SERMON LIX

SERMON LIX.

The true Way of beholding the Lamb of God.

John i. 35, 36.

Again, the next Day after, John stood, and two of his Disciples; and looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God.

GLORIOUS words these! Before we set about the opening and enforcing them, permit me to introduce myself in the language of Paul to King Agrippa, “Would to God that both my own heart, and likewise the hearts of all that hear me this day, may not only be almost, but altogether in such a divine frame, as I am persuaded the heart of that man of God was who first uttered these words!” I need not tell you his name; our text tells us, it was John; emphatically called John the Baptist, because he was sent to baptize with water unto repentance, in order to prepare his hearers for the further baptism of the Holy Ghost. He was a Boanerges, a son of thunder. He came in the spirit and power of Elias, and thereby soon rendered himself so exceedingly popular, that not only Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the regions round about Jordan, flocked to hear him preach, but even some of the Jewish Sanhedrim began to doubt, whether he was not the Messiah himself. Accordingly we are told in this chapter, “That they sent priests and levites from Jerusalem ask him, Who art thou? What sayest thou of thyself?” A most commodious opportunity this, had he any thing in view but his master’s glory and the good of souls, for John to have set up for himself. He might have said, “Si populus vult decipi, decipiatur; if people will be deceived, let them; I will impose on their credulity, and let them look upon me as the Messiah;” But scorning any such sinister and base ends, “He confessed, and denied not, but confessed, I am not the Christ.” The Evangelist expresses himself in a very peculiar manner, “He confessed, and denied not, but confessed;” implying that he took more than ordinary pains to rectify their mistake, and guard them against thinking more highly of him than they ought to think: nay, impatient, as it were, of the least appearance of any such thing, he speaks of himself in the most diminutive terms, acknowledges that he was unworthy even of carrying his blessed master’s shoes, and seizes the very first opportunity that offered itself to point him out in person to the people. The next day (verse 29.) John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and upon seeing him, immediately cries out, “Behold the Lamb of God:” “Gaze not on, nor let your views terminate in me, but look to and behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world.” Thus John spoke in public; and to prove that he acted the same consistent part in private, our text informs us, that, “Again, the next day after, John stood, and two of his disciples,” who like other newly awakened souls, having their master’s person too much in admiration, he labours to divert their views also from himself to Christ, and that too in the very same language. “For looking upon Jesus as he walked, he saith, Behold the Lamb of God.”

Thus does this disinterested, honest-hearted baptist, unweariedly and repeatedly recommend the Lord Jesus, under the same endearing character of the Lamb of God.

It shall be our business in the following discourse,

First, To shew you why it is that Jesus Christ is stiled the Lamb of God. And,

Secondly, What we are to understand by beholding him, Way will then be made for a word of application.

And first, Why is Jesus stiled the Lamb of God?

I presume one reason that may be assigned for it may be drawn from the account we have given us of his most amazing and unparalleled meekness. A Lamb, you all know, is one of the most pacific creatures in the world. When we would describe, or point out a person of a peaceable disposition, we say such a one is as quiet as a Lamb. But what is the meekness of any person, even Moses himself, nay, of all the saints that ever lived, put them all together, in comparison of the meekness of the blessed Jesus? To prove this, I might refer you to his whole life, which was one continued meek and patient enduring of contradiction of sinners against himself; but if you want me to specify particular instances, only take a walk with me to Gethsemane’s garden; there you will see the traitor Judas at the head of a troop of ruffians, accosting his glorious Lord with a Hail master! then kissing him, and then betraying him. But what says the Prince of peace? Only, “Friend, wherefore art thou come? Judas, betrayest thou the son of man with a kiss?” But how does this same Jesus behave after he was apprehended? Even in the same meek manner: for when his warm-hearted disciple Peter, through a misguided zeal, had cut off the High Priest’s servant’s ear, Suffer ye, said the holy Jesus, thus far. In all probability these words were addressed by our Lord to the officers who had tied his hands behind him. As though he had said, “Be pleased to unloose me, whilst I cure that poor man’s ear, which my too forward disciple hath imprudently cut off, and then you shall bind me again.” Was ever reply, was there ever meekness like unto this thy meekness, O thou blessed Lamb of God! Well did Isaiah prophecy concerning thee, “That thou shouldst be led as a lamb to the slaughter,” which goes as willingly to the shambles, as to the pasture: and as justly might thy forerunner call upon sinners to behold thee under the pacific character of the Lamb of God. Help us, holy Jesus, to come at thy invitation, and to learn of thee, who gavest such amazing evidences of thy being meek and lowly in heart! then, and not ’till then, shall we find true rest in our souls.

But further, the dear Lord Jesus may properly be called a Lamb, or The Lamb, by way of emphasis, not only in allusion to the Lamb that was offered under the law morning and evening, but more especially because he was typified by the paschal lamb. Hence he is stiled, by that prince of preachers St. Paul, Christ our passover; and in allusion to the same, the Apostle Peter tells us, “That we are not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from our vain conversation, but with the precious blood of Jesus Christ, as of a Lamb without blemish and without spot.” This was an indispensable requisite to be found in the paschal lamb. It was to be a lamb without blemish. A proper type of him who knew no sin, but was spotlessly holy, harmless, and altogether undefiled in heart, lip, and life. Indeed, if we consider him as having the chastisement of our peace, and the iniquities of us all laid upon him by way of imputation, he was, as some divines express it, the greatest sinner that ever was: and we should esteem him to be such in reality, were we to judge of his innocence by the abusive and barbarous treatment that he met with whilst tabernacling on earth. But, notwithstanding all this, he was without sin, and therefore could boldly and truly give men and devils the challenge, and say, “Which of you convinceth me of sin?” The prince of this world cometh, but shall find nothing in me. There was no corruption in the heart of this immaculate Lamb of God for Satan’s temptations to lay hold on: But this properly belongeth only to him: for any of his followers, though arrived at the highest pitch of christian perfection, much less for young converts, mere novices in the things of God, to presume that they either have, or ever shall, while on this side eternity, arrive at such a sinless state, argues such an ignorance of the spiritual extent of the moral law, of the true interpretation of God’s word, of the universal experience of God’s people in all ages, as well as of the remaining unmortified corruptions of their own desperately wicked and deceitful hearts, that I dare venture to tell the preachers and abettors of any such doctrine, however knowing they may be in other respects, that they know not the true nature of gospel-holiness, nor the Compleatness of a believer’s standing in the unspotted imputed Righteousness of Jesus Christ, as they ought to know, or as I trust they themselves, through divine grace, will be made to know before they die. Surely it is high time to awake out of this delusive dream! Pardon this short, (would to God there was no occasion of adding) though too necessary a digression.

But to proceed. The paschal lamb was further typical of Christ, its great antitype, in that it was to be killed in the evening, and afterwards roasted with fire. So Christ, our passover, was sacrificed for us in the evening of the world; only with this material difference, the paschal lamb was first slain, and then roasted; whereas the holy Jesus, the spotless Lamb of God, was burnt and roasted in the fire of his Father’s wrath before he actually expired upon the cross. To satisfy you of this, if you can bear to be spectators of such an awful tragedy, as I desired you just now to go with me to the entrance, so I must now entreat you to venture a little further into the same garden, But—stop—What is that we see? Behold the Lamb of God, undergoing the most direful tortures of vindictive wrath! Of the people, even of his disciples, there is none with him. Alas! was ever sorrow like unto that sorrow, wherewith his innocent soul was afflicted in this day of his Father’s fierce anger? Before he entered into this bitter passion, out of the fulness of his heart, he said, “Now is my soul troubled.” But how is it troubled now! his agony bespeaks it to be exceeding sorrowful, even unto death. It extorts sweat, yea, a bloody sweat. His face, his hands, his garments, are all over stained with blood. It extorts strong cryings and many tears. See how the incarnate deity lies prostrate before his Father, who now laid on him the iniquities of us all. See how he agonizes in prayer! Hark! Again and again he addresses his Father with an “If it be possible, let this cup pass from me!” Tell me, ye blessed angels, tell me, Gabriel (or whatsoever thou art called, who wast sent from heaven in this important hour, to strengthen our agonizing Lord) tell me, if ye can, what Christ endured in this dark and doleful night; and tell me, tell me what you yourselves felt when you heard this same God-man, whilst expiring on the accursed tree, breaking forth into that dolorous, unheard-of expostulation, “My God, my God, why, or how hast thou forsaken me?” Were you not all struck dumb? And did not an universal awful silence fill heaven itself, when God the Father said unto his sword, “Sword, smite thy fellow?” Well might nature put on its sable weeds; well might the rocks rend, to shew their sympathy with a suffering Saviour: and well might the sun withdraw its light, as though it was shocked and confounded to see its maker suffer. But our hearts are harder than rocks, or otherwise they would now break, and our souls more stupid than any part of the inanimate creation, or they would even now, in some degree, at least, sympathize with a crucified Redeemer; who for us men, and for our salvation, was thus roasted, as it were, in the fire of his Father’s wrath, and therefore fitly stiled the Lamb of God.

But further. The paschal lamb was typical of Christ our passover in another respect. For as the blood of the lamb, after it was slain, was sprinkled upon the door-posts of the Israelites houses, so the blood of Jesus Christ, shed for the sins of the world, is to be applied to, and by faith sprinkled upon the hearts of the true Israel of God. And as the destroying angel had no power to execute vengeance on, or hurt those whose door-posts were thus sprinkled with the blood of the paschal lamb, so in the great and terrible day of the Lord, he shall be prohibited both from destroying or hurting true believers, who by a living faith in the blood of Jesus, have their hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience. Hence the blood of Christ is called “The blood of sprinkling.” And lastly, As the lamb under the law was feasted upon by God’s people, after it was slain, so believers under the gospel by faith feast upon a crucified Redeemer. Christ, our passover, says the apostle, is sacrificed for us, therefore let us keep the feast, not barely upon an Easter-day, but all the year round. For the just, i. e. truly justified souls, live by faith, and find, by happy experience, that in a spiritual sense Christ’s flesh is meat indeed, and his blood drink indeed; and therefore believing on him is stiled “Eating the flesh and drinking the blood of the son of man.” Agreeable to this, in our communion office, the minister, when he gives the bread to the communicants, is directed to make use of these affecting words, “Take and eat this in remembrance that Christ died for thee, and feed on him in thy heart by faith with thanksgiving.” May all who give, and all that receive that bread, feel the meaning of this form of sound words experimentally, and powerfully pressed home upon their souls! Then indeed, but not till then, may they expect to take this holy sacrament to their comfort. Upon all these accounts then, well might the Baptist recommend the holy Jesus under the significant character of the Lamb. And with equal propriety might he be called the Lamb of God, not only because he was a Lamb of God the Father’s providing, but because he was co-equal, co-essential with the Father: “The Word that was with God, the Word that was God,” even God over all, God blessed for evermore. For ever adored be the triune God for this great mystery of godliness, God manifest in the flesh! O may it be continually marvellous in our eyes! O make us, thou altogether lovely Redeemer, like-minded with thy blessed angels, that with them we may always so eagerly, and so perseveringly desire to look into it, that neither the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, or pride of life, may ever in the least divert us from beholding thee!