The Blood Is Enough

Enough  •  Sermon  •  Submitted
0 ratings
· 66 views
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
View more →

The Blood Is Enough

Sermon Text

Hebrews 9:11–12 CSB
11 But Christ has appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come. In the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands (that is, not of this creation), 12 he entered the most holy place once for all time, not by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption.

Introduction

Recap Enough Series
Grace is Enough
Jesus is Enough
We live in a Post-Modern society that is much like Old Testament Culture
Rebellious
Religious
Ritualistic
We are a lot like them searching for a redemptive answer.
Many of you came today looking for hope saying “let me give this church thing a try”
May i suggest to you today that church attendance alone is not the answer. If we are not careful Sunday morning will become just another ceremonial moment.
We look for it in many different things
We’ve put more faith in signs and symbols than the Savior
This isn’t a new trend however even amongst the believer.
We’ve to depend on powerless practices
It may work temporarily but the shedding of the blood of Jesus changed our story forever.

Background

The Lexham Bible Dictionary Ritual Effects of Blood

Ritual Effects of Blood

The detailed instructions for sacrifices in biblical law include specific stipulations for how the blood is to be handled. These instructions are not always explicit about the exact purpose for each act. In general, the biblical text focuses more on ritual practice than on ritual purpose. Often, no strong distinction is made and the three typical effects attributed to blood—consecrating, cleansing, and atoning—are associated with the same acts. For example, on the Day of Atonement—the only time the chief priest could enter the holy of holies—the high priest took the blood from the sacrifices and spattered the blood on and in front of the cover of the ark of the covenant (כַּפֹּ֫רֶת, kapporeth; “mercy seat; atonement cover”; Lev 16:14–15). This ritual served to “make atonement for the sanctuary from the Israelites’ impurities and from their transgressions for all their sins” (Lev 16:16 LEB). Then he would use the remaining blood to “make atonement” for the altar by putting the blood on the horns of the altar and spattering it on the altar seven times (Lev 16:18–19). In this way, the priest would “cleanse it and consecrate it from the Israelites’ impurities” (Lev 16:19 LEB). The single act of applying blood to the altar served to make atonement, cleanse, and consecrate. Perhaps, from the biblical point of view, these effects were one and the same—making atonement, cleansing, and consecrating all represent a transition from common and profane to holy and sacred, fit for use or service before Yahweh.

Purification and Consecration. In some cases, blood was to be used for purification or ritual cleansing. For example, the ritual for purifying someone who had a leprous disease but who had healed was a several-stage process that involved, among other things, sprinkling the person with blood (Lev 14:5–7), and applying the blood of a “guilt offering” to the person’s right earlobe, right thumb, and right big toe (Lev 14:14). A similar ritual was necessary for cleansing a house after dealing with surface discoloration like mold or mildew in the walls (Lev 14:49–52).

The rituals that purified and consecrated the priests and the tabernacle involved anointing with oil and the application of blood, but only the blood is said to have “purified the altar” (Lev 8:15). The blood rituals in Num 19:1–6 and Lev 16 are also associated with cleansing sacred spaces with blood. Milgrom sees the connection between blood and life as the key to explain its purifying function in the biblical sacrificial system. Seeing blood as the ritual detergent that purges impurity, he concludes that since impurity “is the realm of death,” the antidote to impurity is life, represented by blood (Milgrom, Leviticus 1–16, 711). Blood cleanses the sanctuary, purging it of impurity, because it “nullifies, overpowers, and absorbs the Israelites’ impurities that adhere to the sanctuary, thereby allowing the divine presence to remain and Israel to survive” (Milgrom, Leviticus 1–16, 712).

In addition to purifying the priests and the tabernacle, the blood rituals associated with the ordination of the priests and the dedication of the tabernacle function to consecrate them (Lev 8:10–30; compare Exod 29:10–21). When Moses poured blood at the base of the altar, he “consecrated it in order to make atonement for it” (Lev 8:15). Then, after Aaron and his sons had been anointed with oil (Lev 8:12–13), Moses used the blood from the “ram of ordination” to consecrate them as well (Lev 8:22–30).

The ritual at the giving of the law (Exod 24), where Moses sprinkled the blood of the sacrifices on the people, is likely an example of consecration as well. It is also the only ritual described in the Bible where all the people of Israel are anointed with blood (Peeler, “Desiring God,” 187). One common approach to interpreting this ritual is to identify it as signifying the people had become “parties to the covenant” with Yahweh (Stuart, Exodus, 555; compare Heb 9:19–20). Another approach understands the ritual in terms of the purifying and consecrating effects of the rituals in Lev 8–9 (Peeler, “Desiring God,” 189). From this perspective, the blood served to purge Israel of impurities, which enabled Moses, the priests, and the elders to enter God’s presence on Sinai (Exod 24:9–11). However, these approaches are not mutually exclusive. In the context of the covenant ceremony, the ritual undoubtedly serves to ratify and confirm the covenant (Hendel, “Sacrifice,” 370). In the context of similar blood rituals, the ritual also probably serves to purify and consecrate the people (Peeler, “Desiring God,” 190–91; Hendel, “Sacrifice,” 375).

The use of blood as a symbol of the covenant relationship is also evident in the New Testament references to the “blood of the covenant” (Matt 26:28; Mark 14:24; Luke 22:20; Heb 10:29; 13:20). While the Old Testament covenant was established by the death of animals, the new covenant was established by the death of Christ (Heb 9:14–18). Both covenants required the shedding of blood for purification and redemption (Heb 9:11–28).

Atonement. The third ritual effect associated with blood is the making of atonement (e.g., Lev 8:15; 16:16–19). Atonement is a complex theological topic and the exact process and nature of atonement is debated. However, it can be generally understood as a state of restoration or reconciliation. In the Old Testament, atonement is associated with the Hebrew root כפר (kpr), often defined as “cover” (see Rodrigues, “Atonement”). Milgrom points out that while “atone” is a common translation for כפר (kpr), the actual usage of the word reveals a much more complicated range of possible meanings in context, including “wipe,” “remove,” “purify,” “decontaminate,” “cover,” “rub,” and “ransom”; Milgrom prefers to use “purge” in most contexts (Milgrom, Leviticus 1–16, 1079–82).

Blood is a key ingredient for bringing about atonement in the biblical system. Most cases where a priest makes atonement for someone or something involve an animal sacrifice (e.g., Lev 1:4; 4:20; 5:6), though there were exceptions where a monetary offering was required for atonement (e.g., Exod 30:11–16). The practice of animal sacrifice for atonement is commonly interpreted as a case of substitution—where the animal’s blood is offered in place of the sinner’s to expiate (or remove) the person’s guilt (Rooker, Leviticus, 53). According to Hebrews 9:22, blood is an essential ingredient for atonement (for how ἄφεσις, aphesis; relates to atonement, see Koester, Hebrews, 420–21).

Jesus Comes as the Messiah
The People Reject His claims

Sermon Points

Nasty
Hebrews 9:12–13 CSB
12 he entered the most holy place once for all time, not by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption. 13 For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow, sprinkling those who are defiled, sanctify for the purification of the flesh,
2. Necessary
Hebrews 9:23–24 CSB
23 Therefore, it was necessary for the copies of the things in the heavens to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves to be purified with better sacrifices than these. 24 For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made with hands (only a model of the true one) but into heaven itself, so that he might now appear in the presence of God for us.
3. Never-Ending
Hebrews 9:28 CSB
28 so also Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.

Close

There is a fountain filled with blood   Drawn from Immanuel’s veins; And sinners, plunged beneath that flood,   Lose all their guilty stains:
It reaches to the highest mountain It flows to the lowest valley The blood that gives me strength From day to day It will never lose its power
Related Media
See more
Related Sermons
See more