Devotions

In the Old Testament, the high priest went into the Holy of Holies once a year to make atonement, which means “reconciliation.” This act was meant to wipe away the people’s sins so they could be reconciled and have communion again with the heavenly Father. 

The priest carried into the Holy of Holies a handful of incense, a censer of burning coals from the altar, and a container of blood from a slain ox. Within the Holy of Holies was an ark that had the mercy seat on top of it where God “sat.” It was his very presence.

After cleansing himself in an elaborate ceremony, the priest went inside the Holy of Holies with great reverence and fear. He dropped the incense into the fire, causing an aroma and smoke to ascend. This represented the prayers of Christ interceding for his people. Then the priest dipped his finger into the blood and sprinkled it seven times on the mercy seat. 

“He shall take some of the blood of the bull and sprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat on the east side; and before the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times” (Leviticus 16:14, NKJV).

When the blood was sprinkled on God’s seat, forgiveness of all sins was accomplished, and all past sins were covered. When the high priest came out, the people knew God had accepted the sacrifice, and their sins were pardoned. Israel never doubted it! 

Beloved, we too have a High Priest: Jesus, our Lord, our High Priest forever. Jesus took his own blood to the true mercy seat in God’s presence, the Holy of Holies, and presented it for the remission of all sins, of all believers, for all time. 

Scripture says of this act, “Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood he entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption” (Hebrews 9:12).

Jesus took his own blood into heaven for us, and it is not reserved there simply as a memorial. It is to be sprinkled on all who come to him by faith.

In Exodus 24, God made a covenant agreement with Israel. He promised throughout the entire Old Testament, “If you will obey my words, I will be a God to you and you will be my people” (Jeremiah 7:23, NKJV). After Moses read the law to the people, they answered, “We understand and we will obey.” 

This covenant had to be sealed—ratified and made valid—and that could happen only by sprinkling the blood upon it. Hebrews tells us that “[Moses] took the blood…and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people” (Hebrews 9:19).

The shed blood of the burnt offerings was contained in a basin. Moses took some of this blood and poured part of it by the altar; then he took a hyssop (plant), dipped it in the basin, and sprinkled some of the blood on the twelve pillars (representing the twelve tribes of Israel). Finally, Moses dipped the hyssop into the basin and sprinkled the blood on the people, which sealed the covenant. 

It is clear that the sprinkling of the blood gave the Israelites full access to God with joy. On this occasion, it had nothing to do with forgiveness of sin but rather with communion. They were now sanctified, cleansed, and fit to be in God’s presence. 

Moses and the seventy elders went up to the mountain to meet God, where the Lord appeared to them. These men saw a table spread before them, and scripture implies that with ease, comfort, and no fear of judgment, they sat in God’s presence and ate and drank with him: “But on the nobles of the children of Israel he did not lay his hand. So they saw God, and they ate and drank” (Exodus 24:11).

This is simply amazing. These men could eat and drink in the very presence of God, whereas shortly before, they had feared for their lives. The blood had been sprinkled, and they understood the safety, power and security in that. They had no fear! 

Beloved, today we are in a new covenant with Jesus Christ, a covenant sealed by his own blood. When his precious blood is sprinkled on your soul, it is for the purpose of communion so that you can go boldly—with ease, without fear of judgment—into God’s presence. You are given access to him, with no sin condemning you, free to talk to God and enjoy his company.

Psalm 1:1 begins with a powerful phrase, “Blessed is the man…” (ESV). Those four words could not be more important to a Christian in any age. 

But how is it possible to lead a blessed life no matter what may come? Given how messed up the world is, how can it be true of us that “in all that he does, he prospers?” (Psalm 1:3). For that matter, what does it mean to be blessed?

The author of Psalm 1 approached this question in an individual, deeply personal way. Today, we hear all kinds of people claim, “I’m blessed!” Some mean their lives are problem-free. Others mean their finances are in good shape. A few mean they got a great parking spot at the mall. 

None of this is what blessed means in the context of this psalm. The Hebrew meaning of “blessed” here is deeply and profoundly spiritual. To be blessed isn’t to prosper materially but to prosper in soul; it speaks of happiness because of a sense of the divine in your life. 

While we may not always have material goods, decent health, or a problem-free life, we can be deeply, profoundly, and immeasurably blessed beyond anything that the world can bestow. This is a profound truth, yet it is within the reach of everyone who calls themselves a follower of Jesus. 

Psalm 1 has great news for you. God is the one who orchestrates your righteous prosperity. The psalmist declared of the blessed man, “He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither” (Psalm 1:3).

Christ’s constant stream helps us through not only daily temptations but also through the roughest seasons of life. When we are planted beside living water, we can draw on his strength to see us through. 

As he awaited his death as a prisoner in a Nazi concentration camp, the famed theologian, pastor and Christian martyr Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote a letter about losing people we love. He wrote, in part:

There is nothing that can replace the absence of someone dear to us, and one should not even attempt to do so. One must simply hold out and endure it. At first that sounds very hard, but at the same time it is also a great comfort. For to the extent the emptiness truly remains unfilled one remains connected to the other person through it. It is wrong to say that God fills the emptiness. God in no way fills it but much more leaves it precisely unfilled and thus helps us preserve—even in pain—the authentic relationship. Furthermore, the more beautiful and full the remembrances, the more difficult the separation. But gratitude transforms the torment of memory into silent joy. One bears what was lovely in the past not as a thorn but as a precious gift deep within, a hidden treasure of which one can always be certain. 

Gratitude helps us deal with loss. Jesus faced loss and showed us one other way to deal with the grief that accompanies the loss of people we love: compassion. “Now when Jesus heard this [John’s death], he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick” (Matthew 14:12-14, ESV).

John the Baptist was Jesus’s cousin. John was murdered because of a crazed and convicted adulterer. When Jesus heard the news, he withdrew out of grief and sorrow. He went to a lonely place by himself. The big problem for Jesus was that though he wanted to be alone to grieve and process his loss, the multitudes wanted his healing. When they realized where he had gone, they followed him. Jesus saw them and felt compassion for them. 

The way out of the grief funk is not through a season of loneliness but through ministering to others. When you start to tend to others’ needs, God heals you and takes care of you. It’s dangerous to be left alone with your thoughts when you suffer great loss. It is in giving that you receive.  

^{After pastoring an inner-city congregation in Detroit for thirty years, Pastor Tim served at Brooklyn Tabernacle in NYC for five years and pastored in Lafayette, Louisiana, for five years. He became Senior Pastor of Times Square Church in May of 2020.}

The blood of Jesus is the most precious gift our heavenly father has given to his church, yet few Christians understand its value.

Christians often sing about the power of the blood. Indeed, one of the most well-known gospel anthems trumpets, “There is power, power, wonder-working power in the precious blood of the Lamb.” However, most believers seldom enter into the power of that blood, probably because we simply do not comprehend its great significance. For example, we constantly “plead the blood” as some kind of mystical formula of protection, but few Christians can explain its great glory and benefits.

If I were to ask you what the power of the blood means, you might answer, “It means that all my sins are forgiven, and I am free.” Beyond forgiveness, though, what does the blood of Jesus Christ mean to you? Can you explain to your family or to a friend or colleague the worth and significance of the blood of Jesus?

Let me share with you the benefits that flow from the blood of Jesus. 

1. Jesus’s blood redeems us from sin and the power of darkness. “In him we have redemption through his blood” (Ephesians 1:7, NKJV). We are no longer under condemnation. 
2. Jesus’s blood has purchased the whole church of God. “Shepherd the church of God which he purchased with his own blood” (Acts 20:28). 
3. Jesus’s blood breaks down all walls. “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation” (Ephesians 2:13-14).
4. Jesus’s blood sanctifies us. “The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). 
5. Christ’s blood overcomes Satan. “And they overcame him [the devil] by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony” (Revelation 12:11).
6. The blood gives us access to the Holy of Holies and to our heavenly Father. “Therefore, brethren, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus” (Hebrews 10:19).

Through the blood of Jesus we are able to come to our heavenly father boldly and without fear!