Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.

 

The scripture readings for this reflection can be found at http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/011920.cfm

These very familiar words of John the Baptist are spoken at every Mass when the priest holds up the consecrated host, the Body of Christ, and calls us to recognize the presence of Jesus on the altar. John was able to recognize that Jesus was indeed the Son of Man, the Messiah. Once he saw the Holy Spirit descend upon Jesus, John knew that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God.

John’s whole life was living in the presence of God. He led a very strict life, living in the wilderness, eating locust and wild honey, wearing what seemed to be strange clothes of camel’s hair. For John, this helped him get closer to God and be ready for the coming of the Messiah. Because of his willingness to proclaim the truth of God and call people to repentance, people became attracted to him and to his message. Many started turning their lives over to God in preparation for the coming of the Messiah. He wasn’t afraid to point out the sinfulness in peoples lives and called all people to repentance and to develop that relationship with God.

His willingness to speak about the truth of God’s commandments to those around him is what eventually got him into trouble with King Herod, who was living in an adulterous relationship with his brother’s wife, Herodias. Herodias hated John so much that eventually she was able to get Herod to kill John by having him beheaded.

This term of the Lamb of God may sound strange to us in the 21^st Century, but it is probably the most apt description of Jesus. Jewish life for centuries embraced rituals of sacrifice to God: offerings, gifts of love, in order to please God.

In the Old Testament, the lamb is central to the Passover story. God passes through the land of Egypt, striking down the firstborn of each household. However, the homes of the Jews who have their doors marked with the blood of the lamb are passed over.

In the Book of Revelation, the term lamb is used 29 times – always referring to Christ, whose blood saves the new Israel from sin and death.

And each time we receive Christ in Holy Communion, we hear, “This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”

The sacrifice made by the Lamb of God was a perfect sacrifice. The Sacrifice we make as Christians, if genuine, will be perfectly acceptable to God.

We, as Christians, are called to live out our lives, like John the Baptist, by pointing out the Lamb of God to those we know. This could be challenging, as it was for John. But we are, as Christians, called to share our faith in Jesus with others. We are called, like John, to point to Jesus and say, “Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who takes away the sin of the world.”

We may not have to point out Jesus as dramatically as John. But we can point out Jesus by how we live our lives as Christians. John’s whole mission was to have people turn away from sin and put their faith in God. As Christians we can do this in the way we practice our faith, and how we love and treat others with respect. By loving God, and loving those people in our lives unconditionally, we are pointing others to Jesus, as John pointed the people of his time towards Jesus.

The regular attendance at Sunday Mass and our regular use of confession are a couple ways we can point others to Christ. Further, we are to take the love of God that we hear about at Mass, and bring it to others, whether it’s visiting a sick relative or friend, doing volunteer work at a soup kitchen, or just by being available to someone who needs to talk about their problems, we are then pointing them towards Jesus and saying, “Behold the Lamb of God.”

When we receive the Lamb of God in Holy Communion we will declare that we are not worthy for him to enter under our roof. Yet, blessed are we who are called to the supper of the lamb.