It All Points to Jesusਨਮੂਨਾ

Monday, April 14

Blood

By Greg Thompson

Conway Campus, Contributor

...and through him to reconcile to himself all things,
whether things on earth or things in heaven,
by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
Colossians 1:20 (NIV)

From the beginning, blood has meant life. In the Old Testament, God established a sacrificial system as a means of atonement—a way to make things right between God and his people, restoring the relationship that sin had broken. Our sin demanded a price of ongoing, repetitive repayment to restore relationship with God, and that price was blood. "For the life of a creature is in the blood," the Lord declared, "and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar" (Leviticus 17:11). This was not a mere ritual; it was a tangible, weighty reminder that sin had real consequences, requiring a life in exchange.

One of the most striking uses of blood in the Old Testament was at Passover, the final night before Israel’s deliverance from Egypt. For hundreds of years, the Israelites had endured enslavement at the hands of the Egyptians. Pharaoh refused to let them go, stubbornly resisting nine increasingly onerous plaques. He only released them from captivity after God sent a final plague of death upon the firstborn Egyptian children.

To protect his people and as a foreshadowing of a greater sacrifice to come, God instructed his people to slaughter a lamb and paint its blood on their doorposts with a hyssop branch. The blood applied with hyssop was a sign, a covering of protection, causing the Angel of Death bringing calamity to Egypt to pass over their marked homes (Exodus 12:22-23). Without the blood, the destroyer would enter, leaving death in its terrible wake. Blood on the doorpost protected the Israelites from death. Why did God require blood to be spread on the doorposts using a hyssop branch? Hyssop itself held symbolic significance in purification rituals, in people being cleansed of sin.

Centuries later, Jesus knew his blood would be required as a sacrifice for humanity’s sins. He, as the Son of God, would become the ultimate Passover lamb. On the cross, his blood did what no animal sacrifice ever could: it streamed down as the final, perfect offering. No more lambs, no more sacrifices—the debt owed to satisfy the penalty of our sin was paid in full. "He entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption" (Hebrews 9:12). The Passover lamb had come full circle. All along, the blood on the doorposts in Egypt had pointed to the blood on the cross at Golgotha.

Jesus willingly poured out his life to bring us peace with God. During Holy Week, we remember this great exchange—his life for ours, his blood for our redemption. As Colossians 1:20 declares, his blood made peace between God and us, breaking down the barrier of sin and ushering in a new life of grace.

Reflect
How does understanding the significance of Jesus’ blood deepen your appreciation for his sacrifice and your salvation?