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In 1927, blood was drawn from the veins of Asibi, a 28-year-old African. From subsequent cultures of that blood, scientists developed yellow fever vaccine. The blood of that man provided power and hope, likely preventing millions of deaths.
The blood of Another—Jesus Christ—is far more powerful and hope-filled—the only remedy for sin, the most horrible and destructive of all diseases. From the first offering after the first sin, God required the shedding of blood in relation to sin (Gen. 4:4), and the timeless principle began to be demonstrated: “Apart from shedding of blood there is no remission” (Heb. 9:22).
Every Old Testament animal offering typified and prophesied the perfect “lamb of God” (John 1:29). The blood of Christ alone has the power to do the following:
- Justify: We become sinners by violating God’s Law (1 John 3:4). “The wages of sin is death” (i.e., eternal separation from God) (Rom. 6:23). Men must somehow be justified/counted righteous—to avoid sin’s eternal effects, but how? “Much more then, being now justified by his blood, shall we be saved from the wrath of God through him” (Rom. 5:9). The sinless One offered His blood to justify sinful mankind.
- Redeem: Redemption implies bondage. Apart from Christ, men are slaves of sin and darkness (Rom. 6:16–17; Col. 1:13). To be saved, men must be rescued from the clutches of Satan and sin. Paul wrote of the Christ: “In whom we have our redemption, through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses…” (Eph. 1:7; cf. 1 Pet. 1:18–19). His blood is the only price of redemption.
- Reconcile: To reconcile means to restore friendship or fellowship that has been severed. Our sins (not Adam’s) separate us from God (Isa. 59:2; Eze. 18:20). All who would be saved must be reconciled to God, but by what means? To the saints in Rome Paul wrote, “We were reconciled to God through the death of his Son” (Rom. 5:10; cf. Col. 1:20). Men cannot be reconciled apart from Jesus’ blood.
- Cleanse: Sin corrupts and contaminates, making us abhorrent to our pure and flawless Creator (Rom. 1:18). The blood of Christ purifies and washes us of sin (Heb. 9:26; Rev. 1:5; 7:14). Jesus’ blood cleanses the sinner in the act of baptism (Acts 22:16; Rom. 6:3–4). Cleansing before or apart from baptism is as inconceivable as is salvation apart from the blood of Christ. Since baptism is the act in which the blood cleanses, it is therefore the act in which it justifies, redeems, and reconciles.
[Note: I wrote this article for and it appeared in the Denton Record-Chronicle, Denton, TX, August 10, 2012.]
Attribution: From TheScripturecache.com, owned and administered by Dub McClish.
