The Fountain of Wars

The fact that our hymns and songs are filled with references to the blood of Jesus Christ is far more than simply a poetic exercise. The fact that Scripture constantly refers to the blood of Christ as the foundation of our forgiveness is not just nebulous metaphor. Scripture plainly teaches that without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin (Heb. 9:22).

But in the church at large, some of our more pacifistic brothers are troubled by this, thinking that it is unworthy of the Father to require such a blood sacrifice. Is not Satan the one who demands satisfaction? Is not Satan the accuser? Some want to believe that we were saved fundamentally from the wrath of Satan, instead of being delivered by the mercy of the Father from the wrath of the Father.

But this is arch and overly-subtle. The whole thing is very simple if you let Scripture just speak to you. We all know Christ shed His blood. But what temple was it presented in? What altar was it sprinkled on? The Bible teaches that Christ ascended into Heaven in order to make presentation of His blood sacrifice there (Heb. 9:24-25).

And this is one of those deep structures. In a true and twisted irony, rejection of the blood sacrifice of Christ, offered to the Father, is a rejection of His hidden wisdom, given to us to utterly dismantle the fountain of wars. If we have the blood of Jesus, we need no other blood. If we reject the blood of Jesus, offered to the Father, then there will be must be constant, unremitting war. Pacifism doesn’t cause wars simply because bad guys know how to manipulate the appeasers. No. Pacifism causes wars by rejecting the once-for-all nature of the final blood sacrifice. If there is no real atonement, our guilt and need for real atonement will explode into violence—as it has done in our day.