Opening
Church, this morning I want to direct your attention to John's Gospel, chapter 1, verses 29 through 42. This passage speaks to us across the centuries with a message that resonates deeply with our struggle, our hope, and our calling as a people.
When John the Baptist looked up and saw Jesus approaching, he declared: "Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" These words were not spoken in a vacuum. They were spoken in a context of oppression, occupation, and the desperate yearning of a people for liberation.
The Lamb That Liberates
Brothers and sisters, the imagery of the lamb would have been immediately understood by John's first hearers. They remembered the Passover lamb—the lamb whose blood marked the doorposts in Egypt, the lamb that stood between slavery and freedom, the lamb that made a way out of no way.
Dr. King often reminded us that the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice. And here, in this Lamb of God, we see the ultimate expression of that divine justice—not a justice that comes through violence or domination, but through sacrificial love.
Jesus didn't come riding on a war horse. He came as a lamb. But don't mistake gentleness for weakness. This Lamb possessed the power to break every chain, to tear down every wall of partition, and to set the captives free.
The Sin of the World
When John says this Lamb "takes away the sin of the world," we must understand what that means for us today. Yes, it means personal sin—the individual ways we fall short of God's glory. But the Gospel is also concerned with corporate sin, structural sin, the sin embedded in systems and institutions.
The sin of the world includes:
- The sin of racism that says some of God's children are worth less than others
- The sin of economic exploitation that grinds the faces of the poor
- The sin of violence that responds to injustice with brutality
- The sin of indifference that walks past suffering on the other side of the road
Jesus came to take away ALL of that sin. He came to reconcile not just individuals to God, but to reconcile humanity to itself, to heal the divisions that tear us apart, to make us truly one.
Come and See
After John's declaration, two disciples followed Jesus. And when Jesus turned and asked them, "What do you seek?" they responded, "Rabbi, where are you staying?" And Jesus gave them a simple invitation: "Come and see."
Church, that's still the invitation today. Come and see where Jesus dwells. Come and see what the Kingdom of God looks like. Come and see a community where:
- The last are first and the first are last
- The mighty are brought down and the humble are lifted up
- Love casts out fear
- Justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like a mighty stream
Dr. King accepted that invitation. He came and saw, and what he saw transformed not just his life, but a nation. He saw that following the Lamb meant nonviolent resistance to evil. He saw that following the Lamb meant standing with the oppressed. He saw that following the Lamb meant being willing to lay down your life so that others might be free.
We Have Found the Messiah
When Andrew encountered Jesus, he couldn't keep it to himself. He went immediately to find his brother Simon and declared: "We have found the Messiah!"
This is the essence of witness, beloved. When you truly encounter the Lamb of God, when you truly experience liberation, you cannot remain silent. You must tell somebody. You must bring your brother, your sister, your neighbor to meet the One who can set them free.
Our witness as the Black church has always been this testimony: We have found the Messiah! We found Him in the cotton fields and the auction blocks. We found Him in the middle passage and the midnight hour. We found Him in the struggle for freedom and the march toward justice. We found Him, and He has found us, and He continues to make us free.
A New Name, A New Identity
Finally, notice what happens when Simon meets Jesus. Jesus looks at him and says, "You are Simon son of John. You will be called Cephas" which means Peter, the rock.
Jesus had the power to see past who Simon was to who he would become. He saw past the fisherman to the foundation of the church. He saw past the coward who would deny Him to the bold preacher at Pentecost. He saw past present reality to future possibility.
This is the liberating vision of the Gospel. You are not defined by what society calls you. You are not limited by the circumstances of your birth. You are not bound by the sins of your past or the struggles of your present. In Christ, you are given a new name, a new identity, a new destiny.
Dr. King understood this. He knew that Black people in America had been given names by oppressors—names meant to demean and diminish. But he called us to claim our true identity as children of God, as brothers and sisters of infinite worth, as heirs of the Kingdom.
The Call to Action
So what does this passage call us to do today?
First, behold the Lamb
Fix your eyes on Jesus. In a world that constantly tries to conform you to its image, keep looking at the One who shows you God's image.
Second, follow Him Discipleship is not a Sunday morning activity; it's a seven-day-a-week commitment. Follow Jesus into the streets where the homeless sleep. Follow Him into the schools where our children are failing. Follow Him into the prisons where our brothers and sisters are warehoused. Follow Him into the fight for justice.
Third, witness to what you've found.Tell somebody about the Lamb who liberates. Not just with your words, but with your life. Live in such a way that people see the Kingdom breaking through.
Fourth, embrace your new identity.Stop letting the world tell you who you are. You are a child of God. You are somebody. You matter. Your life has purpose and meaning.
Conclusion
Church, the same Lamb that John pointed to 2,000 years ago is still standing among us today. He's still taking away the sin of the world. He's still inviting us to come and see. He's still giving us new names and new identities. He's still setting the captives free.
Dr. King gave his life following this Lamb. Countless others have done the same. The question before us this morning is simple: Will we?
Will we behold the Lamb? Will we follow where He leads? Will we witness to what we've found? Will we claim our true identity as God's beloved children?
The Lamb is calling. The invitation stands: "Come and see."
Let the church say, Amen.
"If you can't fly then run, if you can't run then walk, if you can't walk then crawl, but whatever you do you have to keep moving forward." - Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
