John 1: The Lamb of God

“Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”  John 1:29

Yesterday we looked at Jesus as the Word that was there from the beginning. We got a small picture of his majesty, endlessness and permanence.  Just over a week ago we were focused on a different picture of Jesus - the helpless child in the manger.  Today we read of the Lamb of God.  John the Baptist in his preaching and John the apostle who recorded his words were both eager to make it clear from the outset what Jesus’ mission on earth was - to take away the sin of the world. 

Jesus came to die for us. Wise men brought myrrh to his birth to prepare his body for burial. Dying was not a last resort if people didn’t listen to the preaching. To the original Jewish audience to whom John the Baptist was speaking, the term ‘Lamb of God’ would have immediately conjured up images of the lambs used in sacrifice for atonement for sins. Maybe they even would have thought of the time that God himself provided the Lamb, to die in the place of Isaac. 

The sacrifices offered in the temple were never able to take away sins (Hebrews 10:4). They were there to teach the people about the real sacrifice that was coming. The one who really would take away our sins. 

When Jesus died, every sin was put on him and died with him. And not just the deliberate wrongdoing - all the hurt, all the pain, all the fallenness.  All those things are taken away by Jesus, just as they were symbolically taken away by past animal sacrifices.  But unlike any other sacrifice, Jesus didn’t stay dead.  He rose again.  And in doing so he didn’t just get rid of sin, but brought new life as well.

And this is what the imagery of immersion baptism, that John was practising in the Jordan when he said these words, teaches us.  Immersion in the water symbolises death, and resurfacing is the new and cleansed life.  It is Jesus who gives this.

We have not seen the full outworking of this - we will see that when Jesus returns.  But we know that the darkest night has passed, and that new life and removal of sin will be known fully.