“The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”
In this verse John the Baptist heralds Jesus as the “Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.” He could have announced Jesus as God, King, or Creator, but instead he emphasizes that Jesus is the Lamb of God.
Q: Why did John compare Jesus to a lamb and how is that related to taking away the sins of the world?
It was a lamb that was brought for a sacrifice to cover the sin, Jesus is the true Lamb that not only covers us with His blood but He came to take all of our sin upon Him,..Jesus is the One and only true sacrificial lamb that has taken away our sin,..it was an analogy that people could understand back then,..just as we use analogies today to explain God’s sovereign work in our lives.
John
Well said! There are other characteristics of the lamb that apply, too. I wonder if others will mention them?
John stole my answer. Well said.
You got it John.
Getting this figured out. Gotta enter my name or it calls me Anonymous.
Of course John nailed the main point, but I was thinking that there are also correlations with lamb-like characteristics such as gentleness and meekness.
Yes, I think the humility of the Lamb also speaks to His character. Jesus is mentioned as the Lamb over and over again in the book of Revelation. He is called the Lamb who is worthy because of His sacrificial payment of our sin and the resulting redemption of a people from every people group (Revelation 5: 9 – 10, 12). interestingly (to me), He is also seen as a Lamb who would be our Shepherd who will lead us and comfort us. This envisions not only His humility but His gentle leadership.
In the Bible, lamb is mentioned 96 times and of those 96, 85 are in reference to “sacrifice.” The lambs were sacrificed to pay for sin. In Genesis 22 we can read how Abraham took Isaac up the mountain to offer a sacrifice. God had promised Abraham that He would make him the father of many nations, but then God
commanded him to sacrifice his only son by Sarah. When Isaac asked about the lamb, Abraham told him that God would provide the lamb (vs 8).
In Exodus 29:38 we read how the the priests in the temple sacrificed a lamb every morning and evening. They did this for hundreds of years because no lamb could take away all their sin.
John recognized that Jesus was the lamb that came to wipe away the sins of the world. Jesus was the last sacrifice that was ever to be needed. The mental image of the lamb was prophesied by Isaiah:
Isaiah 53:7 “He was oppressed and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth.”
Chris,
Great mediation! I especially like the point that it was John who recognized Jesus was the lamb. John’s Gospel is special in that it allows us to see through John’s eyes. He was unique in many ways as a disciple. His writings stand apart because, like Jesus, he tends to communicate with images.