A Blood Sacrifice was Necessary

I have never seen anything truly graphic. You hear about graphic stuff all the time on the news--fathers executing entire families, abortions, terrible accidents. But I have never seen anything like that first hand. I thank God for that, but I wonder if it hinders my faith; I wonder if my sheltered life also shelters my understating of truth and grace.

Well, I came as close to seeing something truly graphic this morning. The slaying of a lamb. I know why I watched, but I am still processing. The slaying was done in Israel for a Passover service. Now this was odd because they really don't do animal sacrifice anymore, for the temple and altar are gone. But they did it anyway, and someone videotaped it. I tried to stop watching a few times, clicking away to other screens. But the sound was still there. I finally clicked back and finished it.

Now I am not going to describe it. It is painfully graphic and I almost passed out watching it. But I needed to. I don't understand death. I have no real conception of blood sacrifice. It is easy to watch a movie or read an account. It is not so easy to see blood pouring. But I think I understand it more now. A blood sacrifice of a perfectly pure, innocent person, holy God, was necessary for my salvation, for the salvation of the world, for the glory of Christ.

Isaiah 53:6-7:

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned--every one--to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.

John 1:29:

The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

1 Corinthians 5:7

...Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.

1 Peter 1:18-19:

...you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.

Revelation 5:11-12:

Then I looked, and I heard around the throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels, numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!"

The link to the video is here. But please...please...do not click on it unless you want to see a tiny lamb have her head nearly cut off. It is not something I will ever watch again.

HT: JT