The Blood of Christ
“But when Christ came as high
priest of the good things that are now already here, he went through the
greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is
to say, is not a part of this creation. He did not enter by
means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once
for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. The blood
of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are
ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who
through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our
consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living
God!” Heb. 9:11-14
The author of
Hebrews states the truth that Jesus Christ came as our high priest and to serve
in the capacity of a better priesthood, in the order of Melchizedek. Melchizedek was not only a priest, but also a
king – pointing the way to Jesus.
As our high
priest, Christ went through the better tabernacle; the heavenly tabernacle that
was foreshadowed in the Tabernacle of Moses.
Jesus entered by His own blood, as both the sacrifice and the one
bringing the sacrifice. He entered once,
doing so on the cross, and shed His blood, the blood better than that of
sacrificed animals. The blood of animals
provided for temporary atonement and according to Heb. 9:13 that blood provided
for an outward cleaning. The blood of
Jesus however, provides for permanent atonement (it only had to be done once)
and His blood cleanses the conscience of the followers.
Friends, this is
a major difference. We are inwardly
cleansed by the blood of Jesus, when we give Him permission to enter every area
of our lives. He goes to the hurting
places, wounded places, broken places, and the essence of who we are as
people. That is what it means to have
our conscience cleansed. In each one of
those places our Savior applies His blood to clear away hurts, heal brokenness
and woundedness, and restore us to rightness in our relationship with God and
our relationships with others.
Our conscience
is the part of us that knows the difference between right and wrong, especially
as we grow in our relationship with God.
It is a connection point between the Holy Spirit and our spirit and is
the part of us that reproves sin and approves the righteousness of God in
Christ. Because of the blood of Christ
that cleanses our conscience, though we will be brought under the convicting
power of the Holy Spirit, we do not have to allow ourselves to become stuck in
condemnation. Such conviction of sin in
our lives is temporary if we keep a short record of accounts. Condemnation can be indefinite and very
damaging to our soul, affecting our thoughts, words, and behaviors.
Heb. 10:19-22
reinforce these key points. We have
confidence in Christ and so can enter the heavenly Most Holy Place (anytime),
as the body of Jesus was the veil and His blood was the new path for His
followers to take to access the presence of God. Christ is the high priest over the whole
house of God, far greater than the high priests in the tabernacle of
Moses. So we can draw near to God,
because the way has been made for us by Jesus’ body and blood. We come to the very presence of God with full
faith, in order to have our conscience cleansed and our bodies washed.
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