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READ: 1 PETER 1:1-5, 18-23; ROMANS 3:25-26; REVELATION 1:4-6\n\n\n\nEven though I\u2019m in my twenties now, my family still dyes eggs every Easter. It\u2019s a tradition we\u2019ve kept since I was little. In fact, I can\u2019t remember not dying eggs on Easter. And this is just one of the many fun, color-filled traditions I associate with the holiday. We often have egg hunts using bright plastic eggs with colorfully wrapped candy inside. We display pastel-colored d\xe9cor in our homes and on our lawns, and we even wear colorful clothes on Easter Sunday.\n\n\n\nAs I think about the colors I typically associate with Easter\u2014light blues, greens, yellows, pinks, and purples\u2014one color I don\u2019t normally associate with Easter is red. It stands in contrast to the pastel colors that we see on eggs, candy wrappers, d\xe9cor, and clothing.\n\n\n\nBut the color red is vital to the Easter story. Because without the red blood Jesus shed on the cross for our sins, there would be no reason to celebrate Easter. We can\u2019t truly grasp the significance of what He has given us without remembering what it cost. And so, it\u2019s important to reflect on His sacrifice, to think about the pain He experienced and the blood He lost on the cross. He was willing to go through all of this\u2014for us. Because of His sacrifice, we can be free from the entrapment of sin; and because of His resurrection, we can be free from the fear of death.\n\n\n\nThe red blood of Christ is the source of our freedom. Because of Jesus\u2019s costly sacrifice, we have the joyful hope of living with Him forever. \u2022 Grace McCready\n\n\n\n\u2022 If Jesus hadn\u2019t given up His life for us on Good Friday, there would be no Resurrection Sunday. How can remembering the price Jesus paid for our sin help us more fully celebrate our forgiveness and new life in Christ? (Find out more about the good news of Jesus on our \u201cKnow Jesus\u201d page.)\n\n\n\n\u2022 Jesus\u2019s blood is hugely important, and it\u2019s talked about time and again in Scripture. If you want to dig deeper, read Acts 20:28; Romans 5:9; Ephesians 1:7; 2:13; Colossians 1:20; Hebrews 2:14; 9:7\u201310:29; 12:24; 13:11-12, 20-21; 1 John 1:7; 5:6-8; Revelation 5:9; 7:14; 12:11; 19:13.\n\n\n\nFor God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past, for he was looking ahead and including them in what he would do in this present time. God did this to demonstrate his righteousness, for he himself is fair and just, and he makes sinners right in his sight when they believe in Jesus. Romans 3:25-26 (NLT)