The Significance of the Blood of Jesus In this section of Angelfall, we have talked about a number of pivotal and key issues relative to God creating man, the nature of man as a spiritual being, relationship between the Creator and the creature being Gods major purpose and goal, and finally the Holy Spirit that holds all of it together. We must now conclude these thoughts with the subject of the blood of Jesus, and how that relates to the big picture. This chapter will be longer than any other in this section. Without doubt, most Christians would agree that the subject of the blood is probably the single most important topic in the entire Bible. Nothing could possibly be more significant. From Genesis to Revelation, everything starts with the blood and ends with the blood. It is somewhere at the center of virtually every doctrine. The word blood appears 346 times in the Old Testament (KJV translation), and 101 times in the New Testament, i.e. 447 times in all. For years growing up as a child, I heard Christians talk about the blood. How the blood of Jesus saves us from our sins. How we can plead the blood over sickness and have health. Preachers cast out and exorcise demons by pronouncing the blood of Jesus. In church we sing, There is power, power, wonder working power, in the blood, of the Lamb. When parents send their little ones off to school, they pray for Gods protection by placing them under the blood. Because there is so much emphasis in the Bible on this subject—along with all the gory animal sacrifices in the Old Testament, and Christians it seems are always talking or singing about the blood—some atheists and unbelievers have mockingly referred to Judaism and Christianity as slaughter-house religions. I must admit that growing up as the child of missionaries, and being in many church services, and hearing all this talk about the blood—this left me a little perplexed and bewildered as a young person. What was the real meaning behind all this blood stuff? I definitely believed in all of it, but like many Christians I did not fully understand the true depth of meaning. Only until just recently did I really sit down and think about this subject in depth, and finally begin to comprehend the true meaning and vastness of it. Along with having a reserve of theomatics data and knowledge in my brain relative to many verses in the Bible, some major pieces finally began to fall rapidly into place. I began to see the true meaning of the blood in the Bible from Gods perspective—something absolutely enormous and profound began to unfold itself. Yet surprisingly quite simple and understandable. Those things will now be discussed. The Deepest Subject Possible The more one studies this subject, it will become clear that there is no single scriptural idea, from Genesis to Revelation, more constantly and more prominently kept in view throughout the Bible, than that expressed by the words the blood. Perhaps no other concept in all of scripture contains so much depth, so much meaning, so much spiritual intensity. Its overall prominence and significance overshadows everything else. As someone once said, A Christian can never learn too much about the blood. It can be safely assumed that no one out there has a full and complete understanding of this subject and all the inherent truth it represents. At least from Gods point of view. And certainly there are vast realms of heavenly truth attached to the blood that will only be understood on the other side of eternity. In addition to what we do know about the blood, it deals with incomprehensible issues and matters that only heaven understands. The blood carries within itself eternal truth and value. It is without doubt the most serious, yet the most precious subject in all of Gods Word. It is virtually endless. Everything to do with our relationship to God, both now and throughout eternity, will be based upon what the blood represents. Many Christians do not understand the full meaning of the blood. Therefore they do not enjoy the blessings attached to it that God has provided. They do not experience its power. Yet the blood is designed to automatically and ceaselessly carry on toward perfection its work within the life of a Christian. May Gods grace give us an understanding to at least have a peek into some of the profound truths, and the importance that God Himself attaches to it. It cannot be underestimated the importance that the blood occupies in the HEART OF GOD. Heavenly and Eternal Issues are at Stake This subject is of utmost importance to the Angelfall message. It relates to the very nature and purpose behind the universe itself. The blood sacrifice of Jesus on the cross accomplished two things: It was necessary because of the fall in order to cleanse the heavens. Christs sacrifice of giving up His own life, provided the BASIS necessary for a proper relationship between the creature and the Creator for all time and eternity. The blood insures that there will never be another rebellion and fall. The Bible specifically states in the book of Hebrews, that the blood of Jesus (and all the Old Testament sacrifices) were necessary in order to cleanse things in the heavens. And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be cleansed with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us (Heb 9:22-24). And here is another verse in Colossians. And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven (Col 1:20). Theomatics Note: These things in the heavens that needed to be cleansed and reconciled (the word reconciled means to be made friendly again)—they have all the theomatics to do with the heavenly rebellion itself and the hatred an mistrust of the fallen angels towards their Creator (as expressed in the book of Job). All of the numbers to do with the angels themselves, eating from the tree of knowledge and trying to be like God—the creatures subsequent banishment from paradise—are all present within the specific words and phrases having to do with the things in heaven that were cleansed by the blood. The Objective of This Chapter There is enough material on this subject in our files, both with recent studies and theomatic analysis, to potentially write an entire short book on the subject of the blood. When I sat down to write this chapter, I wanted to accomplish a few very basic things. My major goal was to explain this vast and mysterious subject from the Bible, in the most simple and understandable way possible—make it easy for any person to grasp and understand. I believe that I have accomplished that goal. I only wish that someone else had explained all this to me in the following manner when I was a young man, many years ago. It would have greatly enriched my understanding of this baffling subject. This discussion will be divided into two parts. The first portion will present an outline of the pivotal passages from the Bible that discuss the blood. This initial presentation may seem a little mundane or academic, but it is extremely important that the reader obtain a good understanding as to the key verses in the Bible that speak of the blood. Then in Part 2 of the discussion, things will become much more interesting as we will begin talking about what the blood actually represents, i.e. what it means. An Important Resource There are other books and articles out there that have been published on this subject. Two of the most powerful ones that I recommend for those who want a really good read and who desire to study this subject more in depth, are by Andrew Murray, a world famous South Africa missionary who died in 1917. Since both manuscripts are now in the public domain, they can be downloaded here in their entity. In my opinion, these two writings are the gold standard when it comes to the overall subject of the blood of Jesus as taught by the Word of God. I cannot encourage strongly enough, every Christian, to devote as much time as possible to reading (and re-reading) these books. The Power of the Blood of Jesus (ISBN 0-8007-8169-4) The Blood of the Cross (ISBN 0-87508-3749). The first book, The Power of the Blood of Jesus, gives a general discussion of all the benefits and blessings that the blood provides. This is an excellent devotional book. The second book, The Blood of the Cross, is far more potent and comprehensive, and one of the two or three most valuable books that I have in my entire personal library. It discusses a number of things related to the fall of the angels from heaven and how the blood relates to both that and Gods whole plan of redemption. As an addendum to this chapter, I have included just one chapter from The Blood of the Cross that is a must reading—an absolutely powerful presentation by Andrew Murray that really ties the whole Angelfall message together. Looking Beyond the Natural As we commence, the first thing a person must get out of the mind about this subject, is not to think of blood simply as a biological substance. The blood bank at the Red Cross has got nothing to do with this subject in the Bible. The blood in the Bible is absolutely symbolical in its spiritual meaning (as is true of virtually everything else). It is the spiritual/symbolic aspect that is important and the only thing that matters in the end. We must constantly keep in mind that there is a spiritual power in the blood of Jesus and the entire scope of what it represents. Our very salvation and redemption is based upon what the blood stands for. The very fact that we will be eternally saved and allowed to go to heaven someday—this is entirely on the basis of what the blood represents in the spiritual/symbolic sense. PART I: The Blood from Genesis to Revelation From the closing of the gates of Eden in Genesis, to the opening of the gates of heaven in Revelation, there runs through scripture a golden thread—it is the blood. We will now take a short trip through the Bible and look at some of the pivotal times in mentioned in history. Virtually every phase of Gods plan in both the dispensations of time and His dealing with man, was always inaugurated by the blood. 1. The First Mention of Blood in the Bible The very first thing mentioned in the Bible right after Adam and Eve fell, was the birth of two children named Cain and Abel. In this well known story from Genesis, Cain the oldest son, was a man who farmed and worked the soil. Abel on the other hand was a shepherd who raised sheep. One day both of these brothers brought an offering and presented it to the Lord Jehovah. Cain presented God with some of the things he had grown from his garden. But his gift was not acceptable to God because it embodied mans effort that came from the ground that was cursed by God after Adam fell. Abel on the other hand, brought a sacrificial lamb, the firstlings of his flock and presented it to God. Only his sacrifice was acceptable. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brothers keeper? And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brothers blood crieth unto me from the ground. And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brothers blood from thy hand (Gen 4:2-11). So immediately after the fall of man, God established the very basis of a right relationship to Himself—it was through the blood. A perfect lamb had to be sacrificed and give its very life as an offering to God. And the reaction of that Godly disposition that Abel expressed through his offering, was vehement anger that ultimately caused innocent blood to be shed (an exact parallel to those who crucified Jesus as the Lamb of God slain from the foundation of the world (Rev 13:8). There is much more to the story of Cain and Abel and the offerings they presented. 2. Noahs Flood and the Earth Cleansed by the Blood Now much time had transpired since the creation of Adam and the world is full of people. In Genesis chapter six, the sons of God came down (most likely a description of angels), and polluted the world by marrying the daughters of man and producing the Nephilim, which were weird convoluted giants. The Bible describes this pre diluvium world as full of violence and wickedness beyond description. And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart (Gen 6:5,6). So God told Noah to build an ark in which eight souls were eventually saved through water, which the Bible says is a type of baptism (see 1 Pet 3:20,21). Then the rains came and God wiped away everything from the earth that was not inside the ark (which is also a type of being in Christ). Now here is the significant part. When Noah and his three sons and all their wives emerged from the ark, and stepped onto the newly cleansed earth, here is what the Bible says happened. And Noah went forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons wives with him: Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark. And Noah builded an altar unto the Lord; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the Lord smelled a sweet savour; and the Lord said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for mans sake; for the imagination of mans heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done (Gen 8:18-21). So right here at the new beginning of the new civilization, a blood sacrifice was necessary. The newly re-created earth had to be baptized in blood in order to be acceptable to God. 3. Abraham Offers Isaac on the Altar Now time moves on and the earth is again populated with people. From the pagan land of sun worshippers in the vicinity of Babylon, God calls forth a man named Abram taking him hundreds of miles West to Palestine, and there He gives him many great promises. His offspring would be as the stars of heaven and as the sand of the sea. Later God changed his name to Abraham. Each time God visits and communicates with him, Abram builds a stone altar as a memorial to the encounter. But the Bible does not say that he offered any blood sacrifice on those altars. But there was a basic problem. Abraham and his wife Sarah are childless. How could he possibly become the father of many nations without a child of his own? Abraham then decided to take matters into his own hand and help God fulfill His word. Since his wife Sarah was beyond child bearing age, he went into their servant woman Hagar who bore him a son named Ishmael. Abraham proceeded for fifteen years believing that Ishmael was to be his heir. Now he and Sarah are 100 years old—certainly a total impossibility of ever giving birth. It was at that time God visited him again, and told him that the son of promise was not going to be Ishmael, but his name was going to be Isaac. What is most astounding about this is that Ishmael became the father of all the Arab people who follow the Islamic religion. Isaac on the other hand was the father of Israel, Judaism, and Christianity. Because Abraham tried to rush ahead of Gods will, today we have over one billion Muslim people living in the world who are at severe odds and hate both Israel and Christianity. And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him (Gen 17:19). Now that Abraham finally had the genuine heir GOD HIMSELF had provided, the Lord placed him in a position where he was to face his greatest test ever. Before any of the great promises could be fulfilled, a blood sacrifice was necessary. His only son would have to be GIVEN BACK to the God who had given the gift. And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of (Gen 22:2). This well known account concludes when Abraham raised his knife to slay his son, that the angel of the Lord stopped the whole process mid air. It was the willingness of Abrahams heart that God was after. Instead, a ram was offered whose horns got caught behind him in a thicket. Here is what it says in the New Testament. By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son. Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure (Heb 11:17-19). Only through a blood sacrifice of a life could God fulfill His entire promise to Abraham and establish His covenant. Yet this event was only the beginning. Comment on the ram: There are some absolutely phenomenal truths to do with the ram caught by its horns in a thicket. A theomatic analysis has been done on this story, and there are some stark parallels to the fall from heaven. Much of this has to do with the angels (see passage of Daniel 8:3-12, to do with the ram seen in heaven and the stars cast down). The ram in the Bible speaks of belligerence and strong willed rebellion (and also the earthly nations—see Daniel 8:20). All of the theomatics are present to do with the spirit of rebellion, particularly the horns of the ram. The thicket has to do with all sorts of worldly and humanistic philosophies. It speaks of the dead end street that resulted from man eating of the tree of knowledge, i.e. Babylon and confusion. And the spirit of rebellion got entangled in all of that. When Abraham had obeyed God by WILLINGLY offering his only Son, then God accepted that and spared his life (a type of the resurrection of Jesus), and in lieu of that, the ram of heavenly rebellion was instead slain on the altar. The power of the rebellion of the angels had been broken through the sacrifice of Gods only begotten Son. 4. The Deliverance of Israel at the Passover Four hundred years have now passed since the time of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the people have multiplied in Egypt. It was now time for Moses to deliver them from the grip of Pharaoh. What the blood had accomplished for Abel, and for Noah, and for Abraham, must now be the experience of the entire Jewish nation. The Lord had sent nine of his ten plagues upon Egypt, but Pharaoh would refuse to let my people go. One more thing was about to happen. The death angel would visit, and the oldest male child in every household would die during the night. The next morning a great cry was heard throughout the land of Egypt. Only those houses were spared that were protected by the blood. Most of the entire chapter of Exodus 12—all 28 verses, tell this amazing story. Here are just a few of the verses. This is a profound. Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house... Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year... and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it... And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the Lords Passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever... Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the Passover. And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the basin; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning. For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the Lord will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you. And ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons for ever.... And it came to pass, that at midnight the Lord smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle. To this day, the Jewish Passover is one of the most solemn ceremonies in Judaism. The tragic thing is that they do not understand the meaning of it nor how it points to the Lord Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross. The main point from this story is that life and deliverance from the house of slavery of Pharaoh, and the journey to the promised land, could not happen until it was initiated by the blood. A life had to be given and sacrificed in their place, and appropriated to their lives (placed upon their dwellings). 5. The Law, the Ten Commandments, the Altar, and the People Sprinkled with the Blood When God gave the law to Moses at Mt. Sinai, along with the ten commandments, this was an event of epic proportions. For the law was the foundation of Gods covenant with Israel. The entire agreement that God made was based strictly upon the blood, and was actually referred to by God Himself as the blood of the covenant. And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do. And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen unto the Lord. And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basins; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the BLOOD OF THE COVENANT, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words... And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness... And the glory of the Lord abode upon mount Sinai. And the sight of the glory of the Lord was like devouring fire on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel (Exo 24:3-8,10,15,17). So we find right here that everything involving the law itself, as well as the people themselves, had to be covered and sprinkled with the blood. It was in the very blood itself that the covenant of the law was made. Throughout the Bible many people and objects were constantly sprinkled with blood. What that means is that the blood when sprinkled was simply being APPLIED (in a spiritually symbolic sense). Immediately after this sprinkling took place, the command was given, Let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell within them (Exo 25:8). 6. The Tabernacle and Temple in the Old Testament Now we come to the final major portion of this entire subject from the Old Testament—the tabernacle of Moses in the wilderness, followed many years later by the great temple in Jerusalem that Solomon built. These two houses or worship, which were virtually identical in their original plan or pattern, encompasses the entire Jewish religious system from the Old Testament—clear up to the time of the New Testament when Jesus came. God gave detailed and explicit instructions as to the design and implementation of these houses of worship. At the very center of every aspect of ceremony and worship—the entire religion for that matter—there was the blood. In the outer court surrounding the tabernacle, the first thing visible, was (1) the altar of the burn offering. Here animals that were slain and consumed by the fire from morning to night. Literally thousands of sacrifices per year. Next, enter into the tabernacle itself to the holy place where (2) the altar of incense and the temple veil itself, were continuously sprinkled with the blood. Beyond the veil was (3) the most holy place or holy of holies, at the very center of which God Himself dwelt on His throne, which was the ark of the covenant, Once a year the High Priest entered that room by himself to bring the blood, and to worship God. The highest act of that worship was the sprinkling of blood on the mercy seat of the golden ark, covered by the wings of the hovering angel/cherubim. The One Thing Needful Hundreds of times in the Old Testament the blood is mentioned. Always and for everything, the blood was the one thing needful. At the consecration of the house, of the priests; at the birth of a Jewish child; in the deepest penitence on account of sin; in the highest festivals; always, and in everything that occurred, the way of fellowship with God was through the blood alone. This continued for 1500 years—all the way until Jesus Himself came. By dying on the cross and shedding His own blood, Christ brought in the substance of what all the Old Testament shadows stood for and represented. Everything that occurred in the old dispensation ENDED IN ONE INSTANT on Calvary when the perfect Lamb of God died for the sins of the cosmos. We will talk about what all this means in Part II of this chapter. First let us examine the New Testament. The Blood in the New Testament Now we come to the New Testament. With the coming of Jesus, all of the old shadows and types have passed away. All things mentioned in the Old Testament were destined to become new. Read now the words from the following verse. The following passage also shows the heavenly connotation that the blood has. But ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel (Heb 12:22-24). The very first act towards God in the Old Testament was when Abel offered to God a perfect sacrificial lamb. And Abel brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the very first words spoken concerning Jesus were by John the Baptist, Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world (Joh 1:29). And in the book of Revelation, Jesus is described—in the eternal plan and purpose of God—as The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world (Rev 13:8). And John the Baptist was the very last of the Old Testament prophets, a voice crying in the wilderness, ushering in a whole new transitional phase of relationship between God and man. Jesus came to earth from His Father in heaven. And He is the only way we can ever understand God or know anything about God. For He Himself said, I am the way, the truth, and the life: No man cometh unto the Father, but by me (John 14:6) His very blood is what actually saves us and redeems us. There is no hope of eternal life whatsoever, apart from the precious blood of Jesus that was shed for our redemption and salvation, and all that the blood itself represents. The following two verses, also in Hebrews, are some of the more key verses from the Bible that shows this fact—only the blood of Christ is what ultimately counts and has value—not the blood from the Old Testament animal sacrifices. NEITHER BY THE BLOOD OF GOATS AND CALVES, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place (holy of holies), having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? (Heb 9:12-14). The following shows that the New Testament altar supercedes everything. We have an altar, whereof THEY HAVE NO RIGHT to eat which serve the tabernacle. For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp. Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered outside the gate (Heb 13:10-12). And here is yet another major passage that provides further confirmation. For the law having A SHADOW of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. (2) For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. (3) But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. (4) For it is NOT POSSIBLE THAT THE BLOOD OF BULLS AND GOATS should take away sins. (5) Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: (6) In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. (7) Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. (8) Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; (9) Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. (10) By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ ONCE FOR ALL (Heb 10:1-10). When Jesus died He completed everything that the blood required. By His one sacrifice on the cross, EVERYTHING was provided to satisfy the heart of God and pay the price for our sin and rebellion. A Listing of New Testament Blood Passages Just to get an idea of the significance that the blood of Jesus incorporates, here now is a general and partial listing of some of the major passages from the New Testament. These statements are powerful in both their meaning and in their significance. This is a verse where the concepts of the shepherd and the blood go hand in hand (similar to Abel who was a shepherd and was murdered at the hands of his brother). Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen (Heb 13:20,21). It is faith in the actual blood of Jesus that saves us and removes our sins. Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God (Rom 3:24,25). To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence (Eph 1:6-8). The Holy Communion is one of the most sacred sacraments in all of Christianity. Here are a series of verses that mention it. And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Fathers kingdom (Mat 26:26-29). The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? (1 Cor 10:16). We have peace with God through the blood of Jesus. That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us (Eph 2:12-14). And forgiveness of sins through the blood. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin (1 John 1:7). We are elected or chosen by God unto salvation because of the blood. Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied (1 Pet 1:2). Our redemption is through the blood. Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you (1 Pet 1:18-20). And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation (Rev 5:9). Additionally, our eternal victory all through the book of Revelation is because of the blood. And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them (Rev 7:13-15). And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time (Rev 12:10-12). And finally at the very end of the book of Revelation. And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God (Rev 19:11-13). The above are just some of the verses from the New Testament. The blood is mentioned over 100 times in the New Testament, with the vast majority having to do with Christ. It is now time to start talking about what the blood itself means and represents. PART II: What the Blood Means and What the Blood Represents Now we will get into the real meat of this presentation. There is so much to talk about. So much incredible truth exists when it comes to this subject. It will be a terribly difficult challenge to know where or when to stop. As was stated at the beginning, I have vowed to present all of this in the most simple and straightforward manner possible. Our objective here is to simply help you, the reader, learn the most basic and fundamental meaning of the blood in the Bible, and what the blood of Jesus actually represents. Here we are only interested in establishing the correct foundational premises. Once the basic facts are set in place and understood, the depth and application of this subject will expand in every direction.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Dec 2014 09:39:58 +0000
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