Pastor Hugh's Monthly Meditation
Click Here for Other Meditations
BEHOLD THE LAMB OF GOD
Throughout the Old and New Testaments there is an image that holds important and powerful symbolic value: that of the sacrificial lamb. Perhaps rooted in a pre-biblical religious impulse to find a way to appease the gods through offering sacrifices, the sacrificial lamb is first found in the story of Cain and Abel (where Abel’s offering of a lamb is regarded favorably by God, whereas the offering of grain by Cain is not.) Noah, immediately following the flood, offers a sacrificed lamb upon his newly built altar. A sacrificed lamb is at the heart of the story of Israel’s exodus from Egypt and continues to be a integral part of the religious rituals that are centered in the Temple in Jerusalem.
Click on image to see a larger view of St. Paul’s "Lamb of God Window", in a separate window.
The prophet Isaiah uses the sacrificed lamb as a symbol of the Suffering Servant who suffers on our behalf and was “like a lamb that is led to the slaughter.” (Isaiah 53:7)
With these examples serving as its background, the New Testament, starting with John the Baptist, begins to see Jesus not only as the “Good Shepherd”, but as the “Lamb of God” as well. The Baptist exclaims in John 1:29, referring to Jesus and his future self-sacrifice, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” John’s Gospel goes out of its way to portray Jesus as the Lamb of God by having his crucifixion (thus his sacrifice) take place on the day of preparation (John 19:31), that is, the day immediately prior to Passover when the lambs were slaughtered in preparation for Passover. For John, Jesus is the new Paschal Lamb.
And in the book of Revelation, the description of Jesus as the Lamb who was slain is found throughout. Those who have died in the faith have “washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” (Rev. 7:14) The new Jerusalem is described as a place where “the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, [flows] from the throne of God and of the Lamb”. (Emphasis added.) In fact, of the 36 places where the word "lamb" is found in the New Testament, all but 2 refer directly to Jesus, and of these 28 are found in Revelation.
We live in a day when ritual animal sacrifices seem cruel and inhumane. Thus it can be difficult for us to relate to Jesus as the Lamb of God who, through his self-sacrifice, took away our sin. Yet this is precisely what our “Lamb of God” window is trying to tell us. The cross held by one leg points to his death by crucifixion. An innocent and spotless “lamb” is sacrificed through crucifixion so that we who are neither innocent nor spotless (sin-wise) might live. Christ’s life is given for you and me. This “happy exchange,” as Luther called it, is the Good News that forms the central core of our Christian faith.
I imagine it is hard for some to accept or relate to this ancient symbol. Yet just because it has ancient roots doesn’t minimize its truth: as John puts it, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” (3:16)
Let us behold the lamb of God! And let us give thanks!
Hugh R. B. Haffenreffer
Pastor
January 2008
Click Here for Other Meditations
|
