Reaction to Blood

(I had the privilege of giving a communion message on Sunday... someone suggested I post it here for others as well...so here ya go)

Do you have a child that is a daredevil?  A grandchild that has no fear?  Are you like that?  Me - No, I'm afraid of most things... but my husband doesnt a lot of fear in him.  He was also the child who grew up with bruises, gashes, cuts on him constantly. 

One of the stories I hear from him is about a big "dirt clod" battle (never heard of dirt clod?  me either...) - but he fell down a hill & hit his face on a metal peg causing him to bleed pretty well.  So he ran home to have his mom tell him to "Go to Sylvia"... Ricky's mother is a fantastic woman... she just couldnt deal with blood.  I met Sylvia a few years back & she told me stories of always seeing a "Bloody Ricky" quite often at her door.  She would fix him up, make sure he's OK & send him home.

Two different reactions to blood....

So I asked some people through the week how they reacted to blood.  Got the normal responses:  I get faint... The smell gets to me... I call 911 .... A nurse told me that she finds the area that is bleeding, apply pressure, resolve to stop the bleeding & then proceed to call for help (Such a precise way to handle it)... & the best is from a 5 yr old who just said, "I yell for mommy"

Lots of reactions, but they basically come down to two things - running away or going to the situation...

Then you look & the Bible mentions "blood" over 400 times... so does God want us to get a reaction?

I mean, we see the Nile was turned into blood by Moses's staff...we see that people put blood on their doors in trust during the Passover... we see animal sacrifices yearly for the atoment of sins ... we see a woman who bled for 12 years reaching out for healing... any reactions?

But then we also see Jesus bleeding from his brow like sweat.... we see Jesus refer to blood during the last meal he had with his disciples - "This is my blood of the new covenant shed for the forgivness of sins".... we see the silver that Judas threw back after betraying Jesus was called "blood money" .... we see Pilate washing his hands saying "I'm innocent of this man's blood" .... we see Jesus hanging on a cross & he was pierced & water & blood flowed from him...

Does the blood of Jesus give you a reaction?

I know for me, when we talk about Jesus' blood - its just so precious...

And do those two reactions still apply?  I think they do... because people will either run or go...

Run because they dont want to have to admit that they are sinners that are in need of a Savior...

Or they'll go to him... but the opposite applies... because YOU arent going to him to fix him... He will Fix you... heal you... cover your sins with forgiveness through his blood.

So what is your reaction when you think of Jesus' blood?

"Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered" -Psalm 32:1