1. One of the greatest themes in the Bible is the blood of Christ.
2. It was the great preacher from England, Charles Haddon Spurgeon, who said: "I have felt that if any theme in the Scriptures has an importance far above all the rest, it is the subject of the atoning blood, and I have resolved to repeat that old, old story again and again."
3. The Bible teaches redemption through Christ’s blood, reconciliation through Christ’s blood, cleansing through Christ’s blood, forgiveness through Christ’s blood, and victory over Satan through Christ’s blood.

1. Redemption through the blood of Christ (Col.1:14).
2. Reconciliation through the blood of Christ (Col.1:20,21).
3. Cleansing through the blood of Christ (I John 1:7; Rev.1:5; 7:14).
4. Forgiveness through the blood of Christ (Eph.1:7; Col.1:14).
5. Victory over Satan through the blood of Christ (Rev.12:9-12).

4. The word "blood" is found 22 times in the book of Hebrews, 12 times right here in chapter 9. Today, we will consider the precious blood of Jesus Christ, and we will look particularly here in Hebrews 9.

I. BY HIS OWN BLOOD CHRIST OBTAINED ETERNAL REDEMPTION FOR US (HEB. 9:12).

1. This is one of the most important verses in the Bible. Notice our redemption is an "eternal redemption" (9:12). It is not a flimsy, here-today and gone-tomorrow type of salvation.
2. Therefore, since this Scripture deals with such important doctrines as the blood of Christ, and our eternal redemption, let us examine it very carefully. Remember the book of Hebrews teaches us that the Lord Jesus Christ is our Great High Priest (Heb.3:1; 4:14-16).
3. The book of Hebrews also teaches that the tabernacle built here on earth was patterned after the tabernacle up yonder in heaven (Heb.8:2,5; 9:8-11).
4. As our great High Priest, Jesus somehow took the atoning blood that He had shed on the cross into the holy place in the heavenly tabernacle.
5. It was there, on the mercy seat up in heaven, that our great High Priest, the Lord Jesus Christ, sprinkled His own precious blood, thereby providing eternal redemption for us (Heb.9:12; 12:24; I Peter 1:2).
6. Commenting on Hebrews 9:12, the late J. Vernon McGee said: "I believe this verse proves that Christ took His literal blood to heaven. If that is not what the writer is talking about here, I do not know what he is saying."
7. And neither do I.
8. Before moving on, let me remind you that the blood of Jesus is the blood of God (Acts 20:28). (I preached previously that one cannot be saved unless He believes in the deity of Christ. We are saved by the blood of God.)
9. And let me also remind you that the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ is incorruptible (I Peter 1:18,19).

II. THE BLOOD OF CHRIST PURGES OUR CONSCIENCE FROM DEAD WORKS (9:14).

1. The OT animal sacrifices were typical and pointed to Christ and His finished work on the cross (Heb.9:13).
2. The key word in Hebrews is "better." The blood of Jesus is much better than the blood of any OT sacrifice.
3. Now in verse 14, we see the word "purge." The RC doctrine of purgatory is unscriptural (cf. Heb.1:3). According to the Bible, the means of purging is the blood of Christ.
4. The basis of the purging is the voluntary death of Christ – He "offered Himself" (9:14; cf. John 10:11,15-18).
5. This purging by the blood of Christ reaches the inner man – "your conscience" (Heb.9:14). You can memorize Scripture, you can attend church, you can read the Bible all the time, you can even pass out Gospel tracts, but if your conscience is not purged you are still lost and on your way to hell.
6. The Lord Jesus Christ offered up a perfect sacrifice because He is "without spot" (9:14). He is sinless and blameless. Peter says He was as "a lamb without blemish and without spot" (I Peter 1:19).
7. The object of the purging is a conscience freed from "dead works" (9:14). Any works done in the flesh is "dead works." Any attempt to earn salvation by doing this or doing that is "dead works."
8. If you think God is going to allow you into heaven on the basis of your so-called "good works," then your so-called good works are nothing but dead works and you need to get saved.
9. "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast" (Eph.2:8,9).
10. The devil hates this kind of preaching. He wants sinners to think they can please God in the flesh. The devil hates the doctrine of salvation by God’s grace.
11. "NOT OF WORKS." Religious people need to have their conscience purged from their dead works. The majority of people in this so-called "Christian country" believe we are saved by our good works. If this be true, why did Christ have to die?
12. Just think of all the hoopla surrounding Mr. Lieberman. If thinks keep going the way they’re going, they might make him the next pope! Mr. Lieberman believes in salvation by works and he denies the Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, he is an antichrist. Now, how can any Christian vote for an antichrist? Back to our text.
13. The goal of the purging is "to serve the living God" (9:14). This is not a "mass." This is a service. Let me ask you? What is your service? Are you serving God? Or are you just playing church?

III. BY HIS BLOOD, CHRIST IS THE MEDIATOR OF THE NEW TESTAMENT (COVENANT – 9:15).

1. The cross is the basis of the new covenant. The cross separates the Old Covenant with the New Covenant, the Old Testament from the New Testament.
2. Have you ever noticed how the OT ends? It ends with the word "curse" (Mal.4:6). But as soon as you get into the NT you see the emphasis is on grace. "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ" (John 1:17).
3. In the early pages of our NT, we read these words: John the Baptist "seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). How did our Lord do that? By shedding His precious blood on that cruel cross.
4. The Lord Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God, the Mediator of the NT.
5. And He is our ONLY mediator (cf. I Tim.2:5).So the cross separates the OT from the NT, the old covenant from the new covenant.
6. The cross separates saints from sinners. Which side are YOU on?
7. The cross separates heaven from hell. Unsaved friend, if you are determined to stumble into hell, you will have to walk over the cross first. God has already put that cross in your way. That is why you are here today. Will you deliberately, intentionally, willfully pass it by?
8. Those that were under the old covenant, "the first testament" (Heb.9:15), were saved the same way we are saved – by the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ (cf. Rom.3:25).
9. They were "called" (Heb.9:15). Is God calling you today?
10. Jesus said, "If any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him" (Rev.3:20).

CONCLUSION:

1. I want to draw your attention to the word "eternal" (Heb.9:12,15).
2. What we have in Christ is eternal. Do you have eternal life?
3. Back in 1898, Harry Ironside was preaching at a Jewish mission in San Francisco. One night, he asked if any one had any questions or comments. Any elderly Jewish man stood up and gave his testimony.
4. He was born in Palestine in 1828, attended the synagogue regularly, and learned the ancient Hebrew language from the rabbis.
5. But as he kept reading the law and the psalms and the prophets (what we Christians refer to as the OT), he was struck by the emphasis on blood. "For it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul" (Lev.17:11).
6. And yet there is no blood today in the Jewish ceremonies and rituals. This elderly Jewish man then said these words, "I knew I had broken the law. I needed atonement. Year after year, on the Day of Atonement, I beat my breast as I confessed my need of it; but atonement can only be by blood and there was no blood."
7. This Jewish man was greatly distressed. He went to his rabbi, but the rabbi’s words brought no peace to his troubled soul. So he consulted many other rabbis, and to each one he asked the same question, "Where can I find the blood of atonement?" None of them could answer his question.
8. At the age of 30, this man moved to Constantinople, where in the providence of God he attended a meeting of converted Jews and heard the Gospel. In fact, as soon as he walked into the room and took a seat he heard these words, "The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanseth us from all sin."
9. This Jewish man finally found what he was looking for – peace with God through the shed blood of the sinless Son of God.