Jesus is the Lamb:
In John 1:29, in the passage about the baptism of Jesus, John the Baptist makes this statement; "Behold! The lamb of God who takes away he sin of the world!" It seems a rather strange statement to make if there is no O/T context to put it into, but again, if we look back to the Old Testament we find another foreshadowing of Christ. This one is much more than that though, because it speaks of the single most important event in history, the death and resurrection of Jesus, God in the flesh who came down to be one of us and sacrifice Himself for us, so that we might have restored relationship with God the father.
If you've ever seen the movie "The Ten Commandments" with Charlton Heston, you might remember the part of the movie when they put lamb's blood across the doorposts and lintels of all the houses where the Israelites lived, so that the firstborn children would survive the last plague brought down upon Egypt. It seems an awkward thing for God to tell them to do, doesn't it? (Read Exodus 12:1-4, and 21-28 for that part of the story). As we read on in the O/T, we later see that God actually tells them to have festivals, once a year, to remember what happened that night. (Deuteronomy 16:1-8, and Leviticus 23:1-8). It was the hand that God used to set the Children of Israel free from captivity and slavery in Egypt, and so God wanted them to never forget that He loved them enough to set them free. People often say that hind sight is 20/20, and so in retrospect, we can now see that it meant so much more than that. This is the Passover holiday that Jewish people still celebrate today, named thus because the plague "passed over" their houses and they were saved.
In an unrelated ritual, and if you have the patience and endurance, read some of the laws God hands down to His people at the foot of Mount Sinai, as recorded in the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy. In their worship, God requires a blood sacrifice in quite a lot of the ceremonies performed in and around the tabernacle. He is quite specific about many of the details, and it should make one wonder why, since God is sooo adamant about them getting it right. Basically, if one of the priests performing the rituals wasn't 100% prepared, dressed perfect, ritually perfect, and mentally ready, then he would drop dead in the inner sanctuary when he got face to face with the presence of the creator, God.
Although there was some latitude given as to the sacrifice used, among other things, the highest standard was a male, first born, spotless and unblemished lamb. When this animal was sacrificed (they were slaughtered, and then eaten at the festivals), the blood would be sprinkled in the tabernacle, and the Israelites were then forgiven of all their sins. Up until the time of Christ, and very shortly after that, this was a practice that is found all throughout Jewish customs, from the book of Genesis (3:4, and 22:1-8), through to the last book of the O/T, the book of Malachi.
Not that God needs defending, but there are two good reasons why God commanded the slaughter of innocent animals throughout the O.T. The 1st is that He needed the Jews (and us) to realize that we are all in rebellion to Him, and the 2nd is He needed to show us the horrific consequences sin produces in our lives. God is not a God of the slaughter, but of absolute holiness who owes us nothing, but extends mercy and grace to us anyway, because of He is love.
This all being said, lets look at 5 important points involving the sacrificial lamb, taken mostly from Leviticus 1:1-4.
The whole time that the lambs were slaughtered, God was pointing His finger to His Son. Whenever you read something in the scriptures about the lamb of the sacrifice, Remember it is some how referring to the Lamb of the sacrifice. I love Jesus with all my heart, and knowing this, it's no wonder I encourage you to dedicate your life to His. Read 1st Cor 5-7, 1st Peter 1:18-21, and Acts 8:32. They all talk of Christ as the sacrificial Lamb.
John the Baptist was a prophet, and so he would have known all this. No wonder he made such a strange proclamation when he saw Jesus walking up to be baptized.
I love you guys, be blessed,
Arron.