ADVENT BOOK ENDS
Behold the Lamb of God!
The season of Advent is
preceded by the Sunday on which we celebrate the Feast of Christ the King. The Gospel for that day, which is also, of
course the Sunday Next Before Advent, is a passage from
Today, we read another
passage from the first Chapter of St. John, and in it we hear again those
words, Behold the Lamb of God!, spoken again by St. John the Baptist, but
on a different occasion. These two
readings are like bookends to the season of Advent, and with very good reason.
They help, or certainly
should help, to focus our attention on the underlying gravity of the event we
will celebrate just two days from now.
The Nativity of Jesus Christ is a matter for great rejoicing, though not
the sentimental mushy kind that shopping malls and radio stations have been
blaring at us for weeks now. Any true
Christian should find that quite revolting.
Christian rejoicing must be
born of a heart filled to overflowing with gratitude for the Love of God. It must be born of a heart trembling at its
own proclivity to sin. Jesus says, Hear
and understand: not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that
which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man. Matthew 15:10-11. We are by nature sinners and not just our
words, but our actions show it.
We have absolutely no reason
to rejoice over the Nativity unless we acknowledge, understand and bewail this
fundamental truth about our human nature.
But if we do, then we have
every reason to rejoice because we can then appreciate that through the
Nativity, God the Father sent His Son to pay the price for our sins. Behold the Lamb of God, is a
proclamation pregnant with the basic sacrificial nature of the Incarnation of
the only Begotten Son of God.
Isaiah foretold that
sacrificial nature in the same imagery of the sheep, He was oppressed and He
was afflicted, yet opened He not His mouth: He is brought as a lamb to the
slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so He openeth not His
mouth. Is.53:7.
The Son of God is immortal
and cannot die. He is the Father’s only
begotten Son, and cannot die. So He
assumed a body which was capable of death and in that body made to the Father
the perfect sacrifice for all mankind for all time.
Christians do indeed have
reason to rejoice over the Nativity. But
they have much more, as
So when we come to that
infinitely precious baby on Christmass morning, let us kneel humbly and rejoice
for the right reasons, with hearts open to the full message of the
Nativity. Then we shall find the truth
in St. Pauls words that, The peace of God, which passeth all understanding
shall keep your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ.
A few minutes ago I read the
Exhortation from the Book of Common Prayer.
It is an obligation of the Parish clergy to read the Exhortation “upon
some Sunday before Christmass Day, Easter Day and Whitsunday. I urge all of us to visit the Exhortation
from time to time throughout the year.
It is of great importance to the health of our souls.
It is a reminder that the
Holy Communion incorporates the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ, to
be received in remembrance of His meritorious Cross and Passion, whereby alone
we obtain remission of our sins.
Behold the Lamb of God
which taketh away the sin of the world.
Jesus says, I am the
vine, ye are the branches: he that abideth in Me and I in him, the same beareth
much fruit: for apart from me ye can do nothing. John 15:15. The Christian soul is grafted onto the vine
through the Sacrament of Baptism, but our Lord’s words remind us that although
He was indeed the perfect, perpetual sacrifice for our sins, without Him we
remain helpless against the forces of sin in our daily lives.
But we are not without
Him. Our souls are grafted onto Him, the
vine, at Baptism and throughout the trials and tribulations of this life He
offers us unique sustenance, providing, as the Exhortation says, we receive it
worthily. Jesus says, Except ye
eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, ye have not life in
yourselves. He that eateth My flesh and
drinketh My blood hath eternal life; and I will raiseth him up at the last
day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my
blood is drink indeed. He that eateth My
flesh and drinketh My blood abideth in me and I in him. As the living Father sent Me, and I live
because of the Father; so he that eateth Me, he also shall live because of
Oh yes! We Christians have reason to rejoice in the
baby in the manger. Let us kneel in all
humility before Him and with hearts full of gratitude, love and joy, rejoice.
Let us at the same time call
to mind the words of John the Baptist and fearlessly, joyfully, with
understanding and deep reverence, proclaim to all, Behold the Lamb of God
which taketh away the sin of the world.
Peter Jardine+
Advent IV, 2007