Friday, April 1
Scripture: Revelation 12:10-11, Revelation 5:12

And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death, saying with a loud voice,
“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,
to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might
and honor and glory and blessing!”

WORTHY IS THE LAMB

My father-in-law, a P-38 pilot, was shot down and captured by Nazis, spending the last 9 months of WWII as a POW in Stalag Luft 1. My mother-in-law, an immigrant from Poland, suffered the horrific loss of most of her relatives in WWII. This family history is ever-present wallpaper in the emotional and spiritual fabric of our lives and conversation. For example, my husband, Geoff, recently read two books by authors who were in the same prison camp as his father. And, I recently read the narrative nonfiction work of Erik Larson, In the Garden of the Beasts (2001), which chronicles the life of American ambassador Dodd in Berlin in the 1930s, and Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Life Together (1996) and Discipleship (2003), in an effort to understand how one courageously encourages followers of Christ in the context of violence, chaos, and imprisonment.

So, you can imagine that I was visually stunned upon first viewing Willem Zijlistra’s “Behold the Lamb of God” with the altar of newspapers recounting the history of humanity, the Holocaust headline“Man is capable of anything,” and the photo of Auschwitz. And there on top of the altar, the unblemished lamb, who came to take away the sin of the world. Images of Abraham and Isaac at the altar filled my mind . . . then images of the cross with Jesus willingly hanging there. Jesus: peaceful, willingly the sacrifice . . . yet violence all around. A sense of disequilibrium took hold as I contemplated my Savior: His worthiness . . . and my unworthiness.

I then viewed “Lamb of God” by French contemporary artist Jean-Marie Pirot. Housed in Notre-Dame des Neiges church in the municipality of Alpe d’Huez, the vivid colors of stained glass invite sacred contemplation. The angel, lion, ox, and eagle windows, representing the four evangelists (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) frame the Worthy Lamb, the Centerpiece of history. Etherial images cross between the material and immaterial world. Christ knows all. Christ sees all. Christ created all. Christ solves all. Destruction of eternal spiritual death in one act. Invitation to eternal spiritual life in one act. Transcendent God. Message of love to the world from the Only One worthy.

And then, finally, I listened to Hillsong’s “Worthy is the Lamb.” Moved to tears, I listened . . .  “High and lifted up . . . Jesus, Son of God . . . the Darling of Heaven crucified . . . worthy is the Lamb . . .”

“Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29), the only One worthy to release imprisoned humanity from irreparable brokenness.

PRAYER
Lord Jesus, Worthy Lamb without blemish, thank You for the price You paid to take away my sin and my shame. It is only in Your name, the name of Jesus, that one can be saved. Forgive me, Lord, for allowing my own sin and pride to imprison me to inaction, cheapening the costly gift of grace offered to each one of us. Purify me, Lord, and give me courage in a broken world. May my life, words, and actions proclaim the Holy and Worthy Lamb of God this day and every day.
Amen.

June Hetzel, Dean, The School of Education