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Do I have faith in Christ’s blood?
I spent my childhood in a small country church, often listening to my grandmother sing the hymn “Nothing but the Blood” at the top of her lungs with tears in her eyes.
What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus. . . .
O precious is the flow
that makes me white as snow;
no other fount I know;
nothing but the blood of Jesus.1
“Rachel,” she would say, “there’s just something about the blood of Jesus. I’m so grateful for his blood!”
Now friends, at first glance you might say that is pretty odd. Why would someone get so emotional about blood? It’s especially odd to consider during Advent, when we anticipate Jesus’ birth. And I have to be honest, I too have some major reservations when singing about the blood of Jesus. For starters, singing about Jesus’ blood kind of makes following Jesus sound like cannibalism or masochism. At the very least it makes us seem like a big group of weirdos. Who sings about blood that flows?
These reservations are real with a growing number of unchurched people walking through the sanctuary doors or worshiping online. Jesus’ blood is a foreign and strange concept. If you have no understanding of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, you may wonder what on earth you’ve just gotten yourself into when you start singing about Jesus’ blood.
And yet, I go back to my grandmother and her tears. My grandmother’s tears were real and her gratitude was real. She knew something about the redeeming and restoring nature of Jesus’ blood.
She affirmed Paul’s declaration in Colossians 1:20, “He reconciled all things to himself through him [Jesus]—whether things on earth or in the heavens. He brought peace through the blood of his cross.” My grandma understood that Jesus’ blood cleansed her, his blood claimed her. Jesus’ blood reconciled her with God and all creation.
My grandma felt the weight of her own stuff—dare I say sin! She knew that Jesus suffered not only for the world, but for her, a fact that overwhelmed her every single time. What can wash away my sin? Nothing but the blood of Jesus. What can make me whole again? Nothing but the blood of Jesus.
I do not want to limit Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection to the blood he spilled on the cross. The upcoming celebration of Christmas shows us that Jesus’ whole life—including his birth, his teachings, his healings—is important. But even during Advent, I continue to embrace the power of the suffering Christ, who lived our life, died our death, and continues to reign with God now and forevermore. As we embrace the suffering of Christ, it readies us to embrace our own suffering as an integral part of our story, God’s story. Not that God causes our suffering, but rather we serve a God who suffers with us, who walks with us, and who gives us the strength to work for the liberation of all people. My grandmother experienced the liberation of Jesus, yes even through his blood.
May we be ever grateful for Jesus’ blood—blood shed for the redemption, reconciliation, and restoration of the whole world.
Rev. Rachel Billups
1Robert Lowry, “Nothing but the Blood,” Hymnary.org, accessed July 26, 2019, https://hymnary.org/text/what_can_wash_away_my_sin.