One Sacrifice for Another

Ephesians 2:8 - For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God...

Got to thinking early this morning about Adam and Eve. As you know, they were the cause of all the sin in this world that has entered mankind at birth. Are they in heaven, I wondered? It wouldn’t seem right for them not to be but they were, after all, the cause of mankind’s sin!

I googled the question. And immediately was taken to one scripture that solidified the fact they were! And from that scripture others popped into my head. Even as far back as Adam and Eve there was a type of Christ and His forgiveness evident.

Adam and Eve committed the first act of sin and immediately hid from God and were ashamed of their nakedness. And what did God do? He brought about the first blood sacrifice. Also for Adam and his wife the LORD God made tunics of skin, and clothed them. (Genesis 3:21) As early as Genesis 3!

And life as we know it began. So He drove out the man; and He placed cherubim at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life. (Genesis 3:24)

Adam and Eve accepted the offer of clothing from God which was the first blood sacrifice. God sacrificed the animal. Animals were sacrificed throughout the Old Testament (a type of Christ). Their blood was spilled out.

For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul. (Leviticus 17:11)

Blood during that time was not allowed to be eaten.

Only be sure that you do not eat the blood, for the blood is the life; you may not eat the life with the meat. You shall not eat it; you shall pour it on the earth like water. (Deuteronomy 12:23-24)

Life is in the blood. God sacrificed His own Son. His sacrifice; His blood, poured out that we might have life if we humble ourselves before Him.

This is nothing new. As for me I was glad I looked into it. I never tire of hearing about these types of Christ in the Old Testament. I always look forward to rereading the accounts in the early part of the Bible, to look for Jesus in the pages. Right from the start God made a way for mankind to be saved. The Old Testament believers in God had only their faith. They never saw their Redeemer. Hebrews 11 in the New Testament shows that by listing the faith that so many people had; it shows us that our faith must be just as strong. Faith in something we do not see, knowing that one day (maybe sooner than we know) Jesus will return...for those only who have put this faith in Him. That’s why it is so important to know this God. We cannot have faith in anyone or anything else. BUT GOD...

As did Adam and Eve, so must we have faith. We are to humbly go before God and realize our shame and receive the sacrifice of Jesus’ work (not our works) on the cross...be covered by His blood, become clothed by Him in His righteousness.

When we go to Christ and ask for forgiveness of our sins, and we all have them, He will know the intent of our heart and He will either forgive us or He will not. God looks down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there are any who understand, who seek God. (Psalm 53:2)

For by GRACE you have been saved THROUGH FAITH, and that not of yourselves; it is the GIFT of God, not of WORKS, lest anyone should boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9)  

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things NOT SEEN. For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. (Hebrews 11:1-2)

As Adam and Eve were covered, by God, so He offers the same for us through Jesus. This is a serious thing. It isn’t done your way but His. It’s not about a prayer once said (or repeated many times) because the prayer without a heart change doesn’t count. It’s a change of heart and life. If Jesus is not important every day, that heart has not changed.

Just as God told Adam and Eve not to eat of a particular tree in the garden, He now offers us the Tree of Life:

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give to eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God. (Revelation 2:7)

It’s all about Him. From Genesis to Revelation. The Alpha and Omega. We sacrifice our old lives (become overcomers) for the new one Jesus gives. One sacrifice for another.

But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. (John 19:34) 

This is He who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not only by water, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is truth. (1John 5:6)  

Isaiah 61:10 - I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness...