“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace”. Ephesians 1:7
We All Need A Blood Transfusion!
Have you seen the movie “The Passion of Jesus Christ?” Many have watched this movie, and in a profound and impacting way, they have learned about the death of Christ. They watched as Jesus shed His blood when he was mercilessly whipped and crucified. This is a very hard movie to watch. It is extremely intense, and many have criticized the Christian religion saying – “It’s just a bloody religion.” In fact, today some churches will not even sing songs that speak of the blood of Christ, like, “There’s Power in the Blood,” “There is a fountain that flows from Emanuel’s veins,” along with many others.
Many today ask, “What is the significance of the blood? Why did Jesus have to die? Why did He have to shed His blood for us?”
Romans 5:9-11 says,
- “Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.”
Jesus came to atone for our sins. Atonement means that He came to secure for us a formal pardon – not parole. We are not on parole! As believers in Jesus Christ, we are not subject to parole officers. He came to give us a full and complete pardon. This means that He came to wipe away the complete record of our sin and shame. When we are pardoned through Jesus’ death and resurrection, we receive forgiveness of sins, we are restored in fellowship with God, and all the guilt and its resulting punishment (death – eternal separation from God) is completely removed.
The price of atonement is blood.
We have seen from the Scriptures that the penalty of sin is death, complete separation from God “both physically and spiritually. Death is the opposite of life. The life of the flesh is in the blood. Therefore, the price of our atonement was a life for our death – the shedding of blood. Leviticus 17:11 says,
- “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.”
This is true both spiritually and physically.
In March of 2003, I underwent aortic heart valve replacement surgery. After the surgery, I was alive, the valve replacement was successful, but I was slipping away during my recovery because my blood count was rapidly dropping. The healthy blood cells were not being reproduced fast enough in my body. Everything else was correct, the artificial valve was sewn in carefully, and my heart was working properly. However, I was still drifting downward.
I needed a blood transfusion!
Before I received this blood transfusion, I was unable to see clearly. My vision was blurry, and I was all alone. I can still remember it vividly. It was 10 o’clock at night when the nurse came in. She connected the bag of plasma (blood) to my IV, and I watched as the blood began traveling down the clear plastic tube toward my arm. Now, without any exaggeration – instantaneously, when that blood hit my body, it was as if all the lights had come on in the room. I could see! My blurry vision was completely gone! I had a new infusion of life!
Such it is with the blood of Christ”
Excerpt From:
“Good News!” The Gospel of Jesus Christ…From Genesis to Revelation
Kirk L. Zehnder
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