#2 JESUS THE LAMB OF GOD 8-19-26
When John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him, he made one of the greatest declarations ever spoken concerning Christ: “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). John did not simply call Jesus a lamb. He called Him the Lamb of God. Those words would have immediately brought to the minds of the Jewish people the sacrifices, the altar, the priesthood, the blood, and the constant reminder that sin requires atonement. From the beginning, God was preparing His people to understand what Christ would accomplish at Calvary.
Throughout the Old Testament, lambs were brought to the altar as sacrifices to God. God instructed Israel concerning the altar, saying, “An altar of earth you shall make for Me, and you shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings” (Exodus 20:24). Sacrifice was not man’s idea. It was God’s provision. The sinner needed a substitute. Something innocent would stand in the place of the guilty. The blood of the sacrifice testified that sin is serious, that holiness matters, and that reconciliation with God requires God’s appointed means.
The lamb brought for sacrifice was to be without blemish. God was not pleased with careless offerings or animals that were defective. The sacrifice had to be worthy. It could not represent perfection while itself being flawed. This points us beautifully toward Jesus Christ. He was completely without sin. He was tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin (Hebrews 4:15). Peter said that we were redeemed “with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Peter 1:19). The Lamb who would take away the sins of the world had no sin of His own.
The Old Testament priesthood also prepared the way for Christ. The high priest would enter into the presence of God on behalf of the people, carrying the blood of sacrifice. He stood between a holy God and a sinful people. But the high priest himself was a sinner and needed atonement. His work had to be repeated. His sacrifices had to be offered again and again. Christ is different. He is both our perfect High Priest and our perfect sacrifice. He did not enter with the blood of another. He offered Himself. “Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all” (Hebrews 9:12).
This is the glory of the cross. Jesus was not merely a good man who died a tragic death. He was the Lamb God Himself provided. He came into the world with the purpose of giving His life for sinners. Like the sacrificial lamb, He was innocent. Like the sacrifice brought to the altar, He was offered. Like the blood that covered the guilty, His blood provides redemption. But unlike the sacrifices of the Old Testament, His sacrifice does not need to be repeated. “By that will, we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all” (Hebrews 10:10).
Because Christ has offered Himself as the Lamb of God, something has changed in the worship of God’s people. We no longer bring an animal to an earthly altar. We bring ourselves. Paul writes, “Present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service” (Romans 12:1). The Lamb was offered for us, and now we offer ourselves to Him. We are not trying to earn salvation by our sacrifice. We are responding to the sacrifice He has already made.
Peter describes believers as “living stones” who are being built into a spiritual house, offering “spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 2:5). Our praise is a sacrifice. Our obedience is a sacrifice. Our generosity is a sacrifice. Our service is a sacrifice. Our bodies, our time, our possessions, our abilities, and our lives belong to the One who purchased us with His blood.
The words of John the Baptist are powerful: “Behold!” He wanted people to look. Look at the Lamb. Look at Jesus. Look at the One God provided for sinners. Look at the One who is pure when we are stained, righteous when we are guilty, and willing when we have wandered. The answer to our sin is not found in our goodness. It is found in God’s Lamb.
The Old Testament sacrifices were shadows pointing forward. The altar pointed forward. The priest pointed forward. The blood pointed forward. The spotless lamb pointed forward. And then Jesus appeared, and John said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29).
The Lamb has come. The sacrifice has been made. The blood has been shed. And now the redeemed are called to offer themselves completely to God. We look to the Lamb for salvation, and then we live for the Lamb in grateful surrender.
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Father, thank You for giving us Your Lamb. Thank You for the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the spotless One who gave Himself for sinners. Help us to behold Him, trust Him, worship Him, and offer our lives as living sacrifices to You. May everything we are and everything we have belong to the Lamb who loved us and gave Himself for us. Amen.
BDD
