All that blood!

This is the blood of the covenant that the Lord has made with you. 

All that blood!   Imagining this scene might make us squirm a bit.   But blood played an important role in the everyday life of the ancient Israelites.   It was said that the life force of all living things was in their blood, and animal sacrifice was a natural part of their religious life (Leviticus 17:14).   So when Moses splashed the blood of sacrificial animals on the altar and sprinkled it on the people, everyone saw it as a beautiful, moving gesture.   That blood, the substance that gave life, sealed their covenant with God because it connected them with the altar of his presence.

We know the rest of the story.   God lived up to his part of the covenant by making the Israelites his special people and by giving them the Law.   But the people didn’t always live up to theirs.   They had promised to obey God’s commandments, but they often failed.

What did God do in the face of their failures?   He remained faithful to them.   He couldn’t give up on his beloved people!   Over time, he prepared them for a new, better covenant, one that would be sealed not with the blood of animals but with the blood of his own Son, Jesus. Jesus’ blood, shed on the cross, has the power not only to cleanse us from our sins but to give us the grace to live in holiness.   Through his blood, we are forgiven, healed, and protected.

Jesus inaugurated this new covenant at the Last Supper when he said, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which will be shed for you” (Luke 22:20).   This scene is made present to us at every Mass.   Every time the priest offers the Eucharistic prayer, God is essentially reminding us, “I have made an eternal covenant with you.   I have given myself to you, all of myself, so that you can live with me forever.”

This is our God, a God who continues to pursue his people, even when they stray.   This is our God, who renews his covenant with us every time we receive the Body and Blood of his Son.   What a gracious Father we have!

“Father, I am awed by your love for me. May I never take your covenant for granted!”

Word Among Us