The Blood of Christ
Before you begin your Bible study, as a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, be
sure you have named your sins privately to God the Father.
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to
cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (Known, Unknown and Forgotten sins)
(1Jn 1:9)
You will then be in fellowship with God, Filled with God the Holy Spirit and
ready to learn Truth from the Word of God.
"God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in Spirit and Truth,"
(John 4:24)
The blood of Christ
THE PLAN OF SALVATION
In studying the New Testament we frequently encounter the phrase “the
blood of Christ.” In every instance, this term is a synonym for the saving work
of Christ on the Cross. It depicts the most important event ever to occur
throughout all the ages of angelic or human history. In fact, even in eternity, the
fullest expression of God’s surpassing grace is a result of the Salvation work of
Christ. (Eph 2:6-7)
This study is designed to increase your knowledge and appreciation of the
Lord Jesus Christ and His matchless achievement on our behalf. In order to
provide you with a frame of reference, we should first survey the tremendous
implications of the unique event which is described by this unusual and special
phrase. The Cross had permanent results toward Satan, toward man, toward
sin, and toward God.
Combined with His resurrection, ascension and session at the right hand
of God the Father, Jesus Christ’s work on the Cross won the strategic victory
over Satan in the angelic conflict. Satan had blasphemously charged that a
loving God could not be fair, in Commanding all the angels to Think the way He
Himself Thinks; and in condemning His own creatures to eternal judgment for
rebelling. But when Jesus Christ provided Salvation for mankind without
compromise to the justice of God, volition was underscored as the issue, and
Satan’s doom was sealed. (Matt 25:41) The Cross not only proved that God
can never violate His own perfect essence, but it revealed the great love that
motivated Him to judge even His Own Son on behalf of mankind.
Furthermore, the fact that Christ was free in His decision to go to the
Cross; (Luk 22:42; Heb 10:5-10; Matt 20:22) and the fact that man is free to
believe or not, (John 3:18) shows that Satan, demons and the human race are
responsible for their own condemnation. In revolting against God, the devil by
his own volition brought judgment upon himself!
Directed toward man, the saving work of Christ destroyed the Barrier that
had separated man from God. This is the Doctrine of reconciliation. Removed
forever was the impassable obstacle composed of sin, the penalty of sin,
physical birth, relative righteousness, the character of God and position in
Adam. Never again are any of these problems an issue for man the only issue
is “What do you think of Christ?” At the moment of faith in Christ the believer
ceases to be God’s enemy, (Rom 5:10) and immediately becomes a member
of the royal family of God forever. Standing entirely upon the merit of the Living
Word, Jesus Christ, (John 1:1-2; John 1:14) the believer enters the Plan of
God, in which the Written Word or the Mind of Christ, (1Co 2:16) becomes his
Spiritual food. (Matt 4:4; Psa 138:2) By his continued positive volition to Truth
the believer can grow to Spiritual maturity in time, where he receives and can
enjoy the special blessings that God designed for him in eternity past. His life
becomes one of meaning, purpose and definition; even death holds only the
promise of greater blessings in eternity! (Rev 3:21)
With reference to sin, the Doctrine of redemption teaches that on the
Cross Christ purchased our freedom from the slave market of sin. He paid the
penalty that had already been charged against each one of us. (John 3:18)
Now, even though we will continue to sin as long as we live, (Eccles 7:20) we
are nevertheless free from the power of sin. Through the rebound technique we
can acknowledge our sins privately to God the Father because they “already
were judged on the Cross” and be immediately restored to fellowship with God.
(1Jn 1:9)
Stated in the Doctrine of propitiation, the Salvation work of Christ also has
permanent results toward God. Once God’s perfect righteousness and justice
are satisfied with reference to man, His justice is then free to express itself in
blessing man. No longer is He limited by the fact that man is imperfect and
totally unworthy. The Lord Jesus Christ is worthy! His work on behalf of man
brings believers who are still undeserving — under God’s Plan of Grace. In fact,
the Father’s entire Plan consists of all that He is free to do for man on the basis
of the Cross.
THE TECHNICAL TERM
Even in this brief summary of Salvation, the celebrityship of Christ and the
absolute importance of His work on the Cross are clearly seen. Significant,
therefore, is the fact that many times throughout the New Testament this
central topic of Scripture is described by the technical phrase “the blood of
Christ.”
Knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or
gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with
precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.
(1Pe 1:18-19)
Whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith.
This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God
He passed over the sins previously committed. (Rom 3:25)
But God demonstrates His Own love [Virtue love] toward us, in that while
we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been
justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.
(Rom 5:8-9)
But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought
near by the blood of Christ. (Eph 2:13)
And from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and
the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from
our sins by His blood--and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God
and Father--to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
(Rev 1:5-6)
What is the precise meaning of this term that is so frequently related to
such critical Doctrines? The blood of Christ is cited in reference to expiation, in
which Christ received a judgment that belonged to us all. (Rev 1:5) Likewise,
the Doctrine of redemption is taught in terms of the blood of Christ,
(Eph 1:7; Col 1:4; (1Pe 1:18-19) as is justification which explains that God
could not vindicate mankind until the sin problem was solved and God’s own
righteousness and eternal life were imputed to us. (Rom 5:9) The blood also
teaches the Doctrine of sanctification which demands that God be propitiated
before being free to place us in union with Christ where we become qualified to
live with God forever. (Heb 13:12) How did the blood of Christ become the
supremely valuable coin of the realm that purchased our so great Salvation?
OPPOSITION TO LEARNING THE WORD OF GOD
I realize that this is a sensitive subject for many believers. For some, the
phrase “blood of Christ” has been associated with a lifetime of emotional
experiences. Since childhood we have heard the blood mentioned in hushed,
reverent tones; they have vigorously sung the hymns about the “wonder-working
power in the blood.” Still, the subject of the blood of Christ is almost totally
buried in ignorance, and believers who fail to understand its true meanings
cannot fully appreciate what Christ has done for them and are in danger of
accepting false and even blasphemous ideas.
Some believers are ignorant from a simple lack of expository teaching, but
others are ignorant as part of a devastating system of hidden arrogance in their
souls. The first category of individual has enough objectivity to listen and learn;
he simply needs information. The other type, however, is affected by a much
more serious and complicated syndrome. Instead of being interested in what
the Bible has to say, he has expanded his opinion of what he “thinks” so far out
of proportion that he considers his own view of the blood, (As well as other
false opinions) to be more important than God’s Perfect Thinking! He would
rather resist the Word of God than permit his pride to be deflated! To such a
believer, Divine Thinking is not simply a matter of learning something new and
important; it is a challenge to his colossal arrogance. As the old saying goes,
“Don’t confuse me with the facts!”
The antidote is acceptance of the authority of the pastor-teacher who
consistently teaches the Word of God in fellowship with God the Holy Spirit.
Divine Thinking and humility will replace ignorance and arrogance and this will
establish true Spiritual growth on a solid foundation. (Prov 3:5-6; (1Co 3:11-14)
Even though there is so much ingrained opposition to a detailed study of the
blood of Christ, this subject deserves an objective and thorough treatment.
SALVATION PRIOR TO THE CROSS
A Principle taught in, (Rom 3:25) clarifies the means of Salvation before
the Cross occurred historically.
Whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith.
This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God
He passed over the sins previously committed. (Rom 3:25)
Throughout all of human history, from the Fall of Adam to the end of the
Millennium, there is only one way of Salvation: faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
(John 14:6) But how could those who lived before Christ died on the Cross be
saved by something that had not even occurred?
(Rom 3:25) explains that God suspended judgment on sin until the Cross.
He passed over all previously committed sins, waiting until the fullness of time
when He would judge all the sins of the world in His own perfect Son. Salvation
was accomplished for all mankind in the three-hour period during which Christ
was judged for sins. In the same way that we look back through faith to the
historical Cross, the believers who lived before the death of Christ looked
ahead through faith to the coming Savior.
In the entire history of the human race there has never been a single
individual who did not have the opportunity to be saved.
(Rom 10:8) cf. (Deut 30:14-15) God always provides the necessary information
whenever and wherever positive volition exists, and throughout the centuries
before the Cross, Jesus Christ, the future Savior, was revealed in many ways.
Our subject, the blood of Christ, describes His Person and work in terms of the
manner in which they had been revealed since the time of Adam — by animal
sacrifices.
ANIMAL SACRIFICES
Prior to the Cross and the completion of the canon of Scripture, God
ordained specific rituals as expressions of worship and as training aids for
communicating God’s Thoughts to people, who were by and large illiterate.
Among these observances, certain animal sacrifices were used to teach the
Doctrines of Salvation and rebound. Beginning with the very first presentation of
the Gospel, immediately after the Fall of man, (Gen 3:21) continuing through
the family offerings, (Gen 4:4; Gen 8:20; Gen 22:1-14) and finally taking the
form of the Levitical offerings, (Lev 1:17; Lev 5:1-19) and special holy day
offerings in Israel, (Lev 23:1-44) the shedding of animal blood illustrated the
future Salvation work of the coming Savior. These sacrifices depicted the
Principle of Salvation: someone who was acceptable to God would have to die
in place of sinful man.
The innocent animal’s blood was a pertinent representation of a life given
on behalf of others because the animal’s blood is its life. When the Scripture
states that “the life of the flesh is in the blood” (Lev 17:10-14) it refers to animal
flesh only. The Hebrew word nephesh sometimes means “life” and sometimes
“soul,” but when used of animals it obviously refers to animal life not to human
life. The seat of man’s physical life is his soul resident in his body, (Gen 2:7) but
the animal does not have a soul. Therefore, such passages as (Lev 17:10-14)
teach us that the life of animal flesh is in the animal’s blood.
Science has attacked this statement of Scripture, supposing erroneously
that the passage referred to human flesh. The folly of that misinterpretation
came under fire, and rightly so! While it is true that a person can bleed to
death, he actually dies because his soul is forced out of his body through a
greater loss of blood than his body can sustain.
Remember that the soul is located in the cranium. Therefore, the
heartbeat is not a reliable and conclusive sign of the presence of life. Medically
speaking, instead of the electrocardiogram, (EKG) the electroencephalogram,
(EEG) which measures the electrical impulses generated in the brain, is the true
indicator of life or death. The heart can stop completely even though the soul is
still in the body! When a patient’s heart ceases to function, a physician will often
try electrical shock, heart massage or some other technique to reactivate the
pulse — often with success. But once the EEG registers negative, the soul has
vacated the body, and the person is dead.
While man’s physical death is the separation of his soul, (And his human
spirit in the case of a believer) from his body, the lives of animals are
terminated when their physical function is destroyed. The animal’s loss of blood,
therefore, pumped out of its severed carotid artery, was a true indication of its
death. The blood of the bulls, goats, lambs, turtledoves and young pigeons
used in the offerings, was a literal, red liquid that constituted the life of the
animal poured out in its death. Its blood was a perfect visual training aid. No
one could see God’s actual future judgment of sins, but the animal’s death was
a vivid sight! Its life-blood could be collected and carried through the detailed
rituals that pictured Salvation and rebound. Accompanied by the priest’s
explanation, these rituals were lucid analogies depicting the real event that
would occur in the future on the Cross.
For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and
not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer
continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near.
(Heb 10:1)
Because the blood of animals was only a picture of the Divine Reality that
was yet to come, animal sacrifices themselves were never able to provide
Salvation, something that only Christ could afford. The Levitical offerings were
part of the Mosaic Law. But no one has ever gained Salvation by keeping any
part of the Law, whether it be the Ten Commandments of the Freedom Code,
(Codex 1) the social and political rules of the Establishment Code, (Codex III)
or the rituals of the Spiritual Code. (Codex II) Instead of providing Salvation,
these rituals formed a complete shadow Christology which, through repetition,
taught the Jews to appreciate their, (And our) matchless Savior.
Thus, man’s sinfulness is a maladjustment to Divine justice, and justice
demands that justice be done! The violence and bloodshed involved in the
Levitical offerings was designed to shock the observers into recognizing the
Reality of God’s immovable essence. The death struggle of a magnificent
animal tore away all sweetness and sentimentality, and cast a pure light on the
Absolute Perfect Thinking of God. But even so, the animal’s suffering gave the
Jews only a glimpse of the appalling
judgment that Jesus Christ would bear, when as our Substitute, He would pay
the price that Divine justice demanded of us. Because of Christ’s Spiritual death
and judgment, we are now free to make an instantaneous adjustment to God’s
justice by faith in Christ. When we believe, God’s justice is then free to give us
the blessings of eternal Salvation and still be fair to His Own essence.
THE PERSON OF CHRIST IN SALVATION
Before we note the manner in which the specific offerings in Israel
portrayed the work of Christ, we should examine the mechanics by which Jesus
Christ provided our Salvation. This will assist in our understanding of the blood
of Christ. If the animal sacrifices were the shadow side of the analogy,
(The animal was not literally judged for the sins; but literally bled to death) the
events on the Cross are the Reality that they represent. (Christ did not literally
bleed to death; but was literally judged for the sins of THE WHOLE WORLD!
1Jn 2:2)
God’s absolute righteousness can have nothing to do with man’s relative
righteousness, and even man’s finest and noblest efforts can never impress
God. (Isa 64:6; Tit 3:5) Because God cannot compromise His essence, when
He looks at sinful man, He can only reject him. The basis for this rejection, is
that since the Fall of man, every human being is born with an old sin nature and
the imputation of Adam’s sin; he therefore enters the world Spiritually dead and
sentenced to the Lake of Fire, (John 3:18) which means no relationship with
God in time. The human race is born into what is equivalent to a slave market!
How can we get out? A slave is in no position to buy his own freedom, let alone
purchase the freedom of other slaves. Only a free man can redeem a slave,
and Jesus Christ is the only Person ever born outside of the slave market. He
was born Spiritually alive! As the means of providing the Only Man qualified to
redeem mankind, the virgin conception and birth is therefore extremely
important.
The need for the virgin conception and birth is as old as the Fall. When
Adam and the woman lost their fellowship with God, they immediately
attempted to compensate for their loss by adjusting to each other in a system
of socialism — Satan originated Operation Fig Leaves. (Gen 3:7) However,
their “solution” was totally rejected by God, whose policy permits a relationship
between creature and Creator on God’s terms only. (John 14:21) On His Own
initiative. He sought them out, and both responded to His offer of Salvation
through faith in Christ, the “Seed of the woman.” (Gen 3:15) Jesus Christ, the
Second Person of the Trinity, who even then was speaking to them as a
Theophany, depicted His Own future work by the first animal sacrifice replacing
their human old sin nature “false good” — socialism; fig leaves with Divine good
“coats of skins.” (God’s Own righteousness; Gen 3:21)
Although Salvation changed their status from that of Spiritual death to one
of Spiritual regeneration, the fact remained that the man and woman now
possessed old sin natures. Both were sinners; both had exercised negative
volition at the Fall. Yet there was a difference in the ways in which they had
sinned; the woman was deceived, while the man sinned knowingly and
deliberately.
And it was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman being deceived,
fell into transgression. (1Ti 2:14)
Both parents would transmit genes to their progeny, but in addition,
because of his deliberate sin the man would pass down the old sin nature. That
Adam’s sin is imputed through the man and not the woman is directly stated in
Scripture; (Rom 5:12) and is confirmed by the Prophecy and fact of the virgin
birth of Jesus Christ. (Gen 3:15; Isa 7:14; Luk 1:26-37) In order to be born
Spiritually alive, without an old sin nature and outside the slave market of sin,
our Savior could not have a human father. While both Joseph and Mary were
born Spiritually dead, separated from God, in need of Salvation, their old sin
natures were not passed down to Christ because there was no male
involvement in His conception. (Matt 1:18)
Jesus Christ was born true humanity, but without the sin nature; He was
therefore born without the imputation of Adam’s sin. His birth was unique! In
addition, He lived for thirty-three years without an act of personal sin. His life
was unique! But, since He was the God-Man, how could He have possibly
sinned? Just like the first Adam could! Christ had volition, and the free will of His
humanity was put to the test time and time again. (Matt 4:1-11) Only as long as
He stayed on positive volition to the Plan of the Father would He remain without
personal sin, and He remained on positive signals all the way to the Cross.
(Luk 22:42) Adam was created Spiritually alive, and through his volition he
became Spiritually dead. But Jesus Christ was the only Person ever born
Spiritually alive. (With the exception of the angel-servant, John the Baptist;
Luk 7:28 by his supernatural conception and birth; Luk 1:26-80; cf. Mal 3:1)
By His virgin conception and birth and impeccable Spiritual life, Jesus
Christ was qualified to purchase our Salvation. In effect, the Father said,
“Acceptable!” when He looked at His Own Son. The perfect Person of Christ
satisfied the righteousness of God!
THE WORK OF CHRIST IN SALVATION
Even though He was Personally acceptable to the Father as the perfect
God-Man, Jesus Christ still had to pay the price that would free the human race
to walk out of the slave market. What was the payment that God’s justice
demanded? The penalty for sin was first stated even before the Fall of man.
But from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for
in the day that you eat from it you will surely die. (Gen 2:17)
The Hebrew verb muth, “to die,” occurs twice. Literally translated “dying
you will die,” this phrase is actually an idiom that indicates the intensity of the
death. We might translate it, “you will be dead, dead. If Adam or the woman
disobeyed the Lord’s prohibition, the penalty would be immediate, intensive
death! God was speaking of Spiritual death — immediate separation from
Himself, total loss of fellowship with their Creator. We know this from what
happened when Adam, eventually got around to eating from the forbidden tree.
The first man rejected God’s Plan and disregarded the Lord’s grace
warning, but when he bit into that fruit, did he suddenly keel over and die? No.
In fact, Adam lived for 930 years after he first sinned! (Gen 5:5) The wages of
sin is not physical death, (Rom 5:12; Rom 3:23; Rom 6:23) but Adam did
immediately lose his relationship with God as we have seen in Operation Fig
Leaves. Out of fear, he actually tried to hide from the One with whom he had
enjoyed great rapport and daily fellowship, for the entire time that he had been
alive! The wages of sin is Spiritual death, and Adam and his wife died Spiritually
the moment that they ate of the forbidden fruit.
Physical death is an eventual result of Spiritual death, but physical death is
never the same as Spiritual death. If it were, members of the human race would
all die physically at birth since we are all born Spiritually dead. The Scripture is
very clear that the male passes down the old sin nature; so every person
conceived naturally is therefore alienated from God upon arrival. (Rom 5:12;
Eph 2:1)
In order to purchase our Salvation, therefore, Christ had to pay the price of
Spiritual death. The great difference between the Spiritual death of Christ and
His physical death cannot be emphasized too strongly! The fact that Christ died
twice on the Cross is borne out by the use of the Greek and Hebrew words in
several passages.
For example, in, (Col 1:22) the word “death” is in the singular — one
death. The Greek noun thanatos refers to His Spiritual death. When it comes to
His physical death, the Greek word that is used most of the time is —nekros.
When the resurrection of Christ is mentioned, it is often from nekros, not
from thanatos. The only time that nekros is used for Spiritual death is when it is
found in the plural, as the object of the preposition ek, as is, (Col 2:12) “...God
having raised Him out from the deaths.” Another example is the plural of
meweth, “deaths,” in the Old Testament.
His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in
His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was there any deceit in His
mouth. (Isa 53:9)
The plural use of “death” is not generally understood, and therefore, the
meaning of the blood of Christ is obscured. Our Lord was on the Cross for six
hours, from approximately nine o’clock in the morning until about three o’clock in
the afternoon. He was physically alive during the entire period, but the three
hours from 12:00 noon until 3:00 P.M. was the period of His Spiritual death and
judgment. He had no sin of His own. He came to the Cross without Spiritual
death. But as the impeccable God-Man hung upon the Cross, the sins of the
world were poured out on Him, and the Father judged our sins in Him.
(Isa 53:11-12) This was His Spiritual death. While being judged in our place. His
humanity was separated from God the Father and God the Holy Spirit. It was
His substitutionary Spiritual death and judgment that was efficacious for our
Salvation. (Rom 8:3)
We know that He was physically alive while being judged because He kept
screaming, “MY GOD, [The Father] MY GOD, [The Holy Spirit] WHY HAVE
YOU FORSAKEN ME?” (Matt 27:46) He was quoting, (Psa 22:1) where the
verb in the imperfect tense indicates that He shouted this over and over again.
Christ was forsaken because, “He [The Father] made Him, [Christ] who knew
no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of
God in Him.” (2Co 5:21)
When His Spiritual death and judgment was completed, Jesus Christ
shouted, “Tetelestai!” — the perfect tense meaning, “it is finished in the past
with results that go on forever!” (John 19:30) Note that our Lord was still
speaking after Salvation was completed. Obviously He could not have spoken if
He were physically dead! And certainly if He was still physically alive on the
Cross after Salvation was complete; His physical death could have nothing
whatever to do with the payment for sin!
Throughout the long history of SPQR, Jesus Christ was the only One who
died twice on a Roman cross, and only His unique Spiritual death paid for the
sins of mankind.
THE PHYSICAL DEATH OF CHRIST
The Old Testament rituals that so graphically depicted the saving work of
Christ all pictured His Spiritual death; the source of our Salvation. Therefore,
the physical death of the sacrificial animal represented the Spiritual death of
Jesus Christ. The analogy between something physical and something Spiritual
will not be confused if we understand the nature of the Lord’s physical death
and see that although it has great significance it was not the means of Salvation.
We have noted that Jesus Christ remained physically alive until after His
Salvation work was finished, but once His mission for the First Advent was
accomplished. He died in a magnificent and honorable way. In spite of all that
He had endured there was no last-moment disappointment or panic for our
Lord. His physical death was worthy of His true royalty and worthy of the
resounding strategic victory that He had just won. First, with a powerful voice
He stated in His dying words the Spiritual legacy that He was leaving to
believers on earth. Second, at the end of this “last will and Testament,” He died
physically by His own volition no one took His life! (John 10:18) His work on
earth was finished, the Father’s Plan called for Him to depart and He dismissed
His own spirit. His birth was unique. His life was unique. His Spiritual death was
unique, and now, even His physical death was unique in that He was the only
Person ever authorized to dismiss His own life when His assignment was
complete. By an act of His own volition. His soul and human spirit left His body,
and only then was He physically dead.
Matthew records the fact that Christ made a final statement before He
sent away His soul. Jesus, when He had shouted again with a loud voice, sent
away His breath. (Matt 27:50; corrected translation)
While Matthew makes no mention of the content, he emphasizes the
strength and self-control necessary for Christ to shout His last words.
Mark relates another aspect of this event.
And Jesus shouted with a loud voice, and exhaled His breath.
(Mark 15:37; corrected translation)
By using the verb ekpeneo, “to exhale,” Mark focuses attention on the
Lord’s fantastic breath control Christ exhaled a final statement and did not
inhale again! In Luke’s account, we Finally come to a portion of the content of
our Lord’s final words.
And when Jesus had shouted with a loud voice He said, “Father,
[Indicating Christ’s restoration to fellowship with God the Father after Salvation
was complete] into Your hands I deposit My spirit,” and having said this. He let
out His breath. (Luk 23:46; corrected translation).
Even Luke does not record the entire statement. Instead, he provides us
with a reference to the passage of Scripture that Jesus quoted. The complete
text is found in, (Psa 31:5).
Into Your hand I commit My spirit; You have delivered Me, O Jehovah,
God of Truth. (Psa 31:5; corrected translation)
In His dying breath, the Lord Jesus Christ made Truth the Spiritual
heritage of the royal family of God. Just as the legacy of His Spiritual death is
Salvation, so Truth is the legacy of His physical death. Just as Salvation is the
basis for relationship with God, so Truth is the basis for Spiritual growth. In,
(Psa 31:5) God the Father is the God of Truth; in fact. He has exalted His Word
(What He Thinks) above His Own Person! (Psa 138:2) The strength, inner
resources and Divine operating assets that Christ required to go to the Cross,
were provided by the God the Holy Spirit and the Truth resident in His soul!
(John 4:23-24) Thus our Lord set the pattern for us to follow in adjusting to the
justice of God through the intake of Divine Thinking — Truth.
THE IMPORTANCE OF CHRIST’S PHYSICAL DEATH
Physical death is a consequence of Spiritual death; not the penalty for sin
but a result of sin. This pattern was established in the first man. Adam did not
die physically until nearly 1,000 years after eating the forbidden fruit, but he
died Spiritually with the first taste. In contrast, Christ suffered Spiritual death
not as fallen man but as perfect Man, and He was still perfect after paying in
full the penalty for our sins and being restored to fellowship with the Father.
Our Lord’s physical death, therefore, was not a result of His Spiritual death but
indicated instead that His work in the First Advent was completed.
Furthermore, His physical death was absolutely essential for His
resurrection and is, therefore, an indispensable part of the Gospel when
resurrection is emphasized. (1Co 15:14) Through death, the way was prepared
for Him to become the First fruits of those raised from the dead.
(1Co 15:20-23) Moreover, Christ’s resurrection, ascension, and session
become the basis for the mature believer’s “newness of life” free from the
tyranny of the old sin nature. (Rom 6:4-18) Thus His physical death was the
completion of Salvation, related to resurrection and glorification, rather than
being the mechanics of atonement for sin.
Finally, Christ’s physical death, which made possible His resurrection and
eventual Second Advent, leads to the fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant. The
resurrected Jesus Christ in hypostatic union will reign forever as the Son of
David. (2Sa 7:16)
After Christ announced His legacy of Truth. His soul and spirit departed
for Hades (Psa 16:10; Luk 23:43; Acts 2:22-36; Eph 4:9; (1Pe 3:18-19) His
body went into the grave. (Luk 23:53) This was His physical death.
AFTERMATH OF THE CRUCIFIXION
The Lord Jesus Christ did not bleed to death. He was fully in command of
Himself on the Cross, and He died physically in fulfillment of His Own Words.
For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I
may take it again. No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My
own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up
again. This Commandment I received from My Father. (John 10:17-18)
The red liquid that ran through the veins and arteries of Jesus’ mortal body
is related to our Salvation in the sense of inauguration, (Heb 9:18-28) and there
is no Biblical basis for attributing any unusual properties to Christ’s body fluids.
The term “blood of Christ” is far more significant than any magical or mystical
power falsely ascribed to His physical blood by those who are ignorant of the
Word of God.
Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, It “is finished!”
And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit. (John 19:30)
When Christ had paid the penalty for sins. He announced that Salvation
was finished. He then pushed His head forward: as the Authorized Version
states, “He bowed his head.” There is nothing accidental in anything that Christ
did. Everything He did and said while on the Cross had a purpose and a reason.
It was essential that when He died physically. His body should be leaning in a
specific forward position, so that when the spear pierced His side, it would
enter above the solar plexus and diaphragm, piercing the heart. In this forward
position the blood would pour forth and establish His physical death even at a
distance.
Then the Jews, because it was the day of preparation, so that the bodies
would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath, (For that Sabbath was a high
day) asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken
away. (John 19:31)
The religious Jews were always up to something! Typical of the evil of
religion, they were very particular about the superficialities of life, while ignoring,
avoiding or rejecting the things of eternal importance; they had just demanded
and secured the execution of PERFECT GOD, who was living in a human body,
their own Messiah. These Jews were pompous and self-righteous in their strict
observance of ritual, but inside they were arrogant, jealous, filled with pettiness
and hatred, and always ready to retaliate against anyone who dared challenge
their inflated self-importance. (Matt 23:23-37) They had destroyed their own
souls with mental attitude sins of hypocrisy. In effect, they had become little
better than animals.’
Now, what is meant by “the preparation”? The Greek word pamskeue
refers to the day when the Jews prepared either for a weekly Saturday
Sabbath or for a special feast sabbath. Here, the Jews were preparing to carry
out the Feast of Unleavened Bread. This seven-day ritual taught every
generation of Jews to remember the deliverance from Egypt, which had been
provided in grace by the power of the impeccable Second Person of the Trinity.
(Exo 13:3-10)
This was a special time of year because several Sabbaths were observed
nearly one after another. The first of the seven days of Unleavened Bread was
also the Passover day. (Exo 12:6; Exo 12:14; Exo 12:20) In order to see this
sequence of holy days and preparation days most clearly, we must remember
that the Jews measured their days from sundown to sundown instead of from
midnight to midnight as we define our days, and as did the Gentiles of our Lord’
s generation. We also know that Christ died on a Wednesday, not on the
traditional Good Friday. Thus, from approximately six o’clock Tuesday evening
until approximately six o’clock Wednesday evening was celebrated the Feast of
the Passover. The Passover lamb was slain, (Representing “Christ our
Passover also has been sacrificed for us”; 1Co 5:7 and the memorial meal was
eaten on what we call Tuesday night. This was the “preparation” for
Wednesday, which was the actual Passover day. As the first day of the Feast
of Unleavened Bread, this Wednesday, described in, (John 19:31) was also
designated as the preparation day for the rest of the week-long observance.
(Exo 12:11; Lev 23:6-7)
Remember that the Jews who were so fussy in observing all of this
detailed ceremony and ritual which spoke of Christ had just witnessed the
Passover being fulfilled right before their eyes! But did they believe? They did
not! Instead of accepting the Messiah, they merely wanted to get on with their
hollow rituals. (Matt 15:8) Blinded by religion, the Jews had failed to understand
the real significance of the holy days, and ritual without Reality is always
meaningless! In fact, these religious leaders had just perpetrated the greatest
crime in history, yet without batting an eye they proceeded with their
preparations for their religious observance. Today it would be like living out of
fellowship with God; putting ourselves, money, things, and or circumstances
first instead of God’s Word and then going straight to church EVERY Sunday!
And maybe even throwing in a Wednesday, here and there.
But this was why the Jews “asked Pilate that their legs might be broken,”
It was the Roman custom to leave a body nailed to the cross until the flesh
rotted away. They liked to make a lasting impression! But Jewish law
demanded that the body of any criminal be put out of sight during a Sabbath or
feast day in order not to pollute the land. (Deut 21:22-23) These pious Jews
certainly did not want their Victim, whom they had railroaded through the courts,
to be hanging on a cross during one of their high Sabbaths!
Breaking the legs was a Roman technique, known in Latin as crurifragium,
“leg-breaking,” which consisted of shattering the leg bones with a heavy mallet
in order to expedite the death of those being crucified.
So the soldiers came, and broke the legs of the first man and of the other
who was crucified with Him. (John 19:32)
The Roman soldiers went up to the two thieves, one on each side of
Jesus, and in order to be able to take them down by nightfall, the legionnaires
pounded their legs until the bones were crushed. Thrown into deeper shock and
suddenly unable to force themselves up to relieve the pressure on their
intercostal muscles, the thieves could not exhale the rising concentration of
carbon dioxide in their lungs and died of suffocation. Of course the Jews were
waiting for the same thing to occur at the center cross.
But coming to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did
not break His legs. (John 19:33-36) cf. (Num 9:12)
This is simply evidence of the fact that Christ was physically dead. The
soldiers on the execution detail that day, undoubtedly experts at recognizing
physical death, saw that he was “dead already.” But just as our Lord’s physical
death, which had occurred perhaps half an hour before, was the occasion on
which He bequeathed to us the legacy of Divine Thinking, so this conclusive
professional Testimony to His physical death reiterated the supreme importance
of the Word of God. (Psa 31:5)
The fact that the soldiers did not break His legs is a fulfillment of specific
promises contained in the Old Testament Scriptures. (Exo 12:46; Num 9:12;
Psa 34:20; cf., John 19:36-37) God keeps His Word to you and me today just
as He did throughout all the generations leading up to the Cross. Passover after
Passover, through nearly fifteen centuries, the Jews had carefully prepared the
Passover lamb in such a way as never to break even one of its bones. Every
time they went through this ritual, they were saying in effect, “What God says is
true. God keeps His Word. He never fails!”
Here in the aftermath of the crucifixion, God’s character was on the line.
Thus you can understand that in spite of the insidiously evil demands of the
religious Jews, in spite of Pontius Pilate’s orders, in spite of the entire Roman
army, not one bone could ever be broken because God keeps His Word no
matter what is involved! God always honors and respects His Word, and
therefore Truth resident in your soul is your source of confidence and security!
BLOOD AND WATER
But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately
blood and water came out. (John 19:34)
The soldiers had laid down their mallets when one of them picked up his
spear and hurled it into Jesus’ side. In doing so he fulfilled, (Zec 12:10) “…they
shall look on Me, [The Lord] whom they have pierced...” (cf., John 19:37)
Christ anticipated that by twisting and perverting the meaning of the blood,
Satan would attack the Cross in an attempt to obscure the importance of
Spiritual death. Thus, while still on the Cross, our Lord provided proof that He
did not bleed to death and that unlike a sacrificial animal, Christ was literally
judged for the sins of the world; and the sacrificial animal literally bled to death.
Instead of slumping down or leaning to one side when He dismissed His soul
and spirit, our Lord had purposefully thrust His body forward in order to set up
a clear demonstration for all to see and for John to record.
The Greek word translated “side” is pleura, which refers specifically to the
chest cavity. The soldier’s javelin penetrated upward through Christ’s rib cage
and chest wall, (Without breaking any bones) and lacerated His heart.
Immediately “blood and water” gushed forth.
In spite of Christ’s prolonged physical torture during His trials and on the
Cross, His physical death came suddenly when, with complete self-control and
clarity of Mind. He sent away His spirit. (His Person into the care of God the
Father) He did bleed from His flogged back, from His hands and feet, and from
the thorns that were forced into His scalp. This merely demonstrated that, as
true humanity. His mortal body functioned as any normal human body would.
But all these lacerations and puncture wounds did not kill our Lord.
Remember that throughout His life Jesus was always in magnificent
physical condition; more than any other person in the entire human race, the
God-Man was the epitome of perfect health and physical strength. (Luk 2:40;
John 1:14)
External bleeding was not the cause of His death.
In order for the separated blood to flow out rapidly and to be as striking
an event as it was, a large vessel had to be severed. Furthermore, there had to
be a large quantity of blood still in the body for so much to be present in the
upper part of the corpse. Finally, all this blood had to be somehow cut off from
draining into the abdominal cavity and lower extremities where, shortly after
death, it too would have laid.
Only with His body thrust forward would Christ’s diaphragm shut off the
downward flow of blood. Only with His body thrust forward would the large right
ventricle of His heart become a perfect target for the upward plunge of the
spear. Only with His body thrust forward could the blood and water rush so
easily and dramatically into John’s view. The exact, deliberate way in which
Christ positioned His body gave us this vivid, eyewitness proof of His of physical
death, recorded forever in the Word of God.
THE LEVITICAL OFFERINGS AND THE BLOOD OF CHRIST
When the Bible mentions the blood of Christ, the purpose is to relate the
Cross to the animal sacrifices. In the Old Testament, the blood was literal and
the judgment was symbolic, but on the Cross, the blood was symbolic while the
judgment was literal. The Levitical offerings utilized animals to depict the unique
Person of Jesus Christ. The animal on the altar represented Christ on the
Cross. (Lev 4:18) cf. (John 19:34) The animal’s throat was cut so that it shed
its literal blood and died physically. The physical death of the animal portrayed
the Spiritual death and judgment of Christ which provided our Salvation.
Four out of the five Levitical offerings authorized by the Mosaic Law
required the shedding of animal blood. (Lev 1:6) Two of the five, the sin offering
(Lev 4:2; Lev 4:25) and the trespass offering, (Lev 5:16-19) depicted the work
of Christ related to rebound. (1Jn 1:7-10) The remaining three ceremonies
taught specific Doctrines of Salvation. The burnt offering, (Lev 1:1-17) for
example, declared propitiation with emphasis on the work of Christ. The grain
offering (Lev 2:1-16) also taught propitiation, but this grain offering portrayed
the perfect Person of Jesus Christ. The peace offering, (Lev 3:1-17) again
called for the shedding of blood, but this time the Doctrine of reconciliation was
in view.
Brought
To Represent
Burnt Offering
Salvation (What Christ would do; Spiritual death and judgment; and the Person
of Christ)
Grain Offering (No Blood)
Salvation (Propitiation: Who Christ WAS and IS; the Person of Christ)
Peace Offering
Salvation (Reconciliation)
Sin Offering
Rebound (For Unknown Sins)
Trespass Offering
Rebound (For Known Sins)
Fig., Levitical Offerings
When the Jews were instructed to, what is translated, “bring an offering,”
the Hebrew verb was qarab, “to draw near, to approach.” The word rendered
“offering” is qorban (Translated “corban” in, Mark 7:11) which comes from the
same root. In other words, the qorban was the means of approach to God.
Thus the offerings represented the fact that the justice of God (Which is the
administrator of His grace) has provided a means by which sinful, fallen man
can come to God only through the substitutionary Spiritual death of the Lord
Jesus Christ. (Acts 4:12) The Jew who brought the offering did so from his own
free will, (Lev 1:3) as an expression of his non-meritorious positive volition
toward the Savior. The ceremony held no true significance for the unbeliever
because ritual without reality is meaningless.
The Spiritually mature Jewish believers, however, looked forward to the
coming Messiah, and they fully understood that these sacrifices were only
shadows of the good things to come. They knew that the blood of the animals
could not save mankind, and that the future work of Christ, the Messiah, would
provide their Salvation. In the New Testament, therefore, “the blood of Christ” is
a symbolic phrase, and it identifies Christ’s Spiritual death as the fulfillment of
the dramatic and familiar rituals by which Salvation had been communicated
throughout the centuries. The long-awaited Messiah has arrived!
THE BURNT OFFERING
Let us examine some of the details of one Levitical offering that illustrated
Salvation by the shedding of blood. The burnt offering could come from any of
three sources: “of the herd” (Lev 1:2) “of the flock,” (Lev 1:10) or “of the fowls.”
(Lev 1:14) The various animals that were acceptable allowed believers of ANY
economic status to bring this offering to the Lord. Even the poorest could afford
a pigeon or a turtledove “of the fowls.”
Each type of animal emphasized some aspect of the Doctrine of
Salvation. The young bull “of the herd” (Called a “bullock” in King James
English) pictured Jesus Christ as a servant. The sheep or goat “of the flock”
presented Him as the qualified Sin-Bearer (“The Lamb of God which takes
away the sins of the world,” John 1:29), while the birds depicted Him as the
resurrected God-Man.
The bull had to be “a male without defect,” (Lev 1:3) illustrating the
perfection of the incarnate Person of Christ. Because it was impossible for a
member of the Godhead to die on the Cross, God the Son had to become a
true member of the human race, yet without the “blemish” of the old sin nature,
the imputation of Adam’s sin or the guilt of personal sins. His virgin birth and
perfect life qualified Him to go to the Cross. Like the young bull without blemish,
(Lev 1:3-4) Jesus Christ “took upon himself the form of a servant and was
made in the likeness of men,” (Php 2:7) satisfying the righteousness of the
Father. Then, on the Cross, the impeccable Lord Jesus Christ offered Himself
to be judged for the sins of the world in order to satisfy the justice of the
Father. (Isa 53:9-12; cf., Matt 26:39; Matt 26:42; Rom 8:3; Heb 9:14;
Heb 10:1-14)
This transfer of sins from the sinner to the sinless was performed
symbolically in the ritual when the offerer’s hand was placed on the bull’s head.
(Lev 1:4) The sins of the believer were identified with the animal, which was to
be slain on his behalf, just as “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our
behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” (2Co 5:21)
...That it may be accepted for him to make atonement on his behalf.
(Lev 1:4)
“It may be accepted” is from the Hebrew verb meaning “to take pleasure
in, to delight in.” In the niphal stem, it means “to graciously receive,” thus, “the
burnt offering shall be graciously received by God.” In other words, the First
Person of the Trinity, God the Father, accepted the work of His Son on the
Cross. Propitiation! The verb kaphar means “to cover, to overlay, to make an
atonement,” and found here in the piel (Intensive) infinitive, it reveals the
intensity of Christ’s Spiritual death. Jesus Christ has covered our sins.
The vigorous, perfectly healthy young bull was tied to the altar. After he
was identified with the offerer’s sins, a sharp knife severed his carotid artery,
causing the powerful, struggling beast to pump the blood out of his own body.
The spurting blood that soon covered the offerer, the priest, the altar and the
ground, was a spectacular method of teaching the Jews the Spiritual death of
Christ, the payment for sins.
When, (Heb 9:22) states that “one may almost say, all things are
cleansed with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness,”
animal blood is in view. The entire context of that passage relates the shadow
Christology of animal sacrifices to their fulfillment in the Reality of Christ.
As the ceremony with the bullock continued, it further depicted the purity
of Christ and the judgment of sins in Him, culminating in burning as a picture of
Divine judgment. Out of the fire of judgment, the gaseous smoke was a “sweet
smell” to God, (Lev 1:4; Lev 1:9) again indicating His satisfaction with the work
of God the Son.
The offerings from the flock also taught the Doctrine of Propitiation. The
goat emphasized the sins to be borne by Messiah on the Cross, while the
sheep was yet another picture of His perfect, sinless humanity. In either case,
the animal always had to be without defect. (Lev 1:10) As with the young bull,
these animals were identified with the offerer’s sins and were slain to depict the
Spiritual death and judgment of Christ as the means of adjusting to the justice of
God.
God’s awful wrath against your sins and mine along with those of the
entire world, including the sins of every Jew who ever approached with an
offering was focused upon the Lord Jesus Christ during His last three hours on
the Cross. His excruciating pain, more intense than anything that we can even
begin to imagine, was dramatized in the violent deaths of these valuable,
innocent and flawless animals. No Jewish believer could forget these grisly
scenes that were repeated time and time again! The shedding of blood, both in
the detail of the ceremony and in the shock of the execution, was designed to
permanently imprint the Word of Truth on the souls of offerers and observers
alike.
While all Israel might watch and learn from the sacrifices brought by
others, a personal offering was required for each Jewish believer. The category
specified for the poor of the land was a dove or a pigeon. This provision in itself
illustrates God’s grace in the availability of Salvation. Although the dove could
be brought by the lowliest, it nevertheless represented the ultimate in
perfection, the unique Person in the universe, the God-Man Jesus Christ.
The turtledove represented the Deity of the Messiah, but since it was
brought in as a sacrifice, more than His deity was in view. The burnt offering
from the fowls pictured the hypostatic union: Jesus Christ is undiminished Deity
and true humanity united in One Person forever. The dove would shed its blood,
as had the bulls, the sheep and the goats, but this offering focused attention on
what would occur after Salvation had become an accomplished fact.
After His Spiritual and physical deaths, and after He had spent three days
and three nights in the heart of the earth, Jesus Christ alone was resurrected
from the dead. He ascended to heaven, and there He was seated in highest
glory and honor at the right hand of the Father. Our Savior’s acceptance into
heaven is the final proof that His work on the Cross was totally efficacious and
that God the Father has been propitiated once and for all.
THE DAY OF ATONEMENT AND THE BLOOD OF CHRIST
In addition to the Levitical offerings, the daily offerings and the sacrifices
that were offered at the time of the new moon, the Jews brought special
offerings on the holy days. These feast days included the Passover,
Unleavened Bread, First fruits, Pentecost, Trumpets, Atonement and
Tabernacles. (Lev 23:1) Each feast possessed great Doctrinal significance, but
of them all, the Day of Atonement was the most solemn.
(Lev 16:23; Lev 16:26-32)
Jom Kaphar, or Jom Kippur, literally means “The Day of Covering,” and
this was the only day on which anyone was ever permitted to enter the Holy of
Holies in the Tabernacle, or in the Temple after it had been constructed. Even
on the Day of Atonement, only the high priest was able to enter, and then only
after he had brought an offering on behalf of his own sins. (Lev 16:13)
Two sacrifices were required on this High Holy Day: a young bull,
(Lev 16:6) and one of two goats. (Lev 16:7-16) The high priest sacrificed the
bull on the brass altar as a sin offering for himself. The blood, representing
Christ’s Spiritual death on the Cross, was collected in a basin and carried past
the huge curtain into the Holy of Holies. There he sprinkled it on the mercy seat.
We have already seen this piece of Tabernacle furniture in, (Rom 3:25).
[Jesus Christ] Whom God [The Father] displayed publicly as a propitiation
[Literally, “the mercy seat”] in His blood through faith... (Rom 3:25)
The Greek word for propitiation, hilasterion, and the Hebrew word
kapporeth, both mean “mercy seat.” They refer to a wooden box called the Ark
of the Covenant, which was overlaid with gold and stood in the Holy of Holies.
The acacia wood of the box spoke of Christ’s humanity; the gold, of His Deity.
Together these materials represented the uniqueness of the God-Man.
The ark contained three items: a pot of manna, Aaron’s rod that budded
and the tables of the Law. Each of these items depicted sin. The tables of the
Law were a reminder of Israel’s violations of the Mosaic Law and, therefore,
showed transgression against God’s Word. Aaron’s rod exhibited rejection of
God’s plan regarding the authority of the Levitical priesthood, and the pot of
manna called to mind man’s rejection of Divine provision.
The mercy seat itself was the lid that Fit over the top of the ark. On each
end of the mercy seat stood the golden figure of a cherub. One represented
God’s perfect righteousness; the other His justice. Righteousness and justice
looked down on sin and condemned it. But once a year, on the Day of
Atonement, a wonderful event took place. The blood of a young bull was
sprinkled on top of the mercy seat, so that when righteousness and justice
looked down, they saw the completed work of Christ covering the sins of the
high priest. Divine essence was satisfied on his behalf.
The high priest then went out and sacrificed one of the goats as an
offering for the people. Bringing the goat’s blood in a bowl, he entered the Holy
of Holies a second time, and again he sprinkled blood over the mercy seat. This
time the Spiritual death of Christ on the Cross was dramatized as covering the
sins of all the people.
Only by way of the symbolic blood of animals could even the high priest
enter the Holy of Holies, but when Jesus Christ was judged on the Cross, the
great curtain that blocked entry to the Holy of Holies was ripped by God from
top to bottom. (Matt 27:51; Mark 15:38; Luk 23:45) Christ removed the Barrier
between God and man.
And not through the blood of goats and calves, [The Day of Atonement
sacrifices] but through His own blood, once for all. He, [Christ] has entered the
Holy of Holies, [The presence of the Father] having secured eternal redemption.
(Heb 9:12; corrected translation)
Jesus Christ never entered the shadow Holy of Holies in the Temple. But
when He ascended. He entered the real Holy of Holies, the presence of God in
heaven itself. (Heb 10:19-20) Unlike the Levitical high priest who had to go into
the Holy of Holies twice, the Lord Jesus Christ, our royal High Priest, required
no special offering on His own behalf. Instead, the perfect Savior offered
Himself as a sacrifice to pay for the sins of all mankind. He entered heaven one
time and sat down. That was all that was required.
He had just conquered sin, Spiritual death and physical death.
(1Co 15:55-57) He had won the strategic victory over the evil ruler of this world.
(Heb 2:14-15) He had redeemed man from the slave market of sin, reconciled
man to God with the destruction of the Barrier, and propitiated God on behalf of
man. He had fulfilled the Law and left a legacy of Truth for believers on earth.
As the Celebrity of the universe, He ascended and was seated, but He did not
take any blood with Him to heaven.
There is an old Roman Catholic dogma which says that Christ carried His
blood with Him to heaven in a bowl. Without even knowing its source,
fundamental Christianity clings to that ludicrous idea from the Dark Ages by
perpetuating a form of mysticism around the physical blood of our Lord.
When Christ entered heaven; He carried not blood, but the fact that His
Salvation work was finished “completed in the past with results that go on
forever!” He did not transport a bowl of blood or a bucket of blood; He entered
in His resurrection body, with a triumphant “Mission accomplished!”
The blood of Christ simply teaches our Lord’s Spiritual death as the
fulfillment of the animal sacrifices. Once the Reality had arrived, there was no
longer any room for the shadows. No blood was taken to heaven, and even on
earth the animal sacrifices ceased to be valid the moment they were fulfilled on
the Cross. In fact, the reversionistic Jewish believers in Jerusalem were
denounced for continuing to offer sacrifices in the Temple. By their offerings,
they were said to “again crucify
to themselves the Son of God,” (Heb 6:6) making a mockery of His work on the
Cross.
Now that the Lord Jesus Christ has entered heaven, it is the height of
stupidity and blasphemy to prefer a dead animal over the living Son of God! The
Father definitely preferred Him. And God definitely did not require any amount
of blood animal or human to be added to the perfect Person and work of His
Son! Animal sacrifices and literal blood are now defunct as a means of worship.
They will not be authorized again until the Millennium. Then, with Jesus Christ
present on earth, they will serve as a memorial to the Cross, glorifying the
reigning King of Kings and Lord of Lords for His matchless accomplishment.
THE REPRESENTATIVE ANALOGY IN REVIEW
Point by point, we have considered the subject of the blood of Christ. But
since there is so much emotionalism and ignorance about this important area of
Truth, let us now tie our study together in a brief summary.
“The blood of Christ” is a technical term which expresses the fact that
Jesus Christ is the fulfillment of the Old Testament shadows. As such, this
frequently encountered phrase sets up a representative analogy between
something physical and something Spiritual. It is not an exact analogy because
that would require a physical thing compared to a physical thing, or a parallel
between one Spiritual thing and another Spiritual thing. Instead, “the blood of
Christ” brings together two unlike things: the literal blood of the animal
sacrifices and the Spiritual death and judgment of Christ on the Cross. The
animal’s physical blood illustrates the Spiritual event that took place during
Christ’s last three hours on the Cross when the sins of the world were poured
out on Him and judged. (Isa 53:10-12) As a shorthand title for the saving work
of our Lord, “the blood of Christ” is, therefore, a synonym for one and or all of
the following Doctrines, depending on the context: Spiritual death, Salvation,
propitiation, redemption, sanctification, expiation and atonement. Christ
provided what the justice of God demanded!
In the Old Testament, the blood was literal and the judgment was
symbolic, but on the Cross the blood was symbolic while the judgment was
literal. The blood of the animal was the shadow of good things to come, while
the Spiritual death of Christ is the Reality that fulfills the shadows.
I realize that thus subject is a difficult one for many people who have
grown up with the idea that there was some special power within the circulatory
system of Jesus’ mortal body.
As proof that there are others who understand that the blood of Christ is
figurative, permit me to quote Arndt and Gingrich, the latest Greek
lexicographers. Under the word haima, “blood,” they devote an entire paragraph
to the figurative uses of the word. They describe it as “the blood and life as an
expiatory sacrifice, especially the blood of Christ as the means of expiation.”
Expiation is paying the penalty for sin, and Jesus Christ did not bleed to death
to pay the penalty for sin. Further, Kittel’s Theological Dictionary states that
“the blood of Christ in the New Testament is simply a pregnant verbal symbol
for the saving work of Christ. “Pregnant verbal symbol” means figurative!
We have seen that Spiritual death, not physical death, is the penalty for
sin. We noted that Adam was created Spiritually alive and by his negative
volition became Spiritually dead. Christ, on the other hand, was the only human
being ever born Spiritually alive, and by His positive volition He chose to suffer
Spiritual death on behalf of mankind. Adam was physically alive at the same
time that he was Spiritually dead, and likewise, Christ on the Cross was very
much alive while He was enduring Spiritual death.
The relationship with God that Christ had always enjoyed by virtue of His
virgin birth and impeccable life, was severed on the Cross while He paid for our
sins. But now, when anyone believes in Christ, that person instantly receives a
permanent relationship with God by regeneration. Furthermore, as a member of
the royal family of God, in union with Christ, he becomes a beneficiary of grace.
In grace, God does all the work while man does the receiving, as illustrated in
Salvation where all the merit belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ!
Our Lord died twice on the Cross. His first death is called “the blood of
Christ,” and only after the completion of His Spiritual death and judgment, did
He die physically. The blood of Christ definitely does not refer to His physical
death because He did not bleed to death! in fact, most of His blood was still
inside His corpse when the soldier threw the spear into His chest cavity,
bringing forth blood (Righteousness) and water. (Eternal life)
Christ’s physical death simply indicated that His work was completed.
Nevertheless, He died physically in a unique and magnificent manner, by
dismissing His own soul and spirit when the Father’s plan called for Him to
depart. With a clear, loud voice and perfect breath control, in His final exhale He
left a legacy of Truth to the royal family.
Into Your hand I commit my spirit; You have ransomed me, O LORD, God
of Truth. (Psa 31:5)
THE COMMUNION TABLE AND THE BLOOD OF CHRIST
Animal sacrifices were designed to communicate Truth to the Jews of the
Old Testament and to provide a means of worship by which they could express
their Occupation with Christ. But once the rituals were fulfilled by the Cross,
and especially after the canon of Scripture was completed with the writing of
Revelation in A.D. 96, there was no longer a need for a detailed system of
training aids for teaching Truth. In the Church Age, therefore, only one form of
ritual is authorized: the Eucharist or Communion.
Communion has its origin in the Passover feast in Israel, a feast different
from the others in that it was a celebration like our Fourth of July. On 14 April,
in approximately 1440 B.C., the Jewish race became a nation, and the
emergence of God’s chosen nation out of slavery in Egypt was accompanied by
an offering that commemorated individual regeneration.
In order to avoid the Divine judgment of the tenth plague that was coming
against Egypt, the Jews were ordered to sacrifice a male, yearling lamb
without blemish. (Exo 12:5) The lamb represented the perfect, unique Person of
Jesus Christ who would be qualified to bear Divine judgment for sins on behalf
of the whole world. The lamb’s meat was to be eaten — a picture of faith in
Christ.
Just as any normal person can eat, no matter if he is moral, immoral,
amoral, religious, irreligious or non-religious, so also the means of appropriating
the work of Christ does not depend on the merit of the one who believes. All the
merit in faith is in the object of faith. Anyone can eat, and anyone can believe in
Christ! Eating, therefore, is a perfect picture of non-meritorious positive volition
toward Jesus Christ. The blood of the Passover lamb represented the Spiritual
death and judgment of Messiah on the Cross, and the offerers painted it on the
sides and tops of their doors. (Making a cross; Exo 12:7) God was depicted in
the Passover as being satisfied on behalf of any household with blood on the
doorposts, as later illustrated on the Day of Atonement by the blood on the
mercy seat. For those behind the blood, the judgment of the plague would be
turned away.
The Passover changed slightly after this first observance in Egypt. For at
least the next forty years in the desert, the Jews did not have permanent doors.
Instead of blood on the doorposts, the cup and the juice of the grape were
substituted, and as with eating, drinking from the cup illustrated faith in Christ.
Like the spotless lamb that represented Him through nearly two thousand
years, the Lord Jesus Christ died on the Passover, fulfilling this special feast in
every detail. The night before His death, (According to Jewish time, the
Passover had begun at sundown) Jesus converted the Passover ceremony into
the Eucharist. At this last Passover, He instituted several changes to the ancient
ritual.
And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and
gave it to them, saying, This is My body which is given for you; do this in
remembrance of Me. (Luk 22:19) (Who and What Christ Was and IS)
“Give thanks’ is the Greek verb eucharisteo from which we derive the term
“Eucharist.” Instead of the lamb, Jesus Christ took the bread to represent His
Unique Person. This indicates that in order to bear the sins of the world, God
the Son had to become true humanity. Furthermore, Christ will keep on having a
body forever; our Lord was already looking ahead to His resurrection when He
made this statement. He needed a body in order to go to the Cross, but in His
resurrection body He will continue to be the God-Man, the Celebrity of the
universe, forever! As with the Passover lamb, eating the bread is a picture of
faith in Christ.
And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This
cup which is poured out for you is the New Covenant in My blood. (Luk 22:20)
(What Christ would do; die Spiritually and be judged for our sins)
The Old Testament, or Old Covenant of the Mosaic Law, had been
ratified with the symbolic blood of animals, but now these observances were to
be set aside. The shadow of the lamb’s blood would be fulfilled within twenty-
four hours! The New Covenant of provisions and blessings for the royal family
of God is validated by the blood of Christ. The cup, therefore, became symbolic
of Christ’s Spiritual death on the Cross by which He enabled us to adjust to the
justice of God. The images of a lamb’s blood on the doorposts, or of the blood
of bulls and goats on the mercy seat, or of the spurting blood of the burnt
offerings, were all fulfilled in Christ, and they were replaced by one ceremony
inaugurated by Christ Himself for His royal family.
The Command to “do this in remembrance of me” makes the Eucharist
like the old and honorable New Year’s custom of Scotland. Auld langsyne, “old
long ago,” is a special time to remember loved ones and old friends now gone.
It is a time of great memories and a time to check the capacity of one’s own
soul. The Communion service is likewise a time for the members of the royal
family to focus their memories on the Savior and His work. No believer can love
or appreciate Jesus Christ unless he knows the Mind of Christ, Truth.
Therefore, Communion becomes not only a time of worship but also an
opportunity to check your own knowledge of Truth and level of Spiritual growth.
If you cannot concentrate on the Lord without having your mind wander, even
for the duration of the Communion service, you still have a way to go in your
Christian life! Therefore, our heritage of Truth comes into sharp focus. Truth
resident in your soul is the absolute requirement for having any capacity to
remember the Lord, and ritual is meaningless where there is no understanding
of the REALITY that it represents.
No believer is ever excluded from the Communion table. In fact, every
believer is Commanded to partake periodically. Local church membership or
any other special qualification is never required. A person need only be a
believer, and between himself and the Lord he must make sure that, through
the rebound technique, he is under the control of the Holy Spirit as is required in
all phases of worship. (1Co 11:30-32; (1Jn 1:9)
The distortions of the Doctrine of the blood of Christ have been carried
over from Romanism are probably most clearly seen in the Eucharist.
Romanism teaches the false Doctrine that the bread is Christ’s actual flesh and
that the cup is His literal blood! This superstitious mysticism is obviously untrue,
but it almost seems as though people check their common sense at the door as
soon as they become believers. People who should know better make
themselves absolutely ridiculous when they blindly accept the false idea that
“the blood of Christ” is somehow a literal phrase! We have seen, on the
contrary, that literal blood cannot save man and that Christ’s blood is a
representative analogy which describes His Spiritual death and judgment. That
is the reason why the blood of Christ is the precious coin of the realm for
purchasing our so great Salvation.
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for
us--for it is written, "CURSED IS EVERYONE WHO HANGS ON A TREE"--
(Gal 3:13)
Knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or
gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with
precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.
(1Pe 1:18-19)
End
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