Morning & Evening Devotional Reading–

April 16– Morning

 by C. H. Spurgeon, revised and edited by W. C. Neff

“The precious blood of Christ.” 

—1 Peter 1:9

 

When we stand at the foot of the cross, we see Jesus’ hands, feet, and side— all still glistening with streams of precious blood. It is “precious” because of its ability to redeem us and atone for our sins. By his blood, Christ reconciled us to God and made us one with him.

Christ’s blood is also precious in its cleansing power; it “cleans away all our sin.” Through Jesus’ blood, not a single spot or wrinkle remains on any believer, even though we have rebelled against God in many ways.

The blood of Christ is precious because of its preserving power. We are safe from the angel of destruction under the sprinkled blood (as were the believing Israelites as they escaped Egypt). Don’t forget, the only reason we are spared from God’s wrath is because God sees the blood and accepts it in our behalf. When our eye of faith grows dim, we should find comfort that God’s eye remains the same.

The blood of Christ is precious also in its power to make us holy. The same blood that declares us righteous by taking away our sin has the after-effect of leading our new nature onward to defeat sin in our lives and follow the commands of God.

And, lastly, Jesus’ blood is unspeakably precious because it has an overcoming power. The Bible tells us that God’s people “overcame through the blood of the Lamb.” How could they do otherwise? He who fights with the precious blood of Jesus fights with a weapon that cannot be defeated. At the sight of his blood, sin dies; death ceases to be death; heaven’s gates are opened. By the blood of Jesus, we will march on, conquering sin, trusting in its power. [M&E]