On the Blood of Jesus
A reflection on the beauty of the blood that covers us
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13 The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.
Exodus 12:13
27 And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you. 28 for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
Matthew 26:27–28
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, 24 and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.
Romans 2:23-25
Lent and the Easter season is a time of reflection on the cross of Jesus Christ and his crucifixion which ushered in the reality of God’s victorious Kingdom. During one of my morning readings, I noted the importance of the blood of the lamb during the Passover instructions.
Jesus chose to die specifically during Passover. The Gospels show how Jesus tried to ensure he would not be put to death or that the masses would not hear his claims of divinity or divine power in order to die at the according time (ie. Jesus told him to remain silent and tell no one; John interprets Jesus’s I AM statements and includes them in his Gospel)
The Passover was the remembrance of God’s divine deliverance of Israel from the slavery of the Egyptians. That deliverance came after a divine display of God’s power and judgement upon those who did not submit to his authority, power, and worship. This judgement was decided by the presence of blood that signified to the Spirit of God who was to be delivered and “passed over”.
Jesus intentionally dies at Passover to typify himself as the new Passover Lamb. Where the blood of the old Passover lamb delivered them from earthly captors, the blood of Jesus—the new Passover Lamb—would deliver all people from the sins and death of the world. This new covenant and gift of grace is found when we are “covered” by the shed of blood of Jesus Christ.
Through his shed blood, we are able to mark our lives with his sacrifice and be passed over from the judgment of our many sins. Where our sins are many, his mercy is more… All because of his blood.
Jesus could have allowed himself to be killed at any time. The Pharisees were always upset. It says they were constantly looking for ways to dispose of him. Yet, Jesus knew his crucifixion would be more than symbolic. Rather, his crucifixion proved to be a renewal and reimagining of the covenant of God with his people. The new covenant—the shed blood of Jesus—offers us not only freedom from earthly captors, but freedom from death, suffering, and destruction.
Those covered by the blood of Jesus are truly delivered.
Some churches have shied away from this language because of its awkwardness. Some find the use of theological vocabulary like “the blood of Jesus” or “brother in Christ” to be exclusive forms of insider language. May we find modern ways to invite people into the beauty of the story of God. No version of the Gospel is complete or beautiful without seeing the mystery, beauty, or suffering of the shed blood of Jesus. Without the context of the shed blood of Jesus covering us—in ways only understood as a greater Exodus—we lose the power of the cross of Jesus.
The blood of Jesus is not weird. It is certainly graphic; not politically correct; never safe; and always heartbreaking.
Yet, the blood of Jesus is crucial, central, and eternally significant to the disciple of Jesus Christ.
May we run quickly out of captivity into the deliverance of God covered by the precious blood of Jesus.
1 What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
What can make me whole again?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
Refrain:
O precious is the flow
that makes me white as snow;
no other fount I know;
nothing but the blood of Jesus.
2 For my pardon this I see:
nothing but the blood of Jesus.
For my cleansing this my plea:
nothing but the blood of Jesus.
3 Nothing can for sin atone:
nothing but the blood of Jesus.
Naught of good that I have done:
nothing but the blood of Jesus.
4 This is all my hope and peace:
nothing but the blood of Jesus.
This is all my righteousness:
nothing but the blood of Jesus.1