This is a short post looking at what the Bible means when it calls Jesus the Lamb of God.
"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 1:29
A LITTLE BACKGROUND:
Lambs were sacrificed at the temple every morning and evening as sin offerings to bear punishment as a substitute for the sinner. Sin is rebellion against God, and sin must be punished because God is holy; but because God is love He accepts the lamb as a substitute for man's sin. The lamb represents innocence. God credits the innocence of the lamb to the sinner's and the sinner's sins are attributed to the lamb.
BEHOLD:
To behold is to have a sustained look. John is saying, "Take a good look at Jesus, look at him for yourself." Even a casual reading of the Gospels will convince that Jesus was unique among all humanity. He lived a beautiful and perfect life, there was no sin in him- even those who wanted to find fault in him could not find any wrongdoing. His actions and miracles proved his divinity.
LAMB OF GOD:
Not the lamb of any man but the Lamb of God for God does what man cannot. God who had no sin makes a sin offering. The thousands of lambs offered at the altar only pictured the eventual sacrifice of Christ's death that would be enough for all mankind and satisfy the justice of God.
The lamb is singular, not plural as was the thousands of sacrificed lambs given at the altar over the years. John spoke of one lamb and there is only one way to have peace with God through the offering of His one and only lamb- Jesus.
We cannot be our own lamb of sacrifice because of our sins. We need another to save us. Jesus' righteousness becomes ours and our sins become his.
TAKES AWAY:
To take something away is to remove it or transport it. The ancient custom of a scapegoat is suggested here, the scapegoat would symbolically bear the sins of Gods people out of the community as he wandered the wilderness. Jesus became our scapegoat when he took our sin away.
THE SIN OF THE WORLD:
The scapegoat served the nation of Israel but was a picture of Jesus who would come not only for a nation but for the entire world. God does not regard borders, ethnic identity or nationalities but offers the sacrificial lamb for all humanity.
That Jesus is the Lamb of God is salvation for the world but he must become your lamb in your own heart. Trust him as Savior then you can say he is the lamb who takes away your sin.
To learn more about having your sins forgiven and how Christ saves then click on the tab above for the Gospel.
(c) Adron
Use the buttons below to share this with your social networks.
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A LITTLE BACKGROUND:
Lambs were sacrificed at the temple every morning and evening as sin offerings to bear punishment as a substitute for the sinner. Sin is rebellion against God, and sin must be punished because God is holy; but because God is love He accepts the lamb as a substitute for man's sin. The lamb represents innocence. God credits the innocence of the lamb to the sinner's and the sinner's sins are attributed to the lamb.
BEHOLD:
To behold is to have a sustained look. John is saying, "Take a good look at Jesus, look at him for yourself." Even a casual reading of the Gospels will convince that Jesus was unique among all humanity. He lived a beautiful and perfect life, there was no sin in him- even those who wanted to find fault in him could not find any wrongdoing. His actions and miracles proved his divinity.
LAMB OF GOD:
Not the lamb of any man but the Lamb of God for God does what man cannot. God who had no sin makes a sin offering. The thousands of lambs offered at the altar only pictured the eventual sacrifice of Christ's death that would be enough for all mankind and satisfy the justice of God.
The lamb is singular, not plural as was the thousands of sacrificed lambs given at the altar over the years. John spoke of one lamb and there is only one way to have peace with God through the offering of His one and only lamb- Jesus.
We cannot be our own lamb of sacrifice because of our sins. We need another to save us. Jesus' righteousness becomes ours and our sins become his.
TAKES AWAY:
To take something away is to remove it or transport it. The ancient custom of a scapegoat is suggested here, the scapegoat would symbolically bear the sins of Gods people out of the community as he wandered the wilderness. Jesus became our scapegoat when he took our sin away.
THE SIN OF THE WORLD:
The scapegoat served the nation of Israel but was a picture of Jesus who would come not only for a nation but for the entire world. God does not regard borders, ethnic identity or nationalities but offers the sacrificial lamb for all humanity.
That Jesus is the Lamb of God is salvation for the world but he must become your lamb in your own heart. Trust him as Savior then you can say he is the lamb who takes away your sin.
To learn more about having your sins forgiven and how Christ saves then click on the tab above for the Gospel.
(c) Adron
Use the buttons below to share this with your social networks.
