Blood. Lots of
blood. Blood what was used to seal the
covenant between the Lord and Israel, confirming that they were His
people.
God had brought Israel out of Egypt and they were now in
the wilderness, standing at the foot of Mt. Sinai. He came to them on the mountain in fire,
smoke and vapor. He shook them with His
thunderous voice. The Israelites had
seen other signs and wonders, too.
Manna, quail and water from the rock are but a few. And now the moment came for Israel to
respond.
Moses went before the people and reported all the rules
we’ve read over the last couple days to the people. And they, “answered with one voice and said,
‘All the words that the LORD has spoken we
will do.’”
Burnt offerings were made that day, as the Israelites
worshipped God. And they gathered the
blood – the life of the oxen they had sacrificed. First they threw it against the altar sealing
it as God’s altar; a place where God and His people meet in prayer, praise and
repentance. And then Moses took some of
the blood and threw it at the people.
This sounds gross (and in a way it is), but this sealed the people in
this covenant with the LORD. They were God’s people now, bound to Him; and
He to them.
In verse 8, Moses says, “Behold the blood of the covenant
that the Lord has made with you in accordance with all these words.” (ESV)
Interestingly, the Hebrew does not say that the covenant was made, but
rather that this covenant was “cut.”
Blood is very appropriate, indeed, as the covenant is cut and life is
bound to life.
Sadly, despite Israel’s enthusiasm, this covenant was
broken . . . repeatedly. All the things
they said they’d not do, they did. And
while God was patient and continued to be faithful to His promises – both of
Law and Gospel – this covenant fell apart.
But God was not content to leave His people separated
from Him. Indeed, He was not content to
have but one nation as His people. So He
cut a new covenant. As Jesus was eating
the Passover supper with His disciples, he took bread and broke and told them,
“Take and eat; this is my body.” “And he
took a cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank
of it. And He said to them, ‘This is My
blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many.’” (Mark 14:25-26 ESV)
God cut a new covenant that would be for all people who
believe in Jesus. On the cross Jesus was
cut with thorns, nails and spear, and His blood seals all who believe in Him as
His people. His blood was the price of
our redemption and it is the mark that we belong to Him. So, even today, when we receive the Lord’s
Supper, that body and blood that He gave to His disciples, it is His blood of
the covenant, and as we eat and drink redemption we proclaim the Lord’s death
until He comes again.
Today, we don’t like to think about blood. We worry about AIDS and other infectious
diseases when we see it or touch it. But
blood was what God chose to save us; specifically Jesus’ blood. Blood is what He uses to seal us as His
own. Truly, we are people marked by the
Blood.
Father, thank you
for marking me with Jesus’ blood and making me Yours. Help me to live in such a way that Your
lordship in my life shows. Help me to
share the salvation that I have in Jesus’ blood with my family, friends, and
enemies. Let the mark of your redemption
show in my life, for Jesus sake. Amen.
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