Note: This is a replacement for the previously issued and updated #71 – ed.
The blood of Jesus is precious to those who belong to Jesus. It was His blood that redeemed us as it was shed for us on the cross. It is the blood of the Lamb of God that we remember every time we celebrate the Lord’s Supper. It is the blood that was the price paid to ransom us from slavery to sin and to an eternity in hell, and has given us instead the forgiveness of all of our sins and the assurance of everlasting joy in the courts of heaven in the presence of our God and all his angels and saints.
There have been those who would argue for a Christianity without that blood. But without the blood, there is no Christianity. Had Jesus’ blood not been shed, we would be left with a religion just as useless as all the religions in history. We would have a Jesus whose life was lived as a model for good, ethical living that we have to imitate as an example for our working our way to heaven. There is no gospel in that, since our sins have rendered us spiritually dead and unable to follow even the most perfect example. No, the blood of Jesus is absolutely essential to biblical Christianity, and to our eternal life.