Connect Revelation 13:8 with John 1:29 regarding Jesus as the Lamb. Two Verses, One Lamb “And all who dwell on the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written from the foundation of the world in the Book of Life belonging to the Lamb who was slain.” “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’” Why the Same Title Matters • John the Baptist announces Jesus as “the Lamb of God” at the very start of His public ministry. • John the Apostle, writing Revelation, sees the same Lamb at the center of end-time events. • One identity stretches from the banks of the Jordan to the climax of history—Jesus as the sacrificial Lamb who saves. Slain Before the World Began • Revelation 13:8 locates Christ’s sacrifice “from the foundation of the world.” • 1 Peter 1:19-20 echoes this: Christ, “a lamb without blemish or spot… was known before the foundation of the world.” • God’s redemptive plan was not a last-minute repair; it was settled before creation. Old-Testament Echoes • Genesis 22: God provides a ram in place of Isaac—foreshadowing substitution. • Exodus 12: The Passover lamb’s blood shields Israel from judgment. • Isaiah 53:7: “He was led like a lamb to the slaughter.” • Each picture finds its fulfillment in Jesus, the Lamb John points to and Revelation enthrones. The Book of Life and the Blood of the Lamb • Names written “from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8) show God’s eternal certainty. • Revelation 21:27 links the Book to eternal life in the New Jerusalem. • Revelation 7:14 describes believers who “have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” • Security and cleansing flow from the same sacrifice John announced. The Lamb’s Victory Already Secured • Revelation 5:6: a Lamb that “appeared to have been slain” is standing—alive and reigning. • Colossians 2:15: Christ has “disarmed the powers and authorities,” triumphing at the cross. • Because the Lamb triumphed, the beast’s temporary worshipers (Revelation 13) cannot overturn His ultimate rule. Living in the Light of the Lamb • Worship: The rightful object of worship is the Lamb, not the counterfeit powers of Revelation 13. • Assurance: Salvation rests on a finished sacrifice planned from eternity, not on human effort. • Witness: Like John the Baptist, believers point others to “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” |
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