Friday April 18, 2014
Building People of Substance for Works of Power
It’s Bloody Friday, Friend.
The calendar says it is Good Friday, the day Christians traditionally remember the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Given the horror of that day, it might better be called Bloody Friday. But without the bloody mess on Calvary, there would be no grounds for any joy for anyone. Today I am thinking about the blood.
1. The atoning blood, the life of God. “For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul. Lev 17:11”
2. The ransom He paid because He knew my value. “Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. Act 20:28”
3. The guarantee of the New and better Covenant with better promises. “After supper He took another cup of wine and said, "This cup is the new covenant between God and His people–an agreement confirmed with My blood, which is poured out as a sacrifice for you. Luk 22:20 NLT”
4. The blood that declared me not guilty. “For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed His life, shedding His blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when He held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, (Rom 3:25 NLT)”
5. The blood that keeps cleansing me as I walk. “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. (1Jn 1:7 NKJV)”
Nearly every religion (even atheism) has some concept of right and wrong, and most agree on the basics of bad behavior. The disagreement comes in the cause and the cure. Only Jesus recognized the essence of sin and dealt with it in such a radical way. What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. That’s what makes it GOOD Friday!
vls
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