Day 685

BEHOLD THE LAMB OF GOD

Jerrel Altic, Minister of Connection & Community at Houston's First Baptist Church

John 1:1-29

IN WORD

The Prayer, Missions & Connection Center At Houston's First Baptist Church was relocated and expanded in 2005. During the dedication service of the Center, we hung a piece of art directly inside the offices that states: Jehovah Jireh--God will provide (Genesis 22:8). This has been a constant reminder as hundreds of people have raised millions of dollars to go around the world on missionary endeavors. If God calls, then He will always provide. As we pause on this Holy Week looking back through the last week of Jesus' earthy ministry, let us be reminded today: He will provide.

John the Baptist might have said, "Behold your King," "Behold the Promised Messiah," "Behold the Son of God," or "Behold the Prophet--no we shall be taught the way of God, the perfect law of the Kingdom." But this would not have expressed the true genius of the Scriptures. The Spirit of God could not put on the lips of this last prophet any other words than this: "Behold the Lamb of God, which takes away the sin on the world." (John 1:29).

It was for this that the only begotten of the Father had come. He had come to redeem. In the opening of our Lord's matchless ministry so benevolent for the broken hearts and diseased leprous bodies, so blessed for the oppressed groaning under Satan's heel, so wonderful for the poor, the blind, the lame, Jesus' great forerunner John the Baptist could not have heralded the appearing of the world's only Hope in any other terms save those of redemption--Behold the Lamb of God which takes away the sin of the world.

John the Baptist, standing at the close of the Old Testament dispensation and at the same time ushering in the New, speaks the Bible's most significant word, the word in which the Book find its unity, and the world its hope of redemption. It comes at last as an answer to Isaac's anxious query (Genesis 22), "Gather, the fire and wood are here but where it the lamb for the burnt offering?" Jesus said that Abraham saw His day and rejoiced. This is the Day to which he referred when seeing the Messianic Hope in the light of the Holy Spirit's inspiration, he confidently replied, "My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering."

In our best of days and darkest of days let's remember that He will provide. Not according to our will but His will...

IN DEED

--What/who are you putting your hope for provision in outside of God?

--Where does it appear in your life that provision is running short?

--What is God saying to you and what are you going to do about it?

Tuesday 3/30