Good Friday Meditations

Blood that Cleanses

And all the people said, "His blood shall be on us and on our children!"
- Matthew 27:25 -

"I am innocent of this Man’s blood," cried Pilate, and washed his hands off Jesus. And the Jews cried out in return with their murderous voices, "His blood shall be on us and on our children!" But little did they know that their words were prophetic. Often we hear that it was us who crucified Jesus. It was for our sins that he died, it was our voice in the crowd that cried, "Crucify him!" It was our clenched fists that demanded a murderer in place of the Christ, and so we replaced the Messiah with a saviour of our own kind. We murdered the Almighty and called ourselves righteous, and dared claim responsibility, "Let his blood be on us." But look again! It was the one who declared himself innocent of this man’s blood that remained in sin. It was those who claimed the guilt of his blood that went away beating their breasts. And so it is today. Look again! The blood that was shed by our own hands cries out of the ground - not for justice - but for mercy! The blood that we are guilty of has become our cleansing blood! The blood that ought to condemn us justifies us! It is not the blood of an innocent man murdered crying out for vengeance, but the blood of the sacrificial lamb crying out, "Atonement!" And today we may gladly say, like the Jews so vehemently cried before, but with grateful voices, "His blood shall be on us and on our children."