The Protocol of the King
By: Jahan Berns
April 23, 2025
“Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness [neither release from sin and its guilt, nor cancellation of the merited punishment].”
An animal lover asked me the other day, “Why would God require the slaughter of sweet innocent animals just to wash away people’s sins in the Old Testament?” And then another person said to me, “I find the Cross problematic. Why would God sacrifice His Son Jesus for my sin? I would never do that to my child!”
Have you ever personally visited a king or president? There's a protocol that you must follow when visiting dignitaries. In July 2017, Canada's governor general David Johnston raised eyebrows when he breached royal protocol by lightly touching the Queen of England’s elbow as she descended some steps at an event in London. In response to that breach, and to help the public avoid any future mishaps, the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) released a news article titled, “Regal rules: The dos and don'ts for meeting the Queen.” Here’s an excerpt of the protocol they laid out:
Be early. Guests should arrive before a royal. Use the right greetings. Curtsey or bow (the head only) - although you can also shake hands or do a combination of the two. On presentation to the Queen, the correct address is “Your Majesty” and subsequently “Ma'am”. Take the Queen's lead. Don't talk unless spoken to, don’t sit until she sits or begin eating until she does. Form semi-circles. If you are presented to Her Majesty at a Royal event, it is likely you will be marshalled into position in a series of semi-circles rather than straight lines. Don’t Touch Her Majesty. Only shake her hand if she offers it. Don’t expect the Queen to start the conversation with you if you are sitting on her left during a meal. It is customary for the guest of honour to sit to the right of the Queen and the convention is that she speaks to this person during the first course of the dinner, then switches attention to the person on her left for the following course. Formula 1 star Lewis Hamilton, who was seated to her left at one function, didn't know this and tried to speak to Her Majesty but was politely told: "No, you speak that way first and I'll speak this way and then I'll come back to you." Don’t leave before the Queen unless permission has been granted through a private secretary. Don’t turn your back on Her Majesty - it is considered rude. Don’t take pictures when you are visiting her at home. Don’t ask personal questions…don’t get carried away.
Now if human royalty has an established protocol, how much more the LORD GOD, for isn’t He the KING of Kings and Lord of Lords? He has declared of Himself, “For I am a great King,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “and my name is feared among the nations! (Malachi 1:14 and Revelation 19:16). God is the greatest of Kings, and when we approach Him and request for His grace and favor, it must always be on His terms and not ours. As gracious and as loving as God is, He has a protocol that we must abide by. He has graciously set it out for us in the Bible. I am going to share with you one of the most important protocols of approaching God: God is most holy. To access His holy presence, we must be cleansed of sin. God requires sin to be cleansed by BLOOD.
When God created men, He made them in His image and also made them the object of His love. By giving men a free will, there was a risk that they would sin and reap death. And they did! The punishment for man’s sin was/is death (Romans 6:23). Because God is holy, perfect, and just, His holiness and justice would not allow sin to reside in His presence. So, God had to fix the problem. A spiritual transaction happened in the heavenly realm that we can never wrap our minds around.
God provided a remedy even before men sinned! The Bible says God sacrificed His Son for men’s sins even before the world was ever formed! (See Revelation 13:8.) God had set the protocol: the atonement of sin would and must involve a blood sacrifice. God set His standard with these terms: To be delivered from the judgment of sin requires a blood sacrifice. A blood sacrifice means death-an innocent living being must die. He articulates this standard in many places in the Bible. For example, Hebrews 9:22 says, “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness [neither release from sin and its guilt, nor cancellation of the merited punishment].”
Accordingly, God allowed men to sacrifice lambs, goats, and bulls for the cleansing of their sins until His appointed time for sending His Son to the earth to provide permanent atonement of sin. When that appointed time came to pass, according to God’s terms, the spiritual transaction that had taken place in the spiritual realm prior to the foundation of the world would now come to pass in the natural realm. God was sending His Son into the world to take sin’s punishment.
The task of announcing God’s protocol fell upon certain prophets. Let’s talk about John the Baptist, the wild looking prophet who walked around wearing camel hair and proclaiming that he was the messenger sent to prepare the way for the Son of God and the promised Messiah.
Imagine how shocking (or even confusing) it must have been for the Jews (whose cleansing of sin depended on the yearly sacrifice of animals), to one day hear John shouting that the Messiah was walking by, and He was going to be a lamb that would take away the sin of the world! As Jesus passed by, John shouted, BEHOLD THE LAMB OF GOD WHO TAKES AWAY THE SINS OF THE WORLD! (See John 1:19-36) What? A Man was going to be the sacrificial Lamb, to take away sin, and not just the Jews’ sins but the sins of the whole world?
According to God’s plan, Jesus did exactly that! He was violently slaughtered, thus fulfilling the Isaiah 53 prophecy that the Messiah would be slaughtered like a lamb. However, His treatment would be much worse because He would first suffer beatings, piercings, and all kinds of torture. King David in Psalm 22 prophesied that Jesus would be so tortured that all His bones would come out of joint, His tongue would stick to the roof of His mouth, His heart would melt like wax, His hands and feet would be pierced, He would be laid in the dust of death and His life (blood) would be poured out like water.
Through His sacrificial death on the Cross, Jesus indeed atoned for our sins. Romans 5:6-11 says, “When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God’s sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God’s condemnation. For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son. So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.”
Now that you know God’s standard and protocol, shouldn’t you be eternally grateful that God sacrificed His Son so you and yours could be spared? Think about how many times you sin in a day, week, month or year. Aren’t you glad there’s an easier, more perfect and permanent way to receive God’s forgiveness than having to slaughter multiple animals year after year?
Blood is a big deal in the physical realm but even much more in the spiritual realm. Satan and his demons were vanquished by the Blood of Jesus Christ so that man could have authority over these diabolical enemies. Without the protection of the Blood we do not and cannot have authority and victory over these enemies. Thank God for the Blood of Jesus; it has never lost its power!
Dear friend, in light of all the above, The Lord invites you and me to ponder the question in Hebrews 2:3: “How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?” May the good news of the Cross draw you into the King’s presence. May your heart be filled with gratitude and thanksgiving for the greatest gift God has ever given. May you and your loved ones live in the victory of the Cross of Jesus Christ all the days of your life.
With love and blessings,
Jahan
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An animal lover asked me the other day, “Why would God require the slaughter of sweet innocent animals just to wash away people’s sins in the Old Testament?” And then another person said to me, “I find the Cross problematic. Why would God sacrifice His Son Jesus for my sin? I would never do that to my child!”