John 1: 29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.

“For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him”. 2 Cor.5: 21.

Looking at the above scriptures, we can see that Jesus as a sin offering was offered by God himself. John referred to him as the Lamb of God. Meaning just like everyone was to offer his sin offering for the purpose of sacrifice, even so God by himself has offered for mankind a Lamb suitable for a sin offering to take the place of whatever man will attempt to have offered or will want to offer. This is the only acceptable sin offering to God. So just like he provided a sin offering for Cain, and even a ram for Abraham to be offered in place of Isaac, even so has he provided this sinless Lamb for the sins of humanity. This is what we are seeing here. It is the Lamb of God, God’s own personal Lamb, that is Jesus.

Further we are told. He was offered to take away the sin of the world. It’s a singular sin. So we are talking about the very act resulting from the fall of Adam in the Garden. Therefore Paul in Romans said.

“Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned…..

For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.

Therefore as by the offence of one judgment came upon all men to condemnation; even so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life”. Rom.5: 12-18.

Meaning we are justified by reason of Christ death from the condemnation that we were under by reason of the sin of Adam. The sacrificed of Jesus undo the effect of the sin of Adam that was laid on us. He simply took our sentences upon himself not the act itself, but the penalty of the act-sin.

That which was laid on him, which was our burden is found in the record of Isaiah.

Ampl. Isa 53: 2 For [the Servant of God] grew up before Him like a tender plant, and like a root out of dry ground; He has no form or comeliness [royal, kingly pomp], that we should look at Him, and no beauty that we should desire Him.

3 He was despised and rejected and forsaken by men, a Man of sorrows and pains, and acquainted with grief and sickness; and like One from Whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we did not appreciate His worth or have any esteem for Him.

4 Surely He has borne our griefs (sicknesses, weaknesses, and distresses) and carried our sorrows and pains [of punishment], yet we [ignorantly] considered Him stricken, smitten, and afflicted by God [as if with leprosy

5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him, and with the stripes [that wounded] Him we are healed and made whole.

6 All we like sheep have gone astray, we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has made to light upon Him the guilt and iniquity of us all.

Notice these words. “He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him…

“He became a focal point of all of the results or effects of our sins, iniquity”….. “the Lord has made to light upon Him the guilt and iniquity of us all”.

So you see, whatever should have been the burden of sorrows, pains, depression, sicknesses weaknesses etc etc resulting from the effect of the sin we were associated with in Adam were laid upon him and he took them away from us. Meaning by reason of his sacrifice as a sin offering, we are no longer supposed to bear these burdens again in life. He did it all and we are free and free indeed. He bore our iniquities and not our sins, as the Lamb of God.

To be continued…

(c) 2016 – Dr. David O. Ogaga