I got inspired to paint this painting during the worship service at my church when we were singing about the Lamb of God.
The Lamb of God refers to Jesus. In the Old Testament, the Israelites celebrated Passover by sacrificing a lamb and putting its blood on their houses as a symbol of protection. That pointed to the perfect lamb, Jesus, being sacrificed at the Cross and shedding His blood on our behalf.
A lamb has a white coat which is a symbol of purity, just like Jesus is sinless. A perfect lamb was chosen for a sacrifice, without blemishes or other infirmities. In the same way, Jesus was our perfect sacrifice, perfect substitution for our wrongdoings.
Jesus had to die to pay for our sins, just in the same way the lambs were sacrificed to pay for the sins of people in the Old Testament. Jesus is the perfect lamb, so in that one sacrifice, both present and future sins can be forgiven.
The Bible says:
“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
(NIV, Romans 5:8)
Unlike a lamb that is helpless when led to the slaughter, Jesus actually had legions of angels He could call on for His protection, but He chose not to out of obedience to His Father and love for us.
I painted the lamb in the foreground to represent Jesus, but I also painted the lion in the sky to represent the invisible power that Jesus has. Jesus has proven that power in his resurrection and the Scripture also says that He will ultimately overcome the evil one in the future.
In the book of Revelation, the Bible says:
“They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.”
(NIV, Revelation 17:14)
The Bible says that anyone who is a follower of Jesus will triumph together with Him. Anyone who repents of their wrongdoing and believes in Jesus as their Lord and Savior can be saved.
You can watch the painting time-lapse here:
