The Scarlet Thread – The Eternal Cross
Scarlet Thread – The Eternal Cross.
“Glory be to Jesus, Who in bitter pains, poured for me the life-blood, from His sacred veins.
Grace and life eternal, in that blood I find, blest be His compassion, infinitely kind.
Blest through endless ages, be the precious steam, which from endless torments, did the world redeem.
Lift ye then your voices, swell the mighty flood; louder still and louder, praise the precious blood.” (Friedrich Filitz).
Glory Be to Jesus – Christian Song with Lyrics (youtube.com)
The scarlet thread that is sewn into Holy Scripture from beginning to end is unmistakable. There is no doubt whatsoever that the Bible is blood-centric, that there is an overriding theme of blood wherever we look. We don’t need to be super-detectives to discover blood patterns in the Word. The Scripture seems practically preoccupied with blood, and one could be excused for observing that God seems to be out for blood. We find out why this is the case in Leviticus 17:11 and 13… “The life of all flesh is in its blood. The life is in the blood.” The Word of God seems preoccupied with blood only because God is preoccupied with life. God is out for blood only in the sense that He is out for Life. The Bible is blood-centric only because God is life-centric. In fact, the term “scarlet thread” is not strong enough. Instead, the Bible has a powerful crimson tsunami flowing through its pages from Genesis through Revelation, from before creation to the New Creation.
In this Bible study we will take a good look at the blood-stories in Scripture, from the divine sacrifice before the foundation of the world, to the animal sacrifice in the Garden of Eden; from the bloodshed in the first family, to the blood-themed covenant between God and Noah; from the Nile River, to the Passover in Egypt; from the bloody mess in the Tabernacle, to the Scarlet Worm that hinted at Jesus. Yes, there seem to be blood-splatters all over the floors and walls of Scripture. Through it all, the precious blood of Jesus is the centerpiece.
“The Book of Life… That Book belongs to the Lamb who was slain before the creation of the world.” (Revelation 13:8).
Pre-History of Blood. The history of blood in the Bible actually begins with a pre-history, a beginning that occurred even before creation. Creator God knew before the first official day that a sacrifice would have to be made in order to restore what was inevitable… a broken relationship between Creator and created. God loved creation so much that He was planning our redemption before there was even the first sin. God had a divine plan in place before He invented blood, and sure enough, blood was at the center of His plan. Innocent blood would have to be spilled for the guilty. God put into place His destiny for Christ, who “was slaughtered before the world was founded.’” (Rev. 13:8). Of course, we are confronted here with a deep, impenetrable mystery: that Jesus was somehow slain outside of time. When God put this plan into play before the foundation of the world, He said it’s as good as done. So, incomprehensibly, the Cross is an eternal event. The Cross has been somehow in the continuous present before there was even the presence of time itself. God had a divine mission in mind before creation, to enact a blood sacrifice before time that would finally be revealed in time through Jesus. When Jesus said, “It is finished!” on the Cross, He signaled the triumphant conclusion of that mission, the eternal reality of redemption that included the empty tomb. This is why blood has represented the sanctity of life literally forever. St. Peter puts it this way, “the precious blood of Christ, who like a spotless and unblemished lamb was sacrificed for us, a part of God’s plan. For Christ was chosen and destined for this before the foundation of the earth was laid!” (1 Peter 1:18-20).
“When I survey the wondrous cross, On which the Prince of Glory died
My richest gain I count but loss, And pour contempt on all my pride.
See from his head, his hands, his feet, Sorrow and love flow mingled down.
Did ever such love and sorrow meet, Or thorns compose so rich a crown
Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast, Save in the death of Christ my God!
All the vain things that charm me most, I sacrifice them to His blood.
His dying crimson, like a robe, Spreads o’er His body on the tree;
Then I am dead to all the globe, And all the globe is dead to me.” (Isaac Watts).
WHEN I SURVEY THE WONDROUS CROSS – AM 108 – YouTube