“And almost all things are by the Law purged with blood—and without shedding of blood is no remission.”
Hebrews 9:22
It’s an essential part of both our physical and spiritual lives.
Blood.
We know it’s a specialized liquid in the human body that delivers nutrients and nourishment to the cells while also carrying away waste from them. The word is often used literally in the Scriptures, while also being used in figurative ways as well (Joel 2:31; Mt. 27:24; Heb. 2:14).
But, the most important concept and usage of blood in the Bible is its spiritual usage with regard to sacrificial animals. Although blood is the primary conveyor of life throughout the body, its primary usage in Scripture refers to the animal’s death (Lev. 4:4-5). And, it’s through the animal’s being used as a substitute for the sinner that payment or satisfaction for sins was made: “For the life of the flesh is in the blood and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls—for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul” (Lev. 17:11).
Yet, all that changed when Jesus, “the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world” (Jn. 1:29, 36), came on the scene.
Throughout the New Testament the idea of sacrifice is applied to Christ’s Blood. His was a sacrificial, “substitutionary Atonement,” by which we “have redemption through His Blood, the forgiveness of sins” (Eph. 1:7).
Down through the years other cultures and religions have also used blood as a part of their atonement process. One such group used what was known as “tarbolian rites” in which a large bull was killed and its underside slit from one end to the other. Penitent worshippers would then stand under the “flood of blood,” somehow believing they would be forgiven and also receive the bull’s strength.
But, dear Pilgrim, such was an effort in futility—both then and now.
Why is that?
Because there’s no blood anywhere that has ever been able to wash away one’s sins by simply bathing in it or applying it in some other tangible way.
In reality, if those standing near Jesus’ Cross had moved underneath it, letting His rich, royal, red Blood drip on them, they still would have emerged a guilt-ridden sinner. However, in a way that only God could design, when Christ comes to live within one’s heart through the new birth, it is His Blood that “cleanses our conscience from dead works to serve the living God” (Heb. 9:14b). Hallelujah!!
Yes, only Jesus’ Blood can “save us from the penalty of sin and God’s wrath” (Rom. 5:9-11; 6:23; Gal. 3:13). And, it’s through Him—God’s “new and Living Way” (Heb. 10:20a)—that we’re able to “boldly enter into Heaven’s Holy of Holies” (Heb. 4:16; 10:19). Glory!!
By Tom Smith Morning Manna Dated February 24, 2011
