“And Moses took the blood and threw it on the people.” (Exodus 24:8)
It sounds like the start to a really bad day, but it was, in fact, a glimmer of the Best Day to come: the day when Christ would redeem the world by His blood, shed on the cross for sinners. That blood was made for throwing.
What good is the blood of Christ if it never touches you, on your skin, in your ears, up to your lips? Even as the sacrifices of Israel preached God’s pleasure to that nation, so does the touch of this blood, cast onto you in the ministry of His Church, carry the promise that God has taken pleasure in you.
Washed in the blood, secured in that same blood by its preaching, and nourished with it by the Lord’s own command, we live in the freedom of canceled sin. Better, we live in the freedom of our Father’s good pleasure. “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased”—He spoke those words for Jesus, and now this Jesus has touched you, making those words yours.
LET US PRAY: O Jesus Christ, Lamb of God: I praise and thank You for Your precious blood, shed for my sake, and the sake of the whole world. Enliven and keep me always in this saving flood, and bring me through its currents to the fullness of Your kingdom. Amen
Pastor Steven K. Gjerde
Zion, Wausau
