The Lamb of God

Hebrews chapter 10 verse 12.
"But Christ gave Himself to God for our sins as one sacrifice for all time and then sat down in the place of highest honor at God's right hand"

What does sacrifice mean to you? I have always been cautious of sacrifice because I thought it meant I had to give of myself and not get anything in return. It sounds selfish and probably is. I do not mind helping people, for instance giving up my time to help someone who needs an extra hand. And if I promise to be there, I am and I try to be on time. I liked the example of parents, who sacrifice themselves for the needs of their children. I am thankful to God for Jesus and His promises of salvation. The story of Abraham in Genesis chapter 22 talks about the sacrifice God asked him to make and how faithfully He would do God's will. When I started to read the bible I had no idea what I was getting into and I learned that God wanted me to give up my way of living and faithfully follow Him. I wanted to be free from my addictions so I held close to His word and achieved the freedom I was seeking. It was God's promises that led me to Jesus and the changes in my life. So you see through sacrifice I left behind my old life and gained the love of God.

The word sacrifice means to give up something for the sake of something else. For example I want to go away, so I work extra hours in order to have the time to do it. In the old testament of the bible, people sacrificed animals as an offering to God seeking His forgiveness for a wrong that was committed. The problem was, that this form of sacrifice never really did clear the mind of the wrong doing it only reminded them of the guilt and shame they felt. People also did not turn away from wrong living but continued to sin even though they had asked God for His forgiveness. That is why Jesus came into the world. The sacrifices people made did nothing to satisfy God for they were just empty words with no real meaning to them. All along, God has wanted people to trust in Him and to enjoy life with Him in the world that He created. God sent Jesus to be the final sacrifice that anyone will ever have to make. By recognizing Jesus as God's Son and believing in the promises Jesus teaches, we can come to know God and His love for each of us. In John chapter 3 Jesus told Nicodemus that in order to belong to the kingdom of heaven, people need to be "born again".
2 Corinthians chapter 5 verse 17 states "With Christ old things are past, behold all things have become new." In John chapter 1 verse 29 John the baptist saw Jesus coming towards him and stated, "Look, there is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world." So you see at the cross, Jesus gave His life so that we can come to God and thank Him for His Son and the new life we are offered through Him. My sacrifice was giving up my old ways in order to live a new life with God and all because Jesus sacrificed His life for me. Romans chapter 8 verse 29 says "And all along God knew who would come to Him and become like His Son, so that His Son would be the First with many brothers." We are all God's children and He wants our eyes to be focused on Him as we trust in His promises and the joy of His love in our lives. Life with God brings peace and confidence for our future that others will see and want to know about. That's when we can tell them about Jesus, the "Lamb of God" and the sacrifice He made for all of us.
Thank-you Father for your love and Your son, Jesus😊

Hebrews chapter 6 verse 12.
"Then, knowing what lies ahead for you, you won't become bored with being a Christian, nor become spiritually dull and indifferent but you will be anxious to follow the example of those who receive all that God has promised them because of their strong faith and patience."

Psalm chapter 51 verse 7 and verse 10.
"Sprinkle me with the cleansing blood and I shall be clean again. Wash me and I shall be whiter than snow."

"Create in me a new clean heart, O God, filled with clean thoughts and right desires."