blood on the people, he stated, "Behold the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words."

The entire sacrificial system, including the required shedding of blood was in place under the Old Covenant and was governed by the law. Understand though, the establishment of the Old Covenant was a temporary way for the atonement for sin for mankind to happen. It was God's provision for establishing a relationship with His people in spite of their sin.

That system was a 'shadow' of the ultimate and final sacrifice accomplished through the shed blood of Christ, the Messiah.

When Jesus shared the last supper with His disciples, he took the cup, gave thanks and they drank it. Jesus said to them in Luke 22:20b, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you." Jesus is the mediator of the New Covenant.

Why did Jesus have to come and shed His blood for the forgiveness of our sin? God is just and justice requires that the penalty of sin be paid. God is also merciful so in His mercy, He provided 'a way' to make amends for that sin. Under the Old Covenant, that 'way' was provided through continual sacrifices. However, we discover in Hebrews 10:4, "For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins." That would have left us in a terrible dilemma...But God! Under the New Covenant, that way was achieved once for all through Jesus' blood sacrifice. Hebrews 10:12 and 14 reads, "But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, ... 14 For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified." Thank God! We see that the New Covenant is governed by grace. Hallelujah!

Hebrews 10:11-22 gives us an excellent account of the difference achieved by the giving and ratification of the New Covenant through the shed blood of Jesus. Verse 11 "And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. 14 For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. 15 And the Holy Spirit also bears witness to us; for after saying, 16 "This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, declares the Lord: I will put my laws on their hearts, and write them on their minds," 17 then he adds, "I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more." 18 Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin. 19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water." Remember, blood seals divine covenants. What a wonderful gift God has given to those who believe!

What did the redemptive blood of Christ accomplish for His children of faith?

Eternal Redemption. Hebrews 9:12, "he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption."

Then, through Eternal Redemption we have:

Justification - Rendered just or innocent. We are made righteous, cleared of all charges related to our sins and therefore acceptable. Romans 5:9,"Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God."

Redemption - Ransom paid in full and forgiveness. Ephesians 1:7, "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace,"

Forgiveness - Release from debt, letting sins go as if they had never been committed and restoration of relationship with God. Psalm 103:12 (NLT), "He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west."

Cleansing - Purification; to free mankind from the guilt of sin. 1 John 1:7, "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin."

Access - Open direct access to God; we can enter the Most Holy Place, His 'throne room' with confidence and boldness. Hebrews 10:19, "Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus,"

Victory - Be an overcomer, victorious, to conquer, to prevail. Revelation 12:11, "And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death."

Eternal Covenant - An everlasting promised or perpetual contract. Hebrews 13:20 (BSB), "Now may the God of peace, Who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep."

"'Blood' is the divinely appointed medium through which sin is exposed and expiated, mercy is granted and God's righteous reign is vindicated." (Bible Hub, Topical Lexicon).

It is amazing when we realize this was God's plan to re-establish a loving right relationship with His creation!

When we consider the 'whole' of what the blood cost Jesus and accomplished for believers, we can only say, "We are eternally grateful for Your blood!"

I trust you have a clearer understanding of the value of Jesus' gift of His life-blood for His children!

If you are not His child, I encourage you to accept the sacrifice He made for you and ask Him to be Lord of your life. When you accept Him, His sacrifice and the forgiveness for your sins, the Holy Spirit will come to live within you to lead, guide, teach and help you in your walk with the Lord. Today is the day of salvation!

I will close with the following Scripture, Colossians 1:19 and 20 (BSB), "19 For God was pleased to have all His fulness dwell in Him (Jesus), 20 and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through the blood of His cross."

Unless noted otherwise, Scriptures were taken from the English Standard Version.

BSB Berean Standard Bible

NLT New Living Translation