November 8, 2022

. . . the day of death [better] than the day of one’s birth. Ecclesiastes 7:1

As we enter into the season of celebrating the birth of Jesus (glory to God!) let us consider the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. In the sacrificial system that was established in Genesis, the death of an innocent animal was a portrayal of the promised Savior to come: a vivid illustration of substitutionary death for the repentant sinner. The knowledge of God’s beautiful plan to provide hope for the future was set firmly into place, right beside the announcement of the death sentence for Adam and Eve which spread to all people, because all have sinned. The lesson of the inextricable connection between sin and death was graciously provided.

When Jesus supernaturally took the world’s entire load of sin upon Himself, He was fulfilling, literally, what the sacrificial system had been symbolizing all along. When the sinner brought a lamb to the altar of sacrifice, he confessed his sin and “pressed” it onto the head of the lamb, “transferring” his sin (symbolically) onto the lamb. Then it was his heartbreaking duty to kill the lamb himself. Thus, the picture of owning up to and confessing sin, and exercising faith in the substitutionary death, was painted. It matters not if one’s life was lived before or after Jesus came to earth. The faith that looked forward to His coming is the same faith that looks back on it. Salvation has been available to everyone in every era.

Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. 2 Corinthians 5:18-21

John 1:29; Genesis 3:15,19,21; Romans 3:23