John 1:29
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"
John the Baptist was the MAN! He was an incredible human being, and what he said here is the most insightful and powerful statement any human being has ever made. I'd encourage you to read the verse about five more times to yourself right now.
Recently two of the choirs I play for joined to perform Mozart's Requiem. Just like any liturgical mass, it contains an "Agnus Dei" movement. Agnus Dei is Latin for "Lamb of God." So this semester, as we worked with the Latin text "Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis" during one of our rehearsals, I was not thinking about the meaning of these words at all. But in a brief moment between singing, our choir director very quickly pointed out the English translation -- qui tollis peccata mundi -- who takes away the sin of the world. And any time I hear that phrase, it hits me hard. Jesus didn't come to help us fight our sin. He came to remove our sin. John the Baptist hit the nail on the head concerning the identity of the Son of God before even meeting Him. He (Jesus) came that we might have life, but in order for that to be possible, there first had to be death.
He is the sacrificial Lamb of God.
The story of Abraham and Isaac is the story of Jesus. God provided a ram to be a sacrifice to take the place of Isaac. And God provided Jesus to be the ultimate sacrificial lamb to take OUR place. In the story we see that Isaac is spared... well 2,000 years ago YOU were spared while Jesus was NOT spared the wrath of God.
In fact, the entire Old Testament way of paying for sin -- transferring it to a pure, spotless lamb and sacrificing it -- was a signpost pointing to the coming Jesus. Interestingly, most of the Jewish people weren't expecting a lamb. They were expecting a Messiah sent from God who would liberate them from the oppression of governments and people. But what they got instead was a final and permanent solution for sin -- a sacrificial lamb to end all sacrifices and to pay for all sin. The sins of the world! That's a lot of sin. He didn't come to make you feel bad about it. He came to receive the blame for it and to give you a new life of freedom.
Isaiah 53:7
He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.
Jesus encompasses SO MUCH. We can peel back layer after layer and never come to the end of who He is. He's been at every extreme: Creator of the universe, and baby sleeping in a feed trough in a barn. Sitting at the right hand of the Father, and suffering brutal execution. The Lion of Judah (Rev. 5:5) and the Lamb of God. Only Jesus the Christ is Lord, King, Lion, Lamb, the Creator, the Source, the Conqueror of Sin, the loving Savior who became human, and the Omnipotent God. He laid His life down for us, and He calls us to lay our lives down for Him daily. Take full advantage of the sacrifice of the Lamb that was made on your behalf by letting go of your life and letting His life drive you.
Colossians 1:21-23
21 And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled 22 in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight— 23 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, ...
Recently two of the choirs I play for joined to perform Mozart's Requiem. Just like any liturgical mass, it contains an "Agnus Dei" movement. Agnus Dei is Latin for "Lamb of God." So this semester, as we worked with the Latin text "Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis" during one of our rehearsals, I was not thinking about the meaning of these words at all. But in a brief moment between singing, our choir director very quickly pointed out the English translation -- qui tollis peccata mundi -- who takes away the sin of the world. And any time I hear that phrase, it hits me hard. Jesus didn't come to help us fight our sin. He came to remove our sin. John the Baptist hit the nail on the head concerning the identity of the Son of God before even meeting Him. He (Jesus) came that we might have life, but in order for that to be possible, there first had to be death.
He is the sacrificial Lamb of God.
The story of Abraham and Isaac is the story of Jesus. God provided a ram to be a sacrifice to take the place of Isaac. And God provided Jesus to be the ultimate sacrificial lamb to take OUR place. In the story we see that Isaac is spared... well 2,000 years ago YOU were spared while Jesus was NOT spared the wrath of God.
In fact, the entire Old Testament way of paying for sin -- transferring it to a pure, spotless lamb and sacrificing it -- was a signpost pointing to the coming Jesus. Interestingly, most of the Jewish people weren't expecting a lamb. They were expecting a Messiah sent from God who would liberate them from the oppression of governments and people. But what they got instead was a final and permanent solution for sin -- a sacrificial lamb to end all sacrifices and to pay for all sin. The sins of the world! That's a lot of sin. He didn't come to make you feel bad about it. He came to receive the blame for it and to give you a new life of freedom.
Isaiah 53:7
He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.
Jesus encompasses SO MUCH. We can peel back layer after layer and never come to the end of who He is. He's been at every extreme: Creator of the universe, and baby sleeping in a feed trough in a barn. Sitting at the right hand of the Father, and suffering brutal execution. The Lion of Judah (Rev. 5:5) and the Lamb of God. Only Jesus the Christ is Lord, King, Lion, Lamb, the Creator, the Source, the Conqueror of Sin, the loving Savior who became human, and the Omnipotent God. He laid His life down for us, and He calls us to lay our lives down for Him daily. Take full advantage of the sacrifice of the Lamb that was made on your behalf by letting go of your life and letting His life drive you.
Colossians 1:21-23
21 And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled 22 in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and above reproach in His sight— 23 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, ...
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