The Blood of Christ

"In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace" (Ephesians 1:7.) Here is a statement from the pen of the apostle Paul that must be remembered. Redemption means the forgiveness of sins and neither can be had without the blood of Christ. Also, the blood of Christ and ultimately the redemption it provides came about by the grace of the Lord. In other words, without the amazing grace of God, the Lord's body and blood would not have been sacrificed on the cross and thus there could be no forgiveness of sins for us.

Most folks associated with Christianity admit that we are saved by the blood of Christ. Practically everyone has heard the great song. What can wash away my sins? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. If not that song then certainly we know "There is Power in the Blood." These songs, and many others, are also sung and believed in the church of Christ as well. Sadly, many charge members of the church with believing that water saves and not the blood. This is a false charge made either out of ignorance or hatred that seeks to hide the real issues that are pertinent to salvation. No argument is fair unless it is stated fairly and honestly.

The apostle John, speaking of Christ, said, "to Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood" (Revelation 1:5.) The Hebrew writer declared, "Neither by the blood of goats and claves, but by His own blood He entered once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us" (Hebrews 9:12.) And Peter reminds us that we were not redeemed with corruptible things like money, "but with the precious blood of Christ" (I Peter 1:19.) Peter may have been a quick to speak kind of guy but when it came to the blood of His Lord, it was precious to him and was to be treasured above everything else in life. So it is with us. We believe in the blood of Christ with all our heart and nothing is more precious to us. Without the Lord's sacrifice we are lost.

The question remains - how does the blood save us today? How is it applied? Well, there is a simple answer for all those who are willing to diligently study the sacred scriptures. Romans 6:3-5 is a key in understanding the relation between salvation and the blood of Christ. Notice that those "who are baptized, are baptized into His death." Since the blood of Jesus was shed in His death, we would then contact that blood when we are baptized into that death. The blood is not found in faith but faith leads us to the cross. It is not found when we repent but people were told in the book of Acts, those who had faith and repented, to be baptized. Read the book yourself. The Bible is clear on this and heaven waits on those who take the Lord at His Word.