“How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit, offered Himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” Hebrews 9:14
There is an old hymn entitled, “Would You Be Free.” In that hymn, the great emphasis is on the power of the blood of Christ. Why does it speak of power? How does the blood of Christ have power? The answer is not found in some great demonstration of the movement of mountains and seas, but in the thorough and complete working by it to accomplish the purposes of God. The power of the blood of Christ resides, not only in the testimony of God declaring its existence, and how it was shed on Calvary by the Lord Jesus, but in the worth the Father has put upon it. We discover something of this worth when we begin to grasp that the blood of Christ was shed for all mankind, and that it was God’s only way by which the sin of man could be removed from him. Not only is a lost sinner “born in sin,” inheriting a sin nature, but he is dominated by its principle and power. Not only does Scripture use filthy clothing to speak of the nature of sin, but goes so far as to say that what appears to be the “righteousness,” or right acts of men, are as filthy rags in the sight of God. The sinner is filled with sin, and cannot be free from its power of domination, nor the guilt before God which ever remains, much less the cleansing and being made white as snow. It is with this backdrop of the sinfulness of man, his hopelessness, and the enormity of mankind’s need, that we begin to get a glimpse of the power of the blood of Christ to break the power of sin, and cleanse the depths of the spirit, soul, and body. The blood of Christ is the only means given by God so that sin can not only be removed by forgiveness, but the only assurance and certainty of the sinner’s approach to God, being accepted before Him. How far does the blood of Christ go in dealing with sin? It goes as far and as deep as Jesus’ suffering on the cross. That is to say, it goes to the very depths and root of sin. It goes to hell itself, for there is no need, no depth of sin to which a person can go, that Christ has not gone deeper to save. The only thing that will keep a person from not knowing such power and cleansing is his unbelief, that deliberate turning away and refusal to hear the truth, and turn wholly to Christ for the application of His precious blood.
With regard to the practical application of the blood of Christ, how is this to be done? We have a picture in Scripture of Joshua the high priest standing before God, with Satan present accusing him. He is neutralized in his task as high priest because his sin, represented by soiled clothing covering him. It is only when God commands that these clothes be taken away that Joshua escapes the clinging filth of his sin, and the condemnation heaped upon him from the adversary. God then commands that new, clean clothing be given to Joshua. The old has been totally taken away, and new clothing has been given him. In part, this is what the blood of Jesus does. When applied by the Spirit of God, it removes the filth of sin in its totality, to replace it with the righteousness of Christ. David understood this, but even moreso. In his great prayer concerning the forgiveness and cleansing from sin, he prayed: “Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.” (Ps. 51:2) David trusted God for complete cleansing. This is what John meant when he wrote, “…and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from ALL sin.” (1 Jn. 1:7)
Dear Father, Apply thy Son’s blood to us in the fulness of its power. In Jesus’ name, Amen.