The Lamb that the Prophets Foretold

Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this: “Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter and like a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he opens not his mouth. In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth.” And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” (Acts 8:32-34).

If we are willing, the Holy Spirit will help us to experience the curiosity of the Ethiopian Eunuch. Unlike contemporary disciples, he did not know that Isaiah was describing Jesus Christ. If we put aside our knowledge of the answer to his penetrating question, I believe we can receive a beautiful picture of the amazing glory, grace, and truth of God that is expressed in the Messiah... “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).  Here we get a wonderful glimpse of the Lamb that the prophets foretold.

We see God’s glory in Christ’s humiliation. I used to think of the resurrection as the moment of God’s greatest glory. Indeed, Christ’s victory over the grave assures us of victory over sin and its deadly consequences. But when Jesus spoke of the hour of His glory, He pointed clearly to the humiliation of the cross… “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:23-24). Indeed, the Spirit inspired Paul to write about the power and glory of the cross… “And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him” (Colossians 2:13-15). John the Baptist recognized the Lamb of God after Christ humbly submitted to baptism… “The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’” (John 1:29). You see, our blessed hope was secured by the resurrection, but it was purchased through the glorious humiliation of the Lamb of God.

We see God’s grace in Christ’s silence. How hard it is to keep silent when we believe we are right, when we have a strong argument and a sacred cause. Imagine Christ, the Son of God, with all authority and sovereignty, keeping silent in the face of the anger and hostility of His accusers. The night before, in the garden betrayal, Jesus revealed the power that was watching and waiting to be released upon His word… “Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels?” (Matthew 26:53). But this battle would not be won with words or swords. Sin and death would be overcome by God’s grace working powerfully through the silent Lamb of God.

We see God’s truth in Christ’s injustice. When we look at the crucifixion through natural eyes, we are deceived because we see the justice of the Jewish council carried out against a blaspheming criminal. Jesus was a threat to the centuries old religious order. He broke all the rules and upset all the traditions that the elders were sworn to uphold. But when we look closely, the Holy Spirit guides us to the truth and we see the Son of God on the cross, executing divine justice in exchanging His life for ours. Christ was submitting to a higher justice, the justice of God… “When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed” (1 Peter 2:23-24). While crowds demanded the crucifixion of an innocent man, God’s truth was being revealed in their injustice toward the Lamb of God.

As we grow up into Christ, we see and appreciate God’s glory, grace, and truth as revealed in Jesus, …

The Lamb that the Prophets Foretold.