“Jesus Is God’s Lamb, Who Was Sacrificed for Sinners’ Sins”
In the name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[Amen.]
Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our
Lord [Amen.]
“Lamb of God, pure and holy, Who on the cross didst suffer.
Ever patient and lowly, Thyself to scorn didst offer.
All sins Thou borest for us, Else had despair reigned o’er us:
Have mercy on us,
“Lamb of God, pure and holy, Who on the cross didst suffer.
Ever patient and lowly, Thyself to scorn didst offer.
All sins Thou borest for us, Else had despair reigned o’er us:
Thy peace be with us, O Jesus! O Jesus!”
“O Christ, Thou Lamb of God, that takest away the sin of the world,
have mercy upon us.
O Christ, Thou Lamb of God, that takest away the sin of the world,
have mercy upon us.
O Christ, Thou Lamb of God, that takest away the sin of the world,
grant us Thy peace. Amen.
(Lutheran Service Book, © 2006 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO.
434:1 & 2 & 198)
Gospel Reading.............................................................
St. John 1:29-42a (esp. 29, 35-36)
29The next day [John] saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the
Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” 35The next day again
John was standing with two of his disciples, 36and he looked at Jesus as he
walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!”
Prologue: Our Synod’s Catechism, which contains much additional
information that expands on Martin Luther’s Small Catechism, begins The
Second Article section with the following question and answer: “Of whom does
this article speak? It speaks about Jesus Christ—His person and His work.”
(Luther’s Small Catechism with Explanation. Copyright © 1986, 1991
Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 120.) That, fellow
believers in the Epiphany King, is what this Epiphany season is all about,
namely, revealing, making known, and manifesting who Jesus is and what Jesus
did and continues to do … for us. The hymn we just sang, the liturgical
element known as the “Agnus Dei ~ Lamb of God”, and Cousin John all hit it
smack dab on the head when they announced that …
“Jesus Is God’s Lamb, Who Was Sacrificed for Sinners’ Sins.”
In so doing, they identified His person as being the “Lamb of God”
and His work as “takes away the sin of the world.” There are other names
for Jesus that reveal who He is and what He did and continues to do … for
us. For instance, Isaiah in today’s Old Testament Reading identified Jesus
as “Lord [Yahweh]”, “the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One”, and
“the Holy One of Israel”. (Isa 49:7a ESV) Saint Paul in today’s Epistle
Reading identified Him as “Christ Jesus”, “[God’s] Son, Jesus Christ our
Lord”, “Christ”, “the Lord Jesus Christ”, and “our Lord Jesus Christ”. (1
Cor 1:1-4, 6-7 ESV) And, King David in today’s Introit identified Him as
“Lord, my rock and my redeemer”. (Ps 19:1 ESV)
Bo Giertz, who was a Lutheran pastor in Sweden, stated in a
devotion that he wrote: “John was saying that the time was now ready for the
sacrifice that would once and for all atone for the sins of the world.
Jesus would now accomplish what the old sacrifices could not by sacrificing
Himself.” (Bo Giertz in To Live with Christ: Devotions by Bo Giertz.
Copyright © 2008 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 89.)
In a devotion entitled “Ecce Agnus Dei” (Latin words that mean
“Behold the Lamb of God”) Rudolph F. Norden wrote that “John intended to
show people their need for Christ and assure the penitent ones that in the
Lamb of God all their sins were forgiven.” In addition, he said that “Jesus
is our true Passover Lamb whose precious blood, like that of a ‘lamb without
blemish or defect’ (1 Peter 1:19), ransoms us. He is indeed the ‘Lamb of
God,’ the Agnus Dei. This is the Anointed and Appointed One, the Lord of
Easter, the Christ of Christmas, whose coming the prophets announced.”
(Rudolph F. Norden in Each Day with Jesus: Daily Devotions throughout the
Year. Copyright 1994 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 72.)
What all that manifests to us is that, although “John may not at
this point have recognized the full implications of the messianic calling of
Jesus (cf. John 1:33), [nevertheless] he knew something about the messianic
character of His life (John 1:29).” (Donald Guthrie in Jesus the Messiah: An
Illustrated Life of Christ. Copyright © 1972 by The Zondervan Corporation,
Grand Rapids, MI. Page 40.) In view of all that, it’s no wonder that …
I. Cousin John Bore Witness about His Cousin Jesus. (30-34)
30“This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks before me,
because he was before me.’ 31I myself did not know him, but for this
purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.”
32And John bore witness: “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove,
and it remained on him. 33I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to
baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and
remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34And I have seen
and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.”
Now, remember what I said at the beginning of this sermon … that
the primary Epiphany event when the Gentile foreigners followed a star that
God miraculously placed in the sky to lead them to Jesus and this Epiphany
season of Sundays leading up to Lent are both all about revealing, making
known, and manifesting who Jesus is and what His mission was. Cousin John
carried out that theme in what I just read. Notice the three things that he
revealed about Jesus: 1. Jesus ranked ahead of John; 2. The Holy Spirit
descended and remained on Jesus; and 3. Jesus is the Son of God. Please pay
very close attention to those manifestations about Jesus because they’re
very important.
In the first place, John confessed that Jesus occupied the highest
position of all in terms of both existence and authority. After all, Jesus
is “eternal (without beginning and without end)” (Luther’s Small Catechism
with Explanation. Page 122.) as John declared at the beginning of his
Gospel account, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.” (John 1:1-2 ESV)
At the same time, His authority was made known by the fact that “A. Jesus
has divine names. B. Jesus possesses divine attributes (qualities or
characteristics). C. Jesus does divine works (which only God can do). And,
D. Jesus receives divine honor and glory.” (Luther’s Small Catechism with
Explanation. Pages 122f.)
Second, “John had proof positive that the Man to whom he was
pointing was the Messiah. Jesus had had the Holy [Spirit] from the moment
of His conception, but this Spirit had been passive within Him. Now,
however, by this open revelation, the formal beginning of the ministry of
Christ was indicated. From that time on the Spirit of God proved Himself a
living, active power in the human nature of Christ. He was anointed with
the Holy [Spirit] and with power, Acts 10, 38.” (Paul E. Kretzmann in
Popular Commentary of the Bible: The New Testament, Volume I. Copyright ©
Unknown Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 410.)
And third, John manifested Jesus’ divine nature … that He was the
Son of God. Saint Paul testified to that reality when he wrote that Jesus
“was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of
holiness by his resurrection from the dead … .” (Rom 1:4 ESV) That fact was
established by the heavenly Father Himself at Jesus’ Baptism when He
declared, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” (St Matt
3:17 ESV) That was repeated at His transfiguration when the heavenly Father
affirmed: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to
him.” (St Matt 16:28 ESV) Recall also that the demons themselves know and
acknowledge that truth as happened in the country of the Gadarenes when
Jesus met two men possessed by demons who cried out, “What have you to do
with us, O Son of God?” (St Matt 8:29 ESV) Saint Peter strongly declared
the divine nature of God when he confessed to Jesus, “You are the Christ,
the Son of the living God.” (St Matt 16:16 ESV) We regularly make known in
our Divine Services that Jesus is the Son of God when we confess in the
Nicene Creed belief “in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God”
and in the Apostles’ Creed faith “in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord.”
So, where did all that lead them then and where does it lead us
today? Well, then we find that …
II. Brother Andrew Bore Witness To His Brother Peter.
(37-42)
37The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. 38Jesus
turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And
they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?”
39He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he
was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth
hour. 40One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew,
Simon Peter’s brother. 41He first found his own brother Simon and said to
him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). 42He brought him to
Jesus.
Another element of Epiphany emphasis is evangelism, that is,
telling others the Good News about Jesus and ushering them into a
relationship with Him through Word and Sacrament. After all, the stage for
successful evangelism is an established relationship, be it family member,
friend, casual acquaintance, neighbor, classmate, fellow worker, or
whatever.
The initial evangelism incident that occurred in the New Testament
is found in the first chapter of Saint Matthew, “Now the birth of Jesus
Christ took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been betrothed to
Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child from the
Holy Spirit. And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put
her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered these
things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying,
‘Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary as your wife, for that which
is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you
shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” (St
Matt 1:18-21 ESV)
Shortly after our Savior’s birth an angel evangelized shepherds
when he told them, “… I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for
all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a
Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (St Luke 2:10-11 ESV) The shepherds then
revealed to others “the saying that had been told them concerning this
child.” (St. Luke 2:17 ESV) His circumcision at eight days young was
followed by Mary and Joseph presenting Him to the Lord at the Jerusalem
temple where Scripture tells us that “it had been revealed to [the priest
Simeon] by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen
the Lord’s Christ.” (St Luke 2:26 ESV) Simeon’s evangelism-response
included “my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the
presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for
glory to your people Israel.” (St Luke 2:30-32 ESV) Within two years of
Immanuel’s birth the hallmark Epiphany-evangelism event occurred when God
Himself led the Gentile foreigners to Jesus.
In today’s text Andrew evangelized his brother, Simon Peter, by
telling him very simply, “‘We have found the Messiah’ (which means Christ).”
Then follows this very significant statement, “He brought him to Jesus.” (St
John 1:41-42 ESV) Here’s what’s so vitally important about all those
evangelism incidents. Telling others about Jesus starts with
already-established relationships that God has produced for that very
purpose and it doesn’t require special training, packaged programs, or
unique skills and abilities. It’s simply doing what any parent,
grandparent, relative, or friend does naturally after the birth of a new
baby, namely, allow the excitement of the event to spill over to telling
others about the event or, in this case, the person and work of Jesus
Christ. That message is none other than He was conceived, born, lived,
suffered, died, rose from the dead, and ascended back to heaven all for our
forgiveness of sins, salvation, and eternal life. The Holy Spirit equips us
to do so through reading and hearing God’s Holy Word, reflecting on the
meaning and significance of Holy Baptism, realizing the benefit of Holy
Absolution, and properly partaking of Holy Communion. As we do so, let’s
keep words of reassurance from today’s Introit in mind, “Let the words of my
mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my
rock and my redeemer. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night
reveals knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is
not heard.” (Ps 19:14, 2-3 ESV)
In conclusion, therefore, we begged God in today’s Collect to
“mercifully hear the prayers of Your people and grant us Your peace through
all our days.” He certainly gives us that blessed assurance as contained in
today’s Gradual, “For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the
faithfulness of the Lord endures forever.” (Ps 117:2 ESV) That blessed
assurance is the fact that …
“Jesus Is God’s Lamb, Who Was Sacrificed for Sinners’ Sins.”
Saint Paul reflected on that when he told the Corinthians and us
in today’s Epistle Reading, “I give thanks to my God always for you because
of the grace of God that was given you in Christ Jesus, that in every way
you were enriched in him in all speech and all knowledge—even as the
testimony about Christ was confirmed among you—so that you are not lacking
in any spiritual gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus
Christ, who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord
Jesus Christ. God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship
of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.” (1 Cor 1:4-9 ESV)
The blessed epiphany-result of it all is that …
I. Cousin John Bore Witness about His Cousin Jesus. (30-34)
and …
II. Brother Andrew Bore Witness To His Brother Peter. (37-42)
May we do likewise bearing in mind words from today’s Old
Testament Reading, “Kings shall see and arise; princes, and they shall
prostrate themselves; because of the Lord, who is faithful, the Holy One of
Israel, who has chosen you.” (Isa 49:7 ESV)
God grant it all for the sake of Jesus Christ, His humble Son, our
holy Savior. [Amen.]
In the name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[Amen.]
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