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Behold The Lamb Of God

 I was praying with the Scriptures yesterday, and I'm going to tell you something that hasn't even made it in my prayer journal yet. But I was hanging out with John, in the first chapter of his Gospel. I started from the top, figuring that God and I would talk about something majestic in the prologue. There's a lot in there; it stands to reason that you could spend some time meditating on anything in there. But no, the Holy Spirit didn't want to talk about the prologue. I kept reading, and then I came to this: "Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" John the Baptist sees Jesus here, and points Him out to his own disciples. It's often right to understand that "behold" in the Scriptures as something like we would say, "Look!" This stopped me in my tracks this time, because Jesus was saying, "Don't you understand? I am still for you." Christ walking around, Christ healing people, Christ teaching his disciples. The offer is still good. The offer culminates in the cross, and it's still good.

There are so many people who still think that if they've made a mess of things that they can't go back to Jesus. All the talk of free grace, and people still act like it's no longer free, when they sin, and finally embarrass themselves. We've all been there, so I won't gloat over you. Yet Heaven help me, destroying my own self-image seems to move me more than hurting Jesus seems to do. If Jesus finally brings us to glory, he still considers it worthwhile, and I'm glad for that.

It reminded me of a time that I talked to a pastor, and I was confessing sins, and getting advice. He said to me, "The blood of Christ is still fresh for you." What a revelation, if you'll pardon the term. Faith is not one time; trust is not one time. It's forever, and again, if necessary.

Let us realize that the life and death of Christ for us is not trapped in the past as a distant memory of what he has done for us. Everywhere that we encounter Jesus is a reminder that he is always the same one who offered and is offering Himself to us. It is us who forget what we promise; it is us who are flighty, who can barely carry through with what we say. Who is Jesus? Has this ever described Jesus?

When you are able to answer those final questions correctly, then you will run to the fount of mercy.

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