S: Leviticus 17:11NIV- For the life of a creature is in the blood, and I have given it to you to make atonement for yourselves on the altar; it is the blood that makes atonement for one’s life.
O: God was giving the Israelites, through Moses, specific guide lines on how to cleanse themselves if any thing made them unclean. Before Jesus would ever lay His life down, God required a sacrifice to be made by His people in order for them to be cleansed, and be in right standing with him. During this form of atonement sacrifice, God warns His people not to drink the blood of the sacrificed creature, because the life of that creature was in the blood.
A: Reading this passage reminds me of the sacrifice of the Jesus Christ. I love the fact that verse 17 starts by saying, "the life of a creature is in the blood." As a Christian, I believe that the blood the that was shed by Jesus on a cross, is the one thing that gives us life, and unites us all. His blood wasn't shed merely to save us, but to inject life back into us. His sacrifice takes us from being the waking dead (For the wages of sin is death, Romans 6:23) to a place where life, and life more abundantly has been injected back into us. But not only is the blood meant to give us life, the blood of Jesus is meant to unite us in our faith. It doesn't matter what culture, color, or creed you may come from, the blood of Christ unifies us, and makes us sons, and daughters of God. In the same way my father and mothers blood run through my veins, the blood of Christ is in me, making me a child of God. The greatest thing about being a child of God is, because He is my Heavenly Father, I have access to everything He owns, and God owns everything. Nothing is off limits to a child of God because the blood of Jesus brings life, that unifies us and makes us His children. The last thing verse 17 tells us is that, "the blood makes atonement for one's life." I'm so thankful for the blood of Jesus Christ, because He made one atoning sacrifice that covers us all, from now till Kingdom come. We no longer have to jump through hoops like the Israelites had to in Leviticus, because Christ sacrifice was so perfect, all we have to do is rest in every thing He had to go through on behalf of us. Today I choose to be thankful that Christ blood gave me life, makes me a child of God, and made atonement for me that I could never make for myself.
P: God thank You for sending Your Son Jesus, to do what I was never capable of doing. Help me to find rest in His sacrifice. Amen.
