Worship was once a bloody affair. In the book of Leviticus, the worship life of the Old Testament people is presented. You can’t get past the first five chapters of the book without a drop of blood being shed. Animal sacrifices, most commonly that of a lamb, were a dominant feature in the worship practices of the Old Testament people.
In the book of Leviticus, these sacrifices are classified into four categories. The first sacrifice is the burnt offering. As the name suggests this offering was to be completely consumed by fire. The smoke was to be a pleasing aroma to the Lord. This offering was to be made twice a day; once in the morning when the people approached God for worship and then once more in the evening at the close of daily worship. In this way the people were taught every time a sinful person approaches the holy God a sacrifice must be made; innocent blood must be shed.
The second sacrifice is the peace offering. This offering was similar in some ways to the burnt offering with the notable exception that though the entire animal was given to the Lord portions of it were to be eaten by the priest. This offering was given to express gratitude for a blessing that was given or deliverance that was provided. As a result, it was decidedly festive in nature and became a communal meal that expressed the believer’s joyful acknowledgement of God’s mercy. Every time the people would take and eat the body of the lamb, they were reminded that God’s mercy was the result of a sacrifice that was made and innocent blood that was shed.
The third sacrifice is the sin offering. Unlike the previous two sacrifices that expressed the believers’ relationship with God, the sin offering sought to restore a relationship that had been broken by sin. The occasions for which this sacrifice was offered by the people were as numerous as the sins that were committed by them. But it was on the great Day of Atonement above all others when this sacrifice was given. On that day all the wickedness and rebellion of the people, all their sins were put on the head of a scapegoat who would carry their sins away. In this way the people were taught the only way sinners could have a relationship with God was through a sacrifice made and the shedding of innocent blood.
The fourth sacrifice is the guilt offering. Similar to the sin offering, the guilt offering dealt with the damage that sin causes. It seems the focus of the guilt offering is more on the consequences of the action, the damages it caused, the lasting effects sin tends to have. I say that because, like the sin offering a sacrifice was made, but additionally a fine of sorts was paid. With this offering the people were taught that sin not only deserves a punishment but also demands a payment and the way that payment is made is with a sacrifice made and the shedding of innocent blood.
The bloody sacrifices of the Old Testament fall into these four categories. But regardless of what category the sacrifice might fall into, the procedure for sacrificing was very similar. First, the lambs were to be presented, symbolizing that the sacrifice was a voluntary act willingly given. There then followed the laying on of hands where the person symbolically identified the lamb as the substitute who would carry their sins. After sins had symbolically been transferred to the lamb it was slaughtered. In this way the lamb symbolically paid the price for the person’s sin. Finally, the blood of the lamb was sprinkled, spread, or poured before the altar. God Himself told His people the blood on the altar would serves as an atonement, that is “a covering unto their soul”[1]. Symbolically, the lamb’s blood was a protective shield between guilty sinners and a just God.
Day after day, month after month, year after year for over a thousand years the worship of God’s people was marked by such sacrifices where lambs were led to the slaughter. As I said, worship was once a bloody affair. I have taken the time to make this point so that you have a little better appreciation for what John the Baptist says in our gospel lesson for this morning. “Look”, John says pointing to Jesus, “the lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”
A little over a month has passed since John baptized Jesus in the Jordan river. Heaven opening up, the Holy Spirit descending, and the Father speaking in no way diminished John’s popularity. The Jews from Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to find out who John was. The people were looking for someone to deliver them from the oppression of the Romans. They asked John if he was that deliverer. "I am not the Christ.”[2] John told them. The people were looking for a powerful teacher like the prophet Elijah who would rally the people. “Are you Elijah?”[3], they asked. “I am not.”3, John answered. The people were looking for a leader like Moses who would restore the nation of Israel to her former glory. “Are you the prophet?”3, they asked. “No.” 3, John answered. Finally, they asked, “who are you?”[4] John tells them, “I am the voice of one calling in the desert, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’ ”[5]
Here is where our gospel lesson begins. “29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God.” Look, John says, you have been looking for the wrong thing, look to Jesus! Look, the lamb of God! My old homiletics professor tells a story about a family who attended a service at a modern mega church. The facility was beautiful; there was as a coffee shop and fireplace in the entryway. The music was exceptional; soloists sang moving songs accompanied by professional musicians. The speakers were inspirational; they shared their personal testimonies of trial and triumph. By most standards the service was a superb production. At the exits, surveys were being taken. The family was asked about the facility, the music, and the speakers. “They were all very impressive”, they said. Then they were asked if there was anything that was missing. The family paused for a moment and said, “sir, we had hoped to see Jesus”. The old homiletics professor’s point was clear, after you have done everything you can possibly think of to make worship a quality experience for your people, make sure, above all else, you do what John the Baptist did, make sure you point them to Jesus, point them to the lamb of God.
That, I have learned over the years, is easier said than done. It turns out, people don’t want to see Jesus, at least not the Jesus John was pointing to. No, people don’t want to see that Jesus. They want to see baby Jesus laying in a manger. They want to see 12-year-old Jesus going to church. They want to see Jesus the miracle working walking on water. They want to see gentle Jesus turning the other cheek. They want to see ascended Jesus sitting at the right hand of the Father. They want to see that Jesus, but they don’t want to see the Jesus John points us to.
They, we don’t want to see that Jesus because that Jesus reminds us of our sin. Jesus the Lamb of God reminds us what a bloody affair our salvation is. Because of our sin we cannot come into this church and stand in the presence of our God without the sacrifice of the Son and the shedding of His blood. Even as we come to this table to taste and see that our Lord is good to us, because of our sin we cannot receive His mercies without the sacrifice of the Son and the shedding of His blood. As we listen to the Word and examine our hearts, counting our many offenses committed against God and against one another, we know the only way we are not cast into the outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth is because of the sacrifice of the Son and the shedding of His blood. And when at last the wages of our sin comes due and we find ourselves standing before the pearly gates, the only way guilty sinners like you and me are allowed to enter is because of the sacrifice of the Son and the shedding of His blood.
No one wants to see Jesus, the lamb of God whose life was sacrificed because of sinners; whose blood was shed because of you and me. No one wants to see that Jesus. But you must. You must look at Him. You must look, for Jesus, the lamb of God, takes away the sin of the world. God’s Lamb is not like the lambs of men. Hundreds of thousands of lambs were brought by hundreds of thousands of men and yet the sum total of those sacrifices, even if they numbered in the millions and billions, could not do what Jesus, God’s Lamb has done.
Jesus, God’s Lamb takes away sin. Jesus willingly presented Himself as our sacrifice. More than once Jesus made mention of the fact that no one took His life from Him, but rather He volunteered to lay it down. With the hands of Prophecy Jesus is identified as the one who would carry our sins. Speaking of Jesus, the prophet Isaiah said, “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all.”[6] With the sins all people transferred to Jesus, Caiaphas, the high priest himself handed Jesus over to the Romans to be slaughtered and in so doing the wrath sinners had incurred from the holy God was satisfied. Finally, as the blood of Jesus pooled at the foot of the cross, the curtain in the temple that served as a protective barrier of sorts between God and man was torn from top to bottom. No longer would such a fabric be needed for the blood of Jesus is a protective shield between guilty sinners and a just God.
You must look at Jesus the lamb of God because He takes away sin; He takes away the sin of the world. There are no qualifiers attached to the kind of sin that is forgiven. There is no limit to the number of sins that are forgiven. There are no stipulations as to what type of people can be forgiven. From the forbidden fruit eaten by Adam and Eve to the last person who commits the last sin on the last day, all the sin committed by all the people in all the world, including, my friends, your sin and my sin, the sin of all the world has been taken away by Jesus the lamb of God.
“Look”, John says pointing to Jesus, “the lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”. Amen.
[1] Leviticus 17:11
[2] John 1:20
[3] John 1:21
[4] John 1:22
[5] John 1:23
[6] Isaiah 53:6