The Lamb of God

The “reveal” began when one of the last Old Testament prophets, a strangely dressed man, prophetically spoke, “Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:29)” John the Baptist made it clear that Jesus was unlike anyone God had sent before to the children of Adam.

Like Jesus’ parable about the king and the vineyard, after the keepers of the vineyard had murdered his servants, the king sent his son. Surely they would submit to him, he reasoned, but they did not. No, in their greedy minds, they imagined that they would somehow own the vineyard if they killed the king’s heir (Matthew 21:33-40).

Jesus is that Lamb, and this Friday we will solemnly give thanks for the sacrifice of the Lamb upon a cross. The perfect and last blood sacrifice from man to God. Jesus gave His life and the Father, His Son, to make a way for any of the keepers of the vineyard to be forgiven and be reconciled to the King.

The Apostle Peter wrote this:

¹⁷ And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time here as “temporary residents.” ¹⁸ For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. ¹⁹ It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God. ²⁰ God chose him as your ransom long before the world began, but now in these last days he has been revealed for your sake. 1 Peter 1:17-30 NLT

Yes, we anticipate the joy we will share together on Easter Sunday, the day to commemorate Christ Jesus’ victory over death and hell, as well as securing our hope of resurrection and eternal life with Him.

This is a big week. In our modern world, Thursday is when we remember the Lord’s Supper. Friday, we both mourn and rejoice in Christ’s sacrifice. Saturday, we marvel at the mystery of Christ’s work in death. And Sunday, our hearts burst forth in joy, knowing He is risen, just as He said!

As we reverently remember and give thanks to God for these events that took place almost 2,000 years ago, let’s keep our hearts in tune with the Holy Spirit and give thanks for all that God has done for us. What a mighty God we serve!