Does He See The Blood?

“For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn of the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.” Exodus 12:12,13

Here is the record of perhaps the most powerful and frightening event in history. Here also is the clearest picture of the scope of the world’s deprivation and its deserving judgment. Moreover, here is the detailed picture of the means of Salvation from this judgment, the only hope. May its message today underscore the dire need for proper salvation in your heart and the equally dire need for this plan to be appropriately applied in your heart.

The situation of Israel was desperate. Hard bondage, under the most heartless and powerful rulers in the world. Being trapped, with no way out. And things were getting worse every day. There seemed no hope at all. God had forgotten us, they felt. But little did they know their God was, and always had been, working for them. He had already ordered complete judgment upon the Egyptians with the permanent toppling of this god-king/puny man who called himself Pharaoh. Pharaoh had dared to consider himself God, exercising absolute domination upon all the known world. Suddenly, into his court walked one who looked so familiar. It had been forty years, yet he quickly recognized him–Moses. And he had been sent by the true God with a message: Let my people go. God already knew Pharaoh’s unrelenting answer. He would not set them free. Though plagued in every way, by every means, he remained as hard and cold as stone. There remained no other remedy but the unspeakable—the mass dying of the firstborn. In a single night and with a single stroke, God would break the might and the heart of this kingdom, from Pharaoh to the beggar in the street.

Do you see the similarity to our world today? Israel’s situation then is ours now. Before this judgment order was carried out, God issued another order. This order was to his people, and its contents were far different. This involved their deliverance from the oppressor and this land, yes, but first they had to be delivered from the approaching wrath. If they were not rightly prepared and thus protected, their firstborn would die as well. It had to be followed without hesitation or question. It had to be followed correctly and all the way. There would be no alternate plan nor could one wait to implement it until the sounds of the dying began up the street. It was an awful plan, but it was absolutely necessary. God did not enjoy the details, and he did not enjoy taking the lives of the firstborn. But justice and rightness must prevail. It would be impartial and final.

The Cross of Christ is widely considered repulsive, terrible, and not all that necessary. Yes, it was awful to say the least, but necessary it was. Absolutely. Our sin is an awful thing, far worse, far uglier than we can ever realize. Remove its pretty mask and you are sickened by it. Dealing with it took something of equal terribleness: the giving of a life and the taking of that life. A little lamb must be chosen. It had to be spotless and completely innocent. Its life must be taken, slaughtered in a horrible way, given in the place of the life of each family’s firstborn. It must be consumed by all in the house, received as God’s provision for them. Its precious blood had to be caught in a basin, then struck (not lightly daubed) upon the entrance door. The posts, as well as the lintel top, must be struck heavily with this blood. It had to be done on the door’s interior and on the exterior also. Those inside must see it. Those outside must see it too. The mark of the blood would identify those inside. It would be a token to those passing by, of whom many would laugh and make fun of it. However, it would be a token to The One in the night bringing the stroke of death. It was a token of acknowledgment of God’s justice upon sin. It was a token of acceptance of God’s Plan of Salvation from this judgment. It would be a token of faith in His promise. “When I see the blood, I will pass over you.”

How alike was each doorway’s appearance to Calvary’ cross. The striking of the blood from His thorn-crowned head at the top of the cross. The striking of the blood from both his precious nail-pierced hands outstretched upon the crossbeam. The blood flowing downward and dripping unto the ground as it had done upon the threshold of each door. Horrible, isn’t it. Yet it, and it alone, worked. When the death Angel came through the streets at the dark midnight hour, amid all the ever-increasing screams and wails of those unprepared, these blood-stained homes were left untouched. They were passed over. They had been protected by the blood. They alone were saved; they were the sole survivors.

Friend, there is not much time left. The sun of this Age of God’s Grace is setting. Darkest night is gathering and with it, the Horror of His Judgment. God gave His very own Firstborn Son to be sacrificed in your place for your sins. His life was literally torn apart for you on that rough, bloody cross so that you could be passed over. When He sees you, does He see the Blood of the Lamb? Will He? Have you believed? Have you applied this belief to the doorway of your heart and life, on the inside and outside? Better hurry and do it now. Get inside and get Him inside with you. Stay inside until the all-clear signal is given to move on out of this old Egypt for the Promised Land.

Come. Pray…before the screams begin.