The message today speaks to the heart of the gospel. It applies to all of us who carry the title Christian and who celebrate the blessed occasion we call “the Lord’s Supper.”
Today I want to talk about blood and then the blood. Now, ordinarily, blood is not a popular subject; for some the sight of blood does something to them. They squirm when they see their own blood, they squirm when they see anybody’s blood. Some people faint at the sight of blood.
All of us have blood running through our veins. We need blood to live — in fact, the life of anything is in the blood. We can’t live without blood; even animals can’t live without blood. That’s why, whenever we go to the doctor and they want to determine what is wrong with us, they take a tube of blood — and that tube can tell them anything that they want to know.
That’s why we can’t bleed too long or lose too much of it. Our earthly life is in the blood. That’s why it’s against the law to shed somebody’s blood, to physically assault somebody to the extent they are hurt or lose their life. We don’t have the right to take somebody’s life,; it’s not ours to give and it’s not ours to take.
From the moment Abel rose up and killed Cain, his brother, there is a long history in our world of pre-meditated murder where blood is shed (Gen. 4:8). As a result of the shedding of blood, God established “Capital Punishment” in Genesis 9:6.
It grieves our heart to hear of innocent victims that lost their lives as a result of somebody shedding somebody else’s blood. Murderers such as Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dommer and others come to mind as people who committed the senseless blood shedding of innocent victims. In the Bible, blood is the heart, theme and soul of the gospel. From the moment that God told Abraham to offer his son as a sacrifice, which of course he did not do (Gen. 22:10-12), blood would be a requirement to atone for the sins of mankind.
And isn’t it strange, community, that God did not allow Abraham to sacrifice his son, did not let Abraham shed the blood of his son, but he himself sacrificed his OWN son and shed his blood? The nation of Israel had to have blood atonement to appease God’s judgment on the people; when God miraculously delivered Israel from the bondage of Egypt he told them to strike the doorpost of all the Israelites with BLOOD, so that when the death angel came and took the firstborn of the Egyptians he would pass over them.
Even here, at this moment, the blood had power (Exo. 12:21-23).
Community, today we celebrate the blood. It’s the one thing we all as Christians have in common. We all may not like to sky dive, we all may not like the same kind of car, we all have different likes, hobby’s and pleasures. We all don’t like going to the same places, don’t have the same appetites when it comes to food, we all may not be the same color and have different backgrounds — but the one thing we all have in common as Christian believers is that we all have been washed in the same blood.
That makes us family. You are my brother and my sister, and one day we will all spend eternity together in heaven. And if the rapture of the church occurs in our lifetime, we will be caught up together to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thess. 4:16-18).
But it’s all because of the blood, for without the shedding of blood there can be no remission (or atonement) for sin (Heb. 9:22b). You know, I’ve seen folks get happy about money they say the Lord blessed them with, and that’s good. I’ve seen folks get emotional and praise God for healing their bodies — and if God healed you, you ought to praise him! I’ve seen folks cry and shed tears because the Lord turned some things around for them — then go ahead and get your praise on!
But we all ought to get happy about the blood of Jesus! No miracles, no prosperity, no reach up and get your blessing, no “name it and claim it” … we should rejoice because of the blood of Jesus.
And let me tell you what this blood did for us — it did something Alcoholic Anonymous could not do; it did something that drug rehabilitation could not do; it did something that a New Year’s resolution could not do; or the turning over of a new leaf could not do. It changes a sinner to a saint; it doesn’t give him a heart makeover, it gives him a new heart (2 Cor. 5:17).
This tells me that “the blood of Jesus still works” and not only does the blood work for eternity, but it covers us while we live. That means “the devil can’t kill us” … our enemies can’t harm us” and sin can’t control us” — all because of the blood.
Friends, “it reaches to the highest mountain; it flows to the lowest valley; the blood that gives me strength from day to day, it will never lose its power.” To answer that question, “What can wash away my sin … nothing but the blood of Jesus.”
There’s soul-saving power in the blood — thank God, community, the blood of Jesus still works.
The Rev. George Ellis is pastor at Union Grove Missionary Baptist Church.
