Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats. Exodus 12:5
Someone has well said that making us His children is God’s gift to us, and what we do as God’s children is our gift to God. The requirement for an unblemished lamb for the first Jewish Passover reminds us that there is an absolute requirement for the provision for our salvation. The requirement for our displaying that salvation, well, that’s not quite so clear.
We rejoice as we consider how the unblemished Passover lamb provides us with a lovely picture of the Lamb of God. Just as the Israelites were to examine their lambs for three days to assure their qualification as Passover sacrifices, so we read in the Gospels the examination of the life of the Lord Jesus to assure His qualification as God’s Sacrifice for us. At His baptism, He received a proclamation of acceptance from His Father. At His trial, He received Pilate’s declaration of innocence. At His death, He received the centurion’s declaration of His righteousness. Our redemption is valid because our Redeemer is worthy.
Unlike us, the Lord Jesus was totally separate from sin. Nothing of this sinful world did or could ever taint His sinless perfection. Not so us. Our redemption has not yet reached our painful bodies, and we war as Christians every day against our own flesh, as well as against the world and the devil. And yet, we are to, in these same bodies, seek to honour our Lord. ‘I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service’ – Romans 12:1.
There was no blemish in God’s Sacrifice for us; let there be no blemish in our service for Him. -Jim MacIntosh
Here is the link to the video of this message: https://youtu.be/OfoNqh6nuis