Life of the Body

Leviticus 17:14 – “For the life of the flesh is in the blood…”

            Recently, I have been reflecting on the glory of God, His nature, His essence, and how that relates to us. I have also been thinking about the creation of man. I find it fascinating that when God made man He produced life in man by breathing into the dirt He had formed into the figure of a man. The life that had been in God was now imparted in a small measure to the body of the man.

            Consider how important that little bit of information is to us. We are not just physical life forms occupying space here on this planet. We are truly eternal beings who just happen to live in a physical form at this time. Consider too, that because the life of God was placed inside man, that life continued to grow and reproduce. As long as that life of God inhabits our bodies, our bodies will live. As soon as the life of God departs our body it dies and the body begins to decay and return to the form of dust from which it was originally made.

            As we see from the scripture reference at the top of this column, the life of the body is found in the blood that flows through that body. When the blood circulation system of our body is working properly the body thrives and lives. When the blood flow of the body is hindered in anyway, the life of the body is endangered. As long as the blood flowing through the body is free from contamination and disease, the body thrives and lives. When the blood in the body becomes polluted, corrupted and unclean, the health and vitality of the body becomes endangered.

            Consider now that the church is called the “body of Christ”. God gave life to the church and that life is contained within the blood of Jesus. Think of the similarity between the creation of man and the creation of the church. In the beginning, God breathed into man and gave Him life. On the day of Pentecost, the first thing that happened was that there was the sound of a mighty rushing wind; as if someone were blowing air out of their lungs. When that wind entered the upper room and came upon the believers it brought new life to them – a life imparted through the presence of the Spirit of God. From that moment the church began to live.

            Just as with a physical body, the life of the church relies upon the purity of the blood of Jesus. It is His blood that cleanses us and keeps us thriving and growing. Whenever the church hinders the flow of the blood of Jesus, the life of the church body begins to be endangered. I’ve seen churches die, because they did not understand the importance of the blood of Jesus. His blood must flow freely and it must not become polluted by human reason and philosophy. His blood is only beneficial in its pure undiluted, full force form.

            Most people in the church today have only a little knowledge of the efficacy of the blood of Jesus. They know it saves them from sin so they can have eternal life. What they are not knowledgeable about is the daily power of the blood of Jesus to keep us holy and to give us abundant life. Most people do not know that it is only through the blood of Jesus that we are able to forgive others. So what happens is, that most people try to deal with hurts, wounds and pain caused by the sin of people around them by applying a form of forgiveness that does not include the blood of Jesus. Everyone has their own idea about how forgiveness works. The Bible though says that forgiveness only comes through the shedding of blood, and the only blood that has the ability to heal and restore is the blood of Jesus. Let’s get back to the blood of Jesus. Let’s not be ashamed of the blood of Jesus. It is our only source of life. Without it we will die and the church will die.