“Lamb of God” (John 1:29-42)

John 1:29-42

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Pastor Tom Johnson, January 15, 2023

John the Baptist is one of my favorite preachers. His sermons are the shortest. The one today is only 14 words in English. It’s only 11 words in the New Testament Greek: “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the World!” Later, John preaches an even shorter version—just five words: “Behold the Lamb of God.” My sermons are usually over 1000 words. Sorry. We sing a prayer based on these words almost every time we receive Communion. Today we will sing, “Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world; have mercy on us. Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world; have mercy on us. Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world; grant us peace.”

Long before television and radio, the great Preacher Charles Spurgeon could  be heard by over 20,000 people without amplification. Since there were no microphones, he was testing the acoustics in a large, empty assembly hall. With his booming voice he said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” Later that day, one of the maintenance workers came to him. He told him that he was hidden in the rafters doing repair when the preacher tested the acoustics. In that moment, the maintenance worker came to faith in Jesus.

It is such a simple message—such a profound message. For those who knew Hebrew Bible (or what we call the Old Testament) it would call to mind the many references to the Lamb of God throughout redemptive history. They would have remembered when God tested Abraham and asked him to sacrifice his son Isaac. Isaac asks his father, “Behold the wood and the fire, but where is the lamb of sacrifice?” Abraham answers, “God will provide the Lamb.” They would have remembered the Exodus and the Passover. When the Angel of Death came, God provided salvation through a lamb. They were to take the blood of a lamb and paint it on their lentils and doorposts. When death beheld the blood of the lamb, death would pass over leaving their sons unharmed. They would have remembered the Day of Atonement when a lamb without blemish was offered for the sins of the people of Israel for their forgiveness. The would have remembered the scapegoat that carried their sins away.

Now John is pointing his finger at Jesus just as these ancient scriptures do. God has  provided the Lamb—not just for Abraham but for all people. When death beholds the blood of this Lamb, death will not just pass over—death will pass away. He is the Lamb who carries away sin—not just for the people of Israel—but for the whole world—not just once a year but once for all! I hope you don’t miss the irony of these words. It reveals God’s sense of humor—how he likes to turn our perception of the world upside down—so that we can see the truth of God’s love for us—with laughter and joy. “Behold the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world!” Sheep are not beasts of burden. Sheep cannot carry heavy loads, sacks of grain, gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Donkeys, camels, horses, and oxen? Yes. 

But sheep? Are you kidding? Baby sheep? A Lamb? You must be joking. John’s sermon is as ridiculous as it is magnificent and beautiful. And what, pray tell, is the heavy burden the Lamb of God carrying? Sin. The Lamb takes the great burden of sin away.  This is the same message the Prophet Isaiah preached in ancient times: “All we like sheep have gone astray, each of us to our own way, but the Lord has laid upon him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6). The Lamb takes away the power of sin that weighs heavily on our minds and on our spirits. The Lamb takes away stain of sin—“though our sins are as scarlet,” the prophet Isaiah says, “they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be as (white as) wool”—Lamb’s wool (Isaiah 1:18).

Is guilt or shame weighing heavily on us? Let the Lamb take it away. Are we in bondage to the same destructive thoughts or actions? Surrender them to the Lamb. He takes away our burdens that are too big and too heavy for us to carry. “Oh, what peace we often forfeit; Oh, what needless pain we bear–All because we do not carry Ev’rything to God in prayer!” All because we do not learn to unload our burdens upon the Lamb—to cast our cares upon him because he cares for us.

Jesus the Lamb came to bear the sin of the world—only God could bear that burden. And it is his joy to do so. He takes the burden of our sin to the River Jordan. He washes it away in the baptismal waters. Sin and death are drowned there. Jesus the Lamb takes our sins to the Cross and forgives us. Jesus the Lamb takes our sin to die there. The Lamb takes our sin and the power of sin and death into the tomb where it will no longer live and has lost all power. Whatever heavy load we carry this morning, we can let it go. We can unload it on the Lamb. He came to free us from sin’s power. He came to take away our guilt, our shame, our resentment, and even our disappointment with God. Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Surrender whatever it is to the almighty Lamb of God. He alone can carry your burden. He alone will take it away.