The Exchange At The Cross

The Exchange At The Cross And The Application of The Blood of Jesus – The Significance of Easter

by Pastor Tokunbo Oshokoya

Easter, is a major celebration of Christians, which commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. It is celebrated on Sunday, which is believed to be the “third day” after Christ’s crucifixion, and the day He resurrected. There are some controversies regarding its origin, but that’s not our point here. Our focus is to bring to awareness that Easter is more than just a memorial of the resurrection of Christ from death. The much more important and true meaning of Easter for Christians, is that it is more about allowing Christ’s resurrection to become a reality in their lives as they live victoriously, reflecting on the sacrifice that He made to attain that victory.

The Ever Valid Exchange at The Cross

The death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is an ever-valid, once-and-for-all sacrifice to save humanity. This sacrifice is clearly written in the scriptures: “…By the which we are SANCTIFIED THROUGH THE OFFERING of the body of Jesus Christ ONCE FOR ALL! And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: But this man, after he had offered ONE SACRIFICE FOR SINS FOR EVER, sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool. For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before, This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more. Now where remission of these is, there is NO MORE OFFERING FOR SIN.” Hebrews 10: 10–17.

An aspect that is worthy of note in the above text is the opening sentence in verse 12 which says, ‘But this man…’ Did you notice that is says ‘this man’ and not ‘this God?’ If it says ‘this God’, then our sins are not removed, because whoever must substitute for us must have the same nature with us. So this man (Jesus), who was fully man, although He was God as well, by one single offering, (unlike that of the high priests of the old covenant who made offerings for sin often), made a COMPLETE ALL SUFFICIENT SACRIFICE for the sin of humanity. And now He sits at the right hand of God, waiting for His enemies (anything that tends to make His sacrifice of none effect) to be judged, whether they are thrones, or feelings of condemnation; they are to be judged because He has already made the once and for all sacrifice for sin, and He cannot repeat it, because it is ever valid.

The Validity of Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross is FOREVER! Just like natural honey that has no expiry date, so is the Blood Sacrifice of Jesus. So dear believer in Christ, anytime you feel as if the blood sacrifice of Jesus is no longer valid for you, remember that if God can make natural honey not to expire, then His sacrifice can endure much more for you. Someone may ask, does it cover for only those who lived before He died physically 2000 years ago? No! Another may wonder, does it cover for just at the first time that a person gets saved? No! The Good News is that it actually covers FOR TIME AND ETERNITY! The scriptures say that the Lamb of God was slain before the foundation of the World! Hence is the validation that it covers from eternity through time, sandwiched in between and to the final eternity! So, every one of us has a divine right to apply the validity and effectiveness of the Blood of Jesus both for NOW and till eternity!

Scope of Influence and Effectiveness

The Scope of influence and the effectiveness of Jesus’ sacrifice covers every area in the lives of the sanctified; nothing more remaining to be done. The English dictionary describes the word, Scope as: “The breath, depth, or reach of a subject or domain. Thus, in its breath, depth and reach, the impact of the Blood of Jesus covers everyone who has been sanctified, as the scriptures say, “… For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.” (Hebrews 10:14) The sanctified are the ones who choose to believe in Christ as their Saviour and Lord (See 1 Peter 1: 2), and are being perfected as they continue in faith, trusting in Him. Perfection here implies full development, ongoing growth into maturity of godliness, not necessarily sinless perfection (See Ephesians 4: 12, 13).

This perfection is attached to the ever valid sacrifice of Jesus, is attainable because God has said that He will write His laws into our hearts. This is clearly written in Hebrews 10:16-17, which says, “This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.”

I want to ask you, do you have the law of God in your heart? If you have you ever gotten to a point in your walk with God where you are worried that you have committed the unforgiveable sin, or to a point where you are bothered about your wavering faith in Christ, you are actually reacting to the law of God in your heart, which is a sign that you are born again. It is the laws of God that He has written in your heart and mind that is urging you. That is the effect of the complete work of atonement that Christ did for us.

Description of the Work of Atonement

Long before Jesus practically made this atonement with His Own Blood, the perfect foreshadow is accounted for in Leviticus 16, which gives the description of the Work of Atonement. Atonement or “At-one-ment” in the Hebrew is kippur, which implies ‘to cover’; the process of causing a transgression to be pardoned or forgiven, fully. However, the established principles of Atonement in the Bible show these aspects:

Substitutional – the “offering” replaces the “offerer” (the guilty one) in place of death.
God’s law of the requirement for sin must be executed.
The offering of the sacrifice must be sinless.
The act and guilt must be removed or evacuated from the sight of the Law.

In the Old Testament, the atonement was to be done by the high priest, in this case, Aaron: “And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house. And he shall take the TWO GOATS, and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And Aaron shall cast lots upon the TWO GOATS; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat. And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD’S lot fell, and offer him for a SIN OFFERING. But the GOAT, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to LET HIM GO for a scapegoat INTO THE WILDERNESS.” Leviticus 16:6-10.

Aaron, who was the first high priest of Israel, had to make two offerings, the first for himself, and the second for the people. And because of this, his sacrifice cannot be eternally binding. In other words, because Aaron had to sacrifice to atone for himself first to be a priest in order to intercede for the people, his sacrifice cannot be valid forever. And because the wages of sin is death—for sin, a life must be given, whether God forgives or not; His law cannot be compromised— the high priest himself necessarily had to be reconciled to God first, before reconciling the people to God. So one bullock for the sin of the high priest, then two goats for the sin of the people. In this case, Aaron can never be a true prototype of Jesus, because Aaron had to cleanse his own sin first, but Jesus was without sin.

In effect, two goats are required for atonement for the sin, namely:

The Sin Offering Goat for FORGIVENESS –this is God’s side to cover or atone;
The Scape Goat for REMOVAL OF ACT & GUILT –this is the Human side to sanctify.

But in Christ Jesus, we see the two-fold work was perfected at once!

When Aaron offered the first goat (the sin offering) and sprinkled its blood on the mercy seat, he was saying, “Lord, a life has gone, your requirement has been fulfilled, let mercy reign, instead of judgment; let the blessings you have ordained start working, instead of curses. But even after mercy reigned, that is, covered the sin, the sin remained, although covered. The sin must be removed, and so the other goat, that is the scape goat, will take the sins away (the priest will lay his hand on the scape goat and pronounce all the sins of the people on it, then the goat will be sent out from the people) into the wilderness to die.

So in effect, two things take place at the same time;

First, a forgiveness and release of mercy;
Secondly, an attempt to remove the sin and the guilt away.

But the problem about this foreshadow atonement is that the life of the goat is not a perfect replacement for the life of man, that was why the Old Testament sacrifice could not fully atone for the sin of humanity. Imagine that a slave is to be sold. Whoever wants to buy the slave cannot present a goat as a substitute for the slave, he has to present something of same value. The only substitute for sinful man must be a man, one that has the capacity to suffer as a slave, because legally, we entered the kingdom of darkness as slaves through our father Adam. And for someone to buy us back, it has to be someone with same flesh and blood as we, and that is where our Lord Jesus Christ stepped in, to carry out the two aspects of atonement—the covering of the sin, and the taking away of the sin. And in Jesus, Christ, everything was completed, His atonement paid for us in full and permanently! So, “Now where remission of these is, there is NO MORE OFFERING FOR SIN.” Hebrews 10:18

Where someone has already died in your place for your sin, anybody that wants to kill you again for that sin is breaking the law. There is a term called double jeopardy in law, which means that a person cannot suffer twice for the same offence. Jesus pleaded guilty on our behalf, therefore we are no longer charged for it. With this reality in mind, judge issue or sin (even if it is a repetitive sin) that you have allowed in your life, and remind yourself that Jesus has paid for it; you have no right to suffer the same thing again.

The Sevenfold Application of blood of Jesus

As a perfect fore-shadow for our redemption, the instruction was given to the high priest concerning the blood sacrifice in Leviticus 16:14 and 19, “and before the mercy seat he shall SPRINKLE of THE BLOOD with his finger SEVEN TIMES”. “And he shall SPRINKLE some of the blood on it with his fingers SEVEN TIMES and CLEANSE it and hallow it from the uncleanness of the Israelites.” With this foundational example, let us examine how we are sure that Jesus’ blood satisfied the entire requirement for our atonement.

Jesus’ blood was sprinkled as was required seven times as noted here in no particular order:

Prayer of agony in the Garden of Gethsemane where He dropped sweat and BLOOD!
At the house of the high priest. He was violently reviled. He was struck maliciously across the face with rod. He spat BLOOD!
They gleefully, with much force, pulled at His beard for showing Himself as a leader of some sort. They plucked His beard from the roots. He BLED! -Isaiah 50:6.
Pontus Pilate handed Him over to the Roman Soldiers to scourge. He was beaten in a most sadistic way with cat-o-nine whips which had small bones and sharp pieces of blade metals strung into it. It tore His flesh. His BLOOD was splattered!
They mocked Him saying “so You are a King?”. They weaved a crown of thorns and forcibly pushed it down His heard, beat on His badly bruised head till it got swollen and His scalp became sore in many points. He BLED from the head down! -Isaiah 53 “…His visage was marred more than any man…”
At the Golgotha, He was nailed at both wrists and legs with big iron nails till His BLOOD gushed out and flowed!
At His giving up the ghost where He exhaled the famous words “It is finished”. The Roman Garrison Commander would not believe that He had died, so he instructed that it be verified. A soldier therefore thrust a spear at His side just below the heart, I believe. It was divinely arranged! So the necessary SEVENTH SPRINKLING was accomplished! BLOOD and water effused out of His punctured side.

God declared in Leviticus 17: 11 “…For the LIFE OF THE FLESH (SOUL) IS IN THE BLOOD…” The scriptures in Isaiah 53: 4, 5, 10, 12, all attested to the same feat obtainable in the shed Blood of Jesus for humankind. The ATONEMENT, made for our souls, completely in the SEVEN FOLD ways, required as follows:

Redemption: being bought back
We must be in Christ (Ephesians 1:7)
Redeemed by Christ’s blood (1 Peter 1:18–19)
Let redeemed say so (Psalm 107:2), that is, make the confession.
Cleansing
Only through continuing walking in the light = continuing fellowship (1 John 1:7)
Plead for the blood to be applied (Psalm 51:7) this is also our Confession.
Justification
To make righteous (Romans 5:9)
“Just-as-if-I’d” never sinned
Covered with a robe of righteousness (Isaiah 61:10), again, our confession.
Sanctification
Set apart from sin and made holy (Hebrews 13:12; 12:10). Still our confession affirmed.
Life
The life is in the blood (Leviticus 17.11).
Communion (John 6:53–57 [1 Corinthians 10:16]).
Until He comes (1 Corinthians 11:23–26).
No past but the Cross, no future but His coming: our non-stop confession!
Intercession: This shows us theEight things to which we have come (Heb. 12:22–24)

Mount Zion
Heavenly Jerusalem
Innumerable company of angels
Church of the first-born
God, the Judge of all
Old Testament saints
Jesus the Mediator
The sprinkled blood of Jesus

Access (Hebrews 10:19–22) Verse 19 says, “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus,” now we have access to God, we can approach Him with boldness, making the confession: “Thank You, Lord, that through the sprinkled blood of Jesus, I have access into Your presence, into the holiest place in the universe.” – Leviticus 16:13–14.

When Aaron was making atonement, there was a veil that separated the holy place from the most holy place, because Aaron’s blood was contaminated. But now we have a high priest (Jesus) whose blood is pure and acceptable, the veil is removed. And so never again should you feel or accept any lie of the devil that you have not be redeemed, or that you cannot speak to God by yourself.

How to Appropriate the Benefit of the Cross –The Blood of Jesus

At the cross, Jesus made a legal exchange, “… By a new and living way, which he hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, his flesh;” verse 20.

The Bible makes it clear that on the day Jesus died after He said, “It is finished”, the veil in the temple tore into two. I understand that the material of the veil (curtains) is so strong and would be very difficult to tear apart even if someone tried to tear it. But after Jesus gave up the ghost, it tore apart from up to down, God proving to humanity that He was the One who tore it.

Why would God tear that veil? He tore it, giving access to all humanity to His mercy seat; giving us the right to approach Him and to get release from every pain, sickness, curse, condemnation or anything that is not part of the life of Jesus Christ. And so anything you are experiencing that Jesus did not experience is illegal, and you must overcome it.

The undisputable truth of the Bible is that we overcome Satan by the blood of the lamb Jesus, and by the word of our testimony as written in Revelation 12:11. Therefore, we must declare, confess or profess our victory over every illegality! It is not just historical fact that Jesus is alive, I can assure you that since He died and resurrected, the lame have walked, the blind have seen, cancer patients have lived again, and sickle-cellars have been delivered. I am a living proof. How do you stop the illegalities of sin, sickness, curses, poverty when you face them? Confess the finished work of Christ on the cross for you and take the token of the sacrifice (the communion), which also signifies the Passover. Doing this is to refresh yourself as you continue confidently in your walk with God.

The Significance of the Passover and the Communion- Exodus 12:21–23; 1 Corinthians 10:16; 11:23.

Passover ( Pesach), is the celebration commemorating the Exodus of the children of Israel from slavery in Egypt. In every Passover, a lamb must be killed, and its blood must be transferred from a basin to door of home, using “Hyssop”, for its application. When we confess the finished work of Christ, we overcome the devil by the blood of the lamb (in the basin) and by the words of our testimony (using the hyssop) which is the word of God. Thus, our cleansing is applied by the affirmation of our testimony, bearing in mind that:

The blood of Jesus protects us only as we remain obedient -1Peter 1:1–2.
The blood of Jesus is of no effect until it is applied by testimony Revelation 12:11; Heb. 3:1
Our Passover Lamb is Jesus Christ -1Corinthians 5:7

We need to remember that even after the Passover, Pharaoh and his army still pursued the redeemed Israel to the brink! Why are the redeemed of today still being pursued by their enemies to the brink of the Red Sea? I believe that there is a deliberate divine plan to pattern how the devil, his agents, sins, sickness and curses have determined, like Pharaoh the taskmaster and the Egyptian army, to pursue the children of Israel to the brink. Thus, the Sea is called “Red” to remind us that even after salvation, satan and all God’s enemies will not give up but follow to the APPLICATION OF THE BLOOD OF SPRINKLING! (See 1 Corinthians 10:1-6, 16). That is why the Lord said we should do the communion often to relive the validity and the ever fresh effectiveness of the victory! (1 Corinthians 11:23-25). Like Moses, God says “Look, the Egyptian army you see advancing menacingly towards you today, by tomorrow you will see them no more!”

When Moses was vacillating and confused because of the approaching Egyptians, he cried out to God but God said, “Why cry? Speak…stretch out your rod of power!” What is our own “rod of power” today? Our rod is the confession of our mouths. It is our testimony, our confession of Christ’s accomplished work on Calvary! So whenever you are being chased by satan and his demons in whatever form they attack you, always ensure to boldly move to the Red Sea of communion of the Lord’s body and blood, and dare the enemies of your soul to attempt to cross over with you. Then sing the song of victory in Exodus 15: 1–4 as they drown in the sea, because they will surely be drowned in it.

We have to full take advantage of the exchange. Where is the evidence that Jesus has risen in your life? Other gods may deceive, but Jesus does not. Jesus received the evil due to us, that we might receive the good due to Him. We therefore need to remind ourselves of the:

Eight Aspects and Benefits of the Exchange

Jesus was punished that we might be forgiven (Isaiah 53:4–5) because we deserved to be punished.
Jesus was wounded that we might be healed (Matthew 8:16–17) because sin opens us to sickness.
Jesus was made sin with our sinfulness that we might be made righteous with His righteousness (Isaiah 53:10; 2 Corinthians 5:21).
Jesus tasted death for us that we might share His life (Hebrews 2:9).
Jesus was made a curse that we might receive the blessing (Galatians 3:13–14).
Jesus endured our poverty that we might share His abundance (2 Corinthians 8:9 [2 Corinthians 9:8; Deuteronomy 28:47–48])
Jesus endured our shame that we might share His glory (Matthew 27:35–36 [Hebrews 2:10])
Jesus endured our rejection that we might have His acceptance (Matthew 27:45–51 [Ephesians 1:3–6])

We know that He has taken away the curse due us. But here are some indications of a curse on one’s life:

Seven Indications of a Curse on One’s life:

Mental and emotional breakdown
Repeated or chronic sicknesses (esp. hereditary)
Repeated miscarriages or related female problems
Breakdown of marriage—family alienation
Continuing financial insufficiency (esp. when income appears to be sufficient) \
“Accident prone”
Suicides or unnatural deaths

At any point when we notice some of these indications in our lives, we must confess the benefits of the cross in our lives, remembering that, we overcome Satan by the blood of the lamb and by the word of our testimony (Revelation 12:11), and that we “Love not our life unto death”. This means that it is more important to do God’s will than to stay alive. So, we must keep up our confession, for we overcome Satan when we testify of what the Word of God says the blood of Jesus has done for us.

Remember the rod, our confession? Therefore, instead of looking at our own righteousness, we would rather confess His righteousness that He has bestowed on us. That is the rod we have received to cross the sea with. No ordinary rod can part any water, but the rod that has been anointed by the high priest can. When God told Moses to throw down his rod in Pharaoh’s palace, God didn’t tell him beforehand that Pharaoh’s magicians had their rods too, He allowed Moses to get there with confidence to meet them. I am sure that when you got born again, you never thought you would face any temptation or fall into sin again, but by God you will overcome every sin if you continually use your rod (confession) and declare the finished work of Christ on the cross.

Remember, the high priest is waiting to hear you confess all that the Lord has done for you by reason of the exchange at the cross. And remember that the rod in your hand cannot do anything until you stretch it. So open your mouth and confess—I can never be cursed because Jesus became a curse for me! … I cannot be poor, because Jesus was made poor… Sin shall not have rule over me because Jesus had nailed it to the cross … I am redeemed by the exchange at the cross! Hallelujah! This is the significance of Easter.