THE LAMB AND THE CROSS John 1:1-3, 14-18, 29 April 12, 2015 Providence INTRODUCTION: A fine portrait begins with a few non-descript strokes that do not always give away the meticulous details of the final masterpiece. ILLUS. When Cathy and I went to Italy a couple of years ago, we expected to see the work of the master artists, but what can compare to seeing Michelangelo s Pieta or Moses or David or Bernini s David for the first time in person? [show photos] But each masterpiece began with sketches, sometimes clay or wax models, each initial step intended to begin the revelation of something far greater than anyone else could have imagined! God created the world by speaking all things into existence, each detail generated by nothing more than the infinite creativity of His mind. But when He wanted to draw a picture for us, His creatures, He chose to unveil the details in the fullness of time (Galatians 4:4) one of the most glorious themes of the Bible the story of the Lamb of God the story of the cross of Christ revealed in memorable fashion by introducing us to the theme of the Lamb! THESIS: So great is the Father s love for us that before the foundation of the world He prepared a way for us to be reconciled He sent His Son to be our Sacrificial Lamb. In order to do that, He had to have the end in mind before the beginning. He knew what He was going to do, how and why He was going to do it and from the beginning of His Word He begins to show us what the Lamb would mean for those who would trust in Him. I. A PLAN IN PLACE BEFORE THE FOUNDATION OF THE WORLD --As the gospel of John begins, we are introduced to Jesus as the eternal, living Word of God. John 1:1-3 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. --But instead of remaining at an indifferent distance, God chose to engage at the most personal and intimate level a decision to become flesh and dwell among us. John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. --This much has already been understood by most people familiar with the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. --But what is amazing to me is that God had arranged to send His Son to save sinners from condemnation before the first sinner was even born! --In fact, so great was the love of God that He prepared a way for us to know Him before the foundation of the earth! Eph. 1:3-4 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. ILLUS. We parents think we have planned ahead if we start a college saving plan for our children before they are born! We congratulate ourselves on how much we love our children because we started praying for a godly spouse before they were conceived. We consider ourselves incredibly loving with every action taken to make their lives rich with blessing and especially if we planned ahead to do so! But consider what God has done!! Before the foundation of the world, He planned for Jesus, His Son, to become flesh and dwell among us and for Him to die to pay the penalty for our sins!
2 --Is this notion foreign to you? That God has not only known but has prepared for your salvation before the world began? Matt. 25:34 Then the King will say to those on his right, Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. Heb. 4:3 For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said, As I swore in my wrath, They shall not enter my rest, although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. --Our God is awesome! in love in power in wisdom in grace He had made a way for us to know Him and prepared that way with great care and precision before the world even existed!! II. A WAY UNVEILED THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE NARRATIVE OF HIS WORD --Some people have assumed that sending Jesus Christ to save the world was Plan B a divine response to an unanticipated problem presented when the first human beings chose sin and death. --But as we have seen already, before that ever happened, the plan was already at work in the heart and mind of God and He chose to reveal it all through the Scriptures, releasing more and more specific details until the fullness of time came to unveil it all! --The Master Design appeared from the beginning, but the image was not understood right away just as an artist sketches an outline of what is to come long before filling in the details to complete the picture. ILLUS. As a non-artist I am intrigued by those who have the talent to create an image with a pencil, pen or brush or to shape a figure, sculpt a form, with a chisel and a hammer. --God wanted us to know and understand what He was preparing for the forgiviness of our sins, so He planted the images right before our eyes from Genesis to Revelation, He sketched and filled in details that we will only see in final form when we get to heaven and see face to face the perfect image of His Son, our Savior. III. A PARTICULAR THEME UNFOLDING GOD S PLAN OF REDEMPTION --J. Sidlow Baxter's book, The Master Theme of the Bible, helped me tremendously in understanding the development of the details of this subject and much of what I am sharing I owe to his insights. A. PROGRESSION OF THE THEME --The Lamb of God theme which runs throughout the scripture gathers more substance as each passage unfolds. --Like an artist beginning to fill in the details of his painting, so the Lord takes the basic outline of the picture of the Lamb and develops His theme, gradually filling in details as He goes. --The portrait we see cannot be fully comprehended if we leave any part of the painting out anymore than a jigsaw puzzle can be fully appreciated until all the pieces are in place. Hebrews 1:1-2--God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son..." --The complete picture cannot be seen until the Lord has opened up the full view for us to see. B. PRESENTATION OF THE LAMB 1. Necessity of the Lamb --The offering of Cain had nothing in it of confessed sin, only of a religious ritual. --Abel's offering was acceptable because it expressed an identification of his sin with the "sin-offering". --The lamb was necessary for the sin-offering to be made.
3 Genesis 4:2-5. And Abel was a keeper of flocks, but Cain was a tiller of the ground. So it came about in the course of time that Cain brought an offering to the Lord of the fruit of the ground. And Abel, on his part also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of their fat portions. And the Lord had regard for Abel and for his offering; but for Cain and for his offering He had no regard. So Cain became very angry and his countenance fell. 2. Provision of the Lamb --Still in Genesis, we next see the lamb as God provides a substitute to take the place of Isaac, son of Abraham. Genesis 22:6-14 the two of them walked on together. And Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, "My father!" And he said, "Here I am, my son." And he said, "Behold, the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?" And Abraham said, "God will provide for Himself the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." So the two of them walked on together. Then they came to the place of which God had told him; and Abraham built the altar there, and arranged the wood, and bound his son Isaac, and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. And Abraham stretched out his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, and said, "Abraham, Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am." And he said, "Do not stretch out your hand against the lad, and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me." Then Abraham raised his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him a ram caught in the thicket by his horns; and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the place of his son. And Abraham called the name of that place The Lord Will Provide, as it is said to this day, "In the mount of the Lord it will be provided." --The Lord made provision of a lamb with the ram in the thicket for Abraham to be a substitute for Isaac. --God has committed Himself to provide a Lamb, a commitment made before the foundation of the world. 1 Peter 1:20 For He was foreknown before the foundation of the world, but has appeared in these last times for (your) sake... 3. Slaying of the Lamb --After nine plagues, God gave warning to Moses and the children of Israel that the angel of death would pass through the land and bring death to the first-born of every household except the Israelites who took a lamb, killed it and put its blood on the doorposts of their house. Exodus 12:5-7 'Your lamb shall be an unblemished male a year old; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats. 'And you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month, then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel is to kill it at twilight. 'Moreover, they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. --At the Passover, the blood of the lamb was taken and placed over the the door, just as the Lamb of God was slain and His blood was placed over our sin to save us from the death our sin deserved. --Our redemption, our salvation cannot be by the good example Jesus modeled for us, nor by His wonderful teaching, but by His shed blood! 4. Character of the Lamb --In the previous account, the lamb had to be unblemished, without defect, in order for its blood to be effective for death to pass over the house. --Now, more particularly, the emphasis is given in the regular offerings to be presented as sacrifices for sin the offering could not be a left-over, unwanted, marginal lamb but an unblemished one.
4 Leviticus 22:17-19 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to Aaron and to his sons and to all the sons of Israel, and say to them, 'Any man of the house of Israel or of the aliens in Israel who presents his offering, whether it is any of their votive or any of their freewill offerings, which they present to the Lord for a burnt offering-- for you to be accepted-- it must be a male without defect from the cattle, the sheep, or the goats. --At least twenty times in Leviticus, we are told that the sacrifice lamb must be without spot or blemish so that the Lord is not dishonored with an unworthy sacrifice. --Therefore, we should expect that the Lamb of God would be without blemish as well--that He be without sin, as only Jesus Christ could be. 5. Personality of the Lamb --Up to this point, the lamb had always clearly been an animal, but now the "it" becomes "He", identifying the Lamb with a person a prophecy concerning the coming Messiah. Isaiah 53:6-7 All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall on Him. He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth; like a lamb that is led to slaughter, and like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, so He did not open His mouth. --The impersonal ritual of presenting lambs now became very personal as the Lamb is identified with a person, the Messiah who was to come a sobering realization that the Substitute for sin would be someone not just something! ILLUS. If we are not careful, we can reduce the atoning sacrifice provided for us to nothing more than an idea, nothing personal about it. Once we see the Lamb in person, the sacrifice for our sin becomes intensely personal and engages the heart as well as the mind belief in Him has an emotional component, not just an intellectual assent. The difference is overwhelming! If you don't know the one who suffers your response is different college students killed in Kenya have a different impact on us than if it were on the campus of those we know. Tornadoes in Illinois have a different impact than ones causing pain and destruction in Raleigh! Once a lamb becomes the Lamb of God, in person, the sacrifice becomes personal we find our hearts connecting in a human way, a compassionate way, and we feel the sacrifice as an act of intimate love something that does not happen with a religious ritual comes to life when the Lamb is Jesus! 6. Recognition of the Lamb --Now as we move into the New Testament, we find that the Lamb is not only understood to be a Person, but is recognized as the Lamb of God personally in Jesus Christ. John 1:29, 36 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, Behold, the Lamb of God! --John the Baptist recognizes Jesus as the long-awaited Lamb who would take away the sins of the world. 7. Identification of the Lamb --A deacon named Philip found an Ethiopian official reading from Isaiah and showed him that the lamb in the passage was none other than Jesus Himself. Acts 8:32-37 Now the passage of Scripture which he was reading was this: "He was led as a sheep to slaughter; And as a lamb before its shearer is silent, So He does not open His mouth. "In humiliation His judgment was taken away; Who shall relate His generation? For His life is removed from the earth." And Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him. [And Philip said, "If you believe with all your heart, you may." And he answered and said, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."]
5 --Here in this passage, the Lamb of Isaiah is identified as the Messiah, the Christ, and not just as the man Jesus from Nazareth. --This proclamation was an amazing revelation for the Hebrews who were looking for a different kind of Messiah than a sacrifice Lamb, but one which perfectly fulfilled the Word in the Old Testament. 8. Resurrection of the Lamb --Now, having established that the Lamb of God was to be slain, the continuation of the unveiling of God s plan shows that the Lamb would be raised from the dead, alive and glorified! 1 Peter 1:18-19, 21 a lamb unblemished Who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. --The character of the Lamb in Leviticus is affirmed at a higher level here in 1 Peter the Lamb who was slain was a sinless Sacrifice, setting Him apart from every other human being. --In the Old, we are also told about the death of the Lamb, but here and in the gospels we see that the Lord intended more than just a death for sin; He intended a resurrection to new life to be received in place of the one who died. --The sinless and perfect Sacrifice was put to death, but God bore witness to His holy and pure character by raising Him from the dead, resurrected to everlasting life! --There is in this a wonderful element of hope for all who put their trust in the Lamb of God. 9. Enthronement of the Lamb Revelation 5:11, 12 And I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne...saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing." --This same Lamb who was silent before those who led Him to be slaughtered, who was submissive to the actions of sinful men against Him, who gave Himself up willingly to be slain...this same Lamb we see here enthroned in glory awaiting the word from the Father to come again for those who believe in His name! --The cross and the crown--both elements suited to the eternal purposes of the Lord God for His Lamb! 10. Endless Kingship of the Lamb --What a story! --After the return of the Lamb of God, He will be exalted to reign forever and ever in the heaven and the new earth. Revelation 19:6b-7--Hallelujah! For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns. Let us rejoice and be glad and give glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready... Revelation 21:10b, 22-23; 22:1--...And he showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, having the glory of God...and I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God, the Almighty, and the Lamb, are its temple. And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine upon it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb...And he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb... --But this is much more than a story, it is the reality of the eternal plan of the Almighty God to provide a Lamb for His people, One in whom we can put our trust, One upon whom we can depend to be faithful and true!
6 --The portrait painted for us by the Lord in the unfolding of this revelation communicates to us a vivid picture of the exact and perfect provision He has made in the Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. --He has Opened the Portrait up for us through the Development of the Detail we have seen in each passage relating to various aspects of the Lamb. CONCLUSION: The final scenes have not yet come to pass. What is said of the Lamb in Revelation is still to come. But the work of the Lamb of God on the cross is finished the sentence to the grave has been finished the resurrection in victory over sin and death has been accomplished and there is no doubt that one day soon perhaps,the Lamb will appear on the throne, reigning over all. Such a glorious plan and a comprehensive provision for the salvation of a lost and hopeless people! God has prepared it all with the simple sacrifice of a lamb, His Lamb put to death in our place to take away the sins of the world! John the Baptist spoke powerfully beyond his own circumstances when he uttered those simple words: Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world! May we look upon Him in awe that His love and sacrifice were there for us before the foundation of the world! Eph. 1:3-4 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. Consider the cross behold the Lamb and come to Jesus Christ, God s Son, and enter into the life He has prepared for you in His name and by His blood! February 9, 2014 Providence Baptist Church David Horner, 2015 Sermon outlines are copyrighted in the event of future publication. They may be used for preaching and teaching purposes but may not be published or sold.