Look! There’s just a lamb in our manger scene. What does a cute lamb have to do with our worship?
The 2nd Sunday in Advent we celebrate the message of John the Baptist. He came to prepare the way for Jesus. He called people to repent and prepare for the coming of the Lord. He was a prophet of God, called to bring God’s Word to His people. The Word of God John was sent to proclaim was that God had fulfilled His promise to come and save us from our sins.
John saw Jesus one day and said, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” He pointed people to Jesus, the Lamb of God.
But why did John call Him the Lamb of God? He did this because lambs were sacrificed for sin in the faith of Israel. John was pointing them to God who came to sacrifice Himself to take away the sins of all people.
In this season of Advent God calls us to repent of our sins, and receive the forgiveness Jesus won for us by His sacrifice on the cross. We look at the lamb in our manger scene and are called to behold Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away our sins and the sins of the whole world.
We also continue the mission to proclaim God’s Word. We are the voice of God in this generation who calls the world to repent of sins, and points them to the Lamb of God, Jesus, who is their Savior and our Savior. As our society prepares for Christmas, we have the privilege of explaining why there is Christmas; God came down to earth to be our Savior from sin. We prepare others for Jesus’ second coming by explaining His first coming. If there was no sin, there would be no Christmas. The baby
in the manger was truly the Lamb of God who came to sacrifice Himself for our sins. Having faith in Him makes us ready for His return. Prepare the way of the Lord by proclaiming the Lamb of God.
When All the World Was Cursed, hymn 346, verse 4, Lutheran Service Book O grant, dear Lord of love, That we receive, rejoicing, The Word proclaimed by John, Our true repentance voicing, That gladly we may walk Upon our Savior’s way Until we live with Him In His eternal day.