The Mystery of Blood
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The Mystery of Blood
The scriptures speak of two different aspects of man referring to one aspect as "the inward man" and the other as "the outward man" (2 Cor. 4:16 KJV). In general, we might say that most of man's religions tend to concentrate upon building up this outward man. The outward man is also called the carnal man (1 Cor. 3:1-3 KJV), which is to say the man of the flesh. The aim of human religion is an attempt to make that physical man, by natural means, strengths, and abilities, to appear to be better or more acceptable in the eyes of others. Religions that emphasize changes in the outward man are mostly concerned with what we might call the sense world. Success is determined by whether a man is able to bridle or control his lustful behaviors. The eyes must be brought under control so that they no longer look at what is considered inappropriate to be looking at. The ears should not listen to foul language. The mouth should not be speaking such foul language either, or eating foods that are to be rejected. The hands should not be feeling that which would be considered unlawful, they must not be desiring what doesn't belong to them. The nose must learn not to be repulsed by the foul stench of the undesirable. It must learn not to be aroused any longer by the sweet perfume of their neighbors' wife. When a man's religion can successfully help him to get all of these outward behaviors under his dominion, that man's religion has accomplished its goal.True Christianity differs from such religions in the sense that it strives to build up the spirit man who dwells inside the man. Other religions make their claim, that like Christianity, they tend to concentrate more upon the inward man. When religions speak of the inward man or spirit man however, what they are referring to, typically is not man's spirit at all but rather his soul. The inward man consists of both the natural man (1 Cor. 2:14 KJV) or soul of the man, as well as the spirit man who dwells within that natural man as the hidden man of his heart. The soul of a man includes such attributes as man's imagination, conscience, memory, reason, and affections.
Very often a religion will speak of helping a man to get in touch with his "third eye". They teach that this third eye is the eye that gives supernatural sight to the spirit man, being a kind of sixth sense. In reality what they are attempting to develop is the power of the man's soul in the area of his imagination. As such, they teach men to use various visualization techniques to strengthen his soulish power. There is no reason for man to fear these techniques, for every man does indeed have this power within his soul as sure as every man has the ability to see with his own eyes. To build this portion of his soul can be a good thing and not necessarily an evil thing as some might teach, but this is not what Christianity is about, nor has it anything to do with the inner man of the heart.
A second area of concentration is in the area of conscience or what is imagined to be a kind of spiritual discernment. It relates to the soul of man and his ability to detect whether something is good or evil by a special deep sensation or supernatural knowing within himself. This portion of a man's soul can evidently be developed so much, that the man can practically be warned of an evil presence as if he could smell its presence. What a benefit it would be in this life for a man to be able to know a good deal when it comes. To be able to take advantage of a situation at a very early time so that he is might be enabled to prosper because of it. Some men believe that they can almost smell money, or a good opportunity. This sounds like a good thing, but it is not an attribute of the spirit man, but rather of his own soul.
Man can learn through various association techniques to develop the power of his memory. He can learn to remember things he has heard or read with a much greater ability than before by simply employing various memory techniques. Such new found abilities which seemingly demonstrate measurable increases of one's own memory potential and powers of recall hold great promise in this world. There is no doubt that a man could truly benefit from having such a remarkable competitive edge. While this be true, it has nothing really to do with that man's spirit, but is a power that lies deep within the soul of every man.
Through the practice of exercising his soul's ability to reason man can learn to be a greater problem solver. As the mouth of a man can learn to distinguish or compare different tastes to determine that which is more greatly desired, this attribute of man's soul called reason, can continue to be developed to a very high level. Man can reach a point where his reason can seemingly dictate answers, almost even before his ears can assimilate the questions, and yet, although such an ability would be a thing highly to be prized, it is soulish and has nothing at all to do with the spirit man inside.
Finally, man can strive to develop the powers of his soul's affection. He can teach himself to feel another's joy, misery, pleasure, pain, love, hate, and even coldness or warmth. He can learn to pick up upon these feelings of others as if a hand was reaching out from his own soul to touch something or someone in another room. He can learn to walk or lead his life by this extraordinary sense of touch which he has allowed himself to develop within his soul. While this may be possible, it is not a part of the makeup of the spirit of man, but rather of his soul.
In contrast to all this, Christianity seeks primarily to develop the spirit man's attributes. These are faith, hope, reverence, prayer, and worship. Christianity is based upon the premise that as these five attributes of the spirit man begin to mature and are developed, the man will begin to be transformed from the inside out. In many cases, the actual manifestation of a change in some of his outward behaviors may take years to be noticeable.
As the five attributes of the natural man seem to correspond to the five senses of the carnal man, we believe the five attributes of the spirit man do also. Faith provides a man the ability to believe in the promise which God has spoken, in spite of what the senses might suggest to him. Hope gives man the ability to envision the promise of God coming to fruition even as we speak. Reverence gives man a deep sense of continual awareness that God is there beside him, regardless of the circumstances. Prayer enables man to communicate with his creator. Finally, Worship allows man to reach out and touch or feel the presence of the Holy Spirit of God.
Throughout the various religions of the world, many feign Faith, but in reality, no one is really sure what God has promised to do. They pretend to have Hope, yet their hope is always in tomorrow, never for today. Where the Christian's hope is in knowing that his God will do whatever he has promised, the counterfeit continues to hope in something that in all probability, God has never promised. Their Reverence is not an awareness of God's presence, but a fear that he might actually exist. Their Prayer is not a true communication with the creator, but a vain repetition of empty words which they have been taught to say. Lastly, their Worship is not according to spirit and truth. It is built strictly upon a false set of emotions and feelings. It is a game in which they pretend that God is pleased with them. We know this because the spirit of the unregenerate man is dead. This portion of his inner man has never functioned, as a radio without batteries, it is impossible to transmit or receive anything. Such summarizes then the religious experiences of the unregenerate man.
The purpose of religion from a Christian's point of view then is entirely different from that of non-christians. It is not the soul or the body, but the inner man who needs to be strengthened by God's Holy Spirit.
That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory,
to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man;(Eph 3:16 KJV)
It is that attribute of faith which informs the spirit man that Jesus lives within his heart (Eph. 3:17 KJV). It is the hope in that man's spirit that causes Christ to become truly visible in his life. It is that element of worship, according to the spirit and an accurate comprehension of the truth, that allows man to abide continually in God's presence. It is the element of prayer that allows the spirit of man to keep a line of communication open to his God. It is his overall reverence for God that renews man's soul which further enables him to begin to change everything else in his life.
Not only does Jesus take up his residence within the inner core of man's new born spirit, but the father himself in the manifested form of the Holy Spirit takes his place there as well. The Holy Spirit abiding within that man enables The Father to do exceedingly great and miraculous works through that man. The power residing within the man now knows no limitation.
Now unto him that is able to do exceeding
abundantly above all that we ask or think,
according to the power that worketh in us,(Eph 3:20 KJV)
The only limitation is what our own spirit can bear. This is where the development or maturity of man's new spirit becomes of great importance.
Throughout a man's life, it is his natural man (soul) who learns to dominate his body through the power of his own will, and as such, might be said to be the person in command. Will power is a manifestation of the combined attributes of one's own soul. Most people are primarily controlled however by the data that is fed to their natural man through the agency of the five senses of their carnal man. Although the soul makes the decisions, for it possesses the power of the will, decisions are generally based upon the information given to the natural man by the carnal man. The carnal man is often able to manipulate the soul through these five mechanisms so that the lusts of his flesh might be satisfied. The natural man spends a great deal of time seeking for an acceptable compromise between the two.
A lesser number of people have learned to develop their natural man to a greater degree and as such are better able to dominate or control their carnal nature. In either case however, the soul is at war with the new spirit. The problem is perhaps one of submission. The soul of man, especially in a person who has achieved a measure of success in its greater development, is comfortable as sitting upon the throne of the inward man, ruling over that man as a king. The natural man understands the data that is feed to him by the carnal senses, as well as the influence of his own attributes, and especially the more highly developed soul feel that he has things well under control. The senses of the hidden man of the heart is perceived as a foreign substance, and may even indicate a possible threat against the soul's authority. These new attributes of perception seem foolish to the natural man. They are ideas that cannot be substantiated and must be taken completely by trust. The soul becomes agitated upon the spirit man's arrival. The compromise between the carnal man and the natural man becomes much more difficult now. Almost immediately, the natural man and the carnal man declare an all out war against the spirit man within.
Because the carnal mind is enmity against God:
for it is not subject to the law of God,
neither indeed can be.Rom 8:7 (KJV)
Because of the natural man's inability to understand and trust the spirit of Christ, the new man, God sought means by which he might reveal certain things to this natural man that would help him to better understand the things of the spirit. Although the unregenerate man has a dead and immobile spirit, there remains within the soul of every man, a certain measure or span of life. When that span of life becomes depleted, the soul can no longer remain within a man's body. The soul is separated from the body and the man dies. That span of life is all the unregenerate man knows of a spirit within him. It is the spirit within him that gives him life. The method by which God intends to instruct man's soul concerning the essence of the life giving spirit, is through what we call, the mystery of blood.
The blood is something tangible. The carnal man can feel the warmth of his blood. He can see it's bright red color. When cut, he can feel it oozing from out of the incision and running down his arm. The carnal senses can communicate this data to the natural man. The natural man on the other hand understands that he is alive. He understands that his time is limited. He knows that when the measure of life which is contained within his spirit has been expended, he will cease to exist. He has experienced the death of his loved one through his carnal senses. He has seen the animation of their physical body cease. He has heard the silence of their voice which speaks no more. He has felt the pain that their emptiness has left within the heart, as if one had thrust them through with a javelin. He has smelled the stench of the diseased and the dying. God will use the mystery of the spirit's connection with the blood, to instruct this natural man concerning these great spiritual truths so that he might be able to learn to trust the spirit man who resides within him as the hidden man of his heart.
Only be sure that thou eat not the blood:
for the blood is the life;
and thou mayest not eat the life with the flesh.(Deu 12:23 KJV)
Throughout every primitive culture, the blood represents life and the shedding of blood represents death. Clay Trumbull has done quite extensive studies among many of these ancient primitive cultures and their customs surrounding this mystery of blood. He writes that, in the mind of primitive man, blood represents life itself.
"From the beginning, and everywhere, blood seems
to have been looked upon as preeminently the
representation of life; as indeed, in a peculiar sense,
life itself."
(H. Clay Trumbull, The Blood Covenant)One of the best illustrations we find within the scriptures of this ancient belief is perhaps the story of Cain and Abel. When Cain slew his brother Abel, although for all practical purposes his brother Abel was surely dead, yet the voice of his spirit could be heard still crying out from his blood, as the scriptures tell us, "he being dead yet speaketh" (Heb 11:4 KJV). From early on we see God associating the life giving spirit of man with the blood which runs throughout his body.
And he said, What hast thou done?
the voice of thy brother's blood
crieth unto me from the ground.(Gen 4:10 KJV)
Once this mystery of blood had been firmly established within the minds of mankind, God could begin to slowly reveal greater and greater truths that would enable man's soul to understand concepts of the spirit world, which in the ages to come might enable the natural man to be at liberty to accept the new spirit man, and gladly turn over the throne of his soul to this new rightful heir.
It was believed by some primitive people, that the life force of a creature could be taken in to oneself by the ingesting of the beast's heart, or the drinking of its blood. Trumbull writing further on this subject says the following.
"The transference of blood from one organism to
another, has been counted the transference of life,
with all that life includes. The inter-commingling of
blood by its inter-transference, has been understood
as equivalent to an inter-commingling of natures.
Two natures thus inter-commingled, by the intermingling
of blood, have been considered as forming, thence
forward, one blood, one life, one nature, one soul
- in two organisms."
(H. Clay Trumbull, The Blood Covenant)All this sets then begins to set the stage for the practice of blood covenanting which is so prominent throughout the various cultures of the primitive world. In many of these cultures, the blood of animals or even that of human beings was consumed in the ritual by either party. The blood covenant which God had instituted however, could not include the actual consumption of blood, for his own law had forbidden it. Instead, wine would be used in place of the blood as a symbolic representation of what was in essence a spiritual reality. Because the ritual was spiritual, it would not matter whether the literal blood or the wine be used. The command to abstain from the actual consuming of blood would become a wall of protection against all sorts of satanic rituals or magical rites practiced through the agency of witchcraft.
If a man could inter-commingle his blood with an animal and become one new nature, thereby absorbing into himself the strength and life of the beast, there is no reason why he cannot do so with another man. His greatest goal would be however, to partake of a blood covenant with deity that his own nature might be made to share in the divine nature. To this end Trumbull also writes.
"The inter-commingling of blood, has been deemed
possible between man and a lower organism; and
between man and a higher organism, even between
man and Deity, actually or by symbol; as well as
between man and his immediate fellow."
(H. Clay Trumbull, The Blood Covenant)In the familiar tale of Jason and the Argonauts, we have a record of a blood covenant The covenant was prompted first by the sudden appearance of Apollo in a blaze of divine glory. Orpheus, then proceeded to raise up an altar, upon which he had sacrificed a goat to Apollo, spilling the blood of the goat upon the altar. He then insisted that each of the Argonauts enter into a blood binding covenant or oath with one another, pledging themselves to one another, and swearing that they would never leave or forsake one another, especially in a time of danger.
According to Greek myth, one of the first accounts of the blood covenant is supposed to have taken place in heaven around the sacred altar. The special significance of this particular altar had to do with the sacred covenant made by the elders of the new regime. While Cronus had been the ruler of the universe, his son Zeus had tricked him into drinking the emetic potion supplied by his mother Rhea, the wife of Cronus. Upon swallowing the mixture, Cronus began to suddenly vomit up each child that he had previously swallowed. After they had all come forth unharmed, Zeus' brothers and sisters chose him to lead them to war against their cruel father Cronus and the other Titans. Each entered into a blood covenant allegiance to Zeus that would ultimately lead to their recognition of his own universal lordship over the universe. The altar was marked with the blood of each sacrificial animal used in the covenant ritual and became the everlasting witness of the vows that had conclusively been made to this new lord. After the great war had finally come to an end, the entire universe had been divided awarding Zeus the sky, Poseidon the sea, and Hades the underworld. Zeus himself was awarded the sovereign throne over all the gods.
A similar story appears within the Babylonian Enuma Elish, where it is Marduk who is chosen by this council of the gods to lead them into war. Marduk is said to accept this position only upon the contingency that after the old gods had been defeated, he alone would be given the chief place among the gods.
Another example might be found among the Greeks in the tale of the Dioscuri, which is interpreted to mean, the sons of Zeus. One of these two sons was considered to be mortal, while the other was said to be immortal. The two were considered to be brothers, having drank from the same breast, while having different fathers. They were said to have been the closest of friends. The bond that joined them together was a much greater bond than merely sharing the same mother. They were blood brothers, not by birth, but by choice. They were connected, not by genetic endowment, but by a blood covenant or blood oath. The constellation of Gemini which represents these two brothers in covenant, was itself often called upon to act as a witness in heaven concerning a blood covenant or oath, which had been sworn or transpired upon the earth. Each of these boys is said to have been initiated into the secret mysteries and it has been suggested that the stars in their heads indicate their knowledge of such secret mysteries. Many might be familiar with the ancient expression "By Gemini," which in times of old was a swearing in the presence of the two Disocuri brothers, to act as heavenly witnesses, to the terms and conditions of the earthly covenant.
According to Trumbull, this blood covenant relationship is the most holy and most holy indissoluble covenant that the mind of man has ever conceived. The following is another excerpt from his writings.
"A covenant of blood, a covenant made by the
inter-commingling of blood, has been recognized
as the closest, the holiest, and the most indissoluble
compact conceivable. Such a covenant clearly
involves an absolute surrender of one's separate self,
and an irrevocable merging of one's individual nature
into the dual, or the multiplied, personality included
in the compact. Man's highest and noblest outreachings
of soul have, therefore, been for such a union with the
divine nature, as typified in this human covenant of
blood."
(H. Clay Trumbull, The Blood Covenant)It was perhaps man's one great desire to have been given the opportunity to make this indissoluble covenant with his creator. The mystical cup of Apollo (Bacchus) is anciently referred to as the forbidden cup by the common people. The cup is said to have contained a magical mixture within it, which was used by the priesthood primarily for the initiation rituals, considered absolutely necessary for any who might desire to become one of the enlightened. This mixture was drunken primarily to assist one in receiving a revelation of light and truth. Although the exact formula might have differed from one culture to another, in essence it must have consisted somewhat of a hallucinogenic mind altering drug, that once ingested, would cause the initiate to come under the power of demonic spirits. We know that at least in some places throughout this earth, this cup was believed to contain the blood of the gods. It was for this very reason that the content of this cup was especially considered as being a great sought after treasure. The constellation crater is said by the Greeks to be this sacred Goblet of Apollo. To the Euphrateans however, the constellation was said to be the great mixing bowl of divine mythology.
It is interesting that in the Greek, there is a particular word that refers exclusively to the blood of a god. That word is Ichor. The word has no etymological meaning in the Greek, but has been derived from the ancient Chaldean language. In Chaldee the word Ichor means, the precious thing. The word has become familiar to us because of the writings of Homer. Note its usage within this excerpt from Homer's legend of the Iliad.
From the clear vein the immortal Ichor flowed,
Such stream as issues from a wounded god,
Pure emanation, uncorrupted flood,
Unlike our gross, diseased, terrestrial blood.
In Mexico, the people made a cross, being composed of maize and the blood of the sacrificial animal victim. This cross signified the body and blood of the sun god of whom they worshipped. The people would then include in their worship ceremony, the ritual of eating the covenant meal of deity. They broke the bread into many fragments, and then distributed these fragments among the people. This covenant meal represented the peace and unity of the brotherhood. Each member, after partaking of the body and the blood of the sun god, had now entered into covenant with each other, and was now considered one family with the creator whom they jointly worshipped.
Within the Mithraic cult, the sixth grade initiate could be further promoted to the title, "Courier of the Sun." Afterward he would be awarded the attributes of Sol, the sun god. Such symbols included the crown, the torch, and the whip. Initiates of this grade would commonly take the place of Sol (The sun god) at the communion meal. Sol (Helios) was said to kneel before the god Mithras. The only higher grade one might achieve was the seventh. Anyone achieving such a grade would be given the divine title, "Father." He was to take the place of Mithra as the earthly representative of the god himself. He himself would then be considered as responsible for the discipline and training of the faithful. He wore the royal ring, and carried the royal staff, which symbols represented him as a teacher. Within this ritual, each portion of the bread that was used within the communion meal, was first marked with a cross. The cross represented the symbol of the sun god. The partaking of the communion meal was a ritual that represented the ratifying of the covenant between the member and his god. The bread represented the body and blood of the deity himself. One can readily see the parallel between this pagan ritual and the Lord's Supper. Both rituals represented the act of entering into a blood covenant with deity.
The blood covenant is one of the oldest ceremonies common to man. Trumbull again writes the following words.
"Proofs of the existence of this rite of blood covenanting,
have been found among primitive peoples of all quarters
of the globe; and its antiquity is carried back to date long
prior to the days of Abraham. All this, outside of any
indications of the rite in the text of Bible itself."
(H. Clay Trumbull, The Blood Covenant)Having said all this, we now turn our attention to the words of Jesus. What was Jesus really saying. Was he in fact proposing that he was about to offer his followers the opportunity to enter into a blood covenant relationship with him. We are convinced that this fact is beyond dispute.
Then Jesus said unto them,
Verily, verily, I say unto you,
Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man,
and drink his blood,
ye have no life in you.
Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood,
hath eternal life;
and I will raise him up at the last day.
For my flesh is meat indeed,
and my blood is drink indeed.
He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood,
dwelleth in me, and I in him.(John 6:53-56 KJV)
Here we see that Jesus himself taught of the inter-commingling of two spirit natures becoming united as one. He was proclaiming that it was indeed possible for a man to come into union with the divine spirit and to become one with deity. Although this might indeed be possible to doubt or debate by just these spoken words alone, yet, in the light and weight of inference through the application of the ancient blood covenant principles, it would seem that this was without doubt his ultimate intention. Because of these words and actions of Jesus, it seems absolutely necessary that we have a thorough understanding of all that the ancient blood covenant had encompassed, so that we might completely understand the intent of Jesus in making such a covenant with his followers. We begin to understand why the memorial of the Lord's Supper is so vital in the Church today. We further begin to understand exactly what it means to be saved by the blood of Christ.
The Inter-commingling of blood caused the two natures of those covenant representatives to become as one. This is not to be regarded as mere superstition. We must understand that behind this outward activity lies a much greater spiritual reality. Perhaps this is the revelation which Catholicism strives to preserve in their doctrine of transubstantiation. We do not accept this doctrine as being completely accurate, but at the same time we must reject the popular Menno doctrine of the Lord's Supper, making it nothing more than a memorial or a symbol. Even Zwingli did not think it absolutely necessary to eat or drink the communion meal. For him it was an outward expression of an inward reality. For Zwingli, to believe merely with Christ being present in one's mind was the equivalent of both eating and drinking. We believe that somewhere between these two spectrums lies the truth. Luther might have perhaps saw a glimpse of truth more than any other as he cried out to retain the meaning of the word "testament" in the Lord's Supper. Defining that truth, is without doubt a primary goal of this book.
It is a historical fact that Pliny the Younger, whiile writing to the Roman emperor Trajan, beleived the Lord's Supper to be a continual ratifying of a blood covenant. Pliny's reason for writing the letter was merely to keep the emperor informed about the continual spread of the Christian faith throughout his empire. In that letter he reported that the had captured a certain Christian and submitted him to various forms of interrogation until it was finally revealed that the Christians had the common practice of routinely meeting together to swear and bind themselves by a blood oath. The Latin term sacramentum had referred to the peculiar oath of a soldier who had desired to pledge himself as being loyal to the Roman emperor. It is also known that there had been vast numbers of Christians during that time who believed that partaking of the Eucharist was exactly equal to swearing a blood oath before Chist.
The rite of blood covenanting, required both participants to be willing to enter into a new relationship of absolute surrender with one another. Although two separate individuals began the ceremony, only one self emerged at the finish. The two had become one and the results of this spiritual union could not be undone. The covenant was irrevocable. This is the way Abraham views the covenant which he cuts with God. This is the basis of his faith. How much more likely for us to share a similar faith as Abraham possessed, if we can but think as Abraham thought. We are commanded to "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus" ( Phil 2:5 KJV). If Jesus viewed his actions as a blood covenant, if this is the way Jesus thought, then we must strive to try to also be like minded.
If our relationship to Christ is one of a blood covenant relationship, then theological issues such as falling from grace must be redefined. One cannot revoke possibly revoke his new relationship with Christ as if he had never entered into covenant, this fact is required by the very definition and essence of the blood covenant. This does not on the other hand imply that one need not worry about abstaining from sin for it was quite a serious matter for one of the participants of a blood covenant to default on the terms or conditions of the covenant. Often there had been an associated curse declared upon one who would willingly violate the covenant. The point here is that once a man enters into a blood covenant with Christ, his relationship is forever changed, either for the good or the bad. It can never be as it was before.
When the nature of Adam enters into a covenant with the nature of Christ, he is changed. He can never return to the nature of Adam again. He can willfully sin, he can make the eternal lake of fire his home, but he can never be convicted of the sin of Adam, nor can he ever claim ignorance in the face of Christ. It is a very serious matter for the man who becomes united to the Spirit of Christ, to willfully violate the trust. He becomes worse than an infidel. He becomes a traitor to the kingdom of God. Woe, woe, woe is he, for who shall die again for his sins? "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" (Heb. 10:31 KJV) .
What therefore God hath joined together,
let not man put asunder.(Mark 10:9 KJV)
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