Easter

All Through the Blood

 “In shady green pastures, so rich and so sweet,

 God leads His dear children along

where the water’s cool flow bathes the weary one’s feet,

God leads His dear children along.

Some through the waters, some through the flood,

some through the fire, but all through the blood.”

 

 (This old hymn entitled; “God leads us Along” was written by George A. Young in 1903.)

According to John 18:1 when Jesus traveled to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray on the night before He was crucified, He crossed the Kidron valley. The Hebrew word, Kidron means dark or black. The valley derived its name from the fact that the temple was located directly above this valley. As the animals were sacrificed, their blood ran out of the temple, down the hill, and onto the Kidron Valley, turning the ground black as it dried.

Isn’t it amazing to realize Jesus passed through this valley on his way to the cross? I wonder what went through His mind as he stepped on the ground, black from the blood of sacrifices. Maybe He thought of the ordeal He was about to face. Did He agonize over this? Or did he think beyond the cross to those of us whose salvation He would win because of His willing sacrifice? I wonder if He pictured my face – and yours?

“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” Ephesians 2:13 (NIV)