“On the morrow he seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold, the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man who is become before me:for he was before me. And I knew him not; but that he should be made manifest to Israel, for this cause came I baptizing in water. And John bare witness, saying, I have beheld the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven; and it abode upon him. And I knew him not:but he that sent me to baptize in water, he said unto me, Upon whomsoever thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and abiding upon him, the same is he that baptizeth in the Holy Spirit. And I have seen, and have borne witness that this is the Son of God” (John 1:29-34, American Standard Version).
“Behold…”!
On what direction we tell others to focus their attention? What is so significant to us that we want others also to see its worth?
On what aspect we tend to direct our interest? Or, just what is the “thing” we desire to take extra notice?
From the roof of our house, I could see at this time –especially at night, the glowing lava cascading down from the mouth of Mayon Volcanoe. Sometimes, I called my children to come up and watch the awesome sight. Behold, the Mayon Volcanoe!
We have so many things in mind where we want to focus our attention. Our attention could be directed on the beauty, strength, ability, or whatever that attracts us of an individual.
We can even look on the big membership or higher income of the denomination or church.
But we can also direct our attention on our failures and problems in life. We can direct our lenses on the shortcomings and defects of other persons, organizations or denominations.
John the Baptist, however, called our attention on the “Lamb of God” – “Behold, the Lamb of God…”
Why on the “Lamb”?
We read in Exodus 12 that God used the blood of the lamb as sign for the Israelites, so that no destructive plague would harm them. You may read Exodus 12:1-13. Notice especially verse 7 & 13, “Some of the blood must be put on the two doorposts and above the door of each house where the animals are to be eaten.” “The blood on the houses will show me where you live, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. Then you won’t be bothered by the terrible disasters I will bring on Egypt“ (The Contemporary English version).
Moses told the elders of Israel in verse 23, “During that night the LORD will go through the country of Egypt and kill the first-born son in every Egyptian family. He will see where you have put the blood, and he will not come into your house. His angel that brings death will pass over and not kill your first-born sons” (TCE).
The blood of the lamb applied on the door-frames of houses of the Israelites distinguished the chosen people of God from the Egyptians. All the first born in the houses in the land of Egypt without the blood of the lamb were struck down (Ex. 12:29).
Just as the blood of the lamb was the means to recognize and save the physical chosen people of God from the disaster that came to Egypt, the precious blood of the Lamb of God, who is Jesus Christ, “applied” on the those who believe would also identify the spiritual chosen ones to be saved from the wrath of God.
We read in Romans 5:6-9, “Christ died for us at a time when we were helpless and sinful. No one is really willing to die for an honest person, though someone might be willing to die for a truly good person. But God showed how much he loved us by having Christ die for us, even though we were sinful. But there is more! Now that God has accepted us BECAUSE CHRIST SACRIFICED HIS LIFE’S BLOOD, WE WILL ALSO BE KEPT SAFE FROM GOD’S ANGER” (TCE).
We also read in Hebrews 9:13-14, “For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling them that have been defiled, sanctify unto the cleanness of the flesh: how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish unto God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (ASV.)
And in saving the elect from God’s anger, Jesus Christ did it willingly and submissively.
The prophet Isaiah wrote: “Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows; yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and Jehovah hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, yet when he was afflicted he opened not his mouth; as a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and as a sheep that before its shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth” (Isaiah 53:4-7, ASV).
Indeed, our attention, our interest, our admiration, our gratitude should be directed to the Lamb of God!
Behold, the Lamb of God!
Hebrews 12:2 states, “Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end. He did not give up because of the cross! On the contrary, because of the joy that was waiting for him, he thought nothing of the disgrace of dying on the cross, and he is now seated at the right side of God’s throne” (The Good News Translation).
He “takes away the sin of the world.” We read in John 3:16, “For God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not die but have eternal life.”
He took away not only the sin of the Israelites, or the Jewish people – but “of the world” -- even the Gentiles, who believe. “Everyone who believes in him may not die but have eternal life.”
Paul wrote:
“You Gentiles by birth—called ‘the uncircumcised’ by the Jews, who call themselves the circumcised (which refers to what men do to their bodies)—remember what you were in the past. At that time you were apart from Christ. You were foreigners and did not belong to God’s chosen people. You had no part in the covenants, which were based on God’s promises to his people, and you lived in this world without hope and without God. But now, in union with Christ Jesus you, who used to be far away, have been brought near by the blood of Christ” (Ephesians 2:11-13, TGN).
And in Ephesians 3:5-6, “No one knew about this mystery until God’s Spirit told it to his holy apostles and prophets. And the mystery is this: Because of Christ Jesus, the good news has given the Gentiles a share in the promises that God gave to the Jews. God has also let the Gentiles be part of the same body” (TCE).
And if we are one of the elect, or as 1 John 1:7 states: “but if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanseth us from ALL sin” (ASV). The Good News Translation translates it: “But if we live in the light—just as he is in the light—then we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from EVERY SIN.”
That’s how precious, sufficient and effective is the blood of the Lamb. It is enough to purify all the sin of every person on earth, but it is only applied to those who believe. We read in John 3:36, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever disobeys the Son will not have life, but will remain under God’s punishment” (TGN).
May we appreciate the value of the blood of the Lamb and to be included with those who receive an inner calling from God.
We read in Hebrews 9:13-15 (last part), “The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a burnt calf are sprinkled on the people who are ritually unclean, and this purifies them by taking away their ritual impurity. Since this is true, how much more is accomplished by the blood of Christ! Through the eternal Spirit he offered himself as a perfect sacrifice to God. His blood will purify our consciences from useless rituals, so that we may serve the living God. For this reason Christ is the one who arranges a new covenant, so that those who have been called by God may receive the eternal blessings that God has promised…” (TGN.)
But the Lamb of God came not only to become the submissive sacrifice for the sin of all men.
Just before He was taken up to heaven after His resurrection, we read in Acts 1:9-11, “After saying this, he was taken up to heaven as they (the disciples) watched him, and a cloud hid him from their sight. They still had their eyes fixed on the sky as he went away, when two men dressed in white suddenly stood beside them and said, ‘Galileans, why are you standing there looking up at the sky? This Jesus, who was taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way that you saw him go to heaven’” (TGN).
Behold, the Lamb of God will come back again to bring salvation to those who are eagerly waiting for Him.
We read in Hebrews 9:28, “In the same manner Christ also was offered in sacrifice once to take away the sins of many. He will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are waiting for him” (TGN). You may also read Revelation 7:9-17.
But He will return not only to bring salvation, but also to bring punishment to the unbelievers.
Paul wrote in 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10, “God will do what is right: he will bring suffering on those who make you suffer, and he will give relief to you who suffer and to us as well. He will do this when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven with his mighty angels, with a flaming fire, to punish those who reject God and who do not obey the Good News about our Lord Jesus. They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, separated from the presence of the Lord and from his glorious might, when he comes on that Day to receive glory from all his people and honor from all who believe. You too will be among them, because you have believed the message that we told you” (TGN). You may also read Revelation 14:9-11.
Just as His first coming was met with opposition, so with His second coming. But this time, He would not just be a helpless baby. We read in Revelation 17:14, “They will fight against the Lamb; but the Lamb, together with his called, chosen, and faithful followers, will defeat them, because he is Lord of lords and King of kings” (TGN).
Behold, the Lamb of God – He is Lord of lords and King of kings!
Let us remove our focus on the problems and even pleasures in this world. Let us not direct our thoughts on the promises and hopes being promoted and offered to us by many.
Rather, behold, the Lamb of God! The Most Awesome!
Hebrews 12:2-4 states, “Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, on whom our faith depends from beginning to end. He did not give up because of the cross! On the contrary, because of the joy that was waiting for him, he thought nothing of the disgrace of dying on the cross, and he is now seated at the right side of God’s throne. Think of what he went through; how he put up with so much hatred from sinners! So do not let yourselves become discouraged and give up. For in your struggle against sin you have not yet had to resist to the point of being killed” (TGN).
Finally, we also read in Colossians 3:1-4: “You have been raised to life with Christ, so set your hearts on the things that are in heaven, where Christ sits on his throne at the right side of God. Keep your minds fixed on things there, not on things here on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. Your real life is Christ and when he appears, then you too will appear with him and share his glory!” (TGN.)
Behold, the Lamb of God -- He is the Son of God!
PRAYER: Our Sovereign God – our Merciful Father – we truly lift You up for the Lamb of God, whom You sent to bring salvation to Your people. We do praise You for the wonderful grace You lavished on us – the Lamb of God. May You continue to reveal His Worth to us. In His Name, we pray. Amen.
