It's Only By Your Blood

"But as for me, by Your abundant lovingkindness I will enter Your house, At Your holy temple I will bow in reverence for You." (Psalms 5:7 NAS95S)

We enter the Lord's house by grace; not by works, not by wisdom, not by wealth, but solely by grace alone.  Paul Baloche's song Offering captures the essence of this passage...

Offering

by Paul Baloche

The sun cannot compare to  

The glory of Your love 

There is no shadow in Your presence 

No mortal man would dare 

To stand before Your throne 

Before the Holy One of heaven 

It's only by your blood 

And its only by your mercy 

Lord, I come 

(Chorus) 

I bring an offering 

Of worship to my King 

No one on earth deserves 

The praises that I sing 

Jesus may you receive 

The honor that You're due 

O Lord, I bring an offering to you

 

O the Love and Grace of God our Father; that He would make a way for us to enter the Most Holy Place of His Mighty Presence through the blood of the Lamb!  Who are we that He is mindful of us?  O Glory!  Glory to His name. 

Glory to Your name Jesus.  I praise You this morning for the truth of Your word.  I praise You that we may approach Your throne through Your shed blood; the blood You spilled on Calvary's cross.  

Yes I praise You for the words of assurance, confidence, and strength found in Hebrews 10:

"Every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, SAT DOWN AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, waiting from that time onward UNTIL HIS ENEMIES BE MADE A FOOTSTOOL FOR HIS FEET. For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified. And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us; for after saying, "THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THEM AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS THE LORD: I WILL PUT MY LAWS UPON THEIR HEART, AND ON THEIR MIND I WILL WRITE THEM," He then says, "AND THEIR SINS AND THEIR LAWLESS DEEDS I WILL REMEMBER NO MORE." Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin. 

Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near." (Hebrews 10:11-25 NAS95S)

O Lord Jesus, the day is drawing near.  "We are closer now than when we first believed... even so, come Lord Jesus" (Romans 13:11, Revelation 22:20).  Come and take us home.  Come and take us to that place where there will be no more sickness, sorrow, or death.  Come and dwell in us now that we may be with You then.  Come and fill us now that others may come.  Yes, as we see the day drawing near, may we be Your witnesses, may You fill Your people with all the fulness of God.  May You empower us to bring joy and hope to those so desperately in need.  

Jesus I put myself in Your hands.  I put our church in Your hands.  I put this world in Your hands.  Come now I pray.  Amen!

Sonrise

"Now the sun rose upon him just as he crossed over Penuel, and he was limping on his thigh."  (Genesis 32:31 NAS95S)

Observation:  With the new light of dawn came a new limp and a new name.  The deceiver had become the overcomer; for his strength had given way to brokenness, and his brokenness was the sign of blessing.  The blessing of a name.  A new name!  Not the name of his mother.  Not the name of his father.  But the name of his God!  Israel... The one who strives with man and with God and prevails.  

Yes this was the name of His God.  The name of the one who would come.  The name of the Christ.  Luke speaks about the Holy One of Israel when he records:  

"And Jesus kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men." (Luke 2:52 NAS95S)

Mark records the accusations against the Holy One of Israel in chapter 15:32

""Let this Christ, the King of Israel, now come down from the cross, so that we may see and believe!" Those who were crucified with Him were also insulting Him." (Mark 15:32 NAS95S)

In hanging from the tree, Christ would strive with man and prevail.  This was after the garden where he had striven with God and prevailed.  Yet the striving of Christ was not through strength but surrender.  Not through forcing His will, but through yielding His will.  He first yielded His will to the Righteous One and then to evil ones.  First to a Holy God and then to wicked men.   And He was not afraid of what the wicked might do to him, because He trusted in what His God promised to do.  O the glory of the One who strives with God and with man; the glory of the One who prevails.  In was the striving of the Christ that gave Jacob a new name.  It was the prevailing of the Almighty, that allowed Jacob to prevail.  The One who would come after Jacob, wrestled him in the night, and gave the deceiver his very own name.  Yes Israel was the name of Christ; it is the name of the incarnation.  A name Jacob did not deserve; but a name God could not withhold from him because of His great lovingkindness to be displayed in the covenant promise of His Son!

Application:  Who am I that he should bear the name of my God?  Who am I that I should be one of the family of Israel?  But I am.  Not by might, not by power, but by the Spirit of God.  Through the Spirit, through the indwelling Christ, I am a new creation.  Old things are gone.  All things have become new.  And as the sun shines down upon the valley this morning, my Father looks down with a smile upon His child.  He is well pleased with me, because of the all sufficient sacrifice of my Lord Jesus.  He is well pleased with me because of the One who has come to dwell in me.

Prayer:  Lord Jesus I thank You for Your incarnation.  I thank You for striving with my heart and the heart of Your Father.  I thank You for bringing reconciliation through Your death on Calvary's cross.  I thank You for a new name and a new identity.  I am no longer a slave or servant, I am a friend.  No longer estranged; I am God's son.  O Jesus I praise and thank You from the bottom of my heart for making all of this possible.  You are my God.  You alone are worthy of praise.  You deserve the highest honor.  The greatest glory.  You are the one.  You are the Holy One of Israel!

""Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel; I will help you," declares the LORD, "and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel." (Isaiah 41:14 NAS95S)