Chapter 7f

The Significance of

the Blood of Jesus

In this section of Angelfall, we have talked about a number of pivotal and key issues relative to God creating man, the nature of man as a spiritual being, relationship between the Creator and the creature being God's major purpose and goal, and finally the Holy Spirit that holds all of it together. We must now conclude these thoughts with the subject of the blood of Jesus, and how that relates to the big picture. This chapter will be longer than any other in this section.

Without doubt, most Christians would agree that the subject of the blood is probably the single most important topic in the entire Bible. Nothing could possibly be more significant. From Genesis to Revelation, everything starts with the blood and ends with the blood. It is somewhere at the center of virtually every doctrine.

The word "blood" appears 346 times in the Old Testament (KJV translation), and 101 times in the New Testament, i.e. 447 times in all.

For years growing up as a child, I heard Christians talk about the blood. How the blood of Jesus saves us from our sins. How we can plead the blood over sickness and have health. Preachers cast out and exorcise demons by pronouncing the blood of Jesus. In church we sing, "There is power, power, wonder working power, in the blood, of the Lamb." When parents send their little ones off to school, they pray for God's protection by placing them "under the blood."

Because there is so much emphasis in the Bible on this subject—along with all the gory animal sacrifices in the Old Testament, and Christians it seems are always talking or singing about the blood—some atheists and unbelievers have mockingly referred to Judaism and Christianity as "slaughter-house religions."

I must admit that growing up as the child of missionaries, and being in many church services, and hearing all this talk about "the blood"—this left me a little perplexed and bewildered as a young person. What was the real meaning behind all this blood stuff? I definitely believed in all of it, but like many Christians I did not fully understand the true depth of meaning.

Only until just recently did I really sit down and think about this subject in depth, and finally begin to comprehend the true meaning and vastness of it. Along with having a reserve of theomatics data and knowledge in my brain relative to many verses in the Bible, some major pieces finally began to fall rapidly into place. I began to see the true meaning of the blood in the Bible from God's perspective—something absolutely enormous and profound began to unfold itself. Yet surprisingly quite simple and understandable. Those things will now be discussed.

The Deepest Subject Possible

The more one studies this subject, it will become clear that there is no single scriptural idea, from Genesis to Revelation, more constantly and more prominently kept in view throughout the Bible, than that expressed by the words "the blood." Perhaps no other concept in all of scripture contains so much depth, so much meaning, so much spiritual intensity. It's overall prominence and significance overshadows everything else.

As someone once said, "A Christian can never learn too much about the blood." It can be safely assumed that no one out there has a full and complete understanding of this subject and all the inherent truth it represents. At least from God's point of view. And certainly there are vast realms of heavenly truth attached to the blood that will only be understood on the other side of eternity. In addition to what we do know about the blood, it deals with incomprehensible issues and matters that only heaven understands. The blood carries within itself eternal truth and value. It is without doubt the most serious, yet the most precious subject in all of God's Word. It is virtually endless.

Everything to do with our relationship to God, both now and throughout eternity, will be based upon what the blood represents.

Many Christians do not understand the "full" meaning of the blood. Therefore they do not enjoy the blessings attached to it that God has provided. They do not experience its power. Yet the blood is designed to automatically and ceaselessly carry on toward perfection its work within the life of a Christian.

May God's grace give us an understanding to at least have a peek into some of the profound truths, and the importance that God Himself attaches to it. It cannot be underestimated the importance that the blood occupies in the HEART OF GOD.

Heavenly and Eternal Issues are at Stake

This subject is of utmost importance to the Angelfall message. It relates to the very nature and purpose behind the universe itself. The blood sacrifice of Jesus on the cross accomplished two things:

• It was necessary because of the fall in order to cleanse the heavens.

• Christ's sacrifice of giving up His own life, provided the BASIS necessary for a proper relationship between the creature and the Creator for all time and eternity.

The blood insures that there will never be another rebellion and fall. The Bible specifically states in the book of Hebrews, that the blood of Jesus (and all the Old Testament sacrifices) were necessary in order to cleanse things in the heavens.

"And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be cleansed with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us" (Heb 9:22-24).

And here is another verse in Colossians.

"And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven" (Col 1:20).

Theomatics Note: These things in the heavens that needed to be cleansed and reconciled (the word "reconciled" means "to be made friendly again")—they have all the theomatics to do with the heavenly rebellion itself and the hatred an mistrust of the fallen angels towards their Creator (as expressed in the book of Job). All of the numbers to do with the angels themselves, eating from the tree of knowledge and trying to be like God—the creatures subsequent banishment from paradise—are all present within the specific words and phrases having to do with the things in heaven that were cleansed by the blood.

The Objective of This Chapter

There is enough material on this subject in our files, both with recent studies and theomatic analysis, to potentially write an entire short book on the subject of the blood.

When I sat down to write this chapter, I wanted to accomplish a few very basic things. My major goal was to explain this vast and mysterious subject from the Bible, in the most simple and understandable way possible—make it easy for any person to grasp and understand.

I believe that I have accomplished that goal. I only wish that someone else had explained all this to me in the following manner when I was a young man, many years ago. It would have greatly enriched my understanding of this "baffling" subject.

This discussion will be divided into two parts. The first portion will present an outline of the pivotal passages from the Bible that discuss the blood. This initial presentation may seem a little mundane or academic, but it is extremely important that the reader obtain a good understanding as to the key verses in the Bible that speak of the blood. Then in Part 2 of the discussion, things will become much more interesting as we will begin talking about what the blood actually represents, i.e. what it means.

An Important Resource

There are other books and articles out there that have been published on this subject. Two of the most powerful ones that I recommend for those who want a really good read and who desire to study this subject more in depth, are by Andrew Murray, a world famous South Africa missionary who died in 1917. Since both manuscripts are now in the public domain, they can be downloaded here in their entity. In my opinion, these two writings are the "gold standard" when it comes to the overall subject of the blood of Jesus as taught by the Word of God. I cannot encourage strongly enough, every Christian, to devote as much time as possible to reading (and re-reading) these books.

The Power of the Blood of Jesus (ISBN 0-8007-8169-4)

The Blood of the Cross (ISBN 0-87508-3749).

The first book, The Power of the Blood of Jesus, gives a general discussion of all the benefits and blessings that the blood provides. This is an excellent devotional book.

The second book, The Blood of the Cross, is far more potent and comprehensive, and one of the two or three most valuable books that I have in my entire personal library. It discusses a number of things related to the fall of the angels from heaven and how the blood relates to both that and God's whole plan of redemption.

As an addendum to this chapter, I have included just one chapter from The Blood of the Cross that is a must reading—an absolutely powerful presentation by Andrew Murray that really ties the whole Angelfall message together.

Looking Beyond the Natural

As we commence, the first thing a person must get out of the mind about this subject, is not to think of blood simply as a biological substance. The blood bank at the Red Cross has got nothing to do with this subject in the Bible. The blood in the Bible is absolutely symbolical in its spiritual meaning (as is true of virtually everything else). It is the spiritual/symbolic aspect that is important and the only thing that matters in the end.

We must constantly keep in mind that there is a spiritual power in the blood of Jesus and the entire scope of what it represents. Our very salvation and redemption is based upon what the blood stands for. The very fact that we will be eternally saved and allowed to go to heaven someday—this is entirely on the basis of what the blood represents in the spiritual/symbolic sense.

PART I: The Blood from Genesis to Revelation

From the closing of the gates of Eden in Genesis, to the opening of the gates of heaven in Revelation, there runs through scripture a golden thread—it is "the blood."

We will now take a short trip through the Bible and look at some of the pivotal times in mentioned in history. Virtually every phase of God's plan in both the dispensations of time and His dealing with man, was always inaugurated by the blood.

1. The First Mention of Blood in the Bible

The very first thing mentioned in the Bible right after Adam and Eve fell, was the birth of two children named Cain and Abel. In this well known story from Genesis, Cain the oldest son, was a man who farmed and worked the soil. Abel on the other hand was a shepherd who raised sheep. One day both of these brothers brought an offering and presented it to the Lord Jehovah. Cain presented God with some of the things he had grown from his garden. But his gift was not acceptable to God because it embodied man's effort that came from the ground that was cursed by God after Adam fell. Abel on the other hand, brought a sacrificial lamb, the "firstlings of his flock" and presented it to God. Only his sacrifice was acceptable.

"And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering: But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him. And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him. And the Lord said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper? And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground. And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand" (Gen 4:2-11).

So immediately after the fall of man, God established the very basis of a right relationship to Himself—it was through the blood. A perfect lamb had to be sacrificed and give its very life as an offering to God. And the reaction of that Godly disposition that Abel expressed through his offering, was vehement anger that ultimately caused innocent blood to be shed (an exact parallel to those who crucified Jesus as the Lamb of God "slain from the foundation of the world" (Rev 13:8).

There is much more to the story of Cain and Abel and the offerings they presented.

2. Noah's Flood and the Earth Cleansed by the Blood

Now much time had transpired since the creation of Adam and the world is full of people. In Genesis chapter six, the sons of God came down (most likely a description of angels), and polluted the world by "marrying" the daughters of man and producing the Nephilim, which were weird convoluted giants. The Bible describes this pre diluvium world as full of violence and wickedness beyond description.

"And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart" (Gen 6:5,6).

So God told Noah to build an ark in which eight souls were eventually saved through water, which the Bible says is a type of baptism (see 1 Pet 3:20,21). Then the rains came and God wiped away everything from the earth that was not inside the ark (which is also a type of being in Christ).

Now here is the significant part. When Noah and his three sons and all their wives emerged from the ark, and stepped onto the newly cleansed earth, here is what the Bible says happened.

"And Noah went forth, and his sons, and his wife, and his sons' wives with him: Every beast, every creeping thing, and every fowl, and whatsoever creepeth upon the earth, after their kinds, went forth out of the ark. And Noah builded an altar unto the Lord; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And the Lord smelled a sweet savour; and the Lord said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done" (Gen 8:18-21).

So right here at the new beginning of the new civilization, a blood sacrifice was necessary. The newly re-created earth had to be baptized in blood in order to be acceptable to God.

3. Abraham Offers Isaac on the Altar

Now time moves on and the earth is again populated with people. From the pagan land of sun worshippers in the vicinity of Babylon, God calls forth a man named Abram taking him hundreds of miles West to Palestine, and there He gives him many great promises. His offspring would be as the stars of heaven and as the sand of the sea. Later God changed his name to Abraham.

Each time God visits and communicates with him, Abram builds a stone altar as a memorial to the encounter. But the Bible does not say that he offered any blood sacrifice on those altars.

But there was a basic problem. Abraham and his wife Sarah are childless. How could he possibly become the father of many nations without a child of his own? Abraham then decided to take matters into his own hand and help God fulfill His word. Since his wife Sarah was beyond child bearing age, he went into their servant woman Hagar who bore him a son named Ishmael.

Abraham proceeded for fifteen years believing that Ishmael was to be his heir. Now he and Sarah are 100 years old—certainly a total impossibility of ever giving birth. It was at that time God visited him again, and told him that the son of promise was not going to be Ishmael, but his name was going to be Isaac.

What is most astounding about this is that Ishmael became the father of all the Arab people who follow the Islamic religion. Isaac on the other hand was the father of Israel, Judaism, and Christianity. Because Abraham tried to rush ahead of God's will, today we have over one billion Muslim people living in the world who are at severe odds and hate both Israel and Christianity.

"And God said, Sarah thy wife shall bear thee a son indeed; and thou shalt call his name Isaac: and I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him" (Gen 17:19).

Now that Abraham finally had the genuine heir GOD HIMSELF had provided, the Lord placed him in a position where he was to face his greatest test ever. Before any of the great promises could be fulfilled, a blood sacrifice was necessary. His only son would have to be GIVEN BACK to the God who had given the gift.

"And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of" (Gen 22:2).

This well known account concludes when Abraham raised his knife to slay his son, that the angel of the Lord stopped the whole process "mid air." It was the willingness of Abraham's heart that God was after. Instead, a ram was offered whose horns got caught behind him in a thicket. Here is what it says in the New Testament.

"By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son. Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure" (Heb 11:17-19).

Only through a blood sacrifice of a life could God fulfill His entire promise to Abraham and establish His covenant. Yet this event was only the beginning.

Comment on the ram: There are some absolutely phenomenal truths to do with the ram caught by its horns in a thicket. A theomatic analysis has been done on this story, and there are some stark parallels to the fall from heaven. Much of this has to do with the angels (see passage of Daniel 8:3-12, to do with the ram seen in heaven and the stars cast down). The ram in the Bible speaks of belligerence and strong willed rebellion (and also the earthly nations—see Daniel 8:20). All of the theomatics are present to do with the spirit of rebellion, particularly the horns of the ram. The thicket has to do with all sorts of worldly and humanistic philosophies. It speaks of the dead end street that resulted from man eating of the tree of knowledge, i.e. Babylon and confusion. And the spirit of rebellion got entangled in all of that. When Abraham had obeyed God by WILLINGLY offering his only Son, then God accepted that and spared his life (a type of the resurrection of Jesus), and in lieu of that, the ram of heavenly rebellion was instead slain on the altar. The power of the rebellion of the angels had been broken through the sacrifice of God's only begotten Son.

4. The Deliverance of Israel at the Passover

Four hundred years have now passed since the time of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the people have multiplied in Egypt. It was now time for Moses to deliver them from the grip of Pharaoh.

What the blood had accomplished for Abel, and for Noah, and for Abraham, must now be the experience of the entire Jewish nation. The Lord had sent nine of his ten plagues upon Egypt, but Pharaoh would refuse to "let my people go." One more thing was about to happen.

The death angel would visit, and the oldest male child in every household would die during the night. The next morning a great cry was heard throughout the land of Egypt. Only those houses were spared that were protected by the blood. Most of the entire chapter of Exodus 12—all 28 verses, tell this amazing story. Here are just a few of the verses. This is a profound.

"Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house... Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year... and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it... And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the Lord's Passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever... Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the Passover. And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the basin; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning. For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the Lord will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you. And ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons for ever.... And it came to pass, that at midnight the Lord smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle."

To this day, the Jewish Passover is one of the most solemn ceremonies in Judaism. The tragic thing is that they do not understand the meaning of it nor how it points to the Lord Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross. The main point from this story is that life and deliverance from the house of slavery of Pharaoh, and the journey to the promised land, could not happen until it was initiated by the blood. A life had to be given and sacrificed in their place, and appropriated to their lives (placed upon their dwellings).

5. The Law, the Ten Commandments, the Altar, and the People

Sprinkled with the Blood

When God gave the law to Moses at Mt. Sinai, along with the ten commandments, this was an event of epic proportions. For the law was the foundation of God's covenant with Israel. The entire agreement that God made was based strictly upon the blood, and was actually referred to by God Himself as "the blood of the covenant."

"And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do. And Moses wrote all the words of the Lord, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the hill, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. And he sent young men of the children of Israel, which offered burnt offerings, and sacrificed peace offerings of oxen unto the Lord. And Moses took half of the blood, and put it in basins; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the Lord hath said will we do, and be obedient. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the BLOOD OF THE COVENANT, which the Lord hath made with you concerning all these words... And they saw the God of Israel: and there was under his feet as it were a paved work of a sapphire stone, and as it were the body of heaven in his clearness... And the glory of the Lord abode upon mount Sinai. And the sight of the glory of the Lord was like devouring fire on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel" (Exo 24:3-8,10,15,17).

So we find right here that everything involving the law itself, as well as the people themselves, had to be covered and sprinkled with the blood. It was in the very blood itself that the covenant of the law was made. Throughout the Bible many people and objects were constantly sprinkled with blood. What that means is that the blood when sprinkled was simply being APPLIED (in a spiritually symbolic sense).

Immediately after this sprinkling took place, the command was given, "Let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell within them" (Exo 25:8).

6. The Tabernacle and Temple in the Old Testament

Now we come to the final major portion of this entire subject from the Old Testament—the tabernacle of Moses in the wilderness, followed many years later by the great temple in Jerusalem that Solomon built. These two houses or worship, which were virtually identical in their original plan or pattern, encompasses the entire Jewish religious system from the Old Testament—clear up to the time of the New Testament when Jesus came.

God gave detailed and explicit instructions as to the design and implementation of these houses of worship. At the very center of every aspect of ceremony and worship—the entire religion for that matter—there was the blood.

In the outer court surrounding the tabernacle, the first thing visible, was (1) the altar of the burn offering. Here animals that were slain and consumed by the fire from morning to night. Literally thousands of sacrifices per year. Next, enter into the tabernacle itself to the holy place where (2) the altar of incense and the temple veil itself, were continuously sprinkled with the blood. Beyond the veil was (3) the most holy place or "holy of holies," at the very center of which God Himself dwelt on His throne, which was the ark of the covenant, Once a year the High Priest entered that room by himself to bring the blood, and to worship God. The highest act of that worship was the sprinkling of blood on the mercy seat of the golden ark, covered by the wings of the hovering angel/cherubim.

The One Thing Needful

Hundreds of times in the Old Testament the blood is mentioned. Always and for everything, the blood was the one thing needful. At the consecration of the house, of the priests; at the birth of a Jewish child; in the deepest penitence on account of sin; in the highest festivals; always, and in everything that occurred, the way of fellowship with God was through the blood alone.

This continued for 1500 years—all the way until Jesus Himself came. By dying on the cross and shedding His own blood, Christ brought in the substance of what all the Old Testament shadows stood for and represented. Everything that occurred in the old dispensation ENDED IN ONE INSTANT on Calvary when the perfect Lamb of God died for the sins of the cosmos.

We will talk about what all this means in Part II of this chapter. First let us examine the New Testament.

The Blood in the New Testament

Now we come to the New Testament. With the coming of Jesus, all of the old shadows and types have passed away. All things mentioned in the Old Testament were destined to become new. Read now the words from the following verse. The following passage also shows the heavenly connotation that the blood has.

"But ye are come unto mount Zion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect, And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel" (Heb 12:22-24).

The very first act towards God in the Old Testament was when Abel offered to God a perfect sacrificial lamb. "And Abel brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof." And the very first words spoken concerning Jesus were by John the Baptist, "Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (Joh 1:29). And in the book of Revelation, Jesus is described—in the eternal plan and purpose of God—as "The Lamb slain from the foundation of the world" (Rev 13:8). And John the Baptist was the very last of the Old Testament prophets, a voice crying in the wilderness, ushering in a whole new transitional phase of relationship between God and man.

Jesus came to earth from His Father in heaven. And He is the only way we can ever understand God or know anything about God. For He Himself said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: No man cometh unto the Father, but by me" (John 14:6)

His very blood is what actually saves us and redeems us. There is no hope of eternal life whatsoever, apart from the precious blood of Jesus that was shed for our redemption and salvation, and all that the blood itself represents.

The following two verses, also in Hebrews, are some of the more key verses from the Bible that shows this fact—only the blood of Christ is what ultimately counts and has value—not the blood from the Old Testament animal sacrifices.

"NEITHER BY THE BLOOD OF GOATS AND CALVES, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place (holy of holies), having obtained eternal redemption for us. For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall 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?" (Heb 9:12-14).

The following shows that the New Testament altar supercedes everything.

"We have an altar, whereof THEY HAVE NO RIGHT to eat which serve the tabernacle. For the bodies of those beasts, whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned without the camp. Wherefore Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered outside the gate" (Heb 13:10-12).

And here is yet another major passage that provides further confirmation.

"For the law having A SHADOW of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. (2) For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. (3) But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. (4) For it is NOT POSSIBLE THAT THE BLOOD OF BULLS AND GOATS should take away sins. (5) Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: (6) In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. (7) Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. (8) Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; (9) Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. (10) By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ ONCE FOR ALL" (Heb 10:1-10).

When Jesus died He completed everything that the blood required. By His one sacrifice on the cross, EVERYTHING was provided to satisfy the heart of God and pay the price for our sin and rebellion.

A Listing of New Testament Blood Passages

Just to get an idea of the significance that the blood of Jesus incorporates, here now is a general and partial listing of some of the major passages from the New Testament. These statements are powerful in both their meaning and in their significance.

This is a verse where the concepts of the shepherd and the blood go hand in hand (similar to Abel who was a shepherd and was murdered at the hands of his brother).

"Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen" (Heb 13:20,21).

It is faith in the actual blood of Jesus that saves us and removes our sins.

"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 his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God" (Rom 3:24,25).

"To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved. In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace; Wherein he hath abounded toward us in all wisdom and prudence" (Eph 1:6-8).

The Holy Communion is one of the most sacred sacraments in all of Christianity. Here are a series of verses that mention it.

"And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom" (Mat 26:26-29).

"The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?" (1 Cor 10:16).

We have peace with God through the blood of Jesus.

"That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us" (Eph 2:12-14).

And forgiveness of sins through the 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 sin" (1 John 1:7).

We are elected or chosen by God unto salvation because of the blood.

"Elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through sanctification of the Spirit, unto obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ: Grace unto you, and peace, be multiplied" (1 Pet 1:2).

Our redemption is through the 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: Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you" (1 Pet 1:18-20).

"And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation" (Rev 5:9).

Additionally, our eternal victory all through the book of Revelation is because of the blood.

"And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came 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" (Rev 7:13-15).

"And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time" (Rev 12:10-12).

And finally at the very end of the book of Revelation.

"And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God" (Rev 19:11-13).

The above are just some of the verses from the New Testament. The blood is mentioned over 100 times in the New Testament, with the vast majority having to do with Christ. It is now time to start talking about what the blood itself means and represents.

PART II: What the Blood Means

and What the Blood Represents

Now we will get into the real meat of this presentation. There is so much to talk about. So much incredible truth exists when it comes to this subject. It will be a terribly difficult challenge to know where or when to stop.

As was stated at the beginning, I have vowed to present all of this in the most simple and straightforward manner possible. Our objective here is to simply help you, the reader, learn the most basic and fundamental meaning of the blood in the Bible, and what the blood of Jesus actually represents. Here we are only interested in establishing the correct foundational premises. Once the basic facts are set in place and understood, the depth and application of this subject will expand in every direction.

Principle #1:

The Blood Represents the SPIRIT/LIFE of the Creature

The first principle, is that the blood of a person (or an animal symbolically) speaks of its spirit/life. The very essence of our existence is contained in our blood. In a certain sense, a person's blood and a person's spirit represents the same thing.

To look at this briefly from a physiological standpoint, the blood in the body provides an amazing array of functions. It is the life giving transportation system of the entire body, with veins and arteries functioning as roadways. The blood delivers the good and removes the bad. As blood circulates throughout the body, nutrients and minerals are absorbed from the intestine and distributed to the cells by the blood. It also delivers oxygen from the lungs to the cells. At the same time the blood cells are the "garbage trucks" that pick up the waste products and impurities, and deliver them to the kidneys and liver to be eliminated from the body.

If you were to take any living creature, and drain the blood from their body, what would happen? The obvious answer is that they would immediately die and cease to exist. The blood is absolutely essential to the life of man. It is very similar to the electricity that flows through your computer. If the power was turned off everything would quit working instantly. All of this has a spiritual aspect as well as a natural one. Look now at these verse in Leviticus.

"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).

"For it is the life of all flesh; the blood of it is for the life thereof: therefore I said unto the children of Israel, Ye shall eat the blood of no manner of flesh: for the life of all flesh is the blood thereof" (Lev 17:14).

And in Deuteronomy.

"Only be sure that thou eat not the blood: for the blood is the life" (Deu 12:23).

And then in Genesis, where it talks about God creating man in His image.

"But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat. And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of every man's brother will I require the life of man. Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made he man" (Gen 9:4-6).

Many passages in the Bible are more subtle—yet clearly show the connection between the life and the blood.

THEOMATICS NOTE: A complete analysis has been done, and there is a clear theomatic connection between the spirit within man and the actual blood itself—based upon the prime number of 43. Shown previously in Angelfall (see Chapter 2h), was a complete study showing a spectacular pattern of 86 to do with God specifically creating man and breathing into his nostrils the breath of life (giving him individuality and spirit). The number 86 is also based upon the prime of 43 x 2.

Principle #2:

The Blood Represents the DISPOSITION of the Creature

Now we come to the most foundational and valuable aspect of what the blood itself is all about in the Bible. The following is going to be the MAJOR KEY to essentially understanding everything relating to the blood in the Bible and what it represents.

The blood of a creature is not only synonymous with its spirit/life, but it speaks primarily of its DISPOSITION. This one word, "disposition," is the major definition.

DISPOSITION, among other things, means: (1) an orderly arrangement of things, the power or authority an individual has to arrange, settle, or manage and control things; (2) Inclination, or the tendency and frame of mind, how one thinks, bias; (3) Temperament, the normal or prevailing aspect of one's nature, which are the balance of traits that are manifested in one's behavior or thinking; (4) Temper which refers to one's basic emotional nature; (5) Character, which in a person is applied to the sum of moral qualities associated with a distinctive individual; (6) Personality, which is the sum of physical, mental, and emotional qualities that distinquish one as a person.

In a nutshell, a person's disposition essentially constitutes the arrangement of all factors that add up to WHO THEY REALLY ARE, i.e. their total composition. Whenever God uses the word "blood" in the Bible in reference to a specific person or animal (any living being), the blood symbolizes their disposition.

Animals on the Altar (and their Disposition)

Throughout the Old Testament all types of animals were sacrificed on the altars of the Jewish people during the feasts and various temple ordinances. Literally thousands were slaughtered yearly in sacrifice to Jehovah. These animals included lambs, rams, goats, sheep, bullocks, heifers, birds (such as pigeons), etc. among others.

The number of Jewish feasts and all the specifics of the animal sacrifices that took place, were almost mind boggling in their scope. Here is an interesting web page that shows the vastness of how involved the ancient Judaism sacrificial and religious practice was during the days of the Old Testament.

http://atschool.eduweb.co.uk/SBS777/vital/sacrific.html#part2-4

The question that must be asked is, why did God instigate this "religion of slaughter" under the Old Testament covenant? Some of it of course pointed to the future and ultimate sacrifice of God's only Begotten son on the cross. But there is much more to all of it than just that.

A close investigation will reveal some interesting facts. Throughout the Bible there are a large number of animals, birds, etc. that are mentioned. The important fact is that these creatures contain SYMBOLIC significance in a spiritual sense. In other words, each animal has certain CHARACTERISTICS and attributes that exemplify both its nature and ultimately its disposition. A few quick and obvious examples would be the following.

• The wolf in the Bible is a type of Satan, a sheep killer, predator, false ministers of the gospel.
• The lion represents royalty, power, Christ Himself, but the lion is also a destroyer, i.e. the devil as a roaring lion.
• The horse in the Bible speaks of swiftness, strength, warfare, triumph, grandness.
• The eagle in the Bible is the king of birds, flies high, speaks of heavenly concepts.
• A dog in the Bible is an unclean and dirty animal, and represents the unredeemed.
• Flies in the Bible are symbolic of evil spirits, filth.
• Frogs in the Bible are unclean and symbolic of demonic activity.

Likewise, dozens of other animals, birds, etc. have different characteristics (there are verse references to support all of these).

Now we come to some of the animals that were actually used for blood sacrifices in the Old Testament. Here is a sampling of meanings.

• The lamb in the Bible represents helplessness, purity, innocence, and utter humility. In many applications it is representative of Christ.
• A sheep in the Bible represents someone who is meek and humble, does not resist, feeds on green pastures furnished by the shepherd, and can be led. Represents Christians.
• Goats in the Bible are symbolic of sinners and man's sinful nature, are self-willed, have willful ignorance, climb on rocks seeking prominence, feed on refuse. They are much smarter and more crafty than sheep, tricky and deceitful at times.
• A ram or male sheep in the Bible is symbolic of belligerence and impulsiveness and rebellion—one who charges ahead and uses its horns as power to get its way, runs over others in the process.
• A calf in the Bible is symbolic youthful immaturity and impulsiveness.
• The cow in the Bible is the symbol of stupidity, a dumb beast, idolatry.
• A bull in the Bible is symbolic of belligerence, stubbornness, and false religious leaders.
• The pigeon (or turtle dove) in the Bible was symbolic of a poor man's sacrifice in the Old Testament. The dove is symbolic of the Holy Spirit.

Understanding the Meaning

Now here is the key to understanding what all of this means. In the Book of Hebrews it says,

"But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure" (Heb 10:3-6).

Here it emphatically states that the animal sacrifices in the Old Testament could not take away sins. God took no delight in them. So why then, did God even implement them?

To answer this question, the only animal (evidently) that was a type of the sacrifice of Jesus was the Lamb. There is nothing bad or negative about a perfect Lamb (or even a sheep). All the other creatures have certain characteristics and character flaws that speaks volumes relative to the sinful nature itself. This now is the key to understanding the animal sacrifices.

The blood of the animal that was sacrificed—carries within itself all the personality characteristics and essence of what that specific animal represents. When the Bible says that the blood of bulls and goats cannot take away sins, it simply means that the person that sacrificed a bull or a goat—those specific negative qualities (and sins) inherent in the animal's nature itself, represented the same sins (from a human standpoint) that the animal was atoning for.

In other words, a sacrificial goat carried within its blood the nature of a goat. It was symbolic of the sin of the human sinner (also a goat, Mat 25:32,33) who was required by God to sacrifice it or give it up. And the beast had to give up its life in order for there to be reconciliation for the specific sin. But it did not permanently remove sin or the guilt of the sin. Only the blood of Jesus could accomplish that. And that is why on the cross the Father turned His face away from His Son. Here we see the same SUBSTITUTIONARY principle.

"For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him" (2 Cor 5:21).

As the bull and goat substituted for the sinner in the Old Testament, Christ now does likewise for us as Christians.

Theomatics and the Blood of Bulls and Goats

When Jesus addresses the "billions" of sinners to His left and pronounces their eternal judgment, he calls them "goats." In theomatics, there are two key and specific numbers to do with the actual fall and rebellious nature of the angels who fell. One is 558 (see Chapter 6d), and the other is 122 (see Chapter 6a). These numbers are absolutely overwhelming and powerful in their consistency to do with those specific topics. The expression "blood of goats" (ôï áéìá ôñáãùí") equals 558 x 4, and just the word "goats" (åñéöùí') by itself is 122 x 12. and "blood of bulls" (ôï áéìá ôáõñùí') equals 122 x 17. A bull is a dumb male cow that is stubborn and belligerent. The words "and bulls" (êáé ôáõñùí') has a value of 153 x 11, which is the key number for hardness of heart and hating God (see Chapter 12b). Thus in the blood of these animals, we see the very CHARACTERISTIC of the sin nature itself.

An interesting observation related to this discussion, is that all through the Old Testament, God warned the Jews repeatedly not to consume the blood of animals they sacrificed. This is the exact opposite of the blood of Jesus, where Christians are actually admonished during the communion service to drink His blood (obviously spiritual in meaning). This shows that the blood of Jesus itself was the only REAL blood that mattered in the end and was permitted for consumption. The only life that exists is God's life, and that life is found in everything the blood of Christ represents. We are thus able to "drink all of it" (Mat 26:27).

There are volumes that could be discussed on all of this to do with the blood of animals, i.e. chapters could literally be written. Let's move on.

Principle #3:

The Significance of the Blood of Jesus

Now we come to the central truth and meaning related to all of this, which is the blood of Jesus. Since the blood represents the spirit life of the being, and the blood incorporates within itself the disposition of the person or being to whom the blood belongs—understanding these two factors will help us understand the meaning of the blood of Jesus in the Bible.

In order for there to be any salvation, God demands blood. What that means is that before God can do any work of grace that has eternal value in the life of any individual, that person must be willing to sacrifice their life and give it back to God—it means to actually be willing to give up one's very existence as a conscious living being. That is why Jesus stated four times in the Gospels,

"Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it" (Luke 17:33).

To be willing to lose one's life means to sacrifice and give it up. But in order to have any eternal validity, it must be done according to God's standard. This was an impossibility for any human being to accomplish. No sacrifice in the Old Testament (under the law) could accomplish that. Only one person was capable of presenting His life as a perfect requirement before the Father in heaven. That is what the blood of Jesus represents. And that is why only the blood of Jesus can save us. No human blood, no blood of bulls or goats, nothing will ever satisfy the heart of God except the blood of His ONLY begotten son—the standard is absolute and no less than that.

Within the blood of Jesus was the very life of God. The blood of Jesus represents the Divine disposition in totality. Everything to do with God's holy nature, His purity, His holiness, all of His attributes—were contained WITHIN the very blood of Jesus. It was the eternal Holy Spirit of the Living God that flowed through the veins of the Son of God as he walked this earth (see Heb 9:14). The Spirit and the blood cannot be separated. The very eternal spirit of God flowed through the Savior's veins.

Yet even as perfect as all that was, it still had to be given up and sacrificed back to the Father in heaven.

Born of a Virgin

From a physical standpoint, when a baby is conceived in the womb and the female egg and male sperm unite—it is the male who is the source of the blood. That is a medical fact. For that very reason Jesus was born of a virgin. He had NONE of Adam's blood flowing in His veins. He was conceived by the very Spirit of God.

The blood which flows in an unborn babe's arteries and veins is not derived from the mother but is produced within the body of the fetus. Yet it is only after the sperm has entered the ovum and the foetus begins to develop that blood appears." (The Chemistry of the Blood, p.30, M.R. DeHaan M.D.) Medical science has shown that none of the mother's blood is given to a developing embryo. She supplies the nutrients for developing the baby, but no blood ever passes from the mother to the child. In doctor M.R. DeHaan's book The Chemistry of the Blood, page 32, he quotes from the Nurse's Handbook of Obstetrics by Louise Zabriskie, R.N., fifth Edition, pages 75 and 82. Mary supplied the womb for Jesus Christ, and nourished His body, but her sin blood (since she was from the seed of Adam) was not passed on to Him. It was not the sperm of a man, but the Holy Spirit of God who supplied the "seed" for Jesus‚ conception, and the divine blood for His body. (see http://en.allexperts.com/q/Pentecostals-2256/Christ-blood-human-genetics.htm)

Since it is the blood of Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit, it is also the divine blood of God the Father. The blood that flowed through the veins of Jesus Christ's body while He was on Earth came from God the Father, alone. Jesus Christ had divine, sinless, non-human blood while He was on this Earth (it would have been impossible for Him to life a sinless life otherwise).

To accept or deny this fact has eternal ramifications. A person cannot go to heaven who does not believe in the absolute divinity of the Lord Jesus Christ through the virgin birth (Joh 8:24), and is trusting in His saving blood as the sole means of salvation and acceptance before God.

"Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him" (Rom 5:9).

Eternal Life is in the Blood

Without a doubt, the following is one of the most significant passages in all of scripture.

"Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me" (John 6:53-57).

For someone to make a statement like this (highly offensive to the Jews), that only His flesh and blood has life, and unless you drink and take his blood into yourself, you have no eternal life; furthermore, without my blood you will die in your sins and perish—absolutely nothing could be more direct and terminal than these statements that Jesus made. No wonder the Jews hung Him on a cross.

Our bodies are mortal because they came from the dust of the earth. But our souls are immortal because they came from God; they are actually a part of Him. Because they are a part of God, once restored by salvation and redemption, they can never die. But that eternal life can only come through the blood of Jesus, not Adam's blood. The divine blood must be passed on to us from Another brand new Source, and ingested into our very being, i.e. the divine blood of Jesus must flow within us in order to receive eternal life. If not, we won't live forever with Him. Anything tied into the old Adam has the sentence of death.

When you have the blood of Jesus in you, you have eternal life and are thus spared the wrath and judgment of God. It brings reconciliation—the word "reconciliation" means "to settle an argument and bring into harmony."

"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 5:9,10).

Theomatics note: The numbers relative to "when we were enemies," points directly to the angelic pre-existence and rebellion in heaven.

The value of the blood is spiritual and eternal. The meaning of the blood is God's deliverance through substitution—Jesus took the wrath of God that we deserved to have poured out on us. The death which Jesus died was my death. He bore my sins. Therefore I need not die now. Yet the deliverance which God has now prepared is only through substitution—Jesus my substitute has paid it all—all my indebtedness is now gone; I can at once, be entirely acquitted and freed from all my sins.

But even though the blood provides salvation and eternal life, it's meaning extends far beyond that. To drink Christ's blood means to accept the divine nature in to our very being, and to eventually have the same DISPOSITION that He possesses.

A list of Items to do with the Blood of Jesus

In a nutshell, here are just some of the benefits and entitlements that the blood of Jesus provides. These were jotted down in haste. There are perhaps a few other items that could be added to this list. Entire discourses could be written on any one of these.

• We are saved by His blood (Rom 5:9).
• We are redeemed by the blood (Eph 1:7, Rev 5:9).
• Christ purchased and bought us with His blood (Act 20:28).
• There is remission (cancellation) of sins by the blood (Heb 9:20).
• Our sins are forgiven through the blood (Rom 5:9, Col 1:14, Eph 1:7).
• We are justified by His blood (Rom 5:9).
• We are reconciled to God (made friendly) through the blood (Col 1:20, Heb 2:17).
• There is propitiation (favor with God) through the blood (Rom 3:24,25).
• We have entrance into heaven because of the blood (Heb 9:22-26).
• We have eternal life through His blood (Joh 6:54).
• There is an everlasting eternal contract with God through the blood (Heb 13:20).
• Our very faith as Christians is in His blood and because of His blood (Rom 3:25).
• There is communion and fellowship with God through the blood (1 Cor 10:16).
• There is peace with God through the blood (Eph 2:12-14, Col 1:20).
• We are cleansed from sin by the blood of Jesus the Son (1 Joh 1:7).
• Our conscience itself is cleansed by the blood (Heb 9:14).
• Obedience to God is possible through the blood (1 Pet 1:2).
• All the requirements of the law are taken care of by the blood (Heb 9:21,22).
• There is power in the blood (Heb 2:14, Rev 12:11).
• We are clothed and our garments made white because of the blood (Rev 7:13-15).
• We are sanctified and made holy by the blood (Heb 10:29, 13:12).
• We can enter God's presence "in the holiest" by the blood (Heb 10:19, Eph 2:13).
• Our very life and right to exist is because of the blood (Joh 6:54).
• Heavenly joy is because of the blood (Rev 5:9,12).
• We are able to defeat Satan entirely through the blood (Rev 12:10-12, Heb 2:14).

Let it be stated that anybody who denies or waters down the blood of Christ and its importance—this is an absolute sign that they are a false teacher and not even saved.

Comment: "In Our Stead"

It is not true that Christ died INSTEAD of me. Rather He died in my STEAD. To die in one's stead means that the person has the place or position of a person or thing as filled by a replacement, substitute, or successor; such as, "If you can't come, send him in your stead." The word INSTEAD means, "in place of the person or thing mentioned: as, since we had no sugar, we used honey instead." Christ did not die so that I would not have to. He died SO I COULD DIE to myself (and take up my cross just like He did). However, God does not require specific performance for eternal salvation (otherwise we would be saved by works), but His only requirement is FAITH in His blood which is Christ's finished work (in our stead) that actually saves us.

Finally, here is the glorious aspect of what the blood and the cross accomplishes for us. This now is the end result.

The Mind of Christ

"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth" (Phil 2:5-10).

We see in this passage what the blood of the cross has accomplished. It has everything to do with the SPIRIT and DISPOSITION, i.e. the MIND that was in our Lord when He died upon it. Here we see self-abasement to the lowest possible level under heaven; we see obedience to the uttermost to all the will of God; finally we see self sacrifice as the One who actually was willing to sacrifice Himself and die (the Lord was willing to give up His very right to exist).

The consummate message of the cross was the SPIRIT OF THE CROSS which satisfied the heart of the Father, which brought about the worship of the angels, and most importantly brought forth the love and confidence from all who are now redeemed. It is this very thing that made Him to be the Lamb, as it had been slain, standing in the midst of the throne—as the all powerful and glorified One (Rev 5:6).

It Was All Done for You and Me

The precious truth to all of this, is that the SAME mind that was in Christ Jesus, can now be inside of us too. All that Christ was and is, all that Christ accomplished, was done for us and unto us. He desires by His Holy Spirit to become one with us and in us (see John chapter 17). The spirit of the cross was His blessedness and His glory. And it should be the same for us as well. That is why Jesus constantly told His followers, that in order for a person to be His disciple, he must take up his OWN cross daily and follow Him. There is no other way the cross of Jesus can become our blessedness, other than for each one of us to take up our own.

"Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it" (Mat 16:24,25).

By taking up our cross and dying with Christ, we actually become joint-heirs with Him.

"And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together" (Rom 8:17).

And the end result is this verse. We become not only joint heirs, but partakers of God's very nature.

"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" (2 Pet 1:4).

The entire objective of the blood in the Bible, from the very beginning, was to bring about this work of surrender and sacrifice unto death—to the heart and mind of the Christian—which would then result in victory over sin and ultimate glorification. It has no other objective than that. Since Jesus died in our STEAD, His entire sacrifice was to make A WAY for us to walk in His footsteps. Through faith alone, in His blood, this is entirely possible.

"Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God" (Rom 3:25).

The Blood Guarantees our Eternal Security

The beauty of the gospel is that it eliminates salvation by works. Faith in the blood of Jesus EXONERATES the believer and REMOVES the "sins that are past"—including all future sins as well (1 John 1:7). The sacrifice of Jesus upon the cross establishes the fact that we: (1) cannot be saved by works, and (2) we do not have to retain or keep our eternal salvation by works (the false heresy of Armenianism). Jesus did a complete and final work—once and forever (Heb 10:10)—fulfilling ALL the requirements of the law before God. When the blood is applied to the life of the Christian, all sin is forgiven and blotted out, and good works and obedience then become the RESULT of our salvation rather than the basis for salvation. Yet this is only possible through faith. The blood, as it is applied, automatically and ceaselessly works its mighty wondrous power in us and through us. Since we have died with Christ, we no longer live to ourselves because we are already dead (Gal 2:20 and Rom 14:7-9). But in order to experience salvation on a daily basis, we must have both faith in the blood and also apply the blood, "for it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure" (Phil 2:13).

Again, our eternal salvation can NEVER be based upon works. There are sincere and honest Christians who will subtly introduce works and a walk of holiness as a requirement for a Christian to keep or RETAIN their salvation (the Armenian/ Pelagial doctrine—see Chapter 15a on Armenianism vs. Calvinism and,

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arminianism

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pelagianism

But God can never save anybody based upon their actions or walk—He can only save a person based upon their faith in the blood of Jesus and the eternal sacrifice that atoned the price for our sins which completely exonerates the one who believes 100%. No human living upon earth can produce works adequate for salvation.

When a person by faith has made a commitment to Christ in their heart, and the transaction is genuine, and God has accepted it, and the gift of the Holy Spirit has been granted to that person, and they have been baptized in their heart (symbolically), then ALL THE SINS (past, present, and future) of the individual are completely canceled before God the Father, and the newborn child is absolutely guaranteed eternal life unconditionally. If a child of God sins willfully, God will rake him over the coals if necessary (Heb 12:6), but that person will forever be His child (John 6:39 and John 10:28). Like the prodigal son, he will always in the end return. The Bible says that God is still married to the backslider (Jer 3:14).

The blood of Jesus is what cleanses us from all sin. Our righteousness is not the result of our own goodness, merit or effort. It is a result of our accepting on God's terms—by faith alone—His gracious offer of forgiveness. So when God declares a man righteous, he IS indeed righteous. But he is righteous and justified not because he has not been guilty, but he is only righteous because he accepted the blood of Christ in his stead, on God's terms, and therefore he is forgiven and free of guilt. Even in a court of law, a verdict of "not guilty" does not prove the defendant never committed the crime (such as O.J. Simpson). It simply means that for some reason he is not held responsible. In the case of the Christian, the reason we are not held responsible is because Jesus bore that responsibility for us. "Him who knew no sin was made to be sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Cor 5:21). Praise God! Jesus died to disannul the sin that we were guilty of.

The Water and the Blood and the Holy Spirit

Yet, as Christians we are still responsible for our actions and how we live our lives. One major area of discussion related to this entire salvation/eternal security aspect concerns the water and the blood. Much theomatics analysis and study has been done on this topic. A few comments will be made at this time.

In 1 John 5 it talks repeatedly about the water and the blood in reference to Jesus.

"This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth… And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one" (1 John 5:6,8).

And then when Jesus died on the cross, this is what happened.

"But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water. And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe" (John 19:34,35).

What does the water and the blood represent? Perhaps a number of things. But in a nutshell, water in the Bible always speaks of human responsibility. Sinners are commanded by God to wash their own hands and cleanse themselves from fleshly pollutions.

"If a man therefore PURGE HIMSELF from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified, and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work. Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart" (2 Tim 2:21,22).

Water refers to a human act that is outward, to be observed by those who turn from their sins, and present themselves to God in baptism. Water baptism along with repentance is always an initiative that the Christian person HIMSELF should make before God in obedience. The water always speaks of something that WE can do and should do. It is symbolic of human effort and works, and results in a cleansing of the heart.

Comment: Water baptism is an important step every Christian should take, but "baptismal regeneration" (the doctrine requiring actual WATER baptism in order to go to heaven), is simply not true—the thief on the cross did not have time to be baptized in water before he died. True baptism is spiritual, it is identifying oneself with Christ, His death, burial, and resurrection—it results in a complete change of heart.

Unlike the water, the blood on the other hand, is something that only God Himself can provide (Gen 22:8). Man has nothing to do with the blood. The blood is exclusively God's end of the bargain that completes the redemption and cleansing process. We cannot have a proper relationship with God without both: (1) human responsibility and (2) God's divine atonement and redemption. (Comment: That is why Jesus had to change the water to wine in John chapter 2—see section below for a discussion of that).

Then comes the Holy Spirit. The Bible says that "in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established" (Mat 18:16). The end result of both the water and the blood in unison is the Holy Spirit (the third witness), which confirms that function of the first two. It says in 1 John that the Spirit bears witness to the water and the blood.

The practical application of all this is that water (works) by itself cannot bring about salvation. Nobody can be saved by works. On the other hand, just the blood by itself cannot save a person either unless they submit to God willfully and in their hearts and are baptized. So both man's works and God's grace must work together in tandem (sort of like two oxen yoked together pulling a cart).

Today there are water Christians and there blood Christians, and both of these by themselves are a terrible misconception. Water Christians are those who trust only their own works for salvation, they are trying to obtain God's favor by keeping works of law and thus "earning" (or at the very least "retaining") their salvation through works. Blood Christians are those who believe the blood covers all their sins, but they can "live like the devil" any way they please and still go to heaven. Neither one of these by itself will save a person. It requires BOTH our own actions and God's grace in unison. Unless a person is baptized (what that represents symbolically), they cannot be saved. And that requires a willful act of obedience.

The Bible teaches that without holiness no man will see the Lord (Heb 12:14). The Bible also says that faith without works is dead (James 2:20,26). If one expects to enter the kingdom of God, then he must obey the King. What all of that means is if there is no fruit of righteousness in the life of the supposed Christian—that is a clear indication the individual has never been truly saved and transformed by the Spirit of God. If there is genuine salvation there will always be fruit. However, it should be pointed out that good works are never the cause of our salvation, but only the RESULT or fruit of salvation. But good works in the life of a true Christian can only come AFTER genuine salvation has taken place.

Comment: It's an amazing fact that when Mormons have a communion service, they use water instead of wine; of course everything to do with Mormons achieving godhood is based upon works. There is virtually no emphasis in the Mormon religion upon either cross or the blood (all their "churches" have spires and never crosses). This author once asked some Mormon missionaries why they do not emphasize the cross. They stated that the cross is a symbol of death and suffering, and they did not want their religion associated with that as a major point of emphasis because "it was negative."

Principle #5:

Heaven and God's Eternal Plan and Purpose—Sealed and Hidden Until the Blood

Now we come to the deepest and most interesting aspect of this entire issue to do with the blood. This will no doubt explain much to do with the message of Angelfall. What we are going to discuss here, is how the meaning of the blood has everything to do with God opening heaven and fully revealing Himself to His creation. This was not possible in ages past with the angels who eventually rebelled. They were not allowed to enter into the holy of holies and eat from the tree of knowledge, and eventually the tree of life (and live forever). NOTHING LIKE THAT COULD EVER TAKE PLACE UNTIL AFTER THE BLOOD OF JESUS WAS SHED. The blood was necessary and absolutely essential before heaven could be opened and ultimate access to God and the Most Holy Place made available.

Jesus Changes the Water to Wine

The very first great miracle that Jesus ever performed at the time He began His earthly ministry, was when He and His disciples attended the wedding feast at Cana of Galilee. It was there that Jesus changed the water to wine. What does this story mean?

"And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: (2) And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. (3) And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. (4) Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. (5) His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it. (6) And there were set there six water pots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece. (7) Jesus saith unto them, Fill the water pots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. (8) And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. (9) When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, (10) And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now. (11) This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him" (John 2:1-11).

Among other things, wine in the Bible is symbolic of blood. In Genesis 49:11 wine is specifically called "the blood of grapes." In the book of Revelation, when the vine of the earth was harvested and the grapes cast into the winepress of God and trampled, it says that "blood came out of the winepress" (Rev 14:20).

All through Genesis chapter one, it talks about the waters above the firmament and the waters below the firmament (see Genesis 1:2,6,7,9,10). Symbolically, waters in the Bible have to do with thoughts, concepts, philosophies, etc. The waters above represent God's thoughts and the Creator's total understanding of things. The waters below, which were ultimately gathered into seas, represent all human wisdom that exists below the heavens or God's understanding (raging seas and raging waters in the Bible speak of the rebellion and restlessness in the hearts of men—see Luk 21:25,26).

There is eternal meaning and significance behind that great miracle at the wedding feast in Cana. The stone water pots that were filled with water were for the "cleansing of the Jews." Stone is cold and hard and has no life (such as the ten commandments written on stone tablets). This of course represents human responsibility and human wisdom of one cleansing himself with the water. But it has no life of God and is certainly not the desirable drink for guests at a wedding party.

Other major aspects to this story is that Mary the Mother of Jesus was at the wedding. She represents Eve (or the female nature) devoid of truth without the male (or God's life). That is why Mary, in her helplessness, told the servants, "Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it" (John 2:5), i.e. in other words, don't question God's authority.

So the real meaning behind this great miracle, and that no true eternal marriage could take ever place in God's kingdom—unless God's life (represented by the water changed to wine) was present. That is why this HAD TO BE the first miracle that Jesus performed.

And in the book of Revelation it talks all about the marriage supper of the Lamb and His bride. Just before Jesus went to the cross He uttered these words to His disciples.

"For this (the grape juice) is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom" (Mat 26:28,29).

So before anything could happen in His ministry, Jesus had to change that water (or men's works and efforts) into wine or blood. Before Jesus could accomplish redemption and bring salvation to man, he had to change the water into blood—He had to change all of man's thoughts into something that had eternal and everlasting value. The Bible says that our spirits come from God, and man's life (or spirit) is in His blood. Waters, or the thoughts and works of man that are not originally from God, have no saving value or eternal grace in and of themselves—the divine, the supernatural, the eternal, could only be manifested when God's creative power was released in the earth, which was something that only the Living Son of God had the power to do through His blood, which represents the only valid life, i.e. the life of God.

The water that Jesus changed to wine had a heavenly source (extensive 214 pattern in theomatics). What the great miracle Jesus did was demonstrating, was that water for purifying one's self was not adequate—it required something more than that, i.e. the blood. That was something that only God Himself could provide or have anything to do with. The angels were birthed out of water, i.e. man was "born of water" in John chapter 3:5, and all concepts, thoughts, and philosophies in the heavens (both above the firmament and below the firmament) were of waters. Only when Jesus came and gave His precious blood, could the real life and meaning—relative to all truth—be revealed whereby man could be born of the very Spirit of God Himself. That is why the first great miracle that Jesus performed was changing the water to wine—all thoughts and philosophies in the universe had to be implemented with God's life.

Theomatics Note: The number 5 is the number of the eternal in theomatics. Everything to do with the blood from God's eternal perspective is saturated with multiples of 250 and 500, also 125 (which is 5 x 5 x 5). The word "wine" has a value of 250, and the word vine is 625 (which is 5 x 5 x 5 x 5), and blood is 50 in Hebrew and 50 in Greek as well. Both the expressions "through the eternal Spirit" and "blood of Christ" from Heb 9:14 equal 2500 in theomatics. Also the expression "fountain of water of life" and just the expression "water of life" by itself (see Rev 21:6) are both 2500. There is a huge file and study on the eternal nature of God and the life giving blood that Jesus shed through the eternal Spirit.

When Jesus changed the water to wine, He in a sense created "living water." That is what He promised the woman of Samaria at the well (see John 4:10,11), when He contrasted man's earthly physical water with the divine water FROM HEAVEN that only He could provide.

Hebrews 9:14

Now the following may be the most important verse in the whole Bible to do with the blood. The spiritual depth of meaning in the following four verses are the most significant possible. Here are the verses from Hebrews 9 that were discussed earlier. We will now look at another aspect from this verse—the blood shed through the eternal Spirit.

"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 of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall 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 covenant, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance" (Heb 9:12-15).

Theomatics comment: The "transgressions that were under the first covenant" is talking about the angelic rebellion that took place in heaven (the Old Testament dispensation was symbolic of that).

As was stated earlier, the blood is symbolic of primarily one thing—the life of our very existence as conscious living beings. It is the very spirit of life. It represents the disposition of the individual who possesses it.

The value of the blood of Jesus is immeasurable. In that blood dwelt the very spirit of the Only Begotten Son of God. The eternal life of the Godhead was carried in that blood (Act 20:28). The power of that blood in its divers effects is nothing less than the eternal power and spirit/soul of God Himself. That is why Jesus shed His blood through the eternal Spirit.

The blood has everything to do with God redeeming the angels who fell from heaven. In fact, it also relates to the angels in heaven who never rebelled and remained faithful to their Creator. Even though they do not need to be redeemed as those who fell, the blood was undoubtedly necessary for them as well in the sense of the eternal truths and principles that apply universally.

The blood of Jesus is the greatest mystery of eternity, the deepest mystery of the divine wisdom. Let us not imagine that we can easily grasp its full meaning. We must invest time if we are going to gain knowledge of the power and meaning of the blood in the eternal sense.

Before The Spirit Could be Given

It is important to point out, that before Jesus shed His blood on Calvary, the Holy Spirit did not essentially exist in the world. The Holy Spirit was alluded to a few times in the Old Testament (such as Gen 1:2 and Psa 51:11 and Joh 20:22), but there was no such concept that men could be partakers of the divine nature and indwelt by God's very own Spirit. In John chapter seven, we read these words.

"In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)" (John 7:37-39).

This verse contains pronounced significance. It essentially points out the fact that the Holy Spirit was not yet released, simply because Jesus had not yet died, been resurrected, and glorified. Only AFTER He ascended to heaven did the great event of Pentecost take place in Acts chapter 2 when the Holy Spirit was literally poured out.

The Veil into the Holy of Holies Torn in Half

Here is what happened the minute Jesus died.

"Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent; And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many" (Mat 27:50-53).

Here is Mark's Gospel.

"And the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom. And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God" (Mark 15:38,39).

Here is Luke's Gospel.

"And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst. And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost" (Luke 23:45,46).

And finally, this is all it says in the Gospel of John (the last Gospel) about what happened at the moment of death. Previously we read, "He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive)." It is interesting to point out that when Jesus died on the cross, this is what happened in John—water and blood came forth from His belly.

"But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water. And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe" (John 19:34,35).

The Holy Spirit is Released—Hebrews 10:19-21

Now we come one of the most pivotal passages in all of Scripture. The following explains to us what the veil of the temple being torn and what the water and blood coming out of the side of Jesus—represents!

"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; And having an high priest over the house of God" (Heb 10:19-21).

The veil was torn, and so was the flesh of the Son of God. The veil was what separated man from God, i.e. THE FLESH. It had to be ripped apart before God's Spirit could be released. Let us look at again at Hebrews

"How much more shall 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 covenant, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance" (Heb 9:14,15).

Here it says that Jesus shed His blood and sacrificed His life "through the eternal Spirit." The blood possesses its power to cleanse and to make us fit to serve the Living God by the Eternal Spirit, who was in our Lord Jesus when He shed (released) His blood.

Comment: Another major passage related to this whole theme, is Revelation chapter eleven, where it talks about the "two witnesses." One of the things that they perform, is turning the waters to blood. Water turned to blood in the Bible also speaks of judgment, such as one of the ten plagues in Egypt where all the water in the Nile river was turned to blood. Blood brings redemption, or it brings judgment and finality of death. It will either redeem you or finalize your fate (see Rev 16:3-5).

There has been much speculation as to who these two witnesses are. An in depth theomatics analysis clearly shows a connection between the two witnesses and the water and the blood—carried within the body of Christ—which is the witness of Jesus in the Church. Their ministry lasted three and one half years (same as Jesus), and their dead bodies lie in the street of the city for three and a half days (same as Jesus—this is obviously proportionate symbolism). The candlesticks and the olive trees/oil in this passage is representative of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit and the water and the blood all agree in one" (1 John 5:6,8). The entirety of Revelation chapter eleven is highly symbolic—the two witnesses are evidently the water and blood—they parallel the life of Christ in His Body (the Church) upon earth. It is an amazingly significant passage of Scripture.

Now to wrap up this whole discussion, portions of the following has been paraphrased from Andrew Murray.

The Eternal Spirit Itself

The Spirit of God is eternal truth. It is expressly for this reason that the Spirit is here called "the Eternal Spirit." The word "Eternal" is one of the words of Scripture which everyone thinks he understands; but there are few who realize what a deep and glorious meaning it has. It is supposed that "Eternal" is something that always continues, something that has no end. This explanation is a merely negative one and tells us only what "Eternal" is not, but it teaches us nothing about its nature and being.

Everything that exists in time has a beginning and is subject to the law of increase and decrease, of becoming and decaying. What is eternal has no beginning and knows no change or weakening, because it has in itself a life that is independent of time. In what is eternal there is no past which has already disappeared and is lost, and there is no future not yet possessed. It is always a glorious and endless present. Now, when Scripture speaks of "eternal" life, "eternal" redemption, "eternal" joy, it means

much more than to say, merely they will have no end. By that word we are taught that he

who has a share in eternal blessedness possesses something in which the power of an endless life is at work; something in which there can be no change, nor can it suffer any diminution, and which therefore we may always enjoy in the fullness of its life-bestowing blessing.

The object of Scripture in using that word is to teach us that if our faith lays hold on what is eternal, it will manifest itself in us as a power superior to all the changeableness of our mind or feelings, with a youth which never grows old, and with a freshness which does not for a moment wither. From this Scripture we are taught something also about the blood of Jesus—"Who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God." Not only had the act of shedding His blood an eternally availing worth; the blood itself has Spirit and life in it, and is always efficacious by the power of an eternal life. This is why the Epistle to the Hebrews lays much emphasis on the work of Christ as being once for all, and eternal. Notice the expression in that it has no end.

"And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest, Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life" (Heb 7:15,16).

Christ Jesus has an unchanging priesthood. "Wherefore He is able also to save to the uttermost them that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them" (verses 24, 25). He is "the Son who is consecrated for evermore" (verse 28). Further on we read (chapter 9:12): "By His own blood He entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us;" and in 10:14: "By one offering He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified." It speaks also of "the blood of the everlasting covenant."

Again, by the eternal Spirit the blood has obtained an eternal, ever-availing, ever-fresh, independent, imperishable power of life. We can best sum this up with the following.

We have noticed that the "blood" is a word chosen by God as a short way of expressing certain thoughts, powers, and dispositions, which are, as it were, included in it. It is not always easy, either in preaching or in personal exercise of faith, to find a perfect expression of these thoughts, powers, and dispositions. But this is what the Holy Spirit undertakes as His work, especially where faith is exercised about the blood; He will explain, and make living, the full and glorious meaning of the word. By enlightening our understanding, He will make clear to us the great thoughts of God which are contained in the words "the blood." Even before the understanding can lay hold of them, He will make their power active in the soul; and where a heart, desiring salvation, is humbly and reverently seeking for the blessings they bring, He will bestow them. And He will not only send the power of the blood TOthe heart, but will so reveal it IN the heart that the same disposition which inspired Jesus in the shedding of His blood will be awakened in us, as it is written: "They overcame by the blood of the Lamb…; and they loved not their lives even unto the death" (Rev. 12:11).

The Fall From Heaven Necessitated the Blood

Angels were not allowed to look into the details pertaining to the gospel (which came down from God's highest heaven—the same general place of the angels originally), which provides proof positive that there are various heavenly aspects that angels are not permitted to look into. God's eternal plan along with the concepts of the blood and the Spirit evidently were not known to them (and could not be known to them before the cross).

"Of which salvation the prophets have inquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into" (1 Pet 1:10-12).

In the above we see all the elements mentioned: (1) the sufferings of Christ which consummated in the shedding of His blood; (2) the prophets who foretold all of this by "the Spirit of Christ " in them; (3) the glorification that followed which enabled the Holy Spirit to be SENT DOWN FROM HEAVEN; and all of this (4) involves things the angels evidently knew nothing about because they desired to look into these things (and evidently could not).

What the Blood Then Really Means

As the blood possesses its power through the Spirit, so the Spirit manifests His full power and works effectively among men only through the blood. We know that the outpouring of the blood was followed by the outpouring of the Spirit. And we know the reason of this. By sin, a middle wall of partition separated God and man. "The flesh" was the veil that made true union impossible. As long as sin was not atoned for, God by His Spirit could not take up a settled abode in the heart of man. Until the power of the flesh was broken and subdued, the Spirit could not manifest his authority. For this reason there is no mention in the days of the Old Testament of an outpouring of the Spirit of God, save as a prediction of what should be in the last days. Therefore also our Lord Jesus was not in a position to bestow upon His disciples the Spirit with whom He had been baptized (except briefly in John 20:22), even though He took them into the closest fellowship with Himself; though He greatly loved them and longed to bless them.

Our Lord had to die before He could baptize with the Holy Spirit. The blood is the life

of man; the Spirit is the life of God. Man must sacrifice his sinful life, bear the penalty of his sin, and surrender himself entirely to God before God could dwell in him with His life. What man himself could not do, that the Lord Jesus, the Son of Man, did for him. He shed His blood, He gave His life in entire surrender to the will of God as a satisfaction of the penalty of sin. When that was accomplished, it was possible for Him to receive the Spirit from the Father, that HE MIGHT POUR HIM OUT. The outpouring of the blood rendered possible the outpouring of the Spirit. This is declared in the Scriptures in such words as these: "The Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified." And again: "He showed me a pure river of the water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God, and of the Lamb" (Rev. 22:1). It was when the Lamb took possession of the throne with the Father that the Spirit could flow out as a river.

In the preaching of John the Baptist these were, also, the two statements he made about Jesus: "Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world," and "This is He who baptiseth with the Holy Spirit." It was necessary for our High Priest to enter into "the Holiest" with His blood, and, having come out again, to appear before the Throne with that blood, ere He could bestow the Spirit from the Throne, as the seal that His work in the Holiest had wrought out a perfect reconciliation. The blood and the Spirit are inseparable, for only through the blood can the Spirit dwell in man.

This is why we find, in Scripture, that what in one place is ascribed to the Spirit, is in another place ascribed to the blood, and the work of sanctification is ascribed to both the blood and the Spirit. Life also is ascribed to both. Our Lord said: "He that eateth My flesh and drinketh My blood hath everlasting life," adding afterwards "It is the Spirit that quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing" (John 6:54,63). We find similar expressions in the epistle to the Ephesians. After having said "Ye... are made nigh by the blood of Christ" (2:13), a little later Paul declares (verse 18) that "We… have access by one Spirit to the Father."

"(God) having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself; by Him, whether things in earth or things in heaven" —Col. 1:20.