“…how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.”

There are three affirmative statements in this verse that we should keep in mind when deciding whether we will follow Jesus all the way or not. First, the superpower of the blood of Christ. From God’s perspective, there is no comparison between the blood of bulls and goats and the blood of Jesus. The animal blood lacks the power of eternal redemption but the blood of Christ provides exactly that. What’s more, the animal blood appealed more to the external nature of sin while the blood of Christ considers the internal part of man.

Second, Christ volunteered His own blood by volunteering for the cross and all it entailed. No one could force Him and no one did. He chose the cross and the ensuing separation from God. We cannot imagine the cost of that decision to Jesus. We can read of His anguish and listen to His prayer for an alternative but to grasp the price He would pay is beyond our human ability. We may make the mistake of thinking that being without blemish was simple for Christ but we would misread the scripture. He was tempted in all matters just as we are. Notice that the temptations He faced were ‘just like’ ours.

Third, the sacrifice of Christ provided that which was necessary to purify our inner, spiritual man. This was no whitewash job. The blood of Jesus cleanses all the way to the core of our being which allows us to become new creatures, recreated for the purpose of serving God.

Task for Today: Take it all in. You were in sin without hope in this world or the one to come and Jesus gave His blood and took it to the throne of God and in God’s very presence offered it on your behalf. What is your response to that today? Can you say, “Thank you, Jesus?” Can you change your life and respond to His call for you to be different even as He was? Today is a good day to make some changes, don’t you think?