Behold the Lamb: A Gospel Declaration That Changes Everything

In a world obsessed with self-promotion, self-help, and self-actualization, there stands a timeless truth that cuts against the grain of our culture: we cannot save ourselves. This isn't a popular message, but it's a necessary one. Before we can truly encounter the transformative power of Christ, we must first turn away from the illusion that we can be our own saviors.
The Voice in the Wilderness
The Gospel of John introduces us to a remarkable figure. John the Baptist, standing in the wilderness, drawing crowds with his powerful message of repentance. Religious leaders, threatened by his influence, send investigators to interrogate him. "Who are you?" they demand. "Are you the Christ? Are you Elijah? Are you the prophet?"
John's response is stunning in its clarity and humility: "I am not the Christ."
He doesn't equivocate. He doesn't use the moment to build his own platform or expand his influence. Instead, he confesses, emphatically, repeatedly, that he is not the Messiah. When pressed further about his identity, John simply replies: "I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness: 'Make straight the way of the Lord,' as the prophet Isaiah said."
Here's a man with a massive following, with genuine spiritual authority, and yet his entire mission is to point away from himself and toward someone greater. This is the posture every believer should adopt: decreasing self so that Christ might increase.
The Question That Echoes Through Time
"What do you say about yourself?"
This question, posed to John the Baptist centuries ago, echoes into our own lives today. When opportunities arise for us to talk about ourselves, what do we say? Do we spend our time building ourselves up, cataloging our accomplishments, emphasizing our importance?
John's answer provides a radically different model. He identifies himself only in relation to his mission: to prepare the way for the Lord. He is a herald, a forerunner, one who clears the path and makes the road smooth for the King who is coming.
As we live in our own time of Advent, waiting not for Christ's first coming, but for His return. We would do well to embrace this same mission. Are we voices in the wilderness, preparing people for the Lord's return? Are we clearing away obstacles that prevent people from seeing Jesus clearly?
Among You Stands One You Do Not Know
When the religious leaders press John about why he's baptizing if he's not the Christ, Elijah, or the prophet, his response is electrifying: "I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie."
Imagine this scene: Jesus is there, standing in the crowd, watching His faithful servant deflect attention and point toward Him. Can you picture the Lord nodding in approval, pleased with John's faithfulness? It's a beautiful reminder that Christ sees our daily acts of obedience, our moments of faithfulness when no one else is watching.
But there's something tragic here too. The religious leaders, God's own people, couldn't recognize the Messiah standing among them. They had the scriptures, the prophets, the promises, and yet they were blind to His presence.
This blindness wasn't accidental. It reveals a profound spiritual truth: no one can recognize Jesus for who He truly is without the Holy Spirit opening their eyes. We don't come to Christ through our own wisdom or understanding. It takes the Spirit to revive us, to make us alive, to reveal who Jesus really is.
Behold the Lamb of God
Then comes the moment that changes everything. John sees Jesus approaching and bursts into gospel declaration: "Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!"
These words are loaded with Old Testament significance. The lamb evokes:

• The Passover lamb whose blood on the doorposts caused death to pass over the Israelites in Egypt
• The daily sacrificial lambs of the temple that temporarily covered sins
• Isaiah's suffering servant, the lamb led to the slaughter
• Abraham's promise to Isaac on Mount Moriah: "God himself will provide the lamb"

Jesus fulfills all of these. He is the ultimate Passover Lamb. Death has no claim on those covered by His blood. He is the final sacrifice, no more daily offerings needed because His sacrifice stands eternal. He is the suffering servant who remained silent before His accusers. He is the provision of God Himself.
When John cries "Behold," he's not suggesting a casual glance. He's commanding us to look deeply, fully, intentionally at the One who can actually take away the sin of the world. Not just cover it temporarily. Not just wash us up and send us on our way. But take it away completely, casting our sins as far as the east is from the west.
The Universal Offer
Jesus came to take away the sins of the world. This doesn't mean every person is automatically forgiven, only those who believe in Christ receive forgiveness. But it does mean that every tribe, every tongue, every nation has been offered the opportunity for redemption. No one is beyond His reach.
If you're reading this and feeling down, hurting, or distant from God, hear this truth: lift up your eyes. Behold the Lamb who has borne your punishment, who has taken your sins. There is no sinner beyond His reach. You can be transformed from sinner to saint, purchased, redeemed, cleansed, forgiven, adopted as a child of God, if you would place your faith in the One who came to take away your sin.
The Spirit-Empowered Life
John testifies that he saw the Spirit descend on Jesus like a dove and remain on Him. This same Spirit, the Spirit that opened John's eyes, that empowered Jesus' ministry, that enabled Him to heal the blind and deaf and lame, this same Spirit now dwells in every believer.
Do we grasp what this means? We don't have to walk around defeated. We don't have to live in fear. We have a Spirit of power and love. The same Spirit we read about in the Gospels lives within us.
So why do we act powerless? Why do we look at the world's darkness and conclude we can't do anything about it? We can change the world the same way John did, through Spirit-empowered testimony. By telling others how God opened our eyes, how He showed us who we were and who Jesus is.
The Son of God
John's final proclamation is the highest truth there is: "This is the Son of God."
Everything in Christianity hinges on this claim. If Jesus wasn't the only begotten Son of the Father, He couldn't forgive our sins, couldn't baptize with the Spirit, couldn't make us co-heirs with Him. But because He is absolutely, undeniably the Son of God, He is the only One who can take away sin, the only One who can satisfy God's justice while extending God's mercy.
Jesus isn't merely a messenger or a prophet. He is our Prophet, Priest, and King. He is God in flesh. And because He is the Son of God, He deserves our worship, our allegiance, our obedience, our hearts, our lives, everything we can offer.
Will You Behold Him?
The invitation stands before us today: Will you look upon Jesus? Will you behold the Lamb who was slain so that you might have forgiveness? Will you behold the Man upon the cross, your sin upon His shoulders?
Jesus died for you, so that you might have forgiveness, so that you might know love, so that you might become a child of God.
The question isn't whether you've been good enough or whether you can make up for your failures. The question is simply this: Will you behold the Lamb? Will you look deeply, fully, intentionally at the One who can save you?
He stands ready. The invitation is extended. Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.