The heart of the Christian faith is found in the blood of Jesus. Scripture declares, “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin” (Heb. 9:22). It is through His blood that we find redemption, freedom and new life. The gospel is centered not in works or traditions but in the sacrifice of Christ Himself. As the Word reminds us, “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement” (Lev. 17:11). This truth is not just theology, it is the foundation of our hope and the reason we can stand forgiven and reconciled to God.
Breaking News. Spirit-Filled Stories. Subscribe to Charisma on YouTube now!
Yom Kippur and Fulfillment in Jesus
In a teaching on Yom Kippur, Rabbi Kirt Schneider draws the connection between this most holy Jewish day and the work of Jesus on the cross. He explains, “On Yom Kippur, the high priest would take in the blood of a bull and the blood of a goat and apply it on top of the Ark of the Covenant. The New Testament refers to this top of the Ark of the Covenant as the mercy seat.”
This annual sacrifice in the Old Testament was temporary but it pointed forward to something eternal. “The book of Hebrews tells us that this blood that was poured on top of the Ark of the Covenant, of the blood of the bull and the goat, it was a shadow of the blood that would ultimately be spilled for the life of the world’s sin through God’s begotten Son.” Jesus, the innocent and guiltless One, fulfilled the law and then “offered Himself up as a sacrifice for our sins, shedding His blood so that once and for all our sins could be forgiven.”
The Call to Apply the Blood Personally
The message of Yom Kippur is not only about history but also about personal application. Rabbi Schneider points back to Israel’s deliverance from Egypt: “They weren’t redeemed just because the blood was in the basin. They were only redeemed when each one personally took a hyssop branch, dipped that hyssop branch in the blood in the basin, and then applied it over the doorpost and lintels of their own home. They had to personalize it.”
In the same way, each of us must receive the blood of Jesus by faith and apply it to our own lives. “It’s not enough just to believe in the blood from afar. We need to take that blood and put it over our lives by becoming personal disciples of Yeshua the Nazarene.” As John 1:29 declares, Jesus is “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”
Living as Disciples of Jesus
Rabbi Schneider challenges believers to live as true disciples allowing Jesus’ blood to cover every part of life. “Are you waking up every morning to trying to put God first in your life, overcoming your flesh because of your obedience to Him by the grace of God?” he asks. Being a follower of Jesus touches every area—marriage, family, daily habits and the choices we make to glorify God with our bodies, His temple (1 Cor. 6:19-20).
Yom Kippur, then, is not only a remembrance of ancient sacrifices but a call to renewal. Schneider urges: “Some of you perhaps need to get on your knees right now and ask Him to forgive you, to cleanse you, to wash you, to cover you with His blood, to give you a new heart and a new nature that you’ll rise up from that place committed to being His disciple and following Him.”
Join Charisma Magazine Online to follow everything the Holy Spirit is doing around the world!
Hope Through the Blood
This is a message of hope not condemnation. The blood of Jesus is enough to forgive, cleanse and restore. As we reflect on Yom Kippur and its fulfillment in Christ, we can rejoice in knowing our names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life (Rev. 21:27). In Rabbi Schneider’s words: “Straight and narrow is the way that leads to life. Few there be that find it. Will you be one of those that find it if you have not already?” (Matt. 7:14).
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a background in journalism from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine.
