Blood is an essential theme throughout the Bible. The symbolism of blood throughout the Bible was intentional as the references in the Old Testament point to the ultimate act of bloodshed in the New Testament. The crucifixion. 

In Exodus 12 instructions for the Passover are written out. A year-old male sheep or goat must be slaughtered and its blood smeared on the doorposts of the house. This act in Exodus was to let the angel of death know that the people in the house were God's people; the Israelites. The angel of death was to pass over the house if there was blood on the house.

A point was made to me a few weeks ago about this passage that I wanted to share. The angel of death did not look inside of the house to determine if the people were worthy of being spared. The angel saw the blood and knew that they were covered.

This passage in Exodus foreshadows the death of the perfect lamb whose blood would cover every person. We are all flawed sinful humans. The Lord does not look at us and determine if our works or character can save us and give us eternal life. He sees the blood of His son covering us. Because in all reality, no matter what we do or how many good works we accomplish it will never be enough to save us. Only Jesus can do that. We are all offered this amazing gift through Jesus' death on the cross. It is up to each of us to accept that gift because nothing but the blood of Jesus can save us.