The Christian faith is a bloody faith. There really is no nice or polite way to put this. We could talk about the color crimson or red as so many hymns hint at but that would not capture the fact that the shedding of blood was a necessity for this world.
Consider with me the beginning of Genesis when the God of all glory opened Adam up in order to create the necessary Eve. No doubt there was blood involved. This act does not necessarily point to our salvation but it does show us that our God is involved with the things that bring life and where there is blood there is life. Eve is after all named the mother of all the living.
We then have our gracious God who covers Adam and Eve’s shame from their sin with animal skins and though it is not necessary to shed blood when you kill and skin an animal the fact remains that the internal blood flow has stopped.
Life has been taken. Sin has been covered. A return to a right relationship with God has been called for.
But animals could really never satisfy our righteous God’s holy wrath, could they? They certainly had flesh and blood as indicated by the sacrifice laws. We see animal blood being splashed on the altar and being put on the extremities of the high priest. Blood is splashed here and splashed there. Blood is everywhere. Day after day the priests offered sacrifices but they never truly took away sin. This is because all of the grain, oil, drink, blood and even animal life offered never was the substance of a man.
No, only a man, a sinless man, a true man, a man with the blood of kings and the breath of God inside him could take away the filthy sin and shame of this world.
And Jesus did just that… for you. He offered himself for you. With all of your pride and greed and lust and dirty thoughts. With all of your laziness and complaining. With all that marred you as a sinful creature. When you didn’t even know you needed him. He gave his life up. Could it not have been another man or woman to take away your sin? Perhaps you could give even your own life? No. Never. The only way back to a perfect Father is through the shedding of the perfect son’s blood. And he did it once for all.
His body was spent. His spirit was given up. His blood ran red. And when this happened, the whole world came alive. A life taken to give life. Jesus offered himself once for all time and sat down at the right hand of God and entered his rest.
And would you have that rest? Then trust in the blood of the sinless one and let it cover you from this time forth and forevermore. Amen.
Joshua Dockter – December 10, 2023
