Behold the Lamb of God
January 3, 2025 - Friday of Christmas Week
John 1:29-34
At every Eucharist, the priest elevates the consecrated host and declares: “Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.” These words echo John the Baptist's proclamation in John 1:29, inviting us to ponder the profound significance of Christ as the Lamb of God.
The title Lamb of God appears uniquely in the Gospel of John and the Book of Revelation, where it serves as a central image of Christ (Rev 5:6; John 1:29,36). This imagery draws from several rich Old Testament texts. First, the story of Abraham and Isaac in Genesis 22 prefigures the Lamb of God. Just as a ram was sacrificed in place of Isaac, Jesus, the true Lamb, offers Himself to save humanity (cf. John 6:51). Second, the Passover lamb, central to the Exodus narrative, is explicitly connected to Jesus in John’s Passion account, where His crucifixion fulfills the Passover symbolism (John 19:36). Finally, Isaiah’s prophecy of the Suffering Servant describes one who is "led like a lamb to the slaughter," bearing the sins of many (Isa 53:7,10).
John proclaims that Jesus takes away the sin of the world. The Greek word αἴρω (airo)—"take away"—used in John 1:29 carries a dual meaning: it can signify "remove" or "destroy." This duality is reflected in Jesus’ mission. He removes sin by forgiving it and destroys its power by bearing it on the Cross (Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 2:24). For the Apostle Paul, this has profound consequences. All those who put their trust in Jesus and have been baptized receive forgiveness of their sins. The record of our debt that stood against us has been nailed to the Cross and canceled through the blood of Jesus (Col 2:13-14).
John the Baptist’s proclamation finds a profound echo in 1 John 3:5: “You know that He appeared to take away sins, and in Him there is no sin.” This link reinforces the Gospel’s assertion that Jesus' mission is deeply rooted in His sinlessness. Only the sinless One could truly bear and remove the sin of the world, offering redemption not just to a select group but to all (John 3:16; 12:32).
The phrase "sin of the world" in John’s Gospel emphasizes the universal scope of Christ’s redemptive work. The "world" includes people of every race, culture, and religion, while "sin," in its singular form, refers to unbelief—the failure to recognize that Jesus is the Son of God and to put our trust in Him (cf. John 16:9). The proclamation of the Gospel aims to confront human unbelief and everything that flows from it. John wrote his Gospel “so that [we] may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing [we] may have life in His name” (John 20:31).
As we hear the words—“Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world”—at Mass, we are invited to encounter the Lamb of God personally and experience the fruits of His sacrifice on the Cross. The Lamb of God is worthy of our praise because He ransomed us by His sacrifice from the power of sin and death and has made us “a kingdom and priests to our God” (Rev 5:10).