Lent: Day Twenty-Four

Cain sacrificed his brother to his jealousy and sin, and that blood never stopped accusing him, declaring his guilt; God sacrificed His Son for us because if His great love for us, and that blood never stops pleading our case for us, declaring our innocence.

The blood of goats and bulls could only turn down the volume of the accusations against sin; the blood of Christ muted the accusations once and for all time. The one who gave voice to the mute, makes mute the voice of our accuser, and we may stand holy and spotless before God.

So if the inferior blood of goats and bulls are no longer required because of the shedding of the infinitely superior blood of the Son of God, then are we free of sacrifice? Not at all�"sacrifice is still required. We sacrifice our lives, not through the shedding of our blood, but by how we live�"we no longer live for ourselves, but we live for the Lord, we live as the Lord would if He were us, we live giving to those in need, caring for the poor, protecting the powerless, healing the sick, defending the vulnerable, comforting the oppressed, bring sight to the blind, giving voice to the mute, allowing the deaf to hear, and bring good news to the poor.

The High Priest, on the Day of Atonement, washed himself in water and put on holy vestments to offer his sacrifice. We wash ourselves in the Blood of Christ and put on Christ as our vestment.ur sacrifice is to live as Christ would�"making each day the Day of Atonement for ourselves and others, serving as Priests to our God and priests to the people, fulfilling God’s promise to us: “You will be to me a kingdom of priests, a holy nation.”

If the High Priest did not bathe, if he did not put on the holy vestments, if he did not perform the sacrifice, he risked his own life. If he bathed, but did not put on the vestments, or if he put on the vestments without bathing, or if he worked the sacrifice without bathing or clothing himself in the vestments, he risked his own life. So it is with us: if we will wash ourselves in the Blood of Christ, but won’t put on Christ, and won’t sacrifice the manner of how we live our lives, then we place our eternal lives in jeopardy. We must perform the whole work, the whole ritual, the whole sacrifice�"we must bathe, clothe, and sacrifice�"and then we shall hear the words of our Lord: “Well done, good and faithful servant! Come and possess the kingdom which has been prepared for you ever since the creation of the world.”