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The words that John the Baptist chose to describe Jesus are very interesting. As a matter of fact, Jesus is only specifically called the Lamb of God twice in the whole Bible—once here and once a few verses later in verse 36. There is no doubt that John the Baptist used those words to describe Jesus. But what is interesting is why the Holy Spirit only inspired the Apostle John to record them. None of the other Gospel writers recorded those words. Why is that? Because John uses that phrase to introduce us to one of the themes he carries all the way through his Gospel. John’s theme of Jesus as the Lamb of God is especially appropriate to us as we enter this Holy Week. Because when John used those words to describe Jesus, he was describing Him as our Passover Lamb.
Over 1500 years before John wrote this book, the Israelites were captives in Egypt. 400 years before that, Joseph had rescued his family from a terrible famine by bringing them to Egypt where he was second in command to Pharaoh. But during that 400 years, the children of Israel grew into a mighty nation. Subsequent Pharaohs became concerned about how the nation was growing. They were worried that the Jews would rise up against the Egyptians, so they oppressed them. The oppression started simply enough, but before long they made them laborers. Then from laborers, they made them servants. Then from servants, they made the Jews into slaves. They treated them harshly and before too long, the Jews began to cry out to God to deliver them. God heard their cries and sent them Moses to deliver them from bondage in Egypt, into the land that He had promised Abraham hundreds of years before. So Moses appeared before Pharaoh and demanded that he release the Jews from their bondage. Of course, we’re all familiar with what happened then. Pharaoh refused and then God sent a series of plagues upon Egypt. With each plague, Pharaoh’s heart became increasingly hardened. As he saw the mighty hand of God on display, he refused to submit his life to Him. And as he continued in his rebellion, God hardened his heart. Finally, God sent one last plague. This was the plague of the firstborn. And in that plague, God told the people that He was going to send His death angel to take the life of all first-born males in Egypt. Judgment was coming. The oldest boy in every home was going to die. But even in the midst of God’s judgment, He showed His grace. He gave Moses some very specific instructions about how he was to apply that grace. And as I read the text, the grace was not only available to the Jews. It was available to all who would apply it. And here’s how it worked. Each family had to select a lamb. The lamb had to be completely spotless and without blemish. There were very specific instructions about how to select it, how to handle it, how to kill it and how to prepare it. But the whole assembly was to take all of those spotless lambs and slaughter them. When they did, the individual families would take their slaughtered lamb and its blood home. When they got there, they would prepare the lamb for the Passover meal. But the blood was for something else. A brush was made from a hyssop branch. It was dipped into a basin of that pure, spotless lamb’s blood. Then the blood was applied to the outside of the door and the doorframe. Once the blood was applied, the family went inside and closed the door till morning. During the night, God’s death angel passed through the land. He stopped at each house and killed the firstborn son. Unless he saw the blood. When he saw the blood applied, God’s judgment was stayed—and he passed over. The lamb was a substitute. Its blood was poured out and applied so that the firstborn might live. From that point on, God commanded the Jews to remember that night. They were to remember that night by celebrating the Passover. Throughout the years of Jewish history, the Passover celebration and meal went through some changes. Different elements were added to symbolize different things. By the time of Jesus, the Passover Seder looked very different from the first one. The one we will participate in on Wednesday will look very much like the ones during Jesus’ day.
One thing has become more and more clear to me as I’ve been studying and preparing for the Passover Seder we’re going to celebrate on Wednesday. With all the background study I’ve been doing in the book of John for the series we’re in, it amazed me how John uses the Passover as a thematic backdrop for his whole Gospel. This morning, we’re going to look at that backdrop. From the verse we started with all through his Gospel, John shows us that Jesus is our Passover Lamb. With John the Baptist, he commands us to behold the Lamb of God. And that’s what we’re going to do this morning. We’re going to look at the three Passovers in the book of John. And as we look at those, we’re going to behold Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. He takes away the sin of the world because He is our purification, He is our provision, and He is our propitiation. The first Passover that John mentions is in John 2:13-22.
JOHN 2:13-22
Behold the Lamb of God who is our purification. The Passover Seder is divided into four parts that revolve around four cups of wine. Don’t worry, we’ll be using grape juice. Each of those four cups represents something that is explained and expanded with each part of the Seder. The first cup is called the Cup of Sanctification. Sanctification is one of those good theological words we like to use. It literally means to set apart. It carries the idea of purifying and cleansing. Another word for sanctification is holiness. When something is sanctified, it is made holy and clean and pure. One thing that happens during this part of the Passover is a ceremonial washing of hands. There is a focus on outward cleanliness that points to an inward cleanliness. In the third Passover in the book of John, Jesus carries that idea a step further when He washes the disciples’ feet. It’s all part of the whole idea of sanctification. But here in this first Passover in the book of John, Jesus carries the idea out in public. He shows that He is our purification. He boldly walks into the corruption and sin that was going on in the temple and what does He do? He forcibly removes it. He immediately identifies the external sin problems in the temple and gets rid of it. It was painful. It was dramatic. It was graphic. But Jesus purified the temple. He sanctified the temple. Just like He sanctifies those whom He saves. Sanctification is really a two-part process. When Jesus saves us, He immediately and irreversibly sanctifies us. He calls us holy. He sets us aside for His purposes. But even though He calls us holy and sets us aside as holy, we aren’t holy. None of us are perfect in all we do and think and say. So how can God call us holy when we aren’t? Because when Jesus saves you, His blood cleanses you. Isaiah 1:18 says, “Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” When Jesus saves you, He cleanses you from all sin. The blood of the Lamb of God covers all your unrighteousness. But not only does He cleanse you from past sin, He gives you power over present sin. Just as Jesus violently turned over the moneychangers’ tables in the temple, He will violently turn over the tables of sin in your life. Ongoing, continual, willful sin is not compatible with Christ. If the Lamb of God has purified you, He will continually purify you as well. The Lamb of God is your purification. He is also your provision. Turn over to John 6:53-58.
JOHN 6:53-58
Behold the Lamb of God who is our provision. The second cup of the Passover is called the Cup of Plagues. That sounds harsh, doesn’t it? It sounds like some potion that’s going to bring on plagues. Of course, we know that it’s talking about the plagues of Egypt. When Pharaoh refused to release the Israelites from bondage, God brought 10 plagues upon them. Each plague was supernatural. No matter what the History Channel says, they cannot be explained by natural occurrences. In the first plague, when God turned the Nile into blood, it wasn’t some kind of red algae. It was blood. Blood, frogs, lice, flies, cattle disease, boils, hail, locusts, darkness and death of the firstborn. None of those plagues could be explained away as a natural occurrence. They were all obviously and undeniably supernatural. Maybe some of the events themselves could be seen as natural. But what made them obviously and undeniably supernatural is the way that God provided for His people through them. That’s why in the Passover Seder, the Cup of Plagues celebrates God’s miraculous provision. The passage we just read is the tail end of what happened during the timeframe of the second Passover in John’s Gospel. The passage starts back up in 6:1. What led up to this was when Jesus fed the 5000 with five loaves and two fish. Jesus had a tremendous crowd of people following Him because of all the miracles He had been doing. The Passover was coming, so Jesus was going to get alone with His disciples to prepare. But the crowds wouldn’t leave Him alone. It was late in the day and the people were hungry, so Jesus performed a miracle to provide for their physical needs. They saw the miracle and wanted to take Him by force and make Him their king. But Jesus wouldn’t have any of that, so He told the disciples to get in the boat and head across the sea while He headed off by Himself. Now, John tells us about another miracle. A raging storm came up while the disciples were in the middle of the sea. They looked out through the storm and saw Jesus walking toward them on the water. Then John reports that as soon as Jesus climbed aboard, they were immediately at the other shore. The parallels to the original Passover story are unmistakable. After the death angel passed over and spared the firstborn sons of all who were under the blood of the lamb… the Israelites were allowed to leave. The first obstacle they came to was water. They came to the Red Sea. The Lord provided and gave them a miraculous way across. Just like Jesus gave the disciples a miraculous way across. Once the Israelites passed through the Red Sea, they began to grumble about food. What did the Lord do? He miraculously provided for their physical needs by giving them bread from heaven. Just like Jesus provided for the needs of the grumbling crowd by giving them miraculous bread. The parallel is unmistakable. But Jesus used that parallel to show us how he is our even greater provision in the verses we just read. The bread and fish the people had just eaten provided for their physical needs. The manna God gave the Israelites provided for their physical needs. But as the Lamb of God, Jesus provides for our deepest needs. He provided His very own flesh and blood that you might have life. Bread and fish and manna didn’t last long. When the next meal time rolled around, the people were hungry again. But Jesus said that whoever partakes of His flesh and blood has eternal life. What did He mean by that? He meant that, just as the Passover Lamb was sacrificed to give life to the firstborn sons of Israel… He would be sacrificed to give life to whoever would partake in His sacrifice. Not by taking in symbols like juice and bread. But by taking in the very person of Jesus. Taking His sacrifice as your own by dying to yourself daily. Taking His life as your own by daily living new in Him. Jesus has provided eternal life. He has provided a new dwelling place. He has provided salvation. The Lamb of God is your provision. He is your purification, He is your provision, and He is your propitiation. Turn over to John 19:28-37:
JOHN 19:28-37
Behold the Lamb of God who is our propitiation. The third cup of the Passover is called the Cup of Redemption. This is taken after the Passover meal itself. We know this as the cup that Jesus took with His disciples when He instituted the Lord’s Supper. Interestingly, John doesn’t mention that. The only things he mentions about the actual Passover meal that Jesus shared with His disciples is when He washed their feet and when He sent Judas out. There is no mention of the meal itself. The reason is that John is driving home the point that Jesus is our Passover Lamb. Just as He is the purification represented in the first cup of sanctification… and He is the provision represented in the second cup of plagues… He is the propitiation represented in the third cup of redemption. Propitiation is one of those 50-cent theological words that means payment. Back in Egypt, the Israelites were sinful people. You can tell they were sinful people by the way the continually grumbled and complained after they left Egypt. But they had sin in their heart just like the Egyptians did and just like Pharaoh did. If Pharaoh deserved for his firstborn to be killed because he rebelled against God, so did the Israelites. Sin is sin. And sin deserves nothing short of the complete and total wrath of God. Not just against the firstborn. Not just against crops and cattle and water. Complete and total, eternal wrath. God created a place in which to pour out that wrath. We call it Hell. And because each of us have sinned. We have been born into sin and willingly committed sin. Because of that, the only thing we deserve is to forever receive the outpouring of God’s wrath in Hell. But God loves you. He loves you so much that He doesn’t want to pour out His wrath on you. So, instead of pouring it out on you, He chose to pour out His wrath on His Son. And Jesus willingly took the full wrath of His Father to pay for your sins and mine. He took that wrath to redeem you. To pay your price. To save you. To pass His wrath over you. John carries out the Passover imagery in verse 33. The Old Testament prophesied that none of Jesus’ bones would be broken, but why was that significant? It was significant because that was a requirement for the Passover Lamb. The Lamb had to be perfect. It had to be spotless. It had to be pure. And even when the sacrifice was made, great care had to be taken to never break its bones. Jesus is our Passover Lamb. He is your Passover Lamb. He is your purification. He is your provision. And He is your propitiation. His poured out His blood on the cross of Calvary. The question is, have you applied it? You see, when the whole assembly gathered to sacrifice the lambs at that first Passover, I’m sure that many people were standing around watching. Many people were looking on, thinking, “That’s nice for them, but I don’t need it.” I’m sure there were people looking on who thought, “I don’t need that. It’s not going to affect me. That’s a Jewish thing. I’m a good person. I have my gods to protect me.” So they just sat by and watched. They watched as people all around them put their trust in God’s Word that they had heard from Moses. They watched as people turned their hearts in obedience to the Word they heard. They sat by and watched as people trusted in the purification and the provision and the propitiation of God. They sat by and watched as people all around them applied the blood of the lamb. They sat and watched and did nothing. And went home and closed their doors. And then it was too late. Because about midnight, they were visited with God’s judgment. And there was a great cry in Egypt such as there had not been before and such as shall never be again. Your redemption has been paid. The Lamb has been slain. Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. Will you trust Him to apply His blood to your heart today?
