His Blood Brings Us Near
When we are cleansed in the blood our separation from God is over. We can be brought near to God, only through the blood of Christ. Paul wrote this to the early church, the Gentiles: “You were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” (Ephesians 2:12–13 NIV11)
One of the most amazing things that happened when Jesus died was that the curtain in the temple was split from top to bottom. The curtain in the temple was the great separator. God was specially present in the holy of holies, the holiest place in the temple and on earth. Sinners were kept away from the holy of holies by that curtain.
Feeling Far from God?
You couldn’t get near God! And in particular, if you were a Gentile you had no hope. God was for the Jews, and the other nations were second-class citizens.
But when Jesus shed his blood and died, that curtain was split, and the holy of holies opened up! A huge moment, symbolising that Christ’s death opened God up to all. And as Paul wrote, those “who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”
Question: Have you felt far from God lately? Like there’s something in the way of you and him? Maybe your own sinfulness has left you feeling hopelessly disconnected from Him. Maybe your pain and struggles have shaken your faith and left you feeling alone. Maybe the world around you has pulled you away from the vital faith you once had. Maybe you’ve never known the warm embrace of the God of the universe.
Pleading the Blood
Well, my friends. The curtain is split. The blood Jesus shed opened the way back to God. All you have to do is turn towards our God and plead the blood.
Have you heard that term? “Plead the blood”? In some church circles, people use that phrase as a kind of magic wand – they pray “I plead the blood of Jesus over my finances” and expect, in faith, that they will not have financial difficulties because they’ve prayed the prayer.
I don’t believe in praying that way. But I do believe in pleading the blood – I think that means coming to God confidently on the basis of your faith in the blood of Jesus.
So that means that instead of approaching God saying “I am a great Christian”, you come to God with a plea, saying “By the blood of Jesus I come! I have no right, but thanks to the blood Jesus shed… You opened the way! Thank You Lord for the blood which covers me. Receive me back Lord, not because I’m good enough… but I plead the blood of Jesus, because HE has washed me, I come back to you now.”
Faith in the Blood
If you have placed your faith in Christ, believed in him as God’s Son, and believed that his blood was shed for you, then your separation from God is over as you plead the blood.
And we all need the embrace of God our Father. Our souls were designed for it! We ALL need His deep loving closeness. It is the one thing that can cure our loneliness, our hurt, our sense of hopelessness.
Do you need to come to God today? NONE of us is good enough. But EACH ONE OF US can come by the blood.
Place your faith in the man who God sent to a cross. Place your faith in the blood He shed. And walk into God’s presence, confident not in yourself, but in the blood that marks you as His.
