Behold the Lamb of God: The Sacrificial Purpose of Christ
March 27, 2024 · Pastor Miles DeBenedictis
In this teaching
Drawing on John 1 and the sacrificial language of Leviticus, this teaching shows that when John the Baptist declared "Behold the Lamb of God," he identified Jesus as the sacrifice who came from the very beginning for the specific purpose of dying for the sin of the world. It also examines John's role as a witness who points people away from himself and toward Jesus, and Jesus's mission of seeking Seekers who can only find fullness in Him.
- "Behold the Lamb of God" is sacrificial, Levitical language signaling that Jesus came to be the sacrifice for sin that brings sinners near to a holy God.
- From the beginning Jesus came into the world for an essential, specific, and sacrificial purpose; the cross was always the plan, not an accident.
- This gospel — that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again — has been the church's message since its earliest days (1 Corinthians 15).
- John the Baptist understood his role as a signpost: "He must increase, but I must decrease."
- Jesus came seeking Seekers, asking "What do you seek?" and sends His followers to do the same.
- Everything people ultimately long for is found only in Christ, in whom dwells all the fullness of God.
Readable is a lightly edited reading copy; Verbatim stays close to the spoken words. The audio and video are the record of what was said.
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" ... Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples. And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, "Behold the Lamb of God!" The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, "What do you seek?" ()
When John said "Behold the Lamb of God," a Jewish crowd knew exactly what he meant — and what it would cost.
Levitical Words a Jewish Crowd Understood
That is why John came to baptize: to reveal Jesus. After he had seen and heard, his ministry changed. He declared, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." When John said those words among a multitude of Jewish people, they understood what they meant. These were Old Testament Torah words, drawn from the first five books of the Bible — and specifically from the third book, Leviticus. These were Levitical words.
The Book of Leviticus outlined how the people of Israel could come close to, or approach, a perfectly holy God. Even though we are not perfectly holy — we have this major problem called sin — and as a result cannot come into the presence of a holy God, God says, "I want to commune with you. I want to be in connection with you." The way that would happen was through sacrifice. "Lamb of God" was sacrificial language. In Leviticus, to approach a holy God, the children of Israel had to offer a lamb as a sacrifice for sin.
Behold the Son of God
John the Baptist was preaching the gospel of repentance, calling people to turn from their sins. He baptized Jesus, and when Jesus came up out of the water, the Spirit descended upon Him like a dove and remained. John said, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. This is the Son of God."
How did he know Jesus was the Son of God, and what does that mean? "Son of God" means this is the One who has the very nature of God — the logos who was the Creator, who was at the beginning and before the beginning. That logos became flesh and dwelt among us. This is what we call the Incarnation: God came and dwelt among us. John says, "Behold, this is the Lamb of God. This is the Son of God. He has come to take away the sin of the world."
The Sacrificial Purpose From the Beginning
This is at the very beginning of Jesus's ministry — before He has preached anything, healed the sick, cast out demons, fed the multitudes, or walked on water. And here is point number three: from the beginning, Jesus came into the world for an essential, specific, and sacrificial purpose.
What we celebrate this week — especially on Good Friday, when Jesus was crucified — the death of Christ on the cross, we need to recognize was the purpose from the beginning. It is not that Jesus came as some revolutionary preacher who caused trouble until they got angry and killed Him. He came for an essential, specific, and sacrificial purpose. He came from the beginning to go to the cross. Good Friday was always the focus, always the plan. The cross did not happen to Jesus — He came to make it happen.
This is the message the church has preached from its earliest days. It is outlined in an early creed in . The gospel Paul declared, along with all the others, is that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, He was buried, and He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures. He came for an essential, specific, and sacrificial purpose. John the witness declares it to anyone who will hear: "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."
Meeting the Seekers
In this passage there are three witnesses, some Seekers, and a skeptic. Let's meet some of the Seekers. The next day, John stood with two of his disciples. As this hairy man in a camel-hair garment and leather belt, eating locusts and honey, was preaching in the region of Judea, not only did a multitude gather to him but also disciples — followers, learners.
The day after he first said "Behold the Lamb of God," he said it again to two of his learners standing with him. Sometimes people need to be told twice; maybe you're like that. He had already said it, and now, twenty-four hours later, with a couple of his disciples still hanging out with him, he says, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He is the Son of God."
John Knew His Role
Effectively John was saying, "You are not going to find what you're looking for from me. You need to follow Him." John is an amazing character for many reasons, but one is that he understood his role. He knew that in some ways he was just a signpost pointing to Jesus, and he had no problem with that. So he tells these two followers — who had likely been with him for a while — that it is time to stop hanging out with him and to follow Jesus instead.
The two disciples heard John speak, and they followed Jesus. Underline that in your Bible — that was John's intended goal. He baptizes Jesus, sees the Spirit descend and remain, hears the voice say, "This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased," and then says, "Behold the Lamb of God. Follow Him. I've baptized you with water; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. Follow Him."
That can be hard for us, because if we're honest, we like followers. People following around with us makes us feel important, needed, useful. But my primary role — and John's primary role — the thing we are most needed and most useful for, is to direct people to follow Jesus. John knew this so well that when, in , people came concerned that the crowds were leaving him to follow Jesus, he spoke some of the most profound words in Scripture: "He must increase, but I must decrease." He had the right perspective.
"What Do You Seek?"
The two disciples followed Jesus, and seeing them follow, He turned and said, "What do you seek?" That is an important question, and I'm not sure we always fully know the answer when we're asked it. Do you really know what it is you are deeply seeking?
Some people seek pleasure — we live in a pleasure-seeking culture. Others seek peace and rest. Some seek a fortune, or wisdom, or knowledge. The sixteenth-century philosopher Blaise Pascal said, "All men seek happiness." We certainly live in a culture given to the pursuit of happiness. But everybody is looking for something, and Jesus came into the world seeking for Seekers. He sends His followers to do the same — to seek for Seekers.
Jesus knows that ultimately what every person is looking for will only truly be found in Him. Gather a hundred people and ask what they long for, and you might get a hundred answers — yet there will be a convergence, and everything they ultimately seek is only truly found in Christ. Why? Because, as Paul says in Colossians, in Him dwells all the fullness of God in bodily form, and only in Him are we complete. You will never be complete, never be satisfied, until you find your fullness in Him.
That's why John came to baptize: to reveal Jesus. After he had seen this and heard this word, his ministry changed. Now he says, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."
When John said those words among a multitude of Jewish individuals, they understood what those words meant. Those were Old Testament Torah words from the first five books of the Bible, specifically from the third book, Leviticus. These were Levitical words, and the Book of Leviticus outlined how the people of Israel, the children of Israel, could come close to or approach a perfectly holy God. Even though we are not perfectly holy, we have this major problem called sin. As a result, we cannot come into the presence of a holy God.
God desires to commune with us and be in connection with us. The way this is going to happen is that we need to offer a sacrifice. You see, this "Lamb of God" language was sacrificial language. In the Book of Leviticus, it is outlined how the children of Israel could approach a holy God. To do so, they had to offer a lamb as a sacrifice for sin.
John the Baptist is preaching the gospel of repentance, calling people to repent from their sins. He baptizes Jesus, and when Jesus comes up out of the water, the Spirit descends upon Him like a dove and remains. John proclaims, "Behold, this is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. This is the Son of God."
How did he know that Jesus was the Son of God, and what does that even mean? "Son of God" means that this is the one who has the very nature of God, the Logos who was the Creator, who was at the beginning and before the beginning. That Logos became flesh and dwelt among us. This is what we call the Incarnation: God came and dwelt among us.
John says, "Behold, this is the Lamb of God. This is the Son of God. He has come to take away the sin of the world." This is at the very beginning of Jesus's ministry, before He has preached anything, before He has healed the sick, cast out demons, fed the multitudes, or walked on water. This is before all of that.
What we discover from John's gospel is this point: from the beginning, Jesus came into the world for an essential, specific, and sacrificial purpose.
Purpose. You see, what we celebrate this week, specifically on Good Friday, is the crucifixion of Jesus. We need to recognize that this was the purpose from the beginning. It's not that Jesus came and started preaching as some sort of revolutionary preacher, causing trouble and problems that led to anger and ultimately his death. No, he came for an essential, specific, and sacrificial purpose. He came from the beginning to go to the cross. Good Friday was always the focus; it was always the plan. This means that Good Friday and the cross did not happen to Jesus; he came to make it happen. That is the purpose for which he came.
Now, John is testifying to this reality: Behold the Lamb of God, the sacrifice, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. The Son of God has come into the world to die on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins. This is the message that the church has preached from the earliest days of the Christian faith. It's outlined in an early creed in the book of 1 Corinthians, chapter 15. The Gospel that Paul declared, along with all the others who were with him, is that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. He was buried and rose again the third day according to the Scriptures. He came for an essential, specific, and sacrificial purpose, and John the witness is declaring this to anybody who will hear: Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
Now, remember I said that in this passage there are three witnesses, some seekers, and a skeptic. So, let's meet some of the seekers. Look at verse 35, . Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples. It appears that this crazy, hairy guy with a camel hair suit and a leather belt, eating locusts and honey, was preaching out in the region of Judea. As he was preaching, a multitude gathered around him. But not only a multitude; there were also disciples gathered to him. What are disciples? They are followers or learners. The day after he said, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world," he spoke to two of his followers, his learners.
Standing there, John said, "Behold the Lamb of God." Sometimes, people need to be told twice. Maybe you're like that. He had already said, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He is the Son of God." Essentially, John was saying to anybody who would hear, "Follow Him. Go after Him."
But 24 hours passed, or maybe a little bit more, and John was standing with a couple of his disciples. They were still hanging out with John when he said, "Hey, listen. Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." Effectively, what John was saying is that they would not find what they were looking for from him; they needed to follow Jesus.
I think John is an amazing character for so many reasons, but one of the reasons he stands out is that he understood his role. He understood that, in some ways, he was just a signpost pointing to Jesus, and he did not have a problem with that. He said to these two followers of his, his disciples—though we don't know how long they had been with him, we can assume it was for a while—"Now it's time for you to no longer hang out with me. Now it's time for you to follow Him."
Look at verse 37. The two disciples heard John speak, and they followed Jesus. You should underline that in your Bible; that was John's intended goal. It's such a wonderful thing. He baptized Jesus, saw the Spirit of God descend upon Him and remain upon Him, and heard the voice say, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Then he said, "Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. This is the Son of God. Follow Him. I've baptized you with water; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. Follow Him."
Now, he says to his disciples, "Behold the Lamb of God," and they begin to follow Jesus. I love this: as they followed Jesus, verse 38 says that Jesus turned and, seeing them follow, said to them, "What do you seek?"
Point number three: Jesus came into the world seeking seekers, as we will see as we continue on in this passage. Not only did Jesus come into the world seeking...
Seekers, but He sends His followers ultimately to do the same: to seek for seekers. Be that as it may, John's task as a witness is basically at this point complete. Remember, I told you there are three witnesses, some seekers, and a skeptic in this passage. John is highlighted as this witness called and ordained by God.
As soon as he points his followers to Jesus, his job was done. That can be hard for us because, if we're honest, we like followers. We like people to follow us around; it makes us feel important, needed, and useful. However, my primary role, and John's primary role, that which we are most useful for and most needed for, is to direct people to follow Jesus. The most important, necessary, and useful role that I can fulfill is to point people to Jesus, and John the witness knew and understood this.
So much so that in John's Gospel, chapter 3, a group of people came to this same witness, John. It seems they were concerned because John had this thriving ministry; multitudes of people were coming to hear him preach. Now, all those people left and started to follow Jesus. They came to John and asked, "Don't you think this is a problem?" He said some of the most profound words in Scripture. I believe it's about verse 30 of : "He must increase, and I must decrease." He had the right perspective. He was a witness to point people to Christ, and once those people began to follow Christ, he acknowledged, "He must increase, and I must decrease."
The two disciples followed Jesus, and seeing them follow Him, Jesus said to them, "What do you seek?" I think that's an important question, but I don't know that we always fully know the answer to that question when we're asked, "What do you seek? What are you looking for?" Do you really know what it is that you are deeply seeking? For some people, they seek pleasure. I mean, we live in a pleasure-seeking culture, don't we? There are certainly people in our culture who are...
Seeking for peace and rest, there are definitely people in our culture who are searching for fortune, wisdom, or knowledge. A 16th-century philosopher, Blaise Pascal, said that all men seek happiness. We certainly live in a culture that is devoted to the pursuit of happiness, don't we? However, everybody is looking for something, and Jesus came into the world seeking seekers.
Jesus knows and understands that ultimately, what every person is looking for and seeking will only truly be found in Him. This is an important truth. If you gather together 100 people and ask them what they are deeply longing for, looking for, or seeking after, you might get a hundred different answers. Yet, there will be some sort of crisscross, some sort of convergence among the things that people are seeking.
Everything that people are ultimately searching for is only truly found in Christ. Why? The Apostle Paul, in Colossians, said that in Him dwells all the fullness of God in bodily form, and only in Him are we complete. You will never be complete; you will never be satisfied until you find your fullness in Him. In Him dwells all the fullness of God in bodily form.
Related teachings
12Other messages that open the same passages