THE AWESOME POWER OF
JESUS’ BLOOD!
By Pastor Max
Solbrekken, D.D.
Jesus said: “For from within, out of the heart of men,
proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness,
wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:
All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.” (Mark 7: 21-23)
Any
honest person will admit that it’s hard to be good. Man’s natural tendency is
toward that which is sinful, immoral and illegal! You don’t need to teach
children how to lie. That comes naturally to them, even before they have
learned to speak. When asked if he has raided the cookie jar, little Billy will
shake his head meaning “no”, even while he is hiding it behind his back!
The questions I
pose are: “Where did sin come from? Why are we in this terrible predicament? Is
there any hope of being free?”
The Bible –
our highest moral authority – gives it to us straight: “Ye are of your father, the
devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer
from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in
him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar and the
father of it.” (John 8: 44)
NO SIN IN
THE GARDEN OF EDEN!
There was no sin in the Garden of Eden until Satan introduced it to
our first parents, Adam and Eve! When they rebelled against the Almighty,
disobeying His command, sin entered into the world.
With sin came guilt, condemnation, sickness and death; as
well as perdition, damnation – Separation from God and Hell!
There was no
hope for mankind - until God in His mercy - sent His Son Jesus Christ to bear
our punishment and die in our place.
Then, He arose from the dead, a Mighty Conqueror over
sin, death, hell and the grave!
The Bible says: “Jesus was delivered for our offences (sins),
and raised again for our justification.” (Rom. 4: 25) Justification is an act of free grace by
which God pardons the sinner and accepts him as righteous, because of the
atonement of Christ. Faith is the only means of justification.” (Rom.3: 25)
God’s Word
states: “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God; Being
justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”
(Rom.3: 23, 24); “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal
life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Rom.6: 23)
GREATEST LOVE STORY EVER TOLD!
The Bible
says: “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ
died for us. Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall
be saved from wrath through Him.
"For if when
we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son,
much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.” (Rom.5: 6-10)
“For God so loved the world that He grace His (One
and only)
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but
have everlasting life. For
God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world
through Him might be saved.” (John 3: 16-17)
The Bible says, “Without the shedding of
blood there is no remission of sins.” (Lev. 17:11,14) “It is the blood that
maketh atonement for the soul.” (Heb. 9:22) “And the blood of Jesus Christ,
His Son, cleanseth us from all sins.”
(1 John 1:9)
The blood of Jesus, shed
for us all on Golgotha , has purchased our
salvation! When a sinner comes to Jesus, however, he receives a NEW NATURE - the nature of God! The Bible says: “Whereby are given unto us
exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of
the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the
world through lust.” (1 Peter 1: 4)
I) WE RECEIVE FORGIVENESS OF OUR SINS THROUGH HIS BLOOD!
“In Whom we have redemption
through His blood, even THE FORGIVENESS OF
SINS, according to the
riches of His grace”. (Eph. 1:7) The
heaviest weight to carry is the ‘load of sin’. And the greatest
blessing in the world is the removal of that horrible burden!
The Bible says:
“There is therefore no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not
after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” (Rom. 8:1) “Blessed is he whose transgression
is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man unto whom the
Lord imputeth not iniquity…” (Ps.32: 1,2)
(II) WE RECEIVE REDEMPTION THROUGH
HIS BLOOD!
“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:” (1 Peter 1:18-19) “Take heed
therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock…which He hath purchased with
His own blood.” (Acts 20:28)
To be redeemed means to be bought back, set
free, rescued, saved! We were lost in sin, slaves to the devil, the world
and self. And then, Jesus the Christ came to our rescue and purchased our
freedom, through His sacrificial death on the cross for us!
(III) WE RECEIVE
CLEANSING FROM SIN THROUGH HIS BLOOD!
“But
if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with
another, And the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sins." (1 John 1; 7)
To be cleansed means to be made clean,
washed, purged! We were unclean –
sinners by birth, nature and choice. The Bible states: “But we were all as an
unclean thing, and all our righteousness are as filthy rags…and our iniquities,
like the wind, have taken us away.” (Is. 64: 6)
“All we like sheep have gone
astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the Lord hath laid
upon Him (Messiah Jesus) the iniquity of us all.” (Is. 53: 6)
Jesus’ blood makes us clean in the sight of Almighty God. His vicarious death for us satisfied
the demands of Divine Justice. God honours Christ’s act of substitution on our
behalf – so we are free. He paid our debt! (Col. 2:14,15)
(IV) WE HAVE DELIVERANCE FROM OUR SINS BY
HIS BLOOD!
“And from Jesus Christ, Who is the faithful witness, and
the first begotten of the dead, and the Prince of the kings of the earth. Unto
Him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in His own blood.” (Rev.
1:5)
To be free from the guilt of sinfulness is wonderful. To
walk in victory over sin by the power of Jesus’ blood is a definite reality.
Only in the strength of the Holy Spirit is this possible! The text states:
“Unto Him that loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood." (Rev. 1:5)
Our sins are gone forever – they have no
more power over us! Past sins are forgiven and forgotten by our Lord. And we
receive strength through Jesus’ blood, the Holy Spirit and the Word of God to
overcome new temptations!
(V) WE ARE JUSTIFIED THROUGH HIS
BLOOD!
“Being
now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.” (Rom.
5:9) “Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that
is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through
faith in His blood, to declare the righteousness for the remission of
sins that are past, through the forbearance of God.” (Rom.
To be justified means to be made right and just in
the sight of God. Through Jesus’ blood, we are able to stand in God’s presence without
fault, fear or condemnation. God looks upon us through the blood of Jesus, His
Son and does not see our sins and shortcomings!
The Bible says:
“Thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption; for
Thou
has cast all my sins behind Thy back.” (Is. 38: 17)
The Hebrew word
that is used here for back is very specific. Literally, it says: “behind Thy back, between Thy shoulder blades.”
It is impossible to see something behind one’s back, between his shoulder
blades!
“…He will have
compassion upon us; He will subdue our iniquities; and Thou wilt cast all their
sins into the depths of the sea.” (Micah 7:19)
(VI) WE RECEIVE PEACE
THROUGH HIS BLOOD!
“And having made peace
through the death of His cross, by Him to receive all things unto Himself.”
(Col. 1:20) Life’s most precious
commodity is peace of mind. People spend fortunes seeking peace through
vacation, exotic travel, erotic pleasure, new therapies and alternate
medicines, often to no avail!
Real peace of
mind comes only through receiving Christ: “Therefore being justified by faith, we
have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Rom 5:1) “And the
peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds
through Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 4:7)
Here is GOD’S WARNING to the ungodly: “But the wicked are like the
troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt.
There is no peace sayeth my God to the wicked.” (Is.57: 20,21)
(VII) WE RECEIVE ACCESS TO THE FATHER THROUGH
HIS BLOOD!
“Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the
holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and
living way, which He hath consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say, His flesh.”
(Heb. 10:19-20)
The blood that Jesus shed provides access
for us into the very presence of God in Heaven. The Blood of Jesus did not die!
David prophesied of Messiah: “Therefore My heart is glad, and My glory
rejoiceth: My flesh also shall rest in hope. For Thou wilt not leave My soul in
hell; neither wilt Thou suffer Thine Holy One to see corruption.”
(Ps.16: 9,10)
In his Pentecostal message, St. Peter
quoted David’s prophecy to prove that Jesus was raised from the dead, without
His body corrupting! (Acts 2: 25-27)
JESUS’ BLOOD IS ALIVE and grants us access into God’s presence! Jesus fulfilled all the
requirements of both the ‘Sacrifice Lamb’ and ‘High Priest’, when He gave Himself as our substitute
in the “death of the cross”. (Phil.2: 8)
The Bible says:
“Seeing then that we have a Great High Priest, that is passed into the heavens,
Jesus
the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.
"Which hope we have as
an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entereth into that
within the veil; Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made
an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedic.” (Heb.4: 14; 6:
19,20)
“But this Man,
because He continueth forever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore
He is able to save them to the uttermost that come to God by Him, seeing He
ever liveth to make intercession for them.
“For such an high
priest…Who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from
sinners, and made higher than the heavens; Who needeth not daily, as
those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for
the people’s: for this He did ONCE, when He offered up HIMSELF.” (Heb.
7:24-27)
“But Christ being
come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more
perfect tabernacle, not made with hands…not of this building; Neither by the
blood of goats and calves, BUT BY HIS OWN BLOOD He entered in once
into the Holy Place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.
“For if the blood
of bulls and goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean,
sanctifieth to the purification of the flesh: How much more shall not the
blood of Christ, Who through the eternal Spirit OFFERED HIMSELF without spot to God, purge your
conscience from dead works to serve the Living God? And for this cause He is
the mediator of the New Testament, that BY MEANS OF DEATH, for the
redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they
which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.” (Heb. 9:
11-15)
“By
the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus
Christ once for all. And every priest standeth daily ministering and
offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But THIS
MAN, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat
down on the right hand of God. (Heb.10: 10-12) “Having therefore, brethren,
boldness to enter into the HOLIEST BY THE BLOOD OF JESUS.” (Heb.10: 19)
When Jesus appeared to Mary at the tomb,
He said: “Touch Me not; for I am not yet ascended to My Father: but go to
My brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto My Father, and your Father; and
to My God and your God.” (John 20: 17)
He had to carry HIS OWN BLOOD
into the ‘holy of holies’ in heaven, to atone for the sins of the entire world,
before anyone was allowed to touch Him!
WHY? The high priest was not
allowed contact with anyone on the ‘Day
of Atonement’, until he had finished his ministration. He alone could enter
the holiest – where God’s presence was - with
the sacrificial blood of an innocent animal, to sprinkle on the mercy seat for
his sins and that of his nation!
If God accepted the offering, he
returned with the good news. If He did not, the high priest would die and had
to be ‘pulled out’ by a rope that was tied to his left ankle. No one else could
enter God’s AWESOME presence and live!
Dealing with sin is serious
business. An innocent life had to die so that sin could be forgiven! That is
why Jesus, God’s Son, came to this earth as ‘Jehovah’s Suffering Servant’ (Is.
53) to suffer, bleed and die in our place, to implement God’s great salvation
plan to redeem fallen mankind!
The great theologian, DR.
ARTHUR MURRAY , in his
powerful book ‘The Blood of His Cross’
states: “Reconciliation and deliverance from guilt will become the blessed
entrance for us into a life in which the blood
- as it was transported into
heaven and abides there – will be truly the power of divine abiding life in
us.”
DR.MARTIN
LUTHER writes: “First, the Blood of Christ remains
the blood of the same Christ. For we
believe and hold that the Blood of Christ that is NOW at the right hand of God was
shed for us ONCE ONLY.” (Church and Ministry, Luther’s Works vol. 40, page 215)
(VIII) WE RECEIVE
DIVINE HEALING THROUGH HIS BLOOD!
“But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was
bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement
of our peace was upon Him; and with His stripes we are healed.”(Is. 53:5)
“Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being
dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by Whose stripes ye were healed”
(1 Pet. 2:24)
Through His wounds, Jesus purchased divine
healing for all who appropriate God’s promises for themselves!
(IX) WE RECEIVE VICTORY OVER THE DEVIL THROUGH HIS BLOOD!
“And they overcame him (Satan) by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony.” (Rev. 12:11) There is no one as evil,
deceptive and wicked as Satan, the adversary of God and man.
The devil, however, is no match for Jesus.
In His name, we can overcome Satan’s temptations and onslaughts!
The Bible says: “Be sober, be vigilant; because your
adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may
devour: Whom resist steadfast in the faith…” (1 Peter 5: 8,9) “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he shall flee from
you.” (James 4:7)
(X) WE ARE SANCTIFIED
THROUGH HIS BLOOD!
“Wherefore
Jesus also, that He might sanctify His people with His own blood, suffered
without the gate.” (Heb. 13:12) To be
sanctified, means to be set apart for God. Sanctification is a holy state
in which we are given over wholly to the Lord. We are separated unto the Lord,
from the world!
The
Bible says: “…to the elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in
sanctification
of the Spirit unto obedience and the sprinkling of the blood of Jesus
Christ: grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied.” (1 Peter 1: 1, 2)
Dr. Andrew Murray stated:
“Everything is of the Father, everything is in the Son, everything is through
the Spirit. The entire carrying
out of the counsel of God is through the Holy Spirit, and the sanctification
and the impartation of divine holiness which He works.”
(XI) WE RECEIVE A CLEAR CONSCIENCE THROUGH HIS
BLOOD!
“How much more shall the
blood of Christ, Who through the Eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to
God, purge
your conscience (mind) from dead works, to serve the Living God?” (Heb.
9:14)
No
amount of counselling can give a person a clear conscience. That comes only
through confession of sin to God and receiving assurance of sins forgiven by
the blessed Holy Spirit. Only the blood of Jesus Christ and the
Word of God has the power to cleanse, purge and free the conscience!
(XII) WE RECEIVE
ETERNAL GLORY THROUGH HIS BLOOD!
“These are they
which come out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes and made them
white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne
of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple: and He that sitteth on the
throne shall dwell among them…
“For
the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead
them unto living fountains of water: and God shall wipe away all tears from
their eyes.” (Rev.7:14-17)
CHRIST’S
CROSS
AND OUR
SINS!
The world has a way of crucifying those
whom it does not like. Jesus told the truth. The world could not stand the
truth. The world put Him to death.
What sin really crucified Christ? Was it Peter’s
denial? Judas’ betrayal? The disciples’cowardice? Can we blame Pilate for
conforming to the crowd’s demands? Does the fault lie with those who cried, “Crucify Him”? Did the priests weigh in on the crime?
It
was all these: Denial! Betrayal! Cowardice! Conformity!
Pride! Jealousy!
These sins nailed Christ to the tree. And we
are troubled when we see that these very sins reside in us all. Therefore it is
our pride, our conformity, our betrayal which crucified the Lord Jesus!
The cross of Christ speaks of our sin!
But, for those who admit weakness and spiritual poverty, the cross becomes the
power of God unto salvation.” – anon
