THE LAMB OF GOD
Posted by: bhfbc <bhfbc@...>
TEXT: Revelation 5:1-14
Everyone here knows as well as I do that there are many, many active religions today. Indeed, over the span of the known history of the world, there have probably been thousands of religions that have come and gone. We know of the major religions that have made it into textbooks or news reports for one reason or another. Among the major religions today, we list Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Christianity. Some may include Scientology these days since some high profile actors and actresses have gotten involved in that. And we can conceivably include belief systems that deny the existence of a deity, such as secularism and straight out atheism. Those are belief systems that some people cling to faithfully and zealously. Whether we have heard of them or not, there are hundreds more religions and belief systems than these few that make the list of major religions.
In our culture today, more than at any other time, there is truly a smorgasbord of religions to choose from. Since we live in a nation that does not impose a government sanctioned religion on the citizens, we feel free to choose any religion we see fit. There is no stigma attached to being Buddhist or Hindu or Muslim or even nothing at all. From a human point of view, one belief can be as good as another.
In spite of all the religious equivalency rhetoric we hear, though, Christianity is differentiated from the other religions and belief systems in several important and unique ways. The first and foremost way in which Christianity is differentiated from other belief systems is the figure who the Church celebrates especially on Easter Sunday Jesus Christ.
To the best of my knowledge, no other religion can tolerate a god who lives among his people as a human. Jesus not only did that, he also became for his people the only sacrifice that could restore his people to the proper relationship with God. In other words, God saves us by doing for us what we cannot do for ourselves. It is this truth that led Paul to write in 1 Corinthians 1:18, 22-25, For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God Jews demand miraculous signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than mans wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than mans strength.
Revelation 5 proclaims and confirms that Jesus is fully human and fully divine. Jesus is both man and God. This is not something that we can explain, but it remains a distinct reality of the Christian faith. John relates in verse 4, Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. Earlier, in Revelation 4, John described the scene of the throne in heaven. This is a description of the sovereignty and majesty of God, who is described in terms of the brilliance of precious jewels. This is a God that even other religions can relate: distinct and separate from humanity. Fully divine.
When John describes the Lamb standing in the center of the throne, however, a different image is cast. This image describes a God who is vulnerable, for John sees not only a Lamb, but a Lamb looking as if it had been slain. From Isaiah 53:7 we read, He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. A lamb is one of the acceptable sin offerings described in Leviticus 4:32: If he brings a lamb as his sin offering, he is to bring a female without defect. He is to lay his hand upon its head and slaughter it for a sin offering at the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered.
John describes for us, then, a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne. The Lamb, of course, is Jesus, and this represents two important truths about him. The first is his humanity. Only as human could Jesus suffer for our sake. Only as human could Jesus live in full obedience and devotion to the Father. Only as human could Jesus be condemned as a criminal and sacrificed for our sake. But this is also a Lamb on the throne. This signifies that Jesus is fully divine, for only God can occupy the heavenly throne. Only as God could Jesus bear the sins of His people and thus restore them us into full fellowship with God. Fully human; fully divine. This is what separates the truth of God in Christ apart from the contrivances of other world religions.
The second important truth about Jesus to which John bears testimony is that Jesus is our sacrifice. The Lamb of God is our sacrifice. Why dont we just continue using the sacrificial system as commanded by God in Leviticus? Because even though established by God, it required a response by man. And man messed it up. The sacrifices offered from the herds and flocks were supposed to be the best. They were supposed to be unblemished. But true to our nature, man got to interfering with Gods instructions. After all, choosing the best as a sacrifice to God could be costly. The best could represent the best for breeding or the best for selling at market. There are plenty of other good bulls in the herd and good sheep in the flock. Ill bring one of them as a sacrifice to God. I can make better use of the best. You can see how that attitude leads to other errant beliefs. In due course, these same children of God convinced themselves that they could worship both God and foreign idols. Man messed up the sacrificial system that God established.
Additionally, the sacrifices were to be brought to and offered by the Priests on behalf of the people. The Priests of Israel were supposed to be a lineage of the tribe set apart for this special service to God. They were to be humble before God and treat the people with the compassion of God. Unfortunately, many times throughout their history, the Hebrew Priesthood became corrupted. There were those who served for their glory instead of for the glory of God. They used their position for purposes of personal power. Oh, they took the sacrifices and made the offerings, but they were not living the life God expected of them. Man messed up the sacrificial system that God established.
Since God still loved us too much to allow us to self-destruct, He did what was necessary to correct the situation. Man still needs a sin offering because we still sin. But man messed up the sacrificial system that God established, so God provided the only possible solution. Jesus, the Lamb of God, is our sacrifice. He is our perfect sacrifice. Why did God do it this way? So that we cannot mess up the sacrifice necessary for the forgiveness of our sin.
When John tells us that he saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, we are to understand that God has provided Himself the perfect, unblemished sacrifice. And here is the best news: man cannot mess it up! We cannot mess up the sacrifice made on our behalf by the Lamb of God.
This is good news. It is not good news that we sin and need a sacrifice to atone for our sin. But it is good news that God loves us so much that He provided the ultimate sacrifice for our salvation. And it is incredibly good news that man can no longer mess up the sacrifice. I know that we have heard it frequently, but try to capture the meaning here anew: we cannot save ourselves by our works of righteousness because, before God, we have no righteousness. Historically, we have proved that with each command that God has given us. As I have said, man messed up the very system that God established to restore us to Him. So God provided the fix. Praise God, then, that man can no longer mess up the sacrifice. Man can no longer turn it into an act of selfishness. Man can no longer restrict who receives salvation and who does not. Jesus Christ, the perfect Lamb of God, has made himself the atoning sacrifice for anyone and everyone who believes.
Revelation 5:9 begins, And they sang a new song. What did Jesus offer to his disciples on the night of his betrayal? A new covenant. His body and his blood became the means of our restoration to God. Nowhere in that proclamation was there any indication that anyone is prohibited from receiving full forgiveness for his or her sin. It is a new covenant that is universal in its scope. This means that anyone who sets his or her stubborn pride and will aside and confesses and believes that Jesus has saved us from sin is redeemed. There is no ethnic qualification; there is no cultural qualification; there is no geographic qualification; there is no human qualification that we can construct that can mess up the sacrifice made for us by the Lamb of God. Listen to the new song that John recorded for us, You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. Do you hear any limitations there? There are none, because Jesus is the perfect Lamb of God.
This is what Easter is all about. It is the recognition and celebration that God has saved His people. It is the recognition and celebration that God has overcome our rebellion. It is the recognition and celebration that God has triumphed over sin and death. How do you make Easter the day of your celebration? Through the simple act of faith. Confess to God that you are a sinner. Believe that Jesus who suffered, died, and rose again to life has washed away your sin by his very blood. In that moment, the sacrifice of the perfect Lamb of God becomes your perfect sacrifice, and you receive forgiveness and pardon from our loving Heavenly Father. Dont delay; believe today.
First Baptist Church
Bunker Hill, Indiana
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