Lamb of God
Lamb of God - what's that?
The first use of the actual phrase 'the lamb of God' in the bible is from the last Jewish prophet, Jesus' cousin John. John who had an amazing following was with crowds of people who had come to see him, and Jesus was there. As Jesus came towards John, John said 'Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!' John 1:29 (New Living Translation).
So when this phrase is first used it is speaking about Jesus.
John's listeners were mainly Jewish. Their faith was built on an understanding that God, the creator of the universe, had chosen them to have a special relationship with him. At the heart of that belief was an understanding that God had not made that choice, because they were anything special, or deserved such a privilege, but rather that they like every other people on the earth were inherently bad. If they were to enjoy a relationship with a god who was completely pure and without fault of any kind, their problem, their badness, had to be cleaned up. Since they were already 'flawed' people, any plan they had to be right with God, would be imperfect, tainted, or contaminated, by their own failure. So the remedy had to come not from them, but rather from the God who was perfect, and who wanted to enjoy them and use them as a 'showcase' for his purposes, and mission in a spoiled world.
The Jewish faith life was built around the understanding that as bad, or 'sin filled' people, they couldn't be in the presence of a perfect god. They also understood
This where God's plan came in, and lambs!
This is not a 'cuddly' lamb story. True, lambs are innocent, but that is the point. The Jewish people were given the opportunity to acknowledge their sin, and believe that God could both punish it and forgive it. The lamb was key to this in that it was to be offered as a sacrifice to God. It was to be killed instead of them. It was a substitute. It was messy.
The Jewish prophet Isaiah writing about Christ, some 700 years before he was born had a wonderful insight into what Jesus would do. He wrote about Jesus:-
He was despised and rejected—
a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.
We turned our backs on him and looked the other way.
He was despised, and we did not care.
Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
it was our sorrows that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
a punishment for his own sins!
But he was pierced for our rebellion,
crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the LORD laid on him
the sins of us all.
He was oppressed and treated harshly,
yet he never said a word.
He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.
And as a sheep is silent before the shearers,
he did not open his mouth.
Unjustly condemned,
he was led away.
No one cared that he died without descendants,
that his life was cut short in midstream.
But he was struck down
for the rebellion of my people.
He had done no wrong
and had never deceived anyone.
But he was buried like a criminal;
he was put in a rich man’s grave.
But it was the LORD’s good plan to crush him
and cause him grief.
Yet when his life is made an offering for sin,
he will have many descendants.
He will enjoy a long life,
and the LORD’s good plan will prosper in his hands.
When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish,
he will be satisfied.
And because of his experience,
my righteous servant will make it possible
for many to be counted righteous,
for he will bear all their sins.
I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier,
because he exposed himself to death.
He was counted among the rebels.
He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels.
New Living Translation (Isaiah 53:3–Is 54)
2. Jesus is our substitute
In that sense he is our 'Lamb' except that he was truly a man.
God gave Jesus what we deserved. Punishment, death, pain separation from God. So our wrongs, our badness, our sin was transferred to Jesus - The lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world'
Jesus' punishment and death were horrific, bloody and gruesome. The torment which Jesus suffered went far beyond the physical, as he was separated from his father for the first time in eternity.
In one of his letters the apostle Peter wrote:-
'Jesus himself bore our sins in his body on the tree (the cross), that we might die to sin and live to righteousness'.
English Standard Version. 1 Pe 2:24
No wonder that in John's glimpses of eternity and heaven everyone is saying with a loud voice,
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and blessing!”
English Standard Version.(Re 5:12)
This is Amazing Grace
Josh Farro, Phil Wickham, Jeremy Riddle
Verse 1:
Who breaks the power of sin and darkness
Whose love is mighty and so much stronger
The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Who shakes the whole earth with holy thunder
Who leaves us breathless in awe and wonder
The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Chorus:
This is amazing grace
This is unfailing love
That You would take my place
That You would bear my cross
You would lay down Your life
That I would be set free
Jesus, I sing for
All that You've done for me
Verse 2:
Who brings our chaos back into order
Who makes the orphan a son and daughter
The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Who rules the nations with truth and justice
Shines like the sun in all of its brilliance
The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Bridge:
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
Worthy is the King who conquered the grave
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
Worthy is the King who conquered the grave
CCLI # 6333821
© 2012 Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. (ASCAP)/Seems Like Music (BMI)/Phil Wickham Music
(BMI) (admin by Simpleville Publishing, LLC)/Bethel Music Publishing (ASCAP).
- Was it a cuddly toy, which Baby Jesus had in the stable at Bethlehem?
- If it is speaking about Jesus, what does that say about him? Is he a kind of soft cuddly, harmless, person who we turn to, to stroke, or get comfort from when things are tough?
The first use of the actual phrase 'the lamb of God' in the bible is from the last Jewish prophet, Jesus' cousin John. John who had an amazing following was with crowds of people who had come to see him, and Jesus was there. As Jesus came towards John, John said 'Look! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!' John 1:29 (New Living Translation).
So when this phrase is first used it is speaking about Jesus.
- Jesus is the 'lamb of God'.
John's listeners were mainly Jewish. Their faith was built on an understanding that God, the creator of the universe, had chosen them to have a special relationship with him. At the heart of that belief was an understanding that God had not made that choice, because they were anything special, or deserved such a privilege, but rather that they like every other people on the earth were inherently bad. If they were to enjoy a relationship with a god who was completely pure and without fault of any kind, their problem, their badness, had to be cleaned up. Since they were already 'flawed' people, any plan they had to be right with God, would be imperfect, tainted, or contaminated, by their own failure. So the remedy had to come not from them, but rather from the God who was perfect, and who wanted to enjoy them and use them as a 'showcase' for his purposes, and mission in a spoiled world.
The Jewish faith life was built around the understanding that as bad, or 'sin filled' people, they couldn't be in the presence of a perfect god. They also understood
- that God was angry about sin
- that this 'sin' not only separated them from God but if God was really that pure, and just, that the sin had to be punished.
- Sin somehow had to be removed from them.
This where God's plan came in, and lambs!
This is not a 'cuddly' lamb story. True, lambs are innocent, but that is the point. The Jewish people were given the opportunity to acknowledge their sin, and believe that God could both punish it and forgive it. The lamb was key to this in that it was to be offered as a sacrifice to God. It was to be killed instead of them. It was a substitute. It was messy.
The Jewish prophet Isaiah writing about Christ, some 700 years before he was born had a wonderful insight into what Jesus would do. He wrote about Jesus:-
He was despised and rejected—
a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief.
We turned our backs on him and looked the other way.
He was despised, and we did not care.
Yet it was our weaknesses he carried;
it was our sorrows that weighed him down.
And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God,
a punishment for his own sins!
But he was pierced for our rebellion,
crushed for our sins.
He was beaten so we could be whole.
He was whipped so we could be healed.
All of us, like sheep, have strayed away.
We have left God’s paths to follow our own.
Yet the LORD laid on him
the sins of us all.
He was oppressed and treated harshly,
yet he never said a word.
He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.
And as a sheep is silent before the shearers,
he did not open his mouth.
Unjustly condemned,
he was led away.
No one cared that he died without descendants,
that his life was cut short in midstream.
But he was struck down
for the rebellion of my people.
He had done no wrong
and had never deceived anyone.
But he was buried like a criminal;
he was put in a rich man’s grave.
But it was the LORD’s good plan to crush him
and cause him grief.
Yet when his life is made an offering for sin,
he will have many descendants.
He will enjoy a long life,
and the LORD’s good plan will prosper in his hands.
When he sees all that is accomplished by his anguish,
he will be satisfied.
And because of his experience,
my righteous servant will make it possible
for many to be counted righteous,
for he will bear all their sins.
I will give him the honors of a victorious soldier,
because he exposed himself to death.
He was counted among the rebels.
He bore the sins of many and interceded for rebels.
New Living Translation (Isaiah 53:3–Is 54)
2. Jesus is our substitute
In that sense he is our 'Lamb' except that he was truly a man.
God gave Jesus what we deserved. Punishment, death, pain separation from God. So our wrongs, our badness, our sin was transferred to Jesus - The lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world'
Jesus' punishment and death were horrific, bloody and gruesome. The torment which Jesus suffered went far beyond the physical, as he was separated from his father for the first time in eternity.
In one of his letters the apostle Peter wrote:-
'Jesus himself bore our sins in his body on the tree (the cross), that we might die to sin and live to righteousness'.
English Standard Version. 1 Pe 2:24
No wonder that in John's glimpses of eternity and heaven everyone is saying with a loud voice,
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and blessing!”
English Standard Version.(Re 5:12)
This is Amazing Grace
Josh Farro, Phil Wickham, Jeremy Riddle
Verse 1:
Who breaks the power of sin and darkness
Whose love is mighty and so much stronger
The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Who shakes the whole earth with holy thunder
Who leaves us breathless in awe and wonder
The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Chorus:
This is amazing grace
This is unfailing love
That You would take my place
That You would bear my cross
You would lay down Your life
That I would be set free
Jesus, I sing for
All that You've done for me
Verse 2:
Who brings our chaos back into order
Who makes the orphan a son and daughter
The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Who rules the nations with truth and justice
Shines like the sun in all of its brilliance
The King of Glory, the King above all kings
Bridge:
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
Worthy is the King who conquered the grave
Worthy is the Lamb who was slain
Worthy is the King who conquered the grave
CCLI # 6333821
© 2012 Warner/Chappell Music, Inc. (ASCAP)/Seems Like Music (BMI)/Phil Wickham Music
(BMI) (admin by Simpleville Publishing, LLC)/Bethel Music Publishing (ASCAP).