“Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” 1 Peter 1:18-19
What Peter says here about the blood causes us to stop and consider its preciousness. We have been redeemed with precious blood. We need to appreciate the value of the blood from the divine point of view. All things have been cleansed by the blood. Even the heavens needed to be cleansed, so the Lord went there and sprinkled His blood. Everything was cleansed so that God and man could enjoy a mutual participation. Now we are directly participating in all that God is. There is nothing indirect or secondhand in our experience. Our participation is not through someone else, but directly with God — without any guilt and without any defilement.
The blood not only gives God a way to forgive us and not only takes care of our guilt, but the blood also cleanses us. Cleansing and forgiveness are two different things. Forgiveness has to do with guilt before God. We are guilty sinners. But the shed blood removes the guilt so that we are pardoned, we are justified. First John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins.” That is one thing — to be forgiven of our sins. But the conjunction and follows, telling us that there is something more — “and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Also 1 John 1:7 says that the blood is cleansing us from all sin. The blood is so precious. It not only cares for my guilt and my standing, but it also cares for all the pollution and the defilement as a result of sin, with its contamination upon my inward parts.
So the blood straightens me up inwardly. It lifts my head up. The blood brings me out of the realm of fear and intimidation that comes from a conscience that is pained because of residual defilement over my being from touching contaminated things. There is not only sin, but contamination from sin. There is accusation, there is condemnation, there are mixed emotions. There is all this turmoil within. But the blood cleanses my conscience to clear up my inner being so that my heart is a true heart. There is not any feigned faith, but only direct, bold contact with God! I have no second thoughts, I have no residual condemnation, I have no effects of contamination in my being, because the blood has reached my conscience! The blood cleanses me from all unrighteousness, all pollution, all contamination. The blood cares for that. Not only my guilt is gone but my pollution is gone.