The Lamb Of God

The Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter. . . . He poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. —Isaiah 53:6–7, 12

Jesus’ last meal with his disciples departed from the script in another way too. When Jesus stood up to bless the food, he held up bread. All Passover meals had bread. He blessed the wine—all Passover meals had wine. But not one of the Gospels mentions a main course. There is no mention of lamb at this Passover meal. Passover was not a vegetarian meal, of course. What kind of Passover would be celebrated without lamb? There was no lamb on the table because the Lamb of God was at the table. Jesus was the main course. That’s the reason that when John the Baptist saw Jesus for the first time, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). [. . .] In Mark, when Jesus says, “This is my body. . . . This is my blood . . . poured out,” he means: I’m the One that Isaiah and John spoke about. I am the Lamb of God to which all the other lambs pointed, the Lamb that takes away the sin of the world. On the cross Jesus got what we deserved: The sin, guilt, and brokenness of the world fell upon him. He loved us so much he took divine justice on himself so that we could be passed over, forever. It bears repeating: All love, all real, life-changing love, is substitutionary sacrifice.
Keller, Timothy. Go Forward in Love : A Year of Daily Readings from Timothy Keller, Zondervan, 2024. ProQuest Ebook Central, http://ebookcentral.proquest.com/lib/liberty/detail.action?docID=31518558.
Created from liberty on 2025-03-27 16:40:15.