“Behold, the Lamb of God!”

“The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). Thus declares John the Baptist of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

We also read in this same chapter of John, “The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, Behold, the Lamb of God” (v. 35).

Dr Charles Stanley writes, “As the Old Testament sacrifices foreshadowed what Jesus Christ would do on the Cross. Here, John rightly identified Jesus as our Passover Lamb (Ex. 12), who willingly paid our sin-debt in full (1 Cor. 5:7). God “made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21). (The Charles F.  Stanley Life Principles Bible, NKJV). 

Lamb is used here as a title for Jesus Christ as in our text, Lamb of God. Lamb is also used figuratively as a symbol of meekness and gentleness, which can be applied to Christ as well.

Christ was meekly obedient to His Father’s will. As He was facing death on the Cross for the sins of mankind, He prayed: “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:39).

Also, Christ said this of Himself: “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:29). The word ‘lowly’ means to be humble. Philippians 2:8 says Christ “humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

The humility of Christ is also reflected in Isaiah’s accurate prediction of the sacrifice of Christ, wrote: “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth” (Isaiah 53:7).

Whereas we cannot determine precisely the full extent of John’s thoughts in declaring “Behold, the Lamb of God,” we do know, however, it certainly gets our attention and focus.

John added in the first text: “who takes away the sin of the world.” And this is the purpose for which Jesus came into the world. Luke 19:10 referring to Jesus says, “For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost.” 

Therefore, John is drawing our attention to Christ as God’s “sacrificial” Lamb and substitute  who bore the penalty for the sin of mankind by shedding His blood to reconcile sinners to God who is holy and righteous. 

Isaiah also wrote: “But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5).  

This is exactly what took place when Jesus Christ as the Lamb of God suffered, bled, and died on the Cross. He took upon Himself our transgressions and our iniquities, because He had no sin of His own. Yet, as the Scripture says, “For our sake [God] made [Christ] to be sin who knew sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21).

“The truth is that we were the ones who went astray and who walked in self-will, and Jehovah  placed our iniquity on Him, the sinless Substitute” (William MacDonald).

Then Isaiah continues: “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6).

This text describes the sinful state of our hearts, which confirms the need for God’s intervention, and remedy because all humanity has sinned and has come short of the glory of God. And the last clause of the text states: “and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.”

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