Todd's Road Grace Church would
like to invite you to listen to a sermon by our pastor, Todd
Nibert. We are located at 4137 Todd's
Road, two miles outside of Manowar Boulevard. Sunday services are
at 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Bible study is at
9.45 a.m. Wednesday services are at 7 p.m. Nursery is provided for all services.
For more information, visit our website at toddsroadgracechurch.com. Now here's our pastor, Todd Nibert. I've entitled this message, Blood. You know, there's something shocking
when you see blood shed, blood coming out of your own wounds,
blood coming from somebody else, blood. In Hebrews 9, verse 22,
we read, And almost all things are by
the law purged with blood. And without shedding of blood
is no remission. I know that at some time you
have thought, and I have thought as well, why does blood have
to be shed? Why this emphasis on blood? That could seem almost barbaric,
primitive. You've got some kind of angry
God that can't be satisfied with anything short of blood. Why
blood? I understand you asking that
question, and let me answer the question. The blood is because
of the person and work of Jesus Christ. That's the best answer
I can give. The reason for the shedding of
the blood is the person and the work of Jesus Christ. Now, speaking of the person and
work of Christ, His person is who He is. And who He is defines
what He did. That's His work. Those two things
cannot be separated. If I'm wrong on the person of
Christ, I'll be wrong on His work. And if I'm wrong on the
work of Christ, I will be wrong on His person. And Jesus Christ
made the world so he could come into this world and shed his
blood to put away sin. Why the blood? Because it's the
blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. He's called in Revelation 13,
8, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. He came to shed
his blood. In shedding His blood, He was
saving His people, and He was honoring His Father. Every attribute of God is fully
displayed in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Christ shedding
His blood on the cross Christ willingly being nailed to the
cross is the most God-like thing God ever did. It's glorious, the shedding of
His blood. Now Hebrews chapter 9 is of chapter with regard to Old
Testament worship. I'm talking about the worship
that took place between Genesis and Malachi. Now, the gospel
was the same then than it is now. It's not like Old Testament
believers were saved one way and New Testament believers are
saved another. That's just not so. We're all
saved the same way, by the blood of Christ, by the grace of God.
Chapter 9 begins with, then verily the first covenant had also ordinances,
talking about the sacrifice, the feast days that were figures,
pictures, illustrations of the gospel. They had ordinances of
a divine service and a worldly sanctuary. Now if you would read
this ninth chapter of Hebrews, the word that you would come
across the most is blood. It's mentioned 10 times in Hebrews
chapter 9. And notice what the writer says
in verse 22. And almost all things are by
the law purged with blood. Now this began after Moses gave
the law, the people said, all that the Lord has spoken, that
will we do. You know what Moses did at that
point? He burned animals, flew animals, took the blood, sprinkled
it on the people, and he sprinkled it on the law. Now why did he
do that? Because he knew they would disobey. They made a big promise, all
that the Lord has spoken, that will we do. Never been a bigger
lie ever told. They didn't do anything the Lord
told them to do. And Moses sprinkled blood on them and on the tabernacle,
on the books, the book that he had written. And the scripture
says almost all things are by the law purged with blood. You'd
see blood on everything. Every year there would be A Day
of Atonement, blood would be shed, it would be sprinkled on
the mercy seat, it would be sprinkled on the altar of incense. Everywhere
you'd see there's blood and we don't read any instructions with
regard to that blood ever being washed off. I think year after
year the blood was there, and after some time you probably
couldn't see anything but blood. The Ark of the Covenant covered
with blood. The priest in his fine white
garments would be covered with blood from the slaying of those
sacrifices. And God meant for everyone to
see, this is blood. the shedding of blood. Almost
all things are by the law purged with blood, and without the shedding
of blood, there is no remission of sins. There was a morning
and evening sacrifice every day for over 1,400 years. That alone would be 1.2 million
sacrifices. The morning sacrifice says, I
wake up a sinner. The evening sacrifice says, I
go to bed a sinner. That sacrifice had to be repeated
over and over again because that sacrifice never took away sin.
The blood of bulls and goats can never take away sin. Now, the first time blood is
mentioned in scripture is with regard to Cain shedding Abel's
blood, and God saying to Cain, the blood of your brother cries
to me from the ground. Now what was that shedding of
blood over? Well, Cain brought a bloodless sacrifice. the fruit
of the ground, his best. God had no respect to it, no
regard to it. Abel brought the blood of a sacrifice. I have no doubt that his father
Adam told him the only way God can be approached is through
the blood of the coming Lamb of God. Abel didn't believe that
the blood of that sacrifice put away his sins, but what that
sacrifice pointed to. And Cain was angry. He was angry that God had respect
to Abel's offering and he had no respect to his. He thought
that was unfair and they got in an argument. And it became
so heated that Cain murdered his brother. And he murdered
his brother over the issue of this blood sacrifice. And that's when God said, your
brother's blood cries to me from the ground. It lets me know what
you've done. God saw this. Luke, I mean, Leviticus chapter
17, verse 11 says, it's the blood that maketh atonement for the
soul. It is the blood. There is no
remission of sins without blood. God said on the night of the
Passover, after he had instructed Israel to put blood over the
door. Now think of that. Somebody says,
well, that seems primitive. Well, it's pointing to the blood
of Christ. That's not primitive. That's
eternal. That's glorious. He said, put blood over the door,
the blood of that lamb, that spotless lamb without blemish
or without spot. And you put it over the door
of the the doorpost of the home you're in, and God said, when
I see the blood, I will pass over you. God didn't say when
I see your works. He didn't say when I see your
sincerity. He didn't say when I see your faith. He didn't say
when I see your battle against sin and how you're trying to
never sin again. He said nothing like that. He
said, when I see the blood, that's the one thing he was looking
for. When I see the blood, he didn't say when you see the blood.
You know, if you're in the house, you couldn't say it. You were
in the house. God said, when I see the blood,
I will pass over you. Now, what if some Israelite that
very day had committed some evil sin that we would be ashamed
to even mention what it is that was so bad? Question. If he was
in the house with the blood over the door, was he secure? Was he saved? Absolutely. God said, when I see the blood,
I will pass over you. Now, is there anyone thinking
why this emphasis on blood It seems barbaric. It seems primitive. Why this emphasis on blood? Now, I've thought that before. I've thought that before. I have
to be honest. I'm ashamed, but I have thought that before. And
there are two reasons one would have that kind of response to
the blood. And these two reasons go together. Number one, an ignorance
of the holiness and justice of God. And number two, an ignorance
of the sinfulness of sin, and my own personal sinfulness. Now these two ignorances are
different sides of the same coin. They're different sides of the
same sheet of paper. It's the inhale and the exhale
of unbelief. But this is what causes men to
think this way. Why this emphasis on blood? Well,
let me repeat the scripture again. Without the shedding of blood,
there is no remission of sin. Hebrews 2.13 says we're made
nigh You see, sin separated us. We're
made far away by our sin. Your sins have separated you,
but we're made nigh by the blood of Christ. And the first time the word blood
is used with reference to the Lord is when he instituted the
Lord's table, and he said, this is my blood of the New Testament. which is shed for many for the
remission of sins. Now notice he doesn't say it's
shed for everybody, but he does say it's shed for many. It's
shed for many for the remission of sins. Now, the writer to the
Hebrews called this blood the blood of the everlasting covenant. Don't miss that word. The blood
of the everlasting eternal covenant. A covenant that never had a beginning
and will never have an ending. You see, Christ is called, before
time, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. And
when we're given that last scene of eternity, in Revelation chapter
5, this final scene, John says, I saw a Lamb as it had been slain. Remember the song, worthy is
the Lamb that was slain, that's the song of heaven. It was the
song before time, it'll be the song when time is no more. John
said, I saw a lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns
and seven eyes, that's his omnipotence and his omniscience, which are
the seven spirits of God sent forth unto all the earth. And
he came, this lamb that was slain, and took the book out of the
right hand of him that sitteth upon the throne. When the writer
of the Hebrews speaks of the sin of willful ignorance. He
said, if we sin willfully, after that we've received the knowledge
of the truth. And this is talking about the
sin against the Holy Spirit. This is the sin for which there
is no forgiveness. It's when you receive the knowledge
of the truth. the knowledge of the truth of
salvation through the blood of Christ, and turn around and let
it go. He says there's no more sacrifice
for sin. He said, if we sin willfully
after we receive the knowledge of the truth, here's what we're
doing. We're trotting underfoot the
son of God and counting the blood of the covenant, wherewith he
was sanctified an unholy thing. Now by unholy, It doesn't mean
morally bad, although it is, but the word means common. That
which is common to all as opposed to that which is peculiar to
the few. Now to treat the blood of Christ
in that sense, that's trouble. He said, this is my blood of
the New Testament. Feed the church of God, which
he purchased with his own blood. Is it any wonder Peter called
it the precious blood of Christ? The blood of God, the blood of
the God man. I hope I'm saying this with fear
and trembling. The blood of God is most precious
because of what His, because of whose blood it is and what
He accomplished by His blood. Judas, when he betrayed Christ,
said, I betrayed the innocent blood. You know, the blood of
Jesus Christ is the only blood that's innocent. My blood is
defiled by my sin. But his blood was innocent blood,
because he never sinned. Why, even Pilate said, I'm innocent
of the blood of this just person. Pilate, no, you're not. I know
you're saying that, but you're not. But still, he had some understanding
of the innocence of the Lord Jesus Christ. He never committed
The sin. Oh, his innocent blood. I think of when he was in Gethsemane's
garden and that cup was brought before him. And he said, Father,
if it be possible, let this cup pass from me. And the scripture
says he sweat great drops of blood as he looked upon this
cup and knew the contents of this cup. You see, this was the
sins of everybody he's going to die for. He was going to drink
those sins. He'd bear our sins in his own
body on the tree. And he was just overwhelmed at
the thought of being made sin, being made that which is odious
to his father, actually becoming guilty before his father. The
scripture says, for he hath made him, God made him to be sin. for us who knew no sin that we
might be made the righteousness of God in Him." Now, the shedding
of blood is the shedding of His blood. That's the point. Whose blood was shed? It was
His blood. If I shed my blood for you, it
wouldn't do you any good. But if he shed his blood, listen
to this scripture, Romans 834 says, who is he that condemneth?
It's Christ that died. Not anyone else. Who is he that
condemneth? It's Christ that died. If Christ
died for me, I can't be condemned. Who is he that condemneth its
Christ that died, yea, rather that's risen again, who is even
at the right hand of God? You see, because of who he is,
he's not capable of not having exactly what he intended to have
by the shedding of his blood. Now I realize that most of what's
called Christianity says that Jesus Christ shed his blood for
everybody and paid for everybody's sins. Now let me give you a few
problems with that. Number one, the Bible doesn't
teach that. He said, I laid down my life
for the sheep. He didn't lay down his life for the goats.
The Bible makes an issue of this. Number two, if he shed his blood
for everybody and everybody's not saved, he failed in his intention. He didn't get what he came to
do. And if Jesus Christ died for everybody and some of those
people he died for wind up in hell, God's not just. He's making
somebody pay for the same sin twice. If Christ paid for my
sins and I have to pay for them again in hell, God's not just.
And listen to this, and this is what probably means the most
to me with regard to this. The only hope I have is that
Jesus Christ died for my sins and put them away. And if you
tell me that he can die for somebody and they wind up in hell anyway,
I'll wind up in hell anyway. I know I will. You're taking
away the only hope I have. The only hope I have is that
Jesus Christ actually put away my sin. Hebrews chapter 13 verse
12 says, Wherefore Jesus, that he also might sanctify the people
by his own blood. suffered without the gate. You see, the blood of Jesus Christ,
God's Son, sanctifies, makes holy, makes other every single
one of his people. By one offering, he hath perfected
forever that shedding of his blood, that one offering, he
hath perfected forever them that are sanctified. Listen to this
scripture, Romans 5, 9, being now justified by his blood. Now his blood makes everybody
he died for justified. That means if you're justified,
you've never committed a sin. That means you stand before God
with that guilt. You stand before God's holy law, perfect. That's justification. Being now
justified by his blood. Colossians 1.20 says, having
made peace through the blood of his cross. Oh, the shedding
of his blood made God at peace with me. Somebody says, have
you made your peace with God? No, Jesus Christ made my peace
with God. And God is completely satisfied
with me. He's at peace with me because
of the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. And you know what? That
gives me peace. seeing that he is satisfied with
what his son has done, that gives me peace. I'm not afraid of judgment
because of the blood of Christ, not because of any goodness in
me, not because I'm a preacher, because I study the scriptures,
or because I witness prayer. No! My peace is that his blood
answered everything God requires of me. Ephesians 1.7 says, in
whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness
of sins. Now listen to this. The forgiveness
of sins does not come to you after a process. You're convicted
by him, you confess him, you forsake him, and then God forgives
you. No. The forgiveness of sins comes
for one reason, the shedding of his blood. His blood accomplished
the complete forgiveness of sins. Hebrews 9.12 says, neither by
the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood. He entered
in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption
for us. Eternal redemption. Ephesians
2.13 says, being made nigh by the blood of Christ. Near, so near to God. Nearer, I cannot be. For in the
person of his dear son, I'm as near to God as he. Dear, so dear
to God. Dearer, I cannot be. In the person
of his dear son, I'm as dear to God as he. That's why the writer to the
Hebrew says that the blood of Christ speaks better things than
the blood of Abel. Now, what did Abel's blood cry
from the ground to God? Vengeance, justice, put him to
death. He killed me. He ought to be
put to death. What does the blood of Christ
cry? Forgive him, his sins put away. Justify him, make him to be without
guilt. Oh, it makes much better things
than that of Abel. Revelation 1.5 says, he washed
us from our sins in his own blood. And Revelation 7.14 says, we
wash our robes and make them white in the blood of the Lamb. Revelation 5, 9, the song of
heaven is now unto him that redeemed us to God by his own blood. Now listen to this scripture
with regard to the blood. The blood, 1 John 1, 7, the blood
of Jesus Christ, God's son, cleanseth us from all sin. Now that word cleanseth is in
the present tense. Not the blood of Jesus Christ
has cleansed us, although it has, but the blood of Jesus Christ
cleanseth us right now, present tense, everybody who believes
from all sin. Now, while my sin was put away
by his blood, as long as I'm in this earthen vessel, As long
as I'm in the body of this death, I will still commit sin. I say that with grief. I'm not
proud of that. I'm not excusing it. But I know
this. As long as I'm in the body of
this death, I will still commit sin. But we have this promise
of continual cleansing. And you know, there's a continual
need of the blood of Jesus Christ. I need the blood of Christ this
very second, like I did the first time I believed. It continually
cleanses from all sin. I need thee, precious Jesus,
for I am full of sin. My soul is dark and guilty. My heart is dead within. I need the cleansing fountain
where I can always fly free. The blood of Christ, most precious,
the sinner's perfect plea. Oh, the blood of the Lord Jesus
Christ. Now, when Pilate said, I'm innocent
of the blood of this just person, the children of Israel, the people,
the Pharisees, the scribes, the priests replied, His blood be
upon us and our children. We hate this man so much that
we're perfectly happy to be accused of his blood. And we actually
want it to happen with our children. You accuse our children of his
blood. We're fine with that. His blood be upon us and our
children. What wicked men. But do you know
that is the prayer of the believer. Oh, let his blood be upon me.
Let his blood wash away my sins and make me without spot before
God. May his blood be upon my children. What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. What can make me whole again?
nothing but the blood of Jesus. Oh, precious is the flow that
makes me white as snow. No other fount I know, nothing
but the blood of Jesus." Without the shedding of blood, His blood,
there is no remission of sins. But by His shed blood, there
is the full, complete remission of sins. To receive a copy of
the sermon you have just heard, send a request to todd.neiber
at gmail.com. Or you may write or call the
church at the information provided on the screen. Hmm.