Salvation’s Cost, Part 3 A Three-minute Bible Study Print, Study and Apply Title: Salvation’s Cost, Part 3 Keyword: "blood” Welcome to eXXit, the web site designed to help you stand strong in the face of sexual temptation. Passage: Leviticus 17:11* For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement. Question Based on the verse above, why was blood considered so precious to the Jews?   Practical help Leviticus 17:11 highlights why blood was so important to the Jews. Blood coursing through the veins is life. Shedding blood means losing life. What is always in view when Scripture refers to the "shedding of blood" is death. It never means "somebody cut himself and got hurt." Have you ever wondered why sacrifices were necessary in Old Testament times? If a Jewish worshipper was really sorry for his sin, couldn't he have simply apologized to God for his sin? Couldn't God have simply done the gentlemanly thing and accepted the apology and let bygones be bygones? In a word — no! And the reason a simple apology wouldn't work is that sin is too serious a matter to be dealt with by words alone. When sin is committed, a debt is incurred. That debt is owed to God for the violation of His holiness that the sin represented. The debt is so great that no token payment will do. Blood must be shed when sin is committed, and the shedding of blood means the pouring out of a life. The only payment God accepts for the purposes of forgiveness is life's blood — either the lifeblood of the sinner or the lifeblood of a substitute. Forgiveness was not possible without the shedding of blood. And, in the case of the worshipper in the Old Testament, that meant no forgiveness without a substitute! The Christian knows that the Substitute who shed His blood for forgiveness' sake is Jesus. The blood Jesus shed when He cut Himself in the carpentry shop in Nazareth while He was growing up was not redemptive, because He retained His life. The blood He shed when He gave His life on the cross was redemptive because He gave up His life. Jesus shed His blood for you and for me. Why not take a moment and express to Jesus your profound appreciation for His death for you. He'd love to hear from you. eXXit homepage Index of three-minute studies Copyright 2004 by eXXit *Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, © Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission. ----