Ephesians 2:11-22 – CHURCH – The Blood Soaked Community

It has been said by many that Christianity is a ‘bloody religion.’ Those who make such a reference are usually critics who point back to the Church’s history filled with war, inquisitions, trials, and executions carried out over the years in the name of Christianity. And we must admit that to a certain degree these critics are correct: much blood has been shed in the name of Christianity throughout the centuries. Most of us would say that this blood has been shed wrongly, but it’s shed nonetheless and Christianity is indeed a bloody religion. But are we part of a ‘bloody religion’ because of these blemishes on our history? No. We are a bloody religion because “at the heart of our Christian faith is a precious red substance; the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Richard Phillips) If you read the Bible with any credibility at all you’ll see His blood on every page. It is the ink by which the grand history of redemption was written. Christianity is filled with blood.

We have been purchased by His blood (Acts 20:28)

We have propitiation by His blood (Rom. 3:25)

We have been justified by his blood (Rom. 5:9)

We have redemption through His blood (Eph. 1:7)

We who were far off have been brought near by His blood (Eph. 2:13)

We have peace through His blood (Col. 1:20)

Our consciences are purified by His blood (Heb. 9:13)

We are sanctified through His blood (Heb. 13:12)

We are ransomed by His blood (1 Peter 1:19)

We have been set free from sin by His blood (Rev. 1:5)

Because the blood of Christ is so central to who we are as Christians it is right to call us a bloody religion, we really are a blood soaked people. All this talk about blood can be uncomfortable for some, some of you may even think it sounds too primitive to focus on the blood so much. But as we’ve seen here, and as we’ll see again soon, the Church is a blood bought. Our question we’ve been seeking to answer in this CHURCH series is: ‘What is the Church?’ Last week we saw our first answer from Ephesians 2:11-13, ‘The New Covenant Community.’ Today we’ll see our next answer from Ephesians 2:14-18, ‘The Blood Soaked Community.’ Give attention to the reading of God’s Word.