Life is in the Blood

Yesterday Tina and I were talking about Kosher meats and the command to drain all the blood from the meat, due to the fact that the hamburger I used recently had been weird, when I defrosted it all the blood drained out. Anyway, last night I opened up my bible to read, turned right to Leviticus 17, the particular chapter where God forbids the eating of meat with the blood still in it. So I figure there must be something about this that the Lord wants to impart.

Leviticus 17:10-11 NIV
“ ‘I will set my face against any Israelite or any foreigner residing among them who eats blood, and I will cut them off from the people. [11] 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.

Burton Coffman writes this in his commentary:

"The reason for Israel's avoidance of eating blood is set out here more fully than anywhere else in the O.T." F8 It is clearly the religious significance of blood as being the device by which God procured atonement for sinners, not only under the O.T., but under the N.T. as well, that lay back of the prohibition. It should be remembered that this prohibition PRECEDED the Law of Moses (Genesis 9:4-6), and also that it was not relaxed even under the liberty and freedom of the New Covenant (Acts 15:20). The fact that a great many Christian people are not aware of this, coupled with the light esteem that some have for Divine regulations, makes it appropriate to explore the reasons back of this remarkable commandment a little more fully.

ON EATING BLOOD

Right here in this short paragraph lies the basis for the Jews' insistence upon eating only that which is "kosher," even to this day. The reasons for God's requirement in this particular are easy to see.

(1) It created and cultivated in the people of Israel a reverence and respect for their sacrifices, many of which required the shedding of blood.

(2) It was a perpetual reminder to them of the means of forgiveness and salvation. Even under the law, "Without the shedding of blood, there was no remission of sins" (Hebrews 9:22).

(3) It was designed to direct their attention to the Holy One, even Christ, who in the fullness of time would make an atonement for the sins of all people by the shedding of his blood.

(4) It was to provide a wall of separation between the Israel of God and the pagan world of unbelievers whose sacrifices included the eating, even the drinking, of blood.

(5) Also, "By refraining from eating flesh with blood in it, a man is honoring life." F9

Invariably, the loss of the blood is loss of the life, and it appears here that by the prohibition of eating blood God inculcated a respect for all life. Life is indeed a unique gift from God, and the sacredness of life is recognized and honored by this Divine regulation.

In the light of this, God intended that every man, upon seeing the blood of an animal, even slain for his food, should behold a reminder of the cost at which he himself had been cleansed. It was not a light thing in those ages for a man to "despise the blood." Therefore, mankind was instructed to honor it, even the blood of an animal, because that animal's blood was typical of the blood of Christ himself, the only means of human redemption.

Note, in the verses above, that all blood was considered sacred. Even the blood of a creature unfit for sacrifice was to be covered with dust, as a symbol of the inherent respect due to all blood. Even under the current dispensation of the grace of God, the ultimate sin is that of despising the blood of Christ:

"A man that set at naught Moses' law died without compassion on the word of two or three witnesses: of how much sorer punishment, think ye, shall he be judged worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant wherewith he was sanctified an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace (Hebrews 10:28-29).

I was just thinking about this all, in light of the fact that Jesus' blood was poured out for us. In the O.T. understanding, the life of all creatures is a gift of God and His to give and His to claim. Upon the sacrifice, the blood, symbolic of the creatures life is returned to God, by pouring it onto the altar. It is also in this act that atonement for sins is extended to the one who offers the sacrifice. So in this model, the blood of every creature is God's and given back to God, by the people. With Jesus its God's blood that is given to us. Jesus himself gave the cup of His blood to us to drink (Matt 26:27-28). He is literally giving us His blood, His life.

That will take a while to unpack and understand.

Lord, I pray that You will help me to understand the full significance of Your Blood, given for me