The blood of Christ

The person of Christ speaks of who He is, whereas the blood of Christ speaks of His work. The blood is the foundation upon which we receive all grace and blessing; therefore, it occupies an important position in the Bible. According to the Bible, the blood of Christ functions in at least twelve ways in relation to the believers.

1. The foundation of the new covenant

   1. “This is My blood of the covenant”; “The new covenant established in My blood” (Mark 14:24; Luke 22:20).

Establishing a covenant is the same as making a contract that explains and guarantees the actions of two parties. God made a covenant with us so that we could be graced in Him. Through His covenant He not only explained but also guaranteed His grace to us. We are sinners, and God’s righteousness places demands upon sinners. In order for the righteous God to grace us, He had to satisfy the demands of His righteousness. The redemption of Christ accomplished this on our behalf. Christ received God’s punishment on our behalf and satisfied the righteous requirement that God placed on us as sinners. The blood shed through the death of Christ paid the price required by God’s righteousness; consequently, God can legally and righteously grace us. He established the new covenant with us by the blood of Christ, just as He established the old covenant with the children of Israel by the blood of calves and goats (Heb. 9:18-20). The blood of Christ is the foundation of the new covenant that God established with us, and it is eternally effective. Under the new covenant God must grace us and keep His word of promise to us.

1. 2. “The blood of the covenant”; “The blood of an eternal covenant” (Heb. 10:29; 13:20).

      1. The blood of the Lord not only redeems us from our sins, but it also establishes a covenant with us that requires God to forgive our sins, grace us, and accomplish all His promises to us. Thus, the blood of the Lord is not only redeeming blood but also the blood of the covenant. The Lord’s blood established a new covenant for us, an eternal covenant. Therefore, this blood is called the blood of an eternal covenant. The new covenant cannot be annulled, because the Lord’s blood is eternally efficacious; it is not a temporary covenant established by the blood of calves and goats, which was effective only in type for a time.

      2. All the grace and blessings given to us by God are included in the new covenant and are given to us in the execution of the new covenant. This new covenant has been established and is efficacious because the Lord shed His blood through death, fully satisfying God’s righteous requirement. This means that God must grace us. Thus, the Lord’s blood established a new covenant for us and made this new covenant efficacious.

2. The price of redemption

   1. “In whom we have redemption through His blood”; “You were redeemed...with precious blood...the blood of Christ” (Eph. 1:7; 1 Pet. 1:18-19).

We were under the law of God because of sin. However, the Lord died for us according to God’s righteousness and satisfied the requirement of God’s law. Consequently, the blood that He shed for us has redeemed us out from under the condemnation of the law. Therefore, we have been redeemed before God by the Lord’s blood. The Lord’s blood is so efficacious, so valuable, that the Bible calls His blood “precious blood.” The Lord’s precious blood was the price paid for our redemption.

2. 2.  “The church of God, which He obtained through His own blood”; “You...have purchased for God by Your blood men out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation” (Acts 20:28; Rev. 5:9 see also 1 Cor. 6:20; 7:23).

The Lord’s blood redeemed us, that is, purchased us back, to God. The Lord’s blood is precious blood. God used this precious blood to purchase us back to Him as His important treasure, the church.

2. 3. The foundation of forgiveness

      1. “Without shedding of blood there is no forgiveness” (Heb. 9:22).

The righteousness of God does not tolerate sin. It cannot leave sin unpunished nor forgive sin without satisfying His requirement for punishment. If the requirement of God’s righteousness is not satisfied, sin cannot be forgiven. Therefore, there must be an offering to bear the punishment associated with God’s righteousness so that sinners can receive forgiveness according to God’s righteousness. If blood is not shed, sins cannot be forgiven. When the Lord was crucified on our behalf, shedding His blood, He bore the righteous punishment of God and satisfied God’s righteous requirement. Through the shedding of His blood, our sins have been forgiven by God.

2. 3. 2. “This is My blood of the covenant, which is being poured out for many for forgiveness of sins”; “Redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of offenses” (Matt. 26:28; Eph. 1:7).

The Lord’s shed blood causes our sins and offenses to be forgiven. Therefore, it is the foundation upon which we receive forgiveness of sins. Only the Lord’s blood can cause our sins and offenses to be forgiven.

3. The means for cleansing

   1. “Washed us from our sins in his own blood” (Rev. 1:5, KJV).

The Lord’s blood causes sins not only to be forgiven but also to be cleansed. The Lord’s blood is not only the foundation of our forgiveness but also the means for us to be cleansed.

3. 2. “How much more will the blood of Christ...purify our conscience...?” (Heb. 9:14).

When we were sinners before God, our conscience condemned us. Since the Lord’s blood has taken away our sins before God, our conscience no longer condemns us. The Lord’s blood purifies our conscience from all feelings of condemnation.

3. 3. “The blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from every sin” (1 John 1:7).

The Lord’s blood does not wash us only of the sins we committed before we were saved. When we confess the sins that we commit after being saved, the blood washes us also of these sins.

3. 4. “They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Rev. 7:14).

Robes refers to righteous acts after being saved (19:8). Even after we are saved, it is hard to avoid being defiled in our conduct. When we are defiled in any way, we can be washed from these defilements by the Lord’s blood.

4. The foundation for sanctification

   1. “That He might sanctify the people through His own blood” (Heb. 13:12).

To be sanctified is to be separated unto God. Since the Lord’s blood causes us to turn from sin and purchases us back to God, it separates us and sanctifies us. Therefore, the Lord’s blood is the foundation of our sanctification.

4. 2.  “The blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified” (Heb. 10:29).

The Lord’s blood is not only for redemption from sin but also for sanctification. We are sanctified through the Lord’s blood.

5. The foundation for justification

   1. “Having now been justified in His blood” (Rom. 5:9 see also 3:25-26).

The Lord died and shed His blood to satisfy God’s righteous requirement for us. Now God is required not only to forgive our sins but also to justify us according to His righteousness. Therefore, the Lord’s blood causes us to be justified by God. God justifies us because of the Lord’s blood, and we receive God’s justification by the Lord’s blood. The Lord’s blood is the foundation of our justification.

6. The foundation for reconciliation

   1. “Through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross — through Him, whether the things on the earth or the things in the heavens” (Col. 1:20).

Because of man’s sin, nothing, including man, was properly related to God. When the Lord’s blood took away our sins before God, the Lord made peace with us and with all things, reconciling us and all things to God. Thus, the Lord’s blood is the foundation of reconciliation between God and all things, including us.

7. The means for receiving eternal life

   1. “Jesus therefore said...He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life” (John 6:53-54).

Because the Lord’s blood washed us of our sins, it enabled us to obtain God’s holy life, which is God Himself as the eternal life. God gives us His eternal life because the Lord shed His blood for us. The Lord’s blood is the means for us to receive God’s eternal life.

8. The means for coming near to God

   1. “In Christ Jesus you who were once far off have become near in the blood of Christ” (Eph. 2:13).

Once we were far from God. When the Lord’s blood dealt with our sins, our position changed, and we have come near to God.

8. 2. “Having...boldness for entering the Holy of Holies in the blood of Jesus” (Heb. 10:19).

Originally, our sins made us unable and afraid to come to God. The Lord’s blood takes away our sin before God and cleanses our conscience from all feelings of condemnation, enabling us to come near to God and to boldly enter the Holy of Holies to fellowship with Him. Thus, the Lord’s blood is also the means for us to come near to God. Every time we come to God, we must come in the Lord’s blood.

9. The better advocate for the believers

   1. “The blood of sprinkling, which speaks something better than that of Abel” (Heb. 12:24).

      1. In ancient times the blood of Abel cried out to God from the ground, asking God to avenge him (Gen. 4:10); thus, his blood asked God to condemn. Now, however, the blood of the Lord Jesus speaks on our behalf before God as our Advocate, asking God to forgive us according to His righteousness. Therefore, the blood of the Lord speaks something better than that of Abel’s blood.

      2. The law of God condemns us because of our sins, and even the devil can condemn us before God because of our sins. However, since the Lord’s blood has satisfied the righteous requirement of God’s law and redeemed us from our sins before God, His blood speaks for us before God. It defends us so that the law of God cannot condemn us and so that the devil’s condemnation is ineffective. Thus, the Lord’s blood is a better Advocate before God.

10. The basis for the believers’ fellowship

    1. “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the fellowship of the blood of Christ?” (1 Cor. 10:16).

Believers break bread together and fellowship with one another because we all have received the redemption of the Lord’s blood. We fellowship together in the Lord’s blood. This is the story told by the cup that we bless during the Lord’s table. The Lord’s blood is the basis of our fellowship.

11. The weapon for overcoming the enemy

    1. “They overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb” (Rev. 12:11).

       1. By the Lord’s blood we overcome our enemy, the devil, who accuses us. When we cast out demons and fight spiritual battles, we need to rely on the Lord’s blood to overcome Satan’s authority of darkness. The Lord’s blood is our weapon to overcome Satan.

       2. The Lord’s blood enables us to obtain life and maintain our living before God; therefore, in the Bible God ordained that we not eat any blood (Gen. 9:4; Lev. 17:10, 14; Deut. 12:16, 23-25; Acts 15:20, 29). This signifies that no blood can enable us to obtain life or live before God other than the Lord’s blood. We may eat only the Lord’s blood because only His blood enables us to receive life and live before God (John 6:54-55).