BLOOD
Sixth of nine devotions in Lenten Intense Series from Isaiah
53:1-12
Romans 3:21-26
Romans 3:25: “God presented Him as a sacrifice of
atonement, through faith in His blood.
He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he
had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished.”
“Through
faith in His blood” is the heart of Scripture.
Without Jesus’ shed blood and atoning death, no one could be forgiven. No one could be declared righteous. No one could come into God’s presence. No one could live eternally.
Ezekiel
18:4 says: “For every living soul
belongs to ME, the Father as well as the son—both alike belong to ME. The soul who sins is the one who will die.”
(Emphasis mine.) God came up with how the
price for sin—death—could be reversed. He
explained to Moses in Leviticus 17:11, “For the life of a creature is in the
blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the
altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life.”
A
life must be given (animal) for a life to be spared (human). God’s original covenant with His people
demanded blood sacrifice—many thousands of animals died—for forgiveness of sins.
Jesus’s death ushered in God’s New
Covenant. No more sacrificing animals
for forgiveness of people’s sins.
Jesus
administered Holy Communion (His body and blood in the form of bread and wine)
to His disciples for the first time at the Passover Feast of Unleavened Bread. “Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it,
and gave it to His disciples, saying, ‘Take and eat;
this is My body.’ Then He took
the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, ‘Drink
from it, all of you. This is My blood of
the [new] covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of
sins.’” (Matthew 26:26-28).
That
day is called Maundy Thursday today, the day before Good Friday, when Christ
was crucified. See the lesson linked
below to learn who fled rather than believe and receive Jesus’ body and blood. Today, believers receive Holy Communion all
around the world.
Isaiah 53:5: “But He was pierced for our
transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought
us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds
we are healed.” (Emphasis mine.)
That’s intense!
Take Home Nugget
“By His wounds,” or by faith in Jesus’ shed
blood, believers are healed from sickness.
Kodie, Shakira’s third grade classmate from Uganda, is in the USA so
that her mom could be treated by a specific doctor. (See Don’t
Fear devotion). What Shakira didn’t
know: the doctor ALSO prescribed daily
Holy Communion for her mom.
Blood
is life. Jesus’ blood heals life.
J.D. Griffith
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