Clean Start!

Clean Start!

God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus. Romans 3:25‭-‬26 NIV

The Inspiration:

The whole chapter speaks about the law, as well as the power of faith. It speaks of our helplessness in the face of sin, and the help made available to us through faith in Christ Jesus. We read of the general and  universal condemnation of sin that applies to all men, and the universal application of grace too that has been made available to all men. This is the proof of the love and mercy of God; He hates sin but loves the sinner, and He was ready to move heaven and earth just to restore man back to himself. Sin even came before the law was given to Moses, and by the law, no one could walk righteously before God. The practice of sacrifice of blood only got us temporary cover, so we were not destroyed but it could not provide the clean and fresh start that God wanted to give us. This is where Jesus came in. 

The Contention:

Blood is the cover. As seen in the story of the first Passover, blood was key to the protection of Israel from the angel of death. As seen also in the universal Passover instituted by the death of Jesus, blood is key to the plan of God for the salvation of all men. Life is in the blood, so the shedding of blood is like an irreversible end of life. By the blood, the old life was brought to an end and by the resurrection of Jesus, a new life was birthed. It would then mean that if I want to take advantage of the life now available, I cannot do it by relying on the old cover of the blood of bulls and goats, but on the blood of Jesus. The blood was shed, providing atonement for sin, whether past, present and future, and the benefits of the blood are accessed by faith in Jesus. Nothing else can provide the cover that the blood of Jesus gives.

The Conclusion:

I note that the blood of Jesus takes care of the past and even future sins. This was not possible under the cover of the old process, and this is why it had to be repeated almost daily. This tells me that there is nothing down here that the blood of Jesus cannot cover, if I truly repent and return to Jesus. Sin condemns all who are subject to it, but Jesus also seeks to justify all who submit to Him. Sin does not ask for permission before it oppresses, but Jesus waits for me to come to Him of my own freewill. It does not matter what I have done or where I am now; the sacrifice of Jesus is all that I need to be justified before God. He does not need my good works to earn salvation; it was freely given to me even before I was born. I take hold of that grace by faith, sure and certain that I have been made right with God. Sin has no control over me. Does this describe you too? God's time of favour is here.