1Pet 1: 18 Knowing that it was not with corruptible things, with silver or gold, that you were redeemed from your vain manner of life handed down from your fathers, 19 But with precious blood, as of a Lamb without blemish and without spot, the blood of Christ; Lev 4:3 If the anointed priest sins so as to bring guilt on the people, then let him present a bull of the herd without blemish to Jehovah for a sin offering for his sin that he committed.
[Part 1 of 2] It is important to understand what Peter means by "blemish" and "spot" and to know the difference between them. Blemish is a term often used for impurities found in precious stones and gems. Suppose you have a precious stone in your hand. If this stone is pure, it does not have any mixture; that is, it does not have any foreign body mixed in with it. A spot is a scar that comes from a wound. If you have a wound on your hand, eventually that wound may develop into a scar. Such a scar is a spot on your body. God created us pure, but the fall has brought many foreign bodies, blemishes, into us. All these foreign bodies are of the Devil, Satan. Furthermore, in our natural life we have been wounded. I would ask you to consider your situation. There are some who have developed the habit of gambling. Being addicted to gambling is a serious wound to a person's character. We also wound ourselves whenever we tell a lie. I do not believe that there is anyone among us who has never told a lie. Every lie is a wound. Most of us have also been wounded by stealing. Very few people have never stolen anything from others. Stealing always wounds us. We can see from the typology in the Old Testament that the animal sacrifices were to be without blemish and without spot. For instance, suppose a sheep was to be offered as a sin offering. The sheep offered as a sin offering had to be pure and perfect. Among all the human beings who have ever lived on earth, there has been only one Man--the Lord Jesus Christ--who is without mixture or blemish. Furthermore, He is the only Man who has not been wounded morally and ethically. (Continued tomorrow) (c) 2007 Living Stream Ministry.
Bible verses are taken from the Recovery Version of the Bible and Words of Ministry from Witness Lee, Life-study of First Peter, pp. 101-102. Both are published by Living Stream Ministry, Anaheim, CA. Please visit us at www.emanna.com. Send comments to: [email protected].
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