Behold The Lamb
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
The word behold means: to stop and consider, to gaze upon or to ponder, even means surprise.
“Behold, the Lamb of God” (v. 29b). The phrase, Lamb of God, brings to mind:
• The Passover lamb, whose blood saved Israelites from death and paved the way for their deliverance from Egypt (Exodus 12). The Passover will soon be celebrated (2:13), so the Passover Lamb would be in John’s mind as he writes this.
• The lamb provided by God to Abraham for sacrifice in place of Isaac (Genesis 22:8-13).
• The lamb from the Suffering Servant songs of Isaiah, which portrayed one who, by his sacrifice, will redeem his people. Isaiah 53:7 “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, Yet he opened not his mouth: He is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, So he openeth not his mouth.”
This certainly became an important part of the church’s understanding of Christ.
• The sheep that were sacrificed daily in the temple to redeem the people from their sins. John the Baptist’s father was a priest (Luke 1:5), so these sacrifices would be very familiar to him.
• The lamb of Revelation 5 who “has prevailed” (Revelation 5:5). The twenty-four elders will sing of this lamb, Revelation 5:9 “…Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;” a tribute repeated by angels (Revelation 5:11-12) and Revelation 5:13 “And every creature which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them…”
• Jeremiah’s “lamb or an ox that is brought to the slaughter” (Jeremiah 11:19).
It is not necessary to choose one of these meanings. They merge in the “Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”
Lehman Strauss wrote, “He voluntarily plunged into the outer darkness so that you and I never need to suffer its bitter pangs. It was not possible to transfer our sin without transferring its penalty. The Substitute for sinners must be rejected as a sinner. Sin, in its finality, is to forsake God; sin, in its final dealings with man, is to be God-forsaken. But, praise God, it has been transferred, and He was forsaken that we might be made free and forgiven.”
John announces Him as, “the Lamb of God. "Not a lamb or some lamb but the Lamb. This sets Him apart from all other lambs.
What was it that made God's lamb different than the others?
The Introduction of the Lamb
The Introduction of the Lamb
John 1:29 (KJV 1900)
29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
No lamb has ever been introduced like God's lamb.
At Bethlehem He was the cradled lamb.
At Golgotha He was the crucified lamb.
At His ascension, He was the carried away lamb.
Today He is the soon coming lamb.
In Genesis He is the Lamb in the garden.
In Matt. 26:36 He is the Lamb in Gethsemene.
In John 1:29 He is the Lamb of God.
In Mark 15 He is the Lamb at Golgotha
In Lu. 24 He is the Lamb coming up out of the grave.
In Rev. 4 He is the Lamb of Glory.
He's the lamb that bore our sins.
He's the lamb that bore our shame.
He's the lamb that bore our sufferings and our sorrows.
He's the slain Lamb.
He's the sacrificial Lamb.
He's the spotless Lamb.
He's the sovereign Lamb.
He's a heavenly Lamb.
He's a holy Lamb.
He's a humble Lamb.
He's an honorable Lamb.
He's a divine Lamb.
He's a devoted Lamb.
He's a darling Lamb.
He's a different Lamb.
He's a finished Lamb.
He's a forgiving Lamb.
He's a faithful Lamb.
He's a free Lamb.
He's our Father's Lamb.
He’s a perfect Lamb.
He’s the promised Lamb.
He’s pre-existing Lamb.
He‘s the powerful Lamb.
He’s the providing Lamb.
He’s the personal Lamb.
He’s the precious Lamb.
He’s the Lamb that fulfilled all prophecies.
He's a Lamb that fed the poor.
He's a Lamb that forgives all past.
He's a Lamb that frees all prisoners.
He's a Lamb that feels our problems.
He was Moses' Lamb.
He was Mary's Lamb.
He was Martha's Lamb.
He was Matthew's Lamb.
He is my Lamb.
He's a Lamb that takes away our sins.
He's a Lamb that triumph's over Satan.
He's a Lamb that transforms sinners.
He's a Lamb that talks with the saints.
What makes this Lamb above all others is His introduction.
The Influence of the Lamb
The Influence of the Lamb
This lamb has influenced the lives of individuals of all agesand all walks of life.
He has influenced those who were great & small.
He has influenced both the proud and the humble.
He has influenced both the guilty and the innocent.
He has influenced both the bond and the free.
He has influenced both the rich and the poor.
He has influenced both the good and the bad.
He has influenced both the young and the old.
He has influenced both the wise and the unwise.
He has influenced both healthy and the sick.
He has influenced cripples.
He has influenced drunkards.
He has influenced drug dealers, & dope addicts.
He has influenced harlots, home breakers, & hell raisers.
He has influenced murders, liars, & thieves.
Once you meet this Lamb you are never the same. He will change your life forever.
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
I think of the blind man in John 9
When the Pharisees questioned him:
He answered and said, A man that is called Jesus made clay, and anointed mine eyes, and said unto me, Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash: and I went and washed, and I received sight.
When they asked him if the man that healed him was a sinner…
He answered and said, Whether he be a sinner or no, I know not: one thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see.
Hey, you know what, the man is saying, I don’t know what happened, I don’t know exactly who this man is, but I was one way before, but when he passed by, I was changed!
Hey, I’ll say it again, Once you meet this Lamb you are never the same. He will change your life forever.
The introduction of this Lamb made Him different, the influence of this Lamb made Him different, the what else made Him different?
The Invitation of the Lamb
The Invitation of the Lamb
Oh yes friend, we’ve been given:
An invitation to dine at His table.
An invitation to dine at His table.
Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine. And none of the disciples durst ask him, Who art thou? knowing that it was the Lord.
The men had been working/ fishing all day.
They were tired and hungry.
Jesus can meet the needs of body and soul!
There is something that brings us closer together when we eat one with another.
An invitation to drink from His fountain.
An invitation to drink from His fountain.
Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
An invitation to die in His arms.
An invitation to die in His arms.
This makes me think of the old hymn by Joseph Hart:
Come, ye sinners, poor and needy,
weak and wounded, sick and sore;
Jesus ready stands to save you,
full of pity, love, and power.
2 Come, ye thirsty, come and welcome,
God's free bounty glorify;
true belief and true repentance,
ev'ry grace that brings you nigh.
3 Let not conscience make you linger,
nor of fitness fondly dream;
all the fitness he requireth
is to feel your need of him.
4 Come, ye weary, heavy laden,
lost and ruined by the fall;
if you tarry till you're better,
you will never come at all.
5 I will rise and go to Jesus!
He will save me from my sin.
By the riches of his merit,
there is joy and life in him.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Hey, later on in John chapter 1, we find Jesus issuing a great invitation to His future disciples…it was simply “Follow me.”
Are you following the Lamb of God tonight?
If not, I trust you’ll come to Him tonight…