Times of crisis can make us feel like “normal” prayers are not enough. They can make us feel like we need to pull out the big guns (spiritually speaking) to engage in heavy spiritual warfare. As a result, more and more people are declaring an end to COVID-19 and applying Jesus’ blood. Some are even putting the two practices together: declaring Jesus blood.
Red Ribbons as Symbols of Jesus’ Blood
I saw a social media post this week of a woman who tied a red ribbon outside her home (#RedRibbon). Her post stated that she was applying the blood of Jesus on the doorpost of her home and thereby declaring that COVID-19 will not enter her home or touch her family.[1]
She also quoted Exodus 12:13: “The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.”
Power in the Blood
Yes, I AGREE that the blood of Jesus is powerful. But, as I’ve written previously, we cannot apply the blood of Jesus (“pleading” the blood of Jesus is a little different [2]). I won’t repeat myself here, other than to reemphasize that the Bible never says we have any control over the blood of Jesus, and it has no record of anyone ever applying the blood of Jesus. Instead, we read of God applying the blood of Jesus to us.
I should add that if you search the word “blood” in the New Testament, you will not find any references that speak of Jesus’ blood giving us physical protection. Instead, the Bible speaks of the blood of Jesus with respect to our salvation, and not with respect to inanimate objects like cars or houses.
[Side note: Some who seek to apply Jesus’ blood quote Revelation 12:11, which says, “They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb…” However, if you read the context of this verse, it teaches that “they triumphed” (KJV, “they overcame”) because of what Christ had already done, not because of something “they” prayed, declared, or did with Jesus blood.]
Presuppositions of Applying the Blood for Protection from COVID-19
One thing that struck me right away is that the thinking in the social media post I mentioned above presupposes that:
- COVID-19 is the result of an act of God’s judgment (like the 10 plagues were).
- God is using COVID-19 to judge their neighbors (like God judged the Egyptians).
- God has told us a certain means of protection from COVID-19 (spiritually applying blood to our doorposts).
If this isn’t apparent, read Exodus 12:13 again, which I quoted above.
I also thought this person’s declaration was a little selfish. Why only declare protection for her own family? Why not for her non-Christian neighbor? And if she really has control over Jesus’ blood, why not apply it over every house on her block?
[I recognize this might sound sarcastic, but these are my sincere questions.]
More Generous Declarations
Kenneth Copeland is more generous. He recently declared COVID-19 “destroyed forever” (see this video from the 1:40 mark). That’s good for everyone! As I said, very generous.
It seems COVID-19 has brought out the best of prosperity theology.
[Yes, now I’m being sarcastic.]
But, as I’ve written before, our words do not have the power of God—only God’s words do, because only God is omnipotent. To be clear, Copeland is not simply declaring the truth of Scripture. He is trying to change the world by killing a virus with the “spiritual power” of his words.
Harm from Declarations
Many people will copy this practice, some in seemingly harmless ways. They might not declare that COVID-19 can’t harm them—they might simply declare 10 lives for their cat, rather than 9. But when their declarations don’t come to pass, it will harm them. They might not die of COVID-19—but I bet some will—and when enough of their declarations don’t come to pass, their faith will be injured. Or they may loose their faith altogether. Or they might die.
You might be thinking:
I will make declarations and apply Jesus’ blood, but I’m still going to be careful. I will still practice physical distancing and wash my hands like I just got baby poo all over them.
But why?
IF a person can truly declare and apply the blood of Jesus over themselves for protection, then logically they should have nothing to be concerned about. Nothing. I mean, we are talking about the power of the divine Son of God! But this paragraph started with a big “IF.”
In some parts of the world, Christians continue to assemble in mass gatherings for “essential” worship services. Many of these people believe the blood of Jesus and their declarations will protect them from COVID-19.
Perhaps they haven’t heard that some Pentecostal leaders in the Assemblies of God were diagnosed with COVID-19, and at least one was critically ill. Perhaps they haven’t heard that even people who gather at Pentecostal churches are contracting COVID-19. Perhaps they haven’t heard that Pentecostals pastors are dying from COVID-19 (here and here). Maybe they didn’t pray the right prayers or declare the right things. I think that conclusion would be offensive.
The reality is, Christians get sick—with the cold, pneumonia, and the COVID-19 virus. The flu is a virus too.
Friends, please, let’s stop pretending that “slightly off” teachings aren’t going to affect anyone. Theology matters. And in this case, it is a matter of life and death for some.
Sit on our Spiritual Hands?
Should we just sit on our spiritual hands and do nothing? Of course not.
Please:
- “Do not do anything that endangers your neighbor’s life.” (Leviticus 19:16).
- Pray for God’s “kingdom come… on earth as it is in heaven” (Matthew 6:10). This implies prayer for healing (Luke 10:9) and for a time of “no more death or mourning or crying or pain” (Revelation 21:4).
- “Do not worry” (Matthew 6:31) and know that “your heavenly Father” (6:26 & 32) will care for you.
- “Wash your hands, you sinners” (James 4:8) [totally taking that out of context just because it’s my favorite verse these days 🙂 ]
And we can certainly “pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests” (Ephesians 6:18).
Notes:
[1] Important footnote: I saw a similar social media post from someone who tied a red ribbon outside his home, but he explicitly said that it was nothing magical and that he knew the ribbon wouldn’t protect him. He explained that for him it was no different from wearing a t-shirt that indicates his faith in Jesus. This, I have no problem with, although it does concern me that it might influence others to take it a step further and assume their actions of tying red ribbons outside their homes actually do have protective power.
[2] “Pleading” the blood of Jesus is less problematic because “pleading” is an appeal for God’s action or protection. In contrast, “applying” the blood implies we have control over it, just like the Israelites had control over whether or not they applied literal blood over their doorposts (Exodus 12:7 & 22).
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You might also be interested in these posts:
- Stop “Applying the Blood of Jesus”…Because You Can’t
- Should Christians Declare or Decree Things over Their Lives?
- Psalms for Divine Protection from COVID-19
Andrew K. Gabriel, Ph.D., is the author of Simply Spirit-Filled: Experiencing God in the Presence and Power of the Holy Spirit as well as three academic books, including The Lord is the Spirit. He is a theology professor at Horizon College and Seminary and serves on the Theological Study Commission for the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. You can follow him on Facebook or on Twitter.
I’m pleased with your Scriptural approach to this Pandemic. There is power in the tongue, but not to ‘become little gods. We have only One who can create with his voice. What a Savior!
While some may lose their faith when a formula does not work, most keep right on believing it. At least that’s been my observation. Have you ever convinced a word of faith believer that there is something wrong with their theology? It doesn’t matter how many they believe for do not get the desired result, they still believe it. It’s the same with ‘end times’ prophets and interpreters of events and scripture. It doesn’t matter how many times they are wrong, they still would never consider that there may be a problem with their hermeneutic. It seems to be a way of thinking, or not thinking. A mentality or a type of temperament. Or something! I’ll stop. Maybe you can write a blog that explains it sometime.
John- You certainly have a point there. This can be the case with some word of faith believers. Kenneth Copeland is a case in point, unless he has never read any critiques of his theology.
Nevertheless, I do think there are many out there who are willing to rethink their positions, especially those who don’t even realize how their views have been influenced by such theology. I’ve seen evidence of it on social media.
Dear Andrew! In 1994 I had a most marvelous experience, yes a miracle that happened to me. Since that experience I do not put, ANY limits on the blood. To me it has not remained theory but has become experiencal. I was at college in SA. Another friend and I saw a fellow student in deep troubles, very suicidal etc. We both decided to pray for her and to spend the weekend fasting for her. I was still in the lutheran church then but for about 2 years I had also asked the Lord to allow me to experience what is called the baptism of the Holy Spirit in Acts and which is mentioned for the believers on numerous occasions. I didn’t want anybody to lay hands on me because I didn’t know much about all these things but my hunger for God was great and I trusted HIM for his touch in my life. I had made a decision for Christ as a child and during my student years I noticed that God wanted to work on me more intensly. Wondering how I could occupy myself with spiritual input and pray most effectively for this friend over that weekend, I browsed around in my bookshelf and grabbed a book by Andrew Murray on the blood of the cross. I then decided, (but in restrospect I believe was led to do so by the Holy Spirit) to start praying with the blood scriptures into this situation. So all I did the whole weekend was to praise God for the different aspects of the blood of Jesus and the wounds of the Lamb of God. I praised like this..praise be to the blood of the Lamb that heals the weakness of my body, spirit and soul. Not only did I pray this for me but also for her. i continued: Praise be to the blood of the Lamb for its cleansing power. praise be to the blood of the Lamb the Son of God for its forgiving power…for its redeeming power….for its victorious power…etc. I also prayed..praise be for the protecting power. Reason being that we overcome Satan by the blood. Jesus acknowledged in his prayer talking to the disciples in John 17 that we would be afraid in this hostile world but that we should be protected from Satan instead of being taken out of this world. Once again we overcome danger, fear by the blood of the Lamb. In fact I remember on one other occasion when I was driving with a few friends. All of a sudden a car with a caravan attached to it came driving from the opposite direction. It was losing control and the caravan was swaying badly from left to right. We had to be struck by it. All of a sudden the driver in our car called out “The blood of Jesus” and it missed us by a hairs breadth. Anyway, so coming back to my weekend fasting prayer for that friend,…. yes I also included the protecting power of the blood of the Lamb Jesus Christ. It also cleans us from an evil conscience and prepares for us the bridal garment. I don’t think I prayed a wrong prayer concerning the different aspects of the blood, because all of a sudden on the Saturday night of that weekend of prayer, water just broke out of my eyes and I could not stop it. It did not make my eyes red, It did not taste salty like tears but crystal clear and I was bubbling with joy and peace like never before. It continued the whole night. i did not have to blow my nose or do anything. It was my cup running over, literally. I literaly experienced 1 John 5, that there are 3 that bear witness…The blood, the Water and the Spirit. The Spirit always answers the blood. I also then started speaking my first words in a heavenly language (1 Cor 14, from verse 1) It was such an awesome experience which I kept to myself for many years. It was so precious and only later i started telling individuals about what I had experienced. Since then I have read all the books I could find on the blood of Jesus. The blood of Jesus avails for everything. Please never ever put any boundaries on it. It flows to the highest mountains and to the deepest valley, HIS BLOOD is a speaking blood. It can be sprinkled. Spinkled blood is blood applied. God bless you. Expereince is the best and most valuable teacher. No person can take an experience away because it has become flesh, word becoming flesh deep within. Greetings from Austria
Hebrews 10,22 Praise God, today it is Easter Sunday and God has just shown me the miracle that I experienced…” and since we have a great and wonderful Priest [Who rules] over the house of God, 22 let us approach [God] with a true and sincere heart in unqualified assurance of faith, having had our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.”
Annette, I praise God with you for the wonderful work that God has done in your life! I, too, am thankful for the blood of Jesus.
Personally, I think God is gracious and responds to all kinds of prayers, even if they aren’t necessarily grounded in scripture.
Wonderful and thoughtful article. Thank you so much!
Thanks for reading, and for your encouragement.
Andrew, I appreciate that you keep pushing people back to the admonitions of the Bible, and rightly interpreting those within the surrounding context of those very words. Your advice in this article is sound and sensible precisely because it is true to the grammatical and historical intent of the Spirit-inspired Word. Our spiritual experiences can be encouraging but should never be the basis for building “a Christian doctrine” that is then universally promoted to others. To use our spiritual experiences to build a doctrine or teaching, is getting the proverbial “cart before the horse.” The Spirit-inspired Word of God and its principles must be allowed to interpret my experiences and not the other way around. Again, you’ve blessed us with some helpful insight “for such a time as this.”
Can we use “By his stripes we are healed” in any way here, or does that only count if we get it?
Interesting question. I would think that one needs to be sick before they can be healed. In addition, the verse you quote from 1 Peter and Isaiah don’t explicitly refer to Jesus “blood.” So we would need to read that into the text rather since the Bible doesn’t say it. Some would refer to this as eisegesis (vs. exegesis).
I have read the article but I have to respectfully disagree with it.
You cannot overcome the devil simply because of what Jesus already did. God is a gentleman. God gave us choice and freewill. Jesus’ death is not going to save us unless we repent. We are saved at the point of salvation but our walk must involve inner healing, deliverance and serenader which allows God to consume every part of us. This is a daily process and choice.
It is like Joshua. He didn’t walk into the promise land, sit on his bum and and enjoy retirement. He fought and overcame his whole entire life! He did this not in his own strength but in God’s and by obeying how God told him to overcome each city. It was the promise land, but he had to take it little by little.
We know that satan loses in the end but until then we can’t sit on our bums and enjoy the ‘good Christian life’. There is too much at stake. We are saved at our point of salvation but there is so much more than salvation. Our fight is not of this world like Joshua but of the spiritual realm. So we have spiritual weapons to drive out the evil one and overcome him in every area of our lives and those around us (through intersection) but we must use them!
However, the choice is ours to use these weapons or not, in every circumstance. They are readily available to use but God is a gentleman.
Satan isn’t scared of Christians who sit on their bum, don’t pick up their spiritual weapons and allow the devil to invade every area of their life while they appear holy and spiritual and may even attend Church.
Not making use of the power of the blood because it might not work, isn’t faith. Our whole salvation is based on faith. The devils wants use to loose our faith or become discouraged but that shouldn’t stop us from covering ourselves in the blood of Jesus. The devil is a lier! Always has been and always will be. He has no new tricks. He will twist God’s words, so we don’t walk in the fullness of everything God intended us to walk. He started with Adam and Eve and nothing has changed.
We overcome by the blood of the lamb and the word of our testimony. Not by loving our lives. And we do this until death. Rev 12:11 I truly believe we must stand in the power of Jesus’ blood just like how we must open our mouths and speak our testimony. But it is a choice by faith.
It doesn’t matter what is looks like in the natural. Faith chooses to stand regardless. There is power in the blood and power in our words! Both combined together are very powerful weapons but just two of many weapons God has given us to overcome the devil.
Truely pleading the blood of Jesus because one believes and knows the power of the blood, will make the demons shake and flee.
Thanks for taking the time to respond.
No, I don’t think we should “sit on our spiritual bums” (your words, which gave me a smile, by the way). On that point, I would invite you to reread the section “Sit on our Spiritual Hands?”
Also of note is the fact that Ephesians 6, which talks about the “whole armor of God,” does not mention Jesus’ blood in spiritual warfare.
The devil is a lier and has no new tricks. Twisting the truth of God’s word when it is clearly written, he has done from the beginning of time.
The BLOOD of Jesus has much power. Demons hate it! Any experience with demonic deliverance and you would understand! People can get delivered just by the mention of Jesus’ blood alone!
Just reading the comments there is a clear difference between people who speak from theological study and those who speak from experience and a deep walk. Those you have experienced the blood of Jesus in such powerful ways cannot deny. Those who have not only have books to gleam from are easily led astray.
Jesus said you will do greater things than me! Soak in his BLOOD.
Hi Freedom, Thanks for taking the time to respond. Could you please clarify for me what you have in mind when you say “the truth of God’s word when it is clearly written?” Are there particular Bible verses you have in mind? Thanks.
I recently started reading your articles which l certainly enjoy. Your comment on Ephesians 6 refers. As I was putting on the full armor of God the Holy Spirit revealed the picture of the Cross, as in – The Helmet of Salvation, the robe of righteousness, belt of truth and the shoes of the gospel of peace are to me the vertical line of the Cross and the Sword of the Spirit – the Word of God and the Shield of Faith are the horizontal aspects of the Cross. So Andrew I think the Blood of Jesus is a must in spiritual warfare. God bless your Ministry
Hi Andre
Thanks for your balanced view on scripture. I lean towards a reformed understanding but believe reading good pentecostal literature like your keeps me balanced.
The prosperity gospel to me is foreign to the Bible. I recommend the documentary, The American Gospel for those interested in understanding the property thinking.
God bless
Andrew, Now I am going to have to paint over my doorposts. Good stuff
Maybe just paint your whole house red to match. 🙂
Well said! Thank you very much.
This Presbyterian pastor who is recovering from COVID greatly appreciates your thoughtful work here!
Thanks for the encouragement. I pray your recovery comes along quickly, and that you have more strength for the Christmas season.