[Propertalk] Ideas - Epiphany 2, John 1:29-42 - Part 3

[Joe Parrish]

...the Savior of humanity doesn't descend upon Rome, the world capitol, and is unheralded in Jerusalem, his religion's capitol.  Instead, a bony finger points out from the wasteland and says; "There stands the reason for creation."
Are we adept enough to see the bony fingers in our wastelands?  Are our lives so attuned that we could recognize the salvation of the world in the calloused hands of a backwoods carpenter?  Would I recognize the world's Savior-and if I did-would I move aside for him?  Or is my life too fettered by comfort and sin to be attuned to the improbable or influenced by the preposterous.

http://onefamilyoutreach.com/bible/John/jn_01_29-42.htm

Jerry Goebel: 2005 © http://onefamilyoutreach.com
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The messiah, as God's sacrificial lamb, will take away sin; he will remove it by vicariously bearing it himself. The text is not quite clear as to whether the messiah takes sin up and carries it, or carries it off. The theologian J. Jeremias said the verb "takes away" can mean "take up and carry" or "carry off." He says "in both cases it is a matter of setting aside the guilt of others. In the former, however, the means of doing this is by a substitutionary bearing of penalty; in the latter, sin is removed by means of expiation." 

http://www.lectionarystudies.com/studyg/sunday2ag.html

Bryan Findlayson
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...we need to make a clear distinction between a God who however 'lovingly' we may talk about it sacrifices his Son; & a Son who lovingly offers himself as sacrifice not to the Father's love, but to exemplify it. There's a world of difference. I can no longer live with the former interpretation. The imagery & outworking of the old Hebrew sacrificial system is not a useful tool in our armoury as we proclaim God in Christ today. God is maligned when we turn him into a Son Sacrificer - even for our sins! 

http://www.angelfire.com/journal2/matthew0/MIMJN12942EP2.html

Brian McGowan
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It is only in this passage in the New Testament that Jesus is referred to as the Lamb of God (twice) and perhaps a sermon could focus on this particular quality/characteristic of Jesus. 

It seems that when Jesus was described as the Lamb of God, John the Baptist may have been thinking of the scapegoat in the Old Testament who carried the sins of the world out into the wilderness. On the annual Day of Atonement, the most sacred day for the Jews of old, the high priest would dedicate a goat to symbolically carry out the sins of the whole world from the camp into the desert. (Leviticus 16:8, 10, 26.)  Nowadays, we continue to think of Jesus as carrying away the sin of the whole world on his back, out into the wilderness. 
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Effective evangelists speak of what we personally have seen or experienced with our own eyes, ears, and heart. That was true of the Apostle John; it was also true of John the Baptist and Andrew in our gospel story for today. 

http://www.sermonsfromseattle.com/series_a_two_witnesses_john_the_baptist_and_andrew_GA.htm

Edward F. Markquart
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...when John the Baptizer says, "Look -- the Lamb of God," he is articulating a hope that spanned multiple cultures in the ancient world.  He was saying that in Jesus there was power, power that would rise above the other powers in the sky, power present in the beginning, power to make all things new. 

http://www.sarahlaughed.net/lectionary/2005/01/second_sunday_a.html

Sarah Dylan Breuer
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...forgiveness is accomplished through Jesus' identity as the Lamb of God. Forgiveness is no longer a means of preparation for the coming of the Messiah; it is instead the Messiah's chief work.

http://www.goodpreacher.com/shareit/readreviews.php?cat=28

Timothy B. Cargal
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They followed Jesus. When he turns around and asks, "What are you looking for?" he is asking them to identify themselves. To say something like: "We are two people looking for meaning and purpose in our lives and we think you may be it." I think the reason they don't say that is because they are not sure who they are or even that they are looking for something. So instead of answering, they counter Jesus' question with another question: "Where are you staying?"

http://www.patheos.com/Resources/Additional-Resources/Introducing-Jesus-Reflections-on-John-Alyce-McKenzie-01-11-2011.html

Alyce McKenzie, 2011
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