Revelation 5:6 says, “And between the throne and the four living creatures and among the elders I saw a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.”
Charles Spurgeon says this in his devotional classic entitled Morning and Evening for April 23rd,
“Why should our exalted Lord appear in glory with His wounds? The wounds of Jesus are His glories, His jewels, His sacred ornaments. To the eye of the believer, Jesus is altogether lovely. We see Him as the lily of matchless purity, and as the rose crimsoned with His own blood. We behold the beauty of Christ in all His earthly pilgrimage, but there never was such matchless beauty as when He hung upon the cross.”
It is striking in the Gospel accounts of Christ after His resurrection that when He appeared to the eleven disciples that He makes it a point to show to the eleven disciples, including Thomas, the nail prints in His hands and the scars in His side (John 20:24-29). These enduring signs in His resurrected body are reminders that His sufferings and death obtained our salvation. Jesus’ admonition to Thomas was to stop doubting, touch His wounds, and believe on Christ.
In Revelation 5 quoted above, the whole company of heaven is seen worshipping Jesus as the Lamb of God slain for us. In Revelation 5:9 it says, “And they sang a new song saying,
“You are worthy to take the scroll, and to open its seals; For You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation. And have made us kings and priests to our God and we shall reign on the earth.”
Central to this worship of the Lord Jesus is praise to Him who set us free from sin and death as He conquered death by His death. One of the images formed by the word redemption is of someone rescuing people from slavery and setting them free. Only God has the power to liberate us from sin. Christ as God did this for us by His life, death, and resurrection.
Charles Spurgeon concludes his devotional for April 23rd by quoting the poem written by Joseph Stennett, 1663 – 1713,
“Behold how every wound of His
A precious balm distils,
Which heals the scars that sin had made,
And cures all mortal ills.
Those wounds are mouths that preach His grace,
The ensigns of His love;
The seals of our expected bliss
In paradise above.”
Let us worship and serve Christ our God as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.
