Insight on the blood of Christ

I recently heard an excellent explanation by R.C. Sproul of what the whole biblical emphasis of the blood of Christ means.

He said "What does this mean that we are saved by the blood of Jesus? Do we have some kind of primitive, animistic, magical view of the blood that flowed through the veins of Jesus that we think that it was that red liquid that saves us? Doesn’t that seem silly? ...When we talk about the blood of Christ that’s a kind of shorthand to talk about the life of Christ and when the Scriptures speak about the precious blood they realise that the blood is made precious by the man whose blood it is....John Guest asked the question... 'If Jesus would have come down from heaven and scratched His finger on a nail would that be enough to save us? ...It’s blood and it’s the blood of Jesus...' And of course the answer to that question...is “no”...because God required the sacrifice of a life." R.C. Sproul

Therefore we see that this whole idea refers to our Lord's sacrificial death and so I believe those who say that to preach the Gospel the word "blood" must be mentioned have made a mistake. That does not take away from this powerful image or detract from the fact that we should contemplate how gruesome the cross was and that Jesus died a painful, bloody death.

If it weren't for this powerful yet shocking imagery we would not have a lot of very famous hymns.

I think of the old black Gospel song "I Know His Blood Can Make Me Whole". Also
"Nothing But The Blood of Jesus"
"There Is A Fountain Filled With Blood"
"There's Power In The Blood"
"Not all the Blood Of Bulls and Goats"

Let us not see Jesus' blood as some mystical totem but let us remember that the death He died was brutal and sacrificial and because of that our sins are forgiven.

Amen.