CAN A LAMB DEFEAT A LION?
By: Frank Tunstall, D. Min.
Can a defenseless lamb defeat the king of the jungle?
Could the humble, servant-like demeanor of Jesus succeed and actually save the world if He did not come with the qualities of a lion, demanding and taking? Would Jesus be able to accomplish His objectives if He lived instead by the qualities of a lamb, the polar opposite of demanding and taking? (Philippians 2:7).
Everyone knows lambs are helpless and defenseless, easy to kill.
Jesus chose to adopt the weaknesses of the lamb, so that the plan of God became the lamb slain “before the creation of the world” (1 Peter 1:18-20). Paul wrote that “Jesus humbled Himself and became obedient to death, even death on a cross” (Philippians 2:8).
From eternity, Jesus was the Lamb of God. He lived out the plan of redemption with this mindset defeating every ‘lion’ that came up against Him. The Lord did it even when it cost Him His life at the hands of evil men in a very convoluted world (John 1:14-18; Acts 2:23; 3:26; 14:23; 2 Corinthians 5:14).
The message of the Gospel admits, therefore, that lions can kill. But God’s Lamb holds the power of resurrection, and that makes a quantum difference (John 10:17-18). Hence. We celebrate the triumph of the Lamb (Revelation 5:5-6).
Arguably, the greatest strength of a Lamb is his trust in his shepherd. It also follows that the highest goal of Christian maturity is for a believer to vest complete trust in Jesus the Nazarene (Matthew 2:23; 11:29; John 14:1; Proverbs 3:5).
“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus,” Paul wrote (Philippians 2:5). We too trust the Good Shepherd of our souls, who continues to hold the power of resurrection. Jesus, in fact, used this kind of thinking to teach His disciples to live the life of servants.
“You know those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them,” Jesus said, “and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:42-45).
Yes, Jesus the Lamb of God continues to defeat all lions that confront Him. He is Lord over all.
All glory and praise to the Lamb that was slain,
Who has borne all our sins,
And has cleansed every stain.
Hallelujah! thine the glory.
Hallelujah, Amen.
Hallelujah, thine the glory.
Revive us again.
