The Lamb of God

Bible Text: Isaiah 53 | Preacher: Pastor Mike Hale | Series: Topical Study

We are all sinners, and sin has reigned since the time of Adam. The only hope for mankind is Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God (Romans 5:12, 18-19).

Verse 6… We each have turned away from God (Romans 3:10-12), “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one.”

We are all guilty of sin (Romans 3:23), “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” and (Romans 6:23a) the punishment for sin is death, but (6:23b) God’s free gift is eternal life through Jesus Christ, Who (5:8), while we were still sinners, laid down His life as God’s righteous payment for our sins.

Verse 7… Jesus took upon Himself our sins, and like a lamb being led to the slaughter, He was silent (1Peter 2:23-25), “When they hurled insults at Him, He did not retaliate; when He suffered, He made no threats… He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by His wounds you have been healed.”

Verse 8… He was taken away, “cut off” from the land of the living, meaning He was put to death for the sins of the people, who themselves should have received God’s just punishment.
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Where did this Son of God being the “Lamb of God” thing begin? Exodus 12:3-6 gives instructions on how to acquire, care for, sacrifice, and prepare the lamb. Must be an unblemished year old sheep or goat.

Must be procured the 10th day of Nissan (Mar/April), sacrificed and cooked on the 14th day of Nissan.

The word for lamb is arnion [ar-nee’-on] a little lamb, or pet lamb. Jewish families were to keep the lamb as a pet four days before sacrificing it. Every lamb sacrificed in the Hebrew Scriptures pictures Yeshua, Who is identified as a Lamb (John 1:29, 36; Acts 8:32 and 1Peter 1:19). However, in the book of Revelation He appears as the Lamb twenty-eight times.

Matthew 1:20-23… Joseph is told his wife is carrying the Son of God in her womb; she will give birth to a boy and He is to be named Jesus, which means Savior.

Luke 2:4-6, 10-11, 16-19… Just as God said, Mary gave birth to a son. Angels told some shepherds of the Savior, Christ the Lord, who was to be born in Bethlehem.

Luke 2:25-35… An elderly servant of God named Simeon had been told by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he saw the Savior. The Holy Spirit led Simeon to the temple where he saw and held Jesus, proclaiming what would be fulfilled through Him, as the Messiah: He would be oppressed and rejected by many, and Mary would suffer enormous grief, as if (v. 35a) “a sword was to pierce her soul” [or sprit, these are interchangeable in the Scriptures; just as mind and heart, for the most part, are interchangeable (v. 35b).

Mary held this beautiful little baby boy, she loved Him, and she knew He would grow up to do God’s will; it was for this reason He had come into the world, put on flesh, paid the penally for our sins, as the very Lamb of God.

Philippians 2:8, “And being found in the appearance of a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death — even death on a cross!”

Hebrews 10:5, “When Christ came into the world, He said: ‘Sacrifice ad offering You did not desire, but a body you prepared for Me,’” 9-10, “Here I am, I have come to do Your will.” By that will, we’ve been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all.”

At Passover, every family would get an unblemished year old lamb or goat to care for for four days at home. This lamb would be kept in a separate pen next to the house, away from other animals, or perhaps brought into the house and treated as we treat our cats and dogs.

God ordained it be done this way (Exodus 12), so the people would identify with the lamb in a very personal way, even getting attached to the lamb, only then having to sacrifice the lamb on behalf of their own sins.

John 1:1-4… Life here is (Greek, zōè) spiritual not (Greek, bíōs) physical.
John 1:10-13… Jesus is giver of both physical life (bíōs) and spiritual life (zōè).
John 1:14-18… Jesus put on flesh to show us the Father, through Whom all grace and truth have come.

John 1:19-26… John is not the Christ, or Elijah, or the Prophet; he is the one who declares the coming of the Lord, the Messiah. God’s One and Only Son. John 1:29-31… The purpose of God putting on flesh, is to be the Lamb of God, to take our punishment for sin.

John baptized with water those who confessed their sins to God. Jesus baptizes with the Holy Spirit, placing God’s seal of ownership on us and in us, making us God’s children for eternity when we confess our sins, believing in Jesus Christ’s death as payment for our sins, making us holy and righteous in God’s sight (1Peter 1:17-21).

We are saved by the shed blood of God’s Son, God’s Lamb, making us children of God for eternity.

Revelation 5:6-13; 19:6-9… Hebrew marriages/weddings had several stages:
• Betrothal of the bride and groom (Ephesians 1:4)
• Presenting the bride to the groom (1Thessalonians 4:13-18)
• Wedding Ceremony, ending with a Feast (Revelation 19:7)

Christ is the Groom and the Church is His Bride, who are the invited guests (Revelation 19:9)? The Bride isn’t invited to her own wedding, she invites guests to her wedding.

So, I believe the wedding guests are all the Old Testament saints, all those saved during the Great Tribulation Period, and those believers still alive at the Return of Christ. To the best of my understanding, it seems this Marriage of the Lamb and the Church Feast takes place on the earth, lasting for about 1000 years. Now that’s a party, and it is all in honor of the Lamb of God, God’s Only, One of a Kind, Unique, Beloved Son.

At the first passover, God had the Israelites identify with an innocent pet Lamb, in their own home, that would die for their sinfulness. Imagine a child when they first realized their pet lamb had to be killed.

In Acts 2:36-38, God pierced the hearts of the people; they realized God’s Son, God’s Lamb, had been put to death for them, and they cried out for forgiveness. You and I must do the same, if we are to be saved.

The Lamb of God, God’s Son, put on flesh and walked among us; He loved us, yet we rejected Him, yet He died for us, allowing His own blood to be shed for our sins, so that we might receive forgiveness and be granted eternal life, to live in heaven with Him forever.

Worthy is the Lamb, Who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise. To Him Who sits on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power for ever and ever!
Amen!