Jesus the Lamb, part 2

Let’s look together at our main Bible passage for this week: John 1:29-36 “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the One I meant when I said, ‘A Man who comes after me has surpassed me because He was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know Him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that He might be revealed to Israel.’ 32 Then John gave this testimony: ‘I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on Him. 33 I would not have known Him, except that the One who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The Man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is He who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God.’ 35 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God!’” NIV. 
 

I find it incredible to think that God would want to have a relationship with His fallen Creation. It’s incredible to think that no matter how many times we have rejected His Word and commands that He would still provide a way through sacrifice and worship to maintain a relationship with Him through human priests offering up sacrifices. But it’s even more incredible to think that God would send, His own Son, to provide the ultimate sacrifice for our sins, through His own death.   

This is the incredible message of Advent. It is incredible to think that God would even want to fool with us, His rebellious children, who have traded mansions of glory He has provided us with the pigpen of sin and evil. Although it is not a surprise that He desires to rule us with love and grace, it’s incredible to think that He sent a humble carpenter’s Son to be the ruler of our lives instead of a conquering king with armies by his side. It is even more incredible to know that He allows us to choose His Kingdom with a broken heart and a willing spirit. This is the incredible message of Advent. 

In my opinion, though, the most incredible message of Advent of all is how Jesus came. You would think that when the God of the universe came to the earth He would choose to come represented by power, might, and irresistible force. Yet, that is not how God chose to be represented.

When kings of old would choose a symbol to represent their empire, they usually chose one that symbolized power and strength. King Richard was known as “Lion heart,” not the Kitty-cat-hearted. A king might choose a wild boar, a fierce bear, a mighty dragon, or a muscular bull. Our nation, too, has chosen a proud creature to represent us. Benjamin Franklin suggested that our national symbol be the wild turkey because of its intelligence and cunning. Honestly, I can’t imagine a turkey on the Presidential Seal or on our coins; it’s a good thing that cooler heads prevailed and our symbol is the impressive bald eagle instead. And our sports teams want impressive representatives: a frightening wildcat, the stealthy panther, the resilient bulldog, and even an awesome threat of a swarm of Yellow Jackets. We think of representative animals as those who exhibit pride, strength, determination or resolve.

Continued tomorrow