In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God’s grace, Ephesians 1:7

This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. Matthew 26:28

Years ago, I remember reading a book centered around the blood covenant. I read that book several times, taking in the types and shadows found in the Old Testament, the tabernacle, the sacrifices, the High Priest, the Passover, and the fulfillment of those types and shadows in the New Testament through Jesus Christ. Tucked away on a bookshelf it remained with its dogeared pages and worn edges until recently when I saw a video of an illustrated sermon teaching about the blood covenant and the Lord’s supper by a well known minister.

While watching gestures of this minister, simulating the cutting of his hand and squeezing blood into a cup full of grape juice, then mixing it with another cup done in like fashion by another individual, I became disturbed and realized that what I was witnessing was not a Biblical teaching nor had anything to do with the blood of Christ. The teaching ended with this act being equated to the cup of communion and the blood of Jesus being in that minister’s body after drinking of the cup. After doing some research and pulling that book off the shelf to peruse it again, I realized that some of that same teaching had been interwoven into this book, and I had never noticed it nor questioned it. It was like a drop of cyanide in a pure pitcher of water. This teaching is that very thing, a drop of poison hiding in teaching shrouded in God’s name while denying the truth and the understanding of the blood of Christ and the gospel of Jesus Christ.

The Old Testament certainly describes types and shadows which point to Jesus Christ. From the account of Abraham and Isaac to the sacrifices and Passover, there are numerous examples alluding to the better covenant, the better High Priest, the better sacrifice to atone for sin, who would come once for all. The Bible points to Christ Jesus. The Bible also makes it clear that pagan practices were to be rejected. Acts 15 and Leviticus 17 as well as other passages of Scripture address the forbidding of eating blood. The blood is referenced as the life, and there is only One who can give eternal life.

Pagan practices have been noted for years and even today involving the cutting of covenant between two individuals which involved the intermingling of blood by each one physically cutting their hand or wrist and joining the cuts together. In an older book by Clay Trumbull, which was a reference for the book I own, a ritual is described with a second hand story of two men cutting covenant by cutting their wrists and inserting a quill into the cut so as to drink each other’s blood to seal the covenant. This was recorded in that book as a Hebrew ritual, which we have no record in Scripture of this taking place.

This detail was conveniently left out of the book I read years ago when discussing the blood covenant. E.W. Kenyon also wrote a book about this same topic, and he too referenced Trumbull’s book and his findings of the blood covenant in other cultures, essentially paralleling the details between the Lord’s supper and pagan rituals of blood covenants. What is bothersome is that this very practice was modeled in the illustrated sermon that I initially mentioned. This is not to be confused with the Biblical understanding of the blood of Christ and its true meaning. How other cultures perform blood rituals is not a blueprint for the truth according to God and His Word. We do not need their examples to follow. What we need is to know what God has to say about it.

We can clearly see from reading Scripture that the blood of Jesus Christ was shed for redemption and forgiveness from sins. The blood of Christ is not a potion which makes us like Him nor does His blood hold to additional man made teachings that ultimately denigrate the truth. 1 John 1:7 says, “But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.” Romans 5:9 tells us that we have been justified by His blood, and because of that , we are saved from the wrath of God. Hebrews 9 says that Christ secured an eternal redemption for us by entering the holy place by His own blood and not the blood of bulls and goats. It also tells us that without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins (Hebrews 9:12,22).

With regards to the Lord’s supper, also referred to as communion, there is no record in Scripture of the new covenant brought forth by the blood of Christ requiring the blood of His disciples or anyone else mixed with His blood in order for it to be complete. The new covenant comes from the Lamb of God who was slain before the foundation of the world. Jesus’ description in John 6 of eating His flesh and drinking His blood had to do with communion and His atonement for sin and those receiving eternal life by His sacrifice. 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 describes communion plainly, and we can see that communion is done by believers in Christ to remember what He did for us on the cross as the propitiation for our sins. It has nothing to do with our blood or our part in the power of His blood to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We are never given instruction to imitate pagan practices or to infuse their practices into Christian doctrine. We are told to receive communion and to remember His sacrifice for our sins, and we thank God for His mercy, love, and forgiveness.

Has there been a misunderstanding of the blood of Christ? Yes. Does God Himself misunderstand the blood of Christ? No, He does not. Brothers and sisters, give no credence to practices having nothing to do with sound Biblical teaching and having more in common with pagan beliefs. The blood of Jesus Christ redeems sinners from sin and the wrath of God. When this is not taught, we miss Christ altogether.