“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” John 1:29
Here is a powerful picture of how “the Lamb of God” takes away sin.
5. The Lamb is a sin-bearer.
Leviticus 16 tells us about the Day of Atonement, when a live goat was brought to the high priest, who would then place his hands on the goat’s head and confess the sins of God’s people: “He shall put them on the head of the goat and send it away into the wilderness… The goat shall bear all their iniquities on itself” (Lev. 16:21-22).
“Now,” John says, “Christ is the Lamb of God who takes away sin!” The Lord, on the day of his anger, laid your sins on the Lamb and he carried them away. Notice the present tense—the great work of bearing sin took place once for all on the cross. But Christ rose from the dead, and ascended to heaven, where he lives to take away the sins of his people.
Matthew Henry says, “[Christ] is always taking away sin, by the continual intercession of his blood in heaven, and the continual influence of his grace on earth.” So, what must I do when I become aware of sin in my life? I must give it to him, so that he can take it away.
Christ takes away sin, and there will never be a time when we do not need him to do this for us. Jerry Bridges says this well: “Your worst days are never so bad that you are beyond the reach of God’s grace. Your best days are never so good that you are beyond the need of God’s grace.”
Do you see how the Lamb of God is able to take away your sin today?