Leviticus 17:11 “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.’”

Leviticus 17:17 “for it is the life of all flesh. Its blood sustains its life. Therefore I said to the children of Israel, ‘You shall not eat the blood of any flesh, for the life of all flesh is its blood. Whoever eats it shall be cut off.’”

Brother Rick Carroll could tell us a lot about blood as his job deals with such things. I do not pretend to have such a deep knowledge about blood, but through my study I have come to learn some interesting things. The Bible is a book of blood. When you make a study of it, you will find just how important blood really is. We could spend our time looking at the different elements that make up blood; but in our study, I want to look at the chemistry of the blood in another sense.

(i) First, Eliminate the False Doctrine Taught By Some that the Blood of Jesus was Different Than Any Other Man’s. To make the false doctrine of inherited sin consistent with the rest of God’s word, some have come up with the idea that Jesus did not inherit sin because His blood was somehow different than all others’. Sin is not inherited from parents. Sin means “missing the mark.” It is a choice that is made by a person with a sound mind. So, in the very beginning of this article I want to disabuse you of this particular view.

(ii)The Purpose of This Article is To Show That Life is in the Blood. Every twenty-three seconds’ blood travels through the body. Blood supplies the body with nourishment and at the same time carries off waste products. Blood has at least a twofold purpose: it cleanses the body and supplies the body. When blood fails to reach any part of the body that part of the body will become paralyzed and then die. Death occurs when blood no longer circulates through our bodies. We cannot live without blood. Thus, we see blood is what gives us life. The statement found in the book of Leviticus is absolutely true…Life is in the blood.

(iii)Spiritual Lessons for Us. Now consider how these truths apply to us spiritually.

(1)The Bible is a Bloody Book. What gives life and power to the Bible is the blood of the gospel. Heb.4:12 states that the word of God is a living Word. From Genesis to Revelation we see the stream of blood which gives this Book life. Blood is mentioned about seven hundred times in Scripture. Without the blood in the Bible it would be like many other books. But, what makes this Book alive and deemed the Living Word is the blood. The Bible clearly teaches that life is in the blood. The Bible is called God’s Living Word, for this book tells us how to receive eternal life.

(2)The Whole Plan of Redemption Rests on Blood (Heb.9:13-15). Jesus died on the cross and shed His innocent blood so we might have eternal life. Salvation is in the blood of Christ. He died to redeem man. He died to give man life. We will all die physically, but we do not have to die spiritually, burning in hell forever. Why? Because life is in the blood of Jesus. When we come in contact with the blood we begin a new life dedicated to God (Rom.6:3-7). Now how does one come in contact with the blood of Christ? Rev.1:5; Acts 22:16 baptism puts us into the blood that makes us white, pure, clean. We are washed in the blood of our Redeemer. If one is not washed in the blood he does not have life, but destruction. Why? Life is in the blood!

(3)Unity is in the Blood. We talk about our families and those who are “blood kin” or relatives, but that makes little difference. What is most important is that we are blood relatives if we are in Christ. God adopts us into His family when we apply the blood of Christ (Gal.4:5-7). We are one in Christ. We are a spiritual family. If we saw the chemistry of the blood, we would see there is no division in the body. All parts of the body need blood. As a local church we are a body (I Cor.12:12-27). We are to be one in purpose, goal, and love.

(4)We Overcome by the Blood of Jesus (Rev.12:10-11). Satan comes making accusations and trying to infect us with worldly poison. We overcome him by the blood of the Lamb (I Pet.1:18-19; I Jno.1:7-9). Without blood, there is no life. That is both a physical and spiritual truth. The Hebrew writer states in Hebrews 9:22 “without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sins.” Do you want forgiveness from your sins? Then be washed in the blood of the Lamb (Acts 2:38).

I sometimes wonder just how much David had growing up. Was Jesse his father a wealthy man? I am led to believe that he may have grown up in a modest home. The family had sheep, but could not afford a hireling to watch over them. David being the youngest son was delegated the job of watching the sheep. I know David had a sling and a harp, but I wonder just how much he had in the days of his youth. Then we see that he becomes king of Israel and becomes wealthy beyond our imagination. He lived in a palace and had all that his heart desired. However, let us notice David was still a good steward from I Chronicles 28 and 29.

(i)DAVID LIVED IN A PALACE, GOD’S ARK WAS IN A TENT. David was not blind to the fact that while he had a palace the ark of the covenant was still housed in a tent. David thought, “How is it I live in a palace and the ark of the covenant which represents Israel’s covenant with God is still in a tent?” David reasoned within himself that he would build a temple to house the ark of the covenant.

(ii)GOD SAID NO TO DAVID’S DESIRE TO BUILD THE TEMPLE. Why did God refuse David’s desire to build a temple to house the ark of the covenant? Because David was a man of bloodshed; he was a man of war. God said that because of the violence David had seen and partaken in that he could not build the temple, but that his son would. David could have sulked and pouted and declared, “Fine, I won’t do a thing!” However, that is not how David acted. Instead David started making preparations for the temple to be built. He gathered materials from all over in preparation to build the temple of God.

(iii)DAVID’S GIVING (I Chron.29:2-5). David gave generously from his own money for the materials to construct the temple. Now consider the fact he gave of his means to build a temple he would never see. Yet, David gave from his heart cheerfully.

(iv)DAVID’S QUESTION, “WHO ELSE WILL GIVE?” (I Chron.29:5). As king, David could have commanded the people to give, but David would rather give the people an opportunity to give of their own free will. He gave them an opportunity to do good.

(v)THE PEOPLE’S RESPONSE TO DAVID’S QUESTION (I Chron.29:6-7). The leaders offered willfully and cheerfully to give to the building of the temple. Great leaders always set a great example. Here the leaders gave cheerfully and the people followed their lead and gave (vs.8).

(vi)THE RESULT OF THEIR GIVING WAS JOY! They did not have some sinking feeling in their heart that they wasted their money when they gave, but they rejoiced in giving to God. Consider the joy they had in giving back to the God of heaven who had richly blessed them.

(vii)DAVID’S PRAYER (I Chron. 29:10-20).  

David addresses God in one the most beautiful prayers as we read recorded in I Chronicles 29:10-20. Notice

Several statements from this beautiful prayer. In vs.12 he states “riches come from You.” David recognized where all blessings come from. He realized God is the giver of every perfect gift (Jas.2:17). In I Chron.29:14 David realizes another great truth that we would do well to recognize. David understood that he was just a steward and not an owner of the things in his possession. Whatever we think we own we only have for a short time while here, the only eternal possession we have is our soul (Matt.16:26). A third great truth David uttered in his prayer is in regard to the heart of man (vs.17-20). He pleads with God to let this giving heart remain in His people. David knew the temptation of material things becoming the focus and not God, and he prayed that Israel would keep their focus on God. We should pray the same thing David prayed, remembering that we are only stewards of what God has blessed us with, not really owners.

LESSONS FOR US: (1) All things belong to God, we are just stewards. (2) Material things do not bring lasting happiness. There will always be an upgrade we desire and we are never satisfied with what we have. Get tired of what we have and want something bigger to fulfill our empty lives when in reality only God can. We need to be laying up treasures in heaven (Matt.6:19-20). You will never regret investing in God. (3) We need to give to God cheerfully and willingly (2 Cor.9:7). (4) One day we will give an account of what God has entrusted to us.