Wednesday December 7, 2022

Today is Wednesday, December 7 and this week continues our journey through the Advent season as we behold Jesus as the Lamb of God.

“Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance for you and your descendants. When you enter the land that the Lord will give you as he promised, observe this ceremony. And when your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ then tell them, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the Egyptians.’” Then the people bowed down and worshiped. The Israelites did just what the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron. Exodus 12:24-28

The roots of Jesus’ story are nourished by striking images from the Old Testament such as the sacrificial lamb, sacrificed for the sins of Israel. John 1:29 describes Jesus as the Lamb of God. For the Jewish people this would conjure images of the sacrificial lamb in the Passover celebration– a reminder of God’s deliverance and an offering for cleansing from sin. This shocking imagery of a sacrificed lamb would speak powerfully and with deep meaning to these early hearers.

Advent is the beginning of God’s action to restore his covenant relationship with humanity which was broken in Eden. In Matthew 2 and John 19 we read that one of the gifts given to the newborn Jesus was myrrh– a spice with many uses, one of which was a burial spice. Here in the birth narrative we find foreshadowing of Jesus giving his life as the Lamb of God, a ransom for us all. Last week we recalled the truth of John 3:16 as God gave his only Son to live, die, and rise again among us. At Christmas, Christ comes to us as the Lamb of God who would go on to make the ultimate sacrifice for you, me, and all of humanity.

Ask
Do you often consider Jesus as the Lamb of God? Have you ever reflected on that truth during the Advent season? Take time today to reflect on Jesus, the “Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” and how this impacts your life.

Jesus, Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world. You cleanse me. I rise again to new life this Advent season, restored in relationship with you. In a season marking the celebration of your birth, I praise you for your power over sin and death. Amen.

Listen and sing along with us to songs that will shape our Advent season. Today we will sing “Behold the Lamb of God” by Andrew Peterson which you can find here. Subscribe to our Spotify playlist featuring all of our Songs for the Season here.

First 15 through the season of Advent is adapted from Roots: Advent and the Family Story of Jesus available through Seedbed. If you or your small group are interested in using this resource for your Advent study, you can find more information here or send an email to discipleship@fmcm.org.