The God of Yes by David Edwards

Author:David Edwards
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Howard Publishing co.
Published: 2003-07-15T00:00:00+00:00

JESUS INAUGURATING THE AGREEMENT WITH HIS BLOOD

Jeremiah announced God’s new agreement with mankind, but it was Jesus who would inaugurate it. The prophet declared the words of the agreement; the Son would unleash the power of its integrity.

The night the disciples entered the Upper Room to share the Last Supper with Jesus, the table was already set. Jesus passed the bread then took the cup and lifted it, making it the central focus of everyone’s attention. He said, “This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:28).

The disciples may not have understood what was ahead for Christ, but they were painfully aware of what “blood of the covenant” meant. Blood agreements were a part of their heritage and regular worship. In the Old Testament, a blood covenant was used to seal an agreement. It was accomplished by slicing the neck of a heifer, a goat, or a ram on either side. Then the knife would be driven into the animal’s breast-bone with a downward motion so the bone would crack. The flesh would tear open and the carcass would divide in two, with the pieces falling across from each other and forming a pathway in between.

The disciples also knew that “it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement” (Leviticus 17:11). Burnt animal sacrifices were offered on a daily basis in the temple in Jerusalem. Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, the high priest carried some of the blood from the sacrifices into an inner room in the temple called the Holy of Holies and sprinkled it on the mercy seat. This annual ritual was commanded by God for the forgiveness of the sins of the nation. Through the blood of the sacrifice, the people’s sins were forgiven for that year.

But that night in the Upper Room, Jesus marked Himself as the ultimate sacrifice. He offered Himself without sin to God, and God accepted His death as the total payment for the sin of all mankind. From that point on, it was no longer necessary to offer the blood of animals on the altar, because “Jesus has become the guarantee of a better covenant” (Hebrews 7:22). The promise in the Old Testament was realized in the New Testament. Everything God promised through Jeremiah, Jesus fulfilled. The death of Jesus became the foundation of a new, better agreement.

Through His death, Jesus removed the obstacle of sin that separated mankind from God. Now God can reside inside each of us through His Holy Spirit. We no longer have to go to the temple; He makes our bodies His temple. We no longer have to sprinkle blood on the mercy seat; the Holy of Holies is established in our hearts. We no longer have to make sacrifices; the ultimate sacrifice has been made for us.

Jesus’ death proclaimed that a new way of living had begun. This new life could not be contained in the old way of following rituals and keeping a code of ethics and laws.

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