That phrase, that title, “Lamb of God” evokes a number of ancient biblical ideas.
Firstly, in the Old Covenant, twice a day, on behalf of the nation of Israel, priests would sacrifice a lamb to God. The sacrifice of the lamb was prescribed by Moses as a way of asking God to forgive the sins of the world. As a way of recognizing that God and God alone has the power to forgive sins.
Secondly, that phrase “lamb of God” recalls the Jewish Passover feast. Once a year, on the feast of Passover, not just the priests, but every family, would sacrifice a lamb to recall their liberation from Egypt in the days of Moses. Remember the story? While enslaved in Egypt, God called for the Hebrew people to put the blood of a lamb on their doorposts, that the Angel of Death might Pass-over their homes. Thus the Passover lamb signified God’s powerful and salvific love, his mercy for the oppressed.
Thirdly, the lamb going silently and docilely to be slaughtered is one of the images used to describe the Messiah by the prophets, particularly Isaiah. The Messiah, faithful and docile to God’s Plan of Salvation, would take Israel’s sins upon himself. He would become the expiation through his obedient suffering.
Fourthly, the “lamb of God” evokes an even older story than Isaiah’s prophecy, a story even older than the Exodus. In the story of Abraham, leading his son Isaac up mount Moriah. Abraham had heard God calling him to offer a sacrifice, to show his trust, and love, and fidelity. And As Abraham and Isaac climb Mt. Moriah, Isaac asks Abraham, “father, where is the lamb” and Abraham responds, “God will provide the lamb”. Upon reaching the summit of Moriah, Abraham binds Isaac, his beloved son. And with sacrificial knife raised, God stopped the knife of Abraham. God did not desire the death of Isaac, but rather, would Himself provide the lamb. And so for centuries and centuries Israel awaited God to provide the lamb.
So, imagine, the electricity, the excitement, when John the Baptist on the banks of the river Jordan in front of hundreds if not thousands of people, sees Jesus, and says, there is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world”. A people who had waited season after season, year after year, century after century, asking, like Isaac, “Father, where is the lamb?”
And for John the utter those words, to this people, who hoped and waited and understood the significance, must have been…an ineffable experience, touching upon Israel’s deepest longings and understanding of God.
And that we have adopted this phrase, and repeat it so often during our liturgy, is quite significant. St. John the Baptist’s inspired exhortation echoes throughout our sacred liturgical rites. Jesus is called the “lamb of God” near the beginning of Mass in the Gloria, that song of the angels proclaiming God breaking in to human history. Before we receive Holy Communion, three times, the congregation sings “lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world”, expressing our longing for him, for the mercy and peace that only He can bring. And then the priest holds up the consecrated host and consecrated chalice and says, “behold, the lamb of God”, here He is, look at him, behold him, here is the one who takes away our sins under the appearance of bread and wine.
Our use of that phrase recalls all of those Old Testament stories and our belief that Jesus Christ fulfills what the Old Covenant foreshadowed. For when we celebrate Mass, we become present in that moment when God provides the lamb, as foretold in the story of Abraham and Isaac. We become present when the faithful lamb takes the sins of the world upon himself, and suffers death for our salvation, as prophecied by Isaiah. We become present when the blood of the lamb is shed, that the powers of death might Passover God’s people that they might be led out of slavery to the powers of sin and death, as in the Exodus story.
When we celebrate Mass we are mystically present on Calvary, on a Friday, strangely called, “Good Friday”, when the lamb hangs upon the Cross. When we are gathered for Mass at the foot of the altar, we become mystically present at the foot of the cross, as the lamb of God offers himself to God.
Yet, not only do we behold him, not only do we gaze upon him with love and thanksgiving, and praise him and honor the Lamb for his sacrifice. “Blessed are those called to the supper of the lamb”. The lamb sacrificed for the Passover was to be consumed. And so we receive the Lamb of God at Mass, broken and poured out for us, we consume him, so that as St. Augustine says, “we may become what we receive.”
On the shores of Galilee, after his resurrection, the risen Lord tells Peter, “Peter, feed my lambs”. The Lord refers to us as lambs, hungry lambs who need to be fed. We are hungry for God, we are hungry for the spiritual nourishment that only he can bring, the peace that only he can give, not as the world gives, but as he gives. We long to know that he is with us, that we are not abandoned to the uncaring coldness of the world, but we receive from God what we need in order to come to eternal life.
And we are fed at the Eucharistic Table, again, that we may become what we receive, that we may become like the one True Lamb in Spirit and Truth. We worship the Lamb, we receive Him, that we may become like Him. That his heart, obedient to the Father, may beat in our breasts, that his faith, his trust in the father’s will, his willingness to suffer for the good of others, may animate us. We fall prostrate before the Lamb, that we like him may be broken and poured out for others, for the building up of the church, for the spread of the Gospel, for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.
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