Honoring The blood of Christ

Hebrews 10:23-31

 

I- We preach and sing much about  the blood of Christ, and rightfully so, for there are so many benefits that we receive from Christ's shed blood. Revelation 1:5-6

 

Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, ⁶And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

 

The all important question to each of us ask ourselves is    "Have I been washed in the blood of Christ?"  

 "These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb." Revelation  7:14

      

The way of God has always been a way of blood.

Each time we think of God, or of worship, we must necessarily think about blood. The Hebrew writer stated it this way in  Hebrews 9:19-22 

"For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people,  ²⁰Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you. ²¹Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry. ²²And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission".

 

One of the greatest questions that arise in the minds of men today is:

 "Why did Christ have to die? Why was His blood shed? Did it have to be Christ's blood?"  Do you remember that sad betray night , Jesus was out in the garden of Gethsemane, His disciples were a little ways off, asleep, Jesus knelt in prayer to the Father saying: "Oh Father if it be possible, let this cup pass from Me, nevertheless, no My will but Thine be done." What sadder thing can  we imagine than this moment  where Jesus has fallen to the ground, with sweat dropping from His brow, tears, and asking "Father, can there be another way?" As we read this tragic story of the suffering, the shame, the humiliation that He had to go through, we are made to wonder  — WHY?  Why did Christ have to suffer and die? Notice with me in Hebrews 10 beginning in verse 3

 

³But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. ⁴For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. ⁵Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:  ⁶In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. ⁷Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. ⁸Above when he said,  Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; ⁹Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. ¹⁰By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

 

 And I would like for you to notice one more passage taken from Hebrew 9:15  "And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance. "

 

 Why did Christ have to die and shed His blood? 

These passages explains  there was no other way. That it was for those who transgressed under the first law, that they might be redeemed and might receive the promise of eternal life. Those under the law of Moses, offered their blood sacrifices but in those there was no remission, merely an obeying of that which God had set forth. Their sins would finally be blotted out, years after they died  by the blood of Christ.

 

 As we read and meditate upon the Word of God, we will often see blood that was poured out, some upon the ground, other upon altars, but far above all these offerings, stands the blood of Christ.  

¹⁸Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; ¹⁹But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: ²⁰Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you."   1 Peter 1:18-20

 

We have only scratched the surface of the importance of Christ's blood.  

 

II- For the remainder of this article I would like for us to think about  ways to honor the blood of Christ.

 

 From Hebrews 10:28-31 we have this admonition  

²⁸He that despised Moses’ law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: ²⁹Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? ³⁰For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. ³¹It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

 

 This text is a solemn warning to any who would not have a proper regard for the blood of Christ. -Today there are a lot of people running around trying to eliminate the blood of Christ. Not all of these are infidels, many claim to believe in Jesus, and claim Him as their Savior, but the conclusion of their teaching de-emphasizes or eliminates the blood of Christ from the lives of men and women.

 

The New Testament was sealed with the blood of Christ.  There are many folks that completely disregard the distinction between the Old and the New Testaments. Some cry, "We are under all of the Bible, lets take it all." It apparently does not mean a thing to them that Christ sealed the New Testament with His blood, He blotted out the Old Law  which had been sealed with the blood of animals (Colossians 2;14). Just at this point we need to get our thinking straight.   If we are going to respect and honor the blood of Christ, we are going to have to be guided by the New Testament which was sealed with the blood of Christ Himself, for this is the way God speaks to us today (Hebrews 1:1-2).

 

The first step that ought be taken is a study of this New Covenant, ( the New Testament) and know God's will for us. Paul said to a young  Timothy  "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth"    (2 Timothy 2:15).

 

 If we propose to honor the blood of Christ we must begin with a through study of the New Testament, sealed by the blood of Christ. A day should not pass that we do not open it, think about it and meditate upon it.  Its important. We are bound to the New Testament, because the blood of Christ has sealed it.

 

The Old Testament has lessons that are important for us, they serve as types and examples.

There are admonitions, there are principles  offered by which God dealt with His people of old,  and are there to warn us how He shall deal with us today.  We read in  Romans 15:5    ⁴For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

 

But my friend,  there is not a single rule found in the Old Testament, that God wants us to keep, that has not been expounded more fully in the New. There is not a single thing that man can do to please God that can be found outside the New Testament.  Until man can have the proper respect and regard for the New Testament, and can distinguish between the Old and the New it is impossible for him to HONOR THE BLOOD OF CHRIST.

 

 Well I believe there are people today that scoff at and dishonor the blood  of Christ. 

 This they do not do directly but they do it when they belittle the blood bought institution;   In Acts 20:28 Paul told the elders at Ephesus —

²⁸Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.    Jesus bought the church with His own blood, and if one can be saved outside the church, he can be saved without the blood of Jesus Christ, because Jesus bought the church with His blood.  And if we are ever going to get any benefit from His blood, we have to get it out of the church. 

 

If there is nothing to the church, then there is nothing to the blood of Christ. If the church has nothing to do with man's salvation, then the blood of Christ likewise has nothing to do with salvation,  because, JESUS BOUGHT THE CHURCH WITH HIS BLOOD.

 

 What this means then, is this… When you keep the commandments in the blood-sealed book —  NAMELY —  You die to sin and are buried in baptism and raised up to walk in newness of life,  you have been bought with the blood, washed in the blood, and have become a member of the blood-bought  church. 

 

There is no way to get into the Lord's church without being washed in the Lord's blood,

and there is no way to be washed in the Lord's blood without getting into the Lord's church……… WHEN ONE OBEYS THE GOSPEL….  He is added to the church bought with the Lord's blood.  Acts 2:47..  It is absolutely impossible for us to honor the blood of Christ without honoring the church which He purchased with his own blood.   It is time to give the church its importance in our lives that Jesus demands.  We are not making the church our savior, Jesus is Savior, but  the church is most important, Jesus died for it,  bought it with His blood, and placed the saved there to work out their own salvation with fear and trembling.  Jesus is the Savior of the BODY the CHURCH

 

III- THINK ABOUT IT — If we are going to honor the blood of Jesus, as God would have us do

We must honor the church which was purchased with His blood.   We must become members in it — and our lives must be faithful. This is the way we bring GLORY TO GOD and HONOR to the BLOOD OF CHRIST

 

 But, there is still another way in which we can honor the blood of Jesus Christ today and that is through the Lord's Supper.  When are washed in the blood of Jesus and thus become members of His Body, the Church,  we must live in contact with the Lord's blood. In instituting the Lord's Supper, Jesus said: "For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. " (Matthew 26:28)

 

Every Lord's Day, Christians gather around the communion table to commune with the Lord Jesus Christ in His precious sacrifice.  Paul in giving instruction to the church at Corinth stated, "that the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: ²⁴And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.  ²⁵After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me. ²⁶For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord’s death till he come "   (1 Corinthians 11:23-26).

 

We honor Him through our partaking regularly of the Lord's supper in the manner in which he instructed us. Think about it, as we commune, we testify to all the world, "Yes I believe there is a God, yes I believe that man has sinned, but God has sent His Son into the world, Yes I believe in the death, burial and resurrection. of Jesus, Yes we will all stand accountable  to God in judgment that last great day. And Jesus is returning  for us, as He promised."   You see as we commune, we testify to the world, that we accept the entire package, we glorify God and honor the blood of Christ. 

 

Some scoff at the very thought of taking communion every week…. "Why I would hate to think that taking the communion every Sunday had anything to do with going to heaven."  What have they done?  They have scoffed at the blood of Jesus Christ  for in this communion we have the remembrance of His sacrifice and His precious blood shed on Calvary.

 

 And finally, there is another way we honor the blood of Christ,  that is through walking daily a penitent and prayerful life. 

As children of God we must live in contact with the blood of Christ every day.  Hear the words of 1 John 1:5-7    ⁵This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. ⁶If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:

 

John wants you to know and realize the holiness and purity of our Heavenly Father… We cannot walk in sin and walk with the Father…… ⁷But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin

 

Everyone of us makes mistakes each day of our life…. That what he said  verses 8 –9.   "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. ⁹If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. "    And that cleansing is through the blood of Christ.  We live in contact with the blood of Christ every day……  As you and I live in light of God's Word, we have the blessed privilege of repentance and prayer. This does not give us a freedom to sin, but it does give us assurance, we know that even when we sin in ignorance or weakness, we can still turn to God in repentance, confessing our sins, God forgives through the cleansing power of Jesus Blood.

 

Let me ask you a searching question,

" Are you honoring the blood of Christ by walking daily in penitent prayer"?  A summary of what has been stated is:   

We honor the blood of Christ, by living in accordance to the New Testament, sealed with His blood,  

We honor the blood of Christ by being apart of His Church,  purchased with His blood. 

 We honor His blood by partaking regularly (each Lord's Day)  of the Lord's supper.  

We honor the blood of Christ, by walking a penitent  prayerful life. "

Are you honoring the blood of Christ?