The Crimson Path

Have you ever wondered why John the Baptist introduced Jesus Christ to Israel as the 'Lamb of God' in John 1:29? Israel eagerly anticipated the arrival of their Messiah. They longed for His deliverance! Yet, they refused to receive Jesus Christ as their prophesied Messiah. It seems there were numerous other titles with which John the Baptist could have addressed Jesus; titles that would have invoked an immediate acceptance of Jesus as the 'Christ', or Messiah. Why not introduce Him as the promised heir to the throne of King David? The Jewish populace was anxiously awaiting their Messiah to come as a militant deliverer: a mighty lion, not a humble Lamb. Yet, John the Baptist first proclaimed Jesus as the 'Lamb of God' and later testified of Him as the 'Son of God'. John went straight to the heart and need of Israel and the entire world. All needed "The Lamb of God who taketh away the sin of the world!" A foreshadow is a person, event, ritual, or thing, that represents, indicates, or typifies something beforehand. It implies a certain dimness, but also suggests some resemblance between two things. This exposition will examine 'foreshadows' of a coming event that will culminate in the fulfillment of, or completion of, a plan devised by God Almighty Himself. The following pages will take the reader on a journey, a journey through the ages. Along this journey, together we will discover each foreshadow revealed in the pages of a sacred inspired book, the Bible. We will seek to see and understand the resemblance of the event recorded and correlate it with the plan of fulfillment. The path embarked upon will begin in the Old Testament to enable one to understand who this Savior was and what He did. Each foreshadow given provides a glimpse of the redemptive work of this Savior. Each foreshadow will be examined as an individual piece of a puzzle, or a piece of ‘the mystery of the gospel’ (Ephesians 6:19). Hopefully, as the puzzle, or ‘mystery’, is completed and the gracious plan of God unfolds, each glimpse or portrayal of the sacrifice will provide illumination. The journey begins in the book of Genesis. As God’s redemptive road is traveled, the fluid continuity of the Old and New Testaments of Scripture will be discovered. Throughout the Old Testament Scriptures, God reveals silhouettes of His plan of atonement. Each silhouette is a portrayal of the ultimate sacrifice needed to forever cleanse man of his transgression. In the New Testament, the needed Savior came and shed His innocent blood to atone for man’s sin, once and for all. This final act was the fulfillment of God’s redemptive plan. From the beginning of Genesis to the end of Revelation, the central theme is the redemptive work of the 'Lamb of God'. Jesus Christ is the Alpha, the beginning or first, and the Omega, the ending or the last. Jesus Christ is the crimson path which connects the Old and New Testaments. Embark with me on a quest as we journey through the pages of the Old Testament and view the foreshadows of a divine plan devised by Almighty God. The journey will continue into the pages of the New Testament where the fulfillment of the plan of redemption is illuminated by the spilling of the blood of the Lamb. Behold, the Lamb of God! Worthy is the Lamb!