The Cleansing Blood of Christ

In 1989 or so I began to function as a sort of lay counselor for the little congregation we attended. I had no idea what I was doing nor what I was getting myself into by opening my heart to the pain of other souls.

It’s been an amazing and rewarding journey…and sometimes heartbreaking.

By early 1992 I had earned a Masters of Arts Degree in Biblical Counseling and quit working in an oil company office to counsel fulltime by faith.

Since then, I have been on a continual quest for understanding about the things that happen to people and how and why it affects them like it does. I’ve come to believe that all humanity has been born into a spiritual war, which takes a toll on us all to some degree and which can only be fought through Christ.

“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:10-12)

Lost people have no hope of healing or restoration. Ephesians 2:12 says they have “no hope”.

When satan attacks people directly or through other people or circumstances he seems to have several goals in mind for people…all of which will insulate them from God.

These include:

-        Being captivated by the early attack(s)

-        Taking on the identity of the attack and/or its results…scars, etc.

-        Seeing oneself in terms of the sin which came against us or through us in our reaction to it. Often being sinned against causes us to sin against ourselves.

-        Feeling separated and not understood by anyone else.

-        Being convinced any recovery or healing is impossible and hopeless.

As always, God’s plan addresses all these.

“THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE HAS ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR (those who are lacking) ; HE HAS SENT ME TO HEAL THE BROKENHEARTED, TO PROCLAIM LIBERTY TO THE CAPTIVES AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET AT LIBERTY THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED; TO PROCLAIM THE ACCEPTABLE YEAR OF THE LORD.” (Luke 4:18-19)

Prior to being born again, whether or not we have experienced undeniable trauma, we were ALL “poor, brokenhearted, captive, blind and oppressed.”

This is important for us to understand, otherwise what I am about to share will be another story about something that happened to a faceless nobody in life and none of what I share will be about what God has done for each one of us.

If we do not ever embrace the reality that outside of Christ, we were without hope we will never truly be able to receive what He has done to restore us.

So, by the mid 1990’s I had been counseling professionally for a few years and had seen some things.

Next, I will share about an altar ministry experience I had and then will close by showing what the person in that situation got to experience with God, in hopes that we will all receive that when God addresses our own wounds.

I was at a service at a church building in the Heights, a section of Houston, TX. This place and all of us there fully welcomed that Holy Spirit of God to do whatever He pleased with or through us.

As was my practice, I was pacing slowly back and forth in front of the altar area – after the main speaker had finished. It was “ministry time”. I was just praying and asking the Lord if He wanted me to approach anyone, pray, teach, or whatever.

He directed my attention to a young woman…maybe mid 20’s sitting on the little steps to the right side which led up to the stage. She was sitting with her head buried in her hands, her hair hiding her face, and another woman was kneeling behind her, laying hands on her back…praying.

I stopped and knelt on the floor in front of her. Totally silent…praying under mt breath.

Eventually she looked up and saw me. She had been weeping the whole time. I asked, “How can I pray for you?” Her answer hurt my heart: “I am so dirty!!!!!”

I asked her why she was dirty and she said, crying out… “You don’t know what I’ve done.”

[It’s at times like this that satan will try to get us to envision what happened to her. If we NEED to know, the HOLY Spirit will reveal that. What matters is HER and her future.]

When she spoke, I could hear Jesus’ voice there in the synagogue in the first century giving His mission statement from Isaiah. I KNEW she was “poor, brokenhearted, captive, blind and oppressed.” And I knew Jesus was fixin’ to offer her a chance to overcome whatever had happened to her.

I asked her to look me in the eye and then I asked if she was a Christian and she said she was. “So, you know that you literally BELONG to Jesus? That He purchased you with His blood?”

“Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore, glorify God in you body and in your spirit, which are God’s.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

…and…

“You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men.” (I Corinthians 7:23)

…and Acts 20:28 tells us that the entire Church was bought with Jesus’ blood. First century believers knew this and it changed the way they saw themselves and one another. No longer did the things of the world define them.

The problem is that when satan successfully causes someone to traumatize someone else, the victim is apt to…in a way…become enslaved by the person who has hurt them. That’s why Jesus needs to proclaim liberty to them as captives and free them from oppression.

That’s why the Lord had me kneel in front of that woman. It was time for her to have a chance for this.

I could sense the Lord leading me and my heart was beating faster. Everything I did was exactly what I sensed the Lord was telling me to do and say. We must NEVER minister with systems and programs; those are all worldly and will all result in spiritual death. We must ALWAYS strive to minister in the Spirit and that means listening to and obeying Him.

In this young born-again woman’s mind, she was inferior, separated from God by what was done to make her dirty and by what she did in reaction to that which made her ever dirtier in her mind. The Bible doesn’t teach this…but satan, the liar, does.

God was about to lift all that deception by leading her through an understanding of what happened to her the INSTANT she was saved.

[Here is where we can all benefit by receiving what she received that set her free. EVERTHING I told her…applies to you and to me.]

I asked her if I could touch her hair and she nodded. I reached out and lifted her hair a little and asked her, “Who does this hair belong to?” She stammered… “Me, I guess?”

I looked her in the eyes and smiled. “But I thought Jesus bought you like He bought me and that you belonged to Him…”

She said, “Yes, He did.” I asked her, “Exactly how much of you did He buy?” “All of me?”

I smiled and asked, “Are you asking me or are you proclaiming that?” She smiled a little and said, “Jesus bought ALL of me.”

I asked her again, “So, who exactly owns this hair?” She said Jesus did and I replied, “You should take good care of His hair.”

I gestured to her whole body. “Whose is this?” “It all belongs to Jesus.” I pointed to her chest and asked, “Then, Who’s heart beats in your chest?” “Jesus’ heart beats in my chest.” I nodded in agreement and asked, “Isn’t that beautiful? The one in my chest is His too!”

“Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in My statutes and keep My judgments and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God.” (Ezekiel 11:19-20)

I continued: That heart pumps blood to every cell of your body. Whose blood is that in your veins?” She

looked at me intensely: “The blood of Jesus is in my veins.”

Then I smiled and leaned in close and whispered so only she and the lady behind her could hear me.

“The blood of Jesus cleanses everything it touches.” I paused. “Sister, maybe filthy things happened to you and maybe you even did filthy things…but you haven’t been dirty since the instant Jesus saved you. And, you’ll never be dirty again.”

…how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? – Hebrews 9:14

The blood of Christ cleanses.

1 Peter 2:24 and Isaiah 53:5 both tell us that it’s through the bloody wounds of Jesus that we are healed.

“He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5)

The blood of Christ heals.

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. And He is before all things and in Him all things consist. And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell, and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross. And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight—if indeed you continue in the faith, grounded and steadfast, and are not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you heard, which was preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, became a minister.” (Colossians 1:15-23)

The blood of Christ reconciles us to God and to other believers.

The shed blood of Christ negates everything satan wishes to do to us. But, like everything else in God’s Kingdom, we MUST receive the truth of this.

As we finished up that night, I encouraged her to seek godly counseling and ongoing discipleship so she would fully enjoy her newfound freedom. That’s what the young formerly unclean woman in Houston agreed to do. I hope you will fully receive it too.

Please pray with me: “Father God I ask You to speak to each of us about anything we believe about You, Your kingdom and who we are in Christ which is keeping us from living free in Him. I know You, through Jesus, wish to meet our needs, give us sight, free us from captivity and heal our broken hearts. Please reveal any errors we believe which impede us from receiving these from You. We pray this in the capable name of Jesus. Amen”

Pastor Mike McInerney

Mike McInerney Ministries, Inc.

© October 11, 2025   (for use with permission)