“On the next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!’” —John 1:29
In love, God abolished the payment for sin and its wretched control over man through the blood of Jesus the Lamb of God. Through Jesus, God provided the way for the sinner to be spared for those who would believe in His Son. Jesus was sent by the Father that He might be the Savior of men. God made Jesus sin for us to save us and to once again restore our relationship with Him, allowing us access into His presence through prayer and unshackling our chains from the bondage of sin and its deadly effects. Paul puts it this way:
“And all these things are from God who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and who has given us the ministry of reconciliation. In other words, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting people’s trespasses against them, and he has given us the message of reconciliation. Therefore we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making his plea through us. We plead with you on Christ’s behalf, ‘Be reconciled to God!’ God made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we would become the righteousness of God.” —2 Corinthians 5:18–21
John the Baptist calls us to look at Jesus, the precious Lamb who takes away the sin of this world, desiring for us to increase our hatred of sin and our love for our Lord Jesus. Notice that John uses the word “takes” instead of “taken.” This implies a continuous action; Jesus is continuously taking away sin as we turn to Him in repentance.
John saw Jesus as the sacrificial lamb who takes away the sin of the world by taking that sin upon himself on the cross. Therefore, sin is no longer to be the habitual way of life for the believer in Christ. Continued sin is the product of ignorance and blindness towards God and all He has done for us. It clearly demonstrates our lack of love and appreciation for Him for even men do not think highly of a love that never shows itself in action.
“And you know that Jesus was revealed to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. Everyone who resides in him does not sin; everyone who sins has neither seen him nor known him.” —1 John 3:5–6
“Do not become partners with those who do not believe, for what partnership is there between righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship does light have with darkness?” —2 Corinthians 6:14
“He himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for our sins but also for the whole world.” —1 John 2:2
Become More
“For this is the way God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world should be saved through him.” —John 3:16–17
Are you truly living your life in the freedom you have through the saving grace of Jesus?
Further Reflections
“Sin will yield to nothing less potent than the blood of Him whom God hath set forth as a propitiation.” —C. H. Spurgeon
“The genius of Christianity takes the words of Paul ‘who gave himself for our sins’ as true and efficacious. We are not to look upon our sins as insignificant trifles. On the other hand, we are not to regard them as so terrible that we must despair. Learn to believe that Christ was given not for picayune [petty] and imaginary transgressions, but for mountainous sins; not for one or two, but for all; not for sins that can be discarded, but for sins that are stubbornly ingrained.” —Martin Luther