BEHOLD: THE LAMB OF GOD
One of the most astonishing titles of Jesus Christ in the Gospels that relate to his mission of saving mankind is the Lamb of God who takes always the sins of the whole world. Jesus Christ is the sacrificial lamb who willingly offered Him to God to atone for our sins. It was the purpose of God for Him to be the immaculate, innocent and obedient lamb that gave up Himself for all.
The fact is that we are all born for a purpose or with a mission even if we live short or long on the earth. John the Baptist’s mission was to show Christ to the world. While Christ’s mission is to save the world by sacrificing Himself.
JESUS´ LIFE IN ORDINARY TIME
Once again, we are in the Ordinary Time of the Liturgical year, it is a season of growth, development and flourishment in our Christian life. A life that challenges and calls us to imitate Christ.
Hence, in the Ordinary Time of the Church´s liturgical calendar, we celebrate the ministry of Christ: life, work, teaching and mission with a universal green colour of revelatory experience that symbolizes hope, life, growth and nature.
The second Sunday of the ordinary time depicts a momentous beginning of the public life, work, teaching and mission of Jesus Christ. It is a new beginning for us too to live and grow within the graceful life of God and his Church.
OUR THEMES
The most principal theme is the mission of Christ as the Lamb of God. The readings of today present us with this theme: God´s purpose for us!
The readings of this Sunday present us with the messianic image of Christ who came to save us and restore us to the fullness of life in God. The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.
FIRST READING: ISAIAH 49: 3, 5-6
The Prophecy of Isaiah. 49: 3, 5-6, reaffirms how God call and chooses us from the inception of our earthly life, and empowers us to be Light to the nations bearing his Salvation to all corners of the earth. As Christians, our calling is to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth. Mt. 5:13-16
Therefore, the first reading from Isaiah 49: 3,5-6 Christ is the glorified servant to bring the light of God to the people of Israel and through them to rest of the world, all nations and ends of the earth. This is a universal salvation.
SECOND READING: 1 CORINTHIANS 1: 1-3
St. Paul acknowledges his calling as an apostle of Christ to the Body of Christ: the Church sanctified and made holy according to Grace and Peace in Christ Jesus.
St. Paul identifies himself as an apostle of Christ with the believers of Corinth as a “community of saints,” sanctified in Christ Jesus. A people called to live a life of grace and peace in the Trinitarian God who reconciled the whole to God.
THE GOSPEL: JOHN 1: 29- 34.
The Gospel account presents John´s mission of baptizing and showing the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. As well as declaring Jesus’ mission to save the world. The Christian life is a calling to be light, the channel of grace, peace and salvation as well as authentic witnessing to the Saviour of the World.
The gospel of John 1:29-34 gives us an account of the beginning of Jesus’ life, work, teaching and mission and John the Baptist´s testimony, manifestation and identification of Christ as the Lamb of God and the Son of God.
THE CONCEPT OF THE LAMB OF GOD
In the Old Testament, the Lamb was used as a sacrifice for the atonement of sins. Sacrifices were offered by the priest using the blood of the lambs in the Old Testament for the purification of the people. So the lamb was used in the Old Testament to reconcile people with God. When the Israelites were about to leave Egypt, God instructed Moses to mark the doorpost of the Israelites and God said “When I see the blood I will pass away.” It was the blood of the lamb that saved the people of God from death and slavery while they were in Egypt.
In the New Testament, Jesus Christ is the true Lamb of God who willingly offered Himself on the cross to set us free. God appointed Jesus as the sacrifice of our reconciliation. The blood of Jesus is more than the blood of the Lamb in the Old Testament. Scripture says in Hebrews 9:22 that without the shedding of the blood, there will be no remission of sins. The blood of Jesus takes away every sin and purifies us.
THE SYMBOL OF THE LAMB
1. The Lamb of Atonement (Leviticus 16:20-22). A lamb was brought to the Temple on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). Placing his hands over its head, the high priest transferred all the sins of his people onto the animal. It was then sent into the forest to be killed by some wild animal.
2. The Lamb of Daily Atonement (Tamid [“standing,” perpetual, continual] Sacrifice) — (Ex 29:38-42; Nm 28:1-8). One lamb was sacrificed on the “Black Altar” of the Temple every morning and another was sacrificed every evening to make a continuous sacrifice to atone for the sins of the Jews.
3. The Paschal Lamb (Ex. 12:11ss), the blood of which saved the firstborn of the Jewish families in Egypt from the Angel of destruction. This lamb reminded them also of the Paschal Lamb which they killed every year on the Passover Feast.
4. The Lamb of the Prophets which portrayed One who, by His sacrifice, would redeem His people: “The gentle lamb led to the slaughterhouse” (Jeremiah 11:19), “like a lamb to the slaughter” (Is 53:7). Both refer to the sufferings and sacrifice of Christ.
5. The Lamb of the Conquerors. This was the picture of a horned lamb on the Jewish flag at the time of the Maccabean liberation war, used as a sign of conquering majesty and power.
6. The Lamb of God: John the Baptist introduced Jesus to the Jews as the “Lamb of God” on the second day (John 1:29). He repeats it on the third day. “Lamb of God” is the most meaningful title given to Jesus in the Bible. It is used 29 times in the book of Revelation. It sums up the love, sacrifice, and triumph of Christ. John’s introduction probably brought five pictures of the “lamb” to the minds of his Jewish listeners. The great Jewish conquerors like Samuel, David, and Solomon were described by ancient Jewish historians as “horned lambs.”
JOHN´S TESTIMONY
When John the Baptist saw Jesus, he pointed him to the people. We must make a conscious effort to make God known to those around us. If you have a friend and you have not told him about Jesus for the last week, then there is something wrong with that friendship. For us to show Jesus to others we must know him and experience him. Until we experience Jesus personally, others cannot experience Jesus through us.
MISSION OF CHRIST
The Lamb of God came for many reasons. One is to reconcile us to God. Secondly, to make God’s grace available to us, to forgive us our sins. There is no sin that the blood of Jesus cannot cleanse. Through Jesus, we can now receive forgiveness from God through Jesus Christ. Jesus came to heal us both physically and emotionally.
Jesus came as the Lamb of God to give us hope and salvation and that is why during his earthly ministry, he was seen associating with public sinners, social outcasts, and tax collectors. He did this to bring hope to them. We should know that the Lamb of God came to restore humanity to God and to make us heirs of the kingdom.
The phrase the “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” presents us with one of the most precious titles of Christ. One that sums up his mission of love, sacrifice, suffering and triumph of Christ through his passion, death and resurrection.
WITNESSING TO THE LIGHT OR LAMB OF GOD
The truth is how difficult it is today to witness to the Light amidst the darkness and the truth amidst inauthenticity. Like the Psalmist, may we always have the courage and willingness to declare openly, Lord, here, am to do your will.
In other words, we are challenged to live like the Lamb of God and to die like the Lamb of God, and thus bear witness to Christ the “Lamb of God.” We have to choose to accept John’s testimony in today’s Gospel as God’s personal and corporate call to us to become witnesses to the Lamb of God.
OUR PRAYER
Lord Jesus Christ, you are the Lamb of God and equally the Son of God whom the palmist acclaimed “Here am I Lord, I come to do your will”. Like Christ may we live a life of dignified “sonship” and “daughtership” and may our lives be a pour-out oblation in our daily efforts, sufferings and sacrifices to do your will. Amen
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