Day 41: Precious Blood

Precept #7

“And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” (Matthew 26:27-28)

            To build a castle you must do it one stone at a time. Layer upon layer the stones are staked to make the walls. It would be insane to start at the top and try to build the wall from the top down. Without a foundation to place the stone, there is nothing for it to rest upon. They would just fall from the sky. You must always start with a foundation. This has been the manner this book has been written. We started with the blessing and love of God for a reason. We are told, “Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance?” (Rom 2:4) This is why we started with the love and kindness of our Daddy, and His Son. We need to understand the wonderful blessing of heaven and the love of God. Then we can repent and turn from our sins. That is why we had the “Precepts” at the end of the book, most notably the discussion about obedience. Now we are going to cover a most important precept from our Lord. The “Lord’s Supper” also called the “Cup of Salvation.” It is a commandment of our Lord, and we must participate in it. Let us read, “Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” (Joh 6:53-54) You see, if we think the commandments of God and Jesus are of no affect to our lives, and that somehow the idea of faith does it all, then we would not obey the commandment of Jesus and take the Lord’s Supper. We then will disqualify ourselves through disobedience. Then it was not faith at all. It was unbelief pretending to be faith. If it is real faith, we would believe and obey what Jesus tells us, “Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.” (Joh 6:54) Then our faith in Jesus compels us to comply with His wishes. Thus, our faith has been made perfect through our actions. “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.” (Jas 2:26)

            To understand the Blood of Jesus and why it has so much power, we must understand Passover. When Passover is understood, then the plan of salvation through the blood of Jesus is easily comprehended. With these building blocks, the Lords Supper really comes to life. We are going to start with the true story of Passover. You can find it starting in Exodus 11. The final and most dreadful plague was about to fall upon Egypt. As the Angel of Death passed over Egypt, the first-born son of all Egyptian were going to die. The only hope for the Israelites is to sacrifice a Lamb and place the Blood upon the doorpost. Those who obey will be just fine and their children would be spared. Those who do not believe and obey would suffer the death of the first-born child. I believe this goes back to when Pharaoh had all the male babies of the Israelites tossed into the river. We read, “And Pharaoh charged all his people, saying, Every son that is born ye shall cast into the river, and every daughter ye shall save alive.” (Exo 1:22) Therefore, the last plague is in the same manner as the curse pharaoh brought upon the Israelites. Let us read, “And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts.” (Exo 11:5) We find this explained in the New Testament with this verse, “Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you;” (2Th 1:6)

            The Passover event was to be a moment of distinction. “But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that ye may know how that the LORD doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel.” (Exo 11:7) It would be important to note; God brought about this moment of distinction. It was to separate the Egyptians and the Israelites. It is very interesting though that it was the people who had to decide if they were Egyptians or Israelites. You see through obedience the decision was made. If you placed the blood then you are an Israelite, if you did not, then your lot is with the Egyptians. In this manner the Israelites could choose if their lot was with the Egyptians or with God. No blood, then by disobedience, you have chosen to be with the Egyptians. You would have chosen death. Thus, the distinction would be clear.

            Now we will look at the steps involved. “And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it. And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.” (Exo 12:7-8) With these commandments to go by, they diligently obeyed and got ready. Huddled inside their homes they had faith that the actions performed would provide the safety they desired. Remembering what the Lord said to them as they waited. “… it is the LORD’S passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. 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.” (Exo 12:11a-13) Then the moment to execute the plan came upon Egypt. “And the children of Israel went away, and did as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they. And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle. And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead.” (Exo 12:28-30) The plan worked, the Israelites became free to follow and worship God once again. “And he [Pharoh] called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the LORD, as ye have said.”(Exo 12:31)

            The Passover story is the blueprint for salvation. The world is Egypt, Satan is Pharaoh, Jesus is the Lamb with His blood on the doorpost, and God calls forth the Angel of Death to bring judgment. I see the Angel of death representing Hell. We have the opportunity to obey and apply the blood to the doorpost of our hearts. If we do not, we choose to be judged with Egypt (the world,) and Pharaoh (Satan.) Let us look at the symbolisms. We will start with Jesus our Passover Lamb: “Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” (1Co 5:7-8) The Lamb had to be without blemish, (Exodus 12:5): “But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:” (1Pe 1:19) They must eat the flesh and unleavened bread, (Exodus 12:8): “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.” (Mat 26:26) They had to apply the lamb’s blood, (Exodus 12:7):  “And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” (Mat 26:27-28) We see a greater clarification on the blood of Jesus in this verse, “And having an high priest [Jesus] over the house of God; Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled [Blood of Jesus] from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed [Baptism]with pure water.” (Heb 10:21-22) Passover was a preview, a dress rehearsal of things to come. As John 1:29 says, “The Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world.” In addition, “Christ our Passover lamb was sacrificed for us.” (1Cor 5:7b) Passover was a prophecy of what Jesus would do for us. By accepting the sacrifice of Jesus and His pure sinless blood we receive the replacement of our own sinfulness. We do this by applying His blood upon the doorpost of our hearts as seen in Hebrews10:19-22. By our obedience of faith we are saved from the penalty of sin, which is death.

            With this understanding of Passover, let us look further into the amazing work of the Blood of Jesus. The old covenant was through the blood of animals. Man would place his sins upon the animal and then slaughter the animal, often a lamb. In this way, the penalty of death was paid for the sins committed. Jesus tells us, “For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” (Mat 26:28) Without this shedding of blood, the punishment for sin could not be prevented. “And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.” (Heb 9:22) Jesus’ blood was perfect and without defect. It was the ultimate payment for sin. “Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” (Heb 9:25-26) Every year many animals died, the slaughter happened repeatedly. It was a never-ending cycle of sin and death. With Jesus’ death, this cycle has ended. He is the permanent sacrifice to those who believe. Let’s read, “Forasmuch 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; But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:” (1Pe 1:18-19) Jesus paid the price. For all those who have faith and obey the Lord, are no longer prisoners of death. They now receive eternal life. The blood of Jesus fulfilled the requirement of the justice of God. It has made the way back into the presence of our Daddy once more. There is no longer a need for any other sacrifice. Jesus is our Passover Lamb. In obedience, let us place the blood upon the doorpost of our hearts.

The wonderful works of the Blood of Jesus.

Hebrews 13:20: “The blood of the everlasting covenant” Ephesians 2:13: “We are made close to God” Hebrews 10:19: “We can enter into God’s presence” Revelation 1:5: “Washes us” Acts 20:28: “Purchased” Romans 5:8-9: “Justified” Colossians 1:14: “Redeemed and forgiven” Colossians 1:20: “Peace and reconciliation” 1 John 1:7: “Cleanses from Sin” Revelation 12:11: “Made to be over-comers”

Lord’s
Supper

The Cup of Salvation “I will take the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the LORD.” (Psalms 116:13)

            We have looked at Passover, and we have looked at the Blood of Jesus. Now that we understand, that Jesus is the true Passover Lamb. We can also understand the importance of the Lord’s Supper. We now will read what Jesus has to say about this most sacred occasion. “Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.” (Joh 6:53-58) Not only are we placing the blood of Jesus upon the door post of our hearts and receiving the promise of eternal life. We are also declaring the victory we have received through the death of Jesus. “For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come.” (1Co 11:26)

            Now we are going to review the steps involved in the Lord’s Supper. Notice how Jesus partook in the Passover meal. “And he said, Go into the city to such a man, and say unto him, The Master saith, My time is at hand; I will keep the passover at thy house with my disciples. And the disciples did as Jesus had appointed them; and they made ready the passover.” (Mat 26:18-19) We will now read the steps involved in the Lord’s Supper. “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom. And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.” (Mat 26:26-30) Notice He took the bread and blessed it. Then took the cup and gave thanks. “After 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.” (1Co 11:25) We must do this also. When we pray and give praise over the bread and the fruit of the vine, it spiritually becomes the spiritual representation of the Body and Blood of Jesus. The greatest care must be taken to use up all the bread and juice that has been blessed. It is never to be thrown away as trash. I personally pour the cups, and separate the bread that we are going to use at home. Then I bless it. This way I ensure nothing is lost. It is precious and Holy unto God and should be treated as such. This is our new Passover. Protect yourself and your family and partake in the blessing of the Lord’s Supper.

            I must give a word of warning about being careless in our approach to the Lord’s Supper. “Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.” (1Co 11:27-31) We must be humble and repentant when we receive the supper. We cannot take the Cup of Salvation to our lips if we are living in rebellion. If we do, we bring judgment upon ourselves. This is not meant to discourage anyone from partaking. I just want to encourage you that when we participate, we do it with reverence and repentant hearts.

            The blood of Jesus destroys the darkness. It topples demonic strongholds. It covers us for the wrath to come upon this earth through judgment. It is the payment for our sin. It is the way we can be one with the Father once more. It is the key to salvation. It is the path to eternal life. It is our greatest weapon in spiritual warfare. It is what makes the demons tremble. It washes us clean in the sight of our Daddy. With it and through it we have all things. Without it, we have nothing and no hope. Do not allow any teaching to come against it. Do not partake in any teaching that tries to destroy the holy purpose of the blood. To do so is demonic. You will be denying your own salvation. Worst of all, it would mean that you are denying Jesus Christ Himself. Brother and Sister, Jesus loved us enough to die for us. He used His own blood to purchase us back again. Protect the currency of that purchase, and the spiritual authority it carries. Satan is defeated and the blood reminds him of that daily. Partake in the Lord’s Supper often. Do it at church and at home. Apply the blood of Jesus upon the doorpost of your heart, in doing so you will live forevermore.

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