40 Days of Prayer

Lamb of God 

"The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is the one I meant when I said, 'A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.' I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel." Then John gave this testimony: "I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 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.' I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God." John 1:29-34 NIV

He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living,    stricken for the transgression of my people? Isaiah 53:7-8 ESV

In the gospel of John Jesus called himself the good shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep. He is the good shepherd who became the lamb of God sacrificed for us. It was prophesied by Isaiah, proclaimed by John and fulfilled by Jesus. This matters because the gospel is not some random act of God "fixing" things man screwed up. God's work and plan in redemption from the beginning seeks to reconcile men to Him. Why? Because it pleased him to do so. Paul says in 1 Corinthians that men could not come to know God in their own wisdom and He chose what is foolish so men could not boast in themselves (1 Corinthians 1:18-31).

The gospel will always be foolishness to those who reject it. The idea of an all-powerful God becoming a man and dying to "save" men from themselves is crazy. But for those who believe it is the power of God (1 Cor. 1:1). It is the testimony of a God who was pleased to reconcile men to Himself (Col. 1:19-20). It is a powerful statement of God's great love for his people.

Prayer: Paul Miller refers to Jesus as the "Love that Walked Among Us." He meets the deepest need within us. Pray for your own revival of understanding Jesus' love for you.