1173. Statements Concerning the Lamb

Statements Concerning the Lamb

"Your lamb shall be without blemish a male of the first year; ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats" (Exo_12:5).

1. Your lamb shall be without blemish. In this statement the Lord Jesus Christ is set forth as the holy One, the impeccable One. Jesus Christ knew no sin, He did no sin, and in Him was no sin.

We are redeemed not by corruptible things, but by the precious Blood of Christ, as of a Lamb without spot or blemish.

When the announcement of Christ's birth was made to Mary, Gabriel said: "That holy thing which shall be born of thee, shall be called the Son of God" (Luk_1:35).

When Jesus Christ faced His enemies, He cried: "Which of you convinceth Me of sin?"

When Jesus Christ was being crucified, Judas cried, "I have betrayed innocent blood."–The centurion cried: "Surely, this was the Son of God."

This holiness on the part of Christ was necessary or else He could not have died as "the Just for the unjust." He could have never borne away the sins of others, if He Himself had been a sinner. Jesus Christ not only took away our sins, but thank God, He put upon us His holiness, and if He were not the Lamb without blemish, we would not stand before God without blemish.

2. Your lamb shall be killed. "Ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening."

It was not the living lamb who saved the children of Israel. It was the slain lamb. The death of Christ would have been of no avail apart from His holy life; neither would the life of Christ have been of any avail apart from His death.

There is a Jewish legend about the father bringing up the lamb preparatory to slaughter. Then, his eldest son cried out in despair, "Surely, father, you will not kill this lamb. It is the lamb I love most of all the flock. It is my pet."

The legend goes on to tell how the father was persuaded to tie the living lamb at the door, and how, at the midnight hour, when the angel was about to slay his son, the father caught his arm and said, "Hold, angel, stay thy hand. Surely thou wouldest not slay my son. I took the lamb and the lamb was without blemish, and of the first year, I tied the lamb securely, and he is even now at the door." "Yes," said the angel, "I saw the lamb, but it is not the living lamb, it is the slain lamb that secures the life of your son."

How many there are who are forever speaking in glowing terms of the life of Christ, but they utterly deny His death. They speak of "the ethics of Jesus," but they know nothing of the Cross of Christ. They speak of the Man of Galilee, but they know nothing of the Christ of Calvary. All such are lost. It is the Lamb slain which brings salvation.

Autor: R.E. NEIGHBOUR