Oh how I love the old hymns
that speak of the blood of our Savior. Hymns such as Are
You Washed In The
Blood, At The Cross, Glory To His Name, My Hope Is Built, Nothing But The
Blood, The Old Rugged Cross, There Is A Fountain and When I See The Blood are
just a few that come to mind. The Old Rugged Cross and I Love To Tell The Story
are two of my favorites. I Love To Tell The Story does not mention the blood,
but the story of Jesus cannot be told without the blood.
Unfortunately, we have grown
much too sophisticated and civilized to sing these precious hymns any longer. We
would rather bellow out repetitious, one-liner, feel-good, hypnotic, pep-me-ups
while waving to the ceiling and swaying back and forth. Nothing depressing and
gross, like blood, will ever pass the delicate purity of our lips again. Allow
me to ask one question. What are we going to do with the trail of blood that
runs all through the Bible from Genesis to Revelation? It is in there folks,
and without the blood no one can be saved.
“And almost all things are by
the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.”
(Hebrews 9:22)
Taking a quick look at the
Passover, we see God by visual means showing all of us, Jew and Gentile, the
absolute necessity of the blood.
God instituted Passover in
Exodus 12, as He was preparing to deliver Israel from 430 years of Egyptian
slavery. The Passover message is for Israel to remind them to never forget what
God did for them that day. By the same token, there is a message for us today,
and that message leads us to the cross.
Israel was delivered from
Egyptian slavery. The Christian is delivered from the slavery of sin.
They had to choose a lamb
without blemish to sacrifice. Jesus is our Lamb, without blemish, upon the
cross, calling all to come to Him.
God instituted a new year for
Israel, to begin on the 10th of Nisan, which is our March/April.
This same time period is our Spring, a time of new beginning each year when
nature is born again. The grass turns green and the flowers blossom. Our new
year, personally, is a new and exciting beginning with Jesus Christ.
The lamb was chosen on the 10th
and sacrificed on the 14th, four days later. Jesus rode into
Jerusalem on the 10th and was sacrificed upon the cross four days
later.
Per God’s instructions, every
Israelite had to spread the blood of the sacrifice upon the sides of the door
and on top of the door frame of their dwelling. By doing so, a cross was made
with the blood, and our Savior died upon the cross, shedding His blood for us.
That same night they were required
to roast the lamb with fire while eating bitter herbs and bread made without
yeast. The fire represented God’s judgment. Jesus, the Lamb of God, took our
judgment upon Himself. The bitter herbs and the bread made without yeast represented
an absence of sin. The Lamb of God who knew no sin took our sins upon Himself,
and we are without sin, because of Him, if we have come to the cross.
None of the meat, the
sacrifice, was to be left until morning. However, if there were any meat
remaining, it had to be totally consumed with fire. Jesus Christ has taken the TOTAL
judgment of sin, past and present.
The Israelites were to eat
the meat with their cloak tucked into their belt, their sandals upon their feet
and their staff in their hand. As a new born-again child of God, we are to do
the same as per the apostle Paul’s instructions in Ephesians 6:12-17.
They were not to break any
bone of the sacrifice. Our Lord had not one bone broken while suffering as our
sacrifice.
Israel became a nation by the
miracle pregnancy of Sarah and birth of Isaac. Christianity was born by a
miracle pregnancy of Mary and birth of Jesus.
Israel was carried forth out
of Egypt, and Jesus was carried forth out of Egypt.
When Jesus rode the donkey
into Jerusalem the people shouted, “Hosanna, Son of David.” Hosanna means “Save
us.” When Jesus comes into our lives, we are also asking Him to “Save us.”
God told the Israelites in
Exodus 12:13;
“And the blood shall be to
you for a token upon the houses where ye are; and when I see the blood, I will
pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I
smite the land of Egypt.” If the blood of Jesus is upon our hearts (our
dwellings), God sees the blood and will pass over us at the judgment. No plague
of eternal death will befall us when God brings His judgment upon this fallen
world.
Before I (and you if you are
saved) was saved by His blood, I was a slave to all that Satan had against me.
Sin was my Egypt. Death was my destiny. I was not saved because I was a good
person. I was not saved through any works of my own. It was the blood flowing
from the Lamb of God that made it possible for me to be saved. God the Father
said, “My Son has made the only provision to save you. If you will believe Him
and accept Him, I will save you. Otherwise, I will destroy you, just as I
destroyed the Egyptians.”
Folks, don’t allow the false
prophets of this world, and there are many, to deceive you about the blood. Jesus
is “… the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” (Revelation 13:8) He is
our only hope, our only salvation.
Those who have not as yet
come to Him to be saved can be freed from the slavery of sin, but it must be by
the blood. Israel was in bondage 430 years. How long have you been in bondage?
If you do not have Jesus Christ in your life, you are in bondage and you face
eternal death if you reject His shedding of blood for you.
The liberals can remove the
blood-soaked hymns from the hymnals if they so choose. They can refuse to allow
them within the church meetings if they like. These dear hymns may never be
heard again, but there is no erasing the blood of the cross. God had to shed
blood to cover Adam and Eve. The Passover is one of many Old Testament pictures
of that bloody cross. And understand this, when Jesus returns He will shed much
blood, but it will not be His.
All of us, sooner or later,
will see Jesus face to face. Will He see the blood on your heart’s door? If He
does, you are His. If He does not, He will be your judge and your judgment will
be much greater than Egypt’s.
Grant Phillips
Email: grantphillips@windstream.net
Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com
Rapture Ready: http://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html
