John 1:29

“The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, ‘Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!’” – John 1:29

What makes this moment interesting is that Jesus had already been baptized. John had already witnessed the Spirit descend upon Him like a dove. Yet now, Jesus returns exactly as John is being interrogated by the priests and Levites sent by the Pharisees. They were questioning him about his identity, asking, “Who are you? Are you the Messiah, Elijah, or the Prophet?”

Right in the middle of that conversation, John sees Jesus coming toward him. Without hesitation, he points to Him and boldly proclaims, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” In other words, John is saying, “Here is the One you were asking about, your Messiah has come!”

John the Baptist carried a priestly lineage because his father, Zechariah, served as a priest in the Temple. In a sense, John was acting as a priest himself, presenting the ultimate sacrificial Lamb, not one raised or chosen by man, but one prepared by God Himself. Scripture says,

“Therefore, when He came into the world, He said: “Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, But a body You have prepared for Me.” – Hebrews‬ ‭10:5‬ ‭

John’s announcement was not only for the crowd but also for the priests and religious leaders who oversaw the temple sacrifices. Just as the angels announced the good news of Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem to the shepherds who cared for the lambs used for temple offerings, John now makes a similar announcement.

As a priest, he was declaring to his fellow priests, “Our work of preparing lambs for sacrifice is coming to an end because God Himself has provided the perfect Lamb. This Lamb will take away sin, not just for a day, but for the entire world, forever.”

The Pharisees, well-versed in the Law and the Prophets immediately recognized the weight of John’s words. Lambs were required as a yearly sacrifice for all Jewish families during the celebration of Passover. This holy day looked back to the time of Moses, when the blood of the lamb was placed on the doorposts of Israel’s homes so that God’s judgment would “pass over” them. (Exodus 12). This foreshadowed the coming of the Messiah, who would be beaten, bleed, and be crucified as the sacrificial Lamb who takes away the sins of the world, so that through His blood we might be passed over from judgment and spent our eternal life in His Kingdom. The prophet Isaiah had also foretold that the Messiah would be “led like a lamb to the slaughter” and would “bear the sins of many” (Isaiah 53:7, 12).

By calling Jesus the Lamb of God, John was declaring that Jesus is the fulfillment of all those prophecies, the perfect and sinless sacrifice who would take away the sins of the whole world. He was also publicly proclaiming to Israel that this is the long-awaited Messiah.

Even the details of Jesus’ crucifixion mirror the sacrificial ordinances. Just as the sin offerings on the Day of Atonement were taken outside the camp, Jesus was crucified outside the city walls during Passover, bearing our sins in His body on the cross.

Now Jesus has already sacrificed His life so that we may have abundant life, and offered an eternity with Him. And just as John once announced Him, I will do the same today. Only Jesus can take away your sins and bring you into His Kingdom.