The Sprinkled Blood

THE SPRINKLED BLOOD

Heb. 12:18-25

INTRODUCTION

A. HUMOR

1. One of my pet-peeves is Christians with Christian bumper stickers driving discourteously or dangerously – it’s a bad testimony.

2. One guy had a bumper sticker, “Jesus is my Co-Pilot.” He got in a bad wreck. A policeman came along and said, “You’re lucky!” The man replied, “Naw, I had Jesus riding with me!”

3. The policeman said, “Well, you better let Him ride with someone else or you’re going to get Him killed!” That’s funny, but the truth is, that’s exactly what happened. Jesus did decide to ride with us and it cost Him His life.

B. TEXT

18 You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; 19 to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them....21 The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.” 22 But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23 to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. 25 See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? Heb. 12:18-25

C. THESIS

1. Verse 18 begins with a scene from the Old Testament, the founding of the first Covenant. The Apostle reminds us that we are NOT come to Mt. Sinai (as the Israelites were):

a. a solemn, desolate mountain in the wilderness

b. surrounded w darkness/storm, the top all ablaze with fire

c. the ground trembling, shaking with earthquakes

d. the gigantic, fearful sound of God’s voice, blasting.

2. The Israelites felt – dread, terror, fainting, alarm and threatened judgment. The Hebrew worshipper, apart from his sacrifices, lived continually beneath the shadow of the darkness of a broken Covenant!

3. The believer in the Lord Jesus Christ lives in quite a different atmosphere:

NOT ON A......................................BUT

Desolate Mountain.......................An Inhabited City

In the Wilderness..........................A Land flowing w/ Milk & Honey

Not Cherubs w Swords.................Company of Ministering Angels

Not Trembling...............................Joyous Liberty

4. NOTICE ONE THING MORE WE COME TO, in Vs. 24, “To Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and the sprinkled blood...” This passage tells of the ETERNAL GLORY OF THE BLOOD OF JESUS. The Mercy Seat in Heaven is the only location of the Blood of Jesus. Why?

5. The resurrection body of Jesus has no blood in it. In Lk. 24:39, He said it was "flesh & bone." Lev. 17:11 tells us the life of the earthly creature is in the blood; it requires food & drink. "Flesh & blood can't inherit the kingdom of God" 1 Cor. 15:50. The resurrection body is a spiritual body (1 Cor. 15:44); and its life is derived from the Holy Spirit, not from blood.

6. So this means that Jesus' current body has no blood in it, thus, the only blood of Jesus still existing from His former life is found on the mercy seat in Heaven (Rev. 11:19; Heb. 10:19). Wow! That's why this topic is so important; "The Sprinkled Blood."

I. WHAT IS THIS “SPRINKLED BLOOD?”

A. REPRESENTS THE PAINS, SUFFERING, HUMILIATION & DEATH OF JESUS

1. Not simply His blood physically...but it’s mention points to His pain, suffering, humiliation, and death.

2. To all the Griefs of:

a. GETHSEMANE – bloody sweat, His arrest, and misuse

b. GABBATHA (Jn. 19:13)– “Stone Payment” – Judgment Seat of the Romans: slapping, spitting, scourging, humiliation

c. GOLGOTHA – Crucifixion, ridicule, forsaken by the Father. “He shall make His soul an offering for sin” Isa. 53:10.

B. NO NATURAL REASON WHY HE SHOULD SUFFER

1. He had no sin; He was immortal & would never die. Why should He go to Calvary?

2. He wanted to, in love, buy us back. He wanted to demonstrate God’s wondrous love. He would rather go to Hell for us than to miss us in Heaven!

3. We’re bought with a price! Jesus paid our debt of sin. Question: IS JESUS GETTING WHAT HE PAID FOR? Have you really surrendered to Him?

II. WHAT IS THE POWER OF THE BLOOD?

In the O.T. the Sprinkled Blood was connected to many things:

A. PRESERVATION from JUDGMENT

1. In Ex. 12, the sprinkled blood meant preservation.