“The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.’” John 1:29-30
This word portrait of Jesus speaks to humanity’s most desperate need, atonement for sin. The numerous Old Testament allusions in this section help us grasp the rich significance of His coming in this capacity. We first see the significance of the events in John’s response to the priests and Levites from Jerusalem. These came at the behest of the Pharisees to find out who this man was in the wilderness causing such a stir among the people (John 1:19-28).
Their inquiries all stem from Old Testament anticipation of God’s saving work in the age of the Messiah. John was clear that he was not the Messiah, literally God’s anointed (Psalms 2:2; Isaiah 61:1; Zechariah 6:12-15; Luke 2:25-26; John 4:25). Likewise, when they asked if he was Elijah, he denied such position (cf. Malachi 4:5; Matthew 11:11-15). Finally, he denied being “the Prophet,” a clear allusion to Deuteronomy 18:15-18 foreshadowing the Prophet like Moses who would come deliver God’s full and final law. John was clear that he came as Isaiah’s promised forerunner of the Messiah (Isaiah 40:3), sent to turn the people back towards the Lord in preparation for His arrival.
As for the primary declaration in this discussion, the history of the sacrificial lamb in worship to God and atonement for sin forms the crucial foundation of this descriptor. As the Hebrews writer stated it, “And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission” (Hebrews 9:22). Beginning in Genesis 4:4, animal sacrifice becomes prominent in God’s dealings with mankind. God commended Abel’s sacrifice from the firstborn of his flock because it was done “by faith” (Hebrews 11:4). This means he heard it from the Lord, though the conversation is not recorded for us in Scripture (cf. Romans 10:17).
Moving forward in the biblical text, the Passover lamb was essential for God to spare the firstborn among the Israelites when He struck down all the firstborn in Egypt as the tenth and final plague which secured Israel’s release (Exodus 12). Paul explicitly connected Jesus’ sacrifice to this event, stating that “…indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us” (1 Corinthians 5:7). In this way, God is able to “pass over” us in the judgment when the second death is meted out (cf. Romans 6:23).
The daily sacrifices were offered to keep the children of Israel near to God and the tabernacle sanctified to allow Him to meet them there (Exodus 29:38-42). The day of atonement in Leviticus 16 really brings the notion of sanctification and release from guilt to its Old Testament zenith, but even this atonement was forward facing and preparatory for the true Lamb of God to “…take away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Though the faithful of the Old Testament were forgiven of their sins when they offered the blood sacrifices, it was only so because the blood of Christ was planned from eternity (Hebrews 9:11-15, 28; 10:1-14; 1 Peter 1:18-20; Revelation 13:8).
Because of this work, we have redemption by His blood, the forgiveness of sins (Ephesians 1:7). The beauty of this outcome cannot be overstated. His sacrifice removes our guilt from sin entirely, striking them from God’s record of things (Psalms 103:11-12; Hebrews 8:12). Such allows us to enter His presence boldly to receive the help only He can provide (Hebrews 4:14-16). There is only one lamb of God who can bring about these blessings (cf. John 14:6). For this, may we once again echo Thomas as we declare Jesus is “my Lord and my God” (John 20:28) in both word and deed (Luke 6:46).