"Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."
John has grasped that, in Jesus, God was active on a cosmic scale.
To the people of John's days the lamb was the symbol of sacrifice, to restore a relationship with God, reminding them of Isaiah, Chapter 53 :
“Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
stricken by him, and afflicted
But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter.”
As you walk around the Kirk look out for the many different ways that the Lamb of God is depicted in this building.
