The Lamb and the Lion

In my family e-mails we were discussing the proverb, “March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb.’ There is the reverse of that too, that if March comes in like a lamb that it will go out like a lion. This year it came in like a lion and we’re looking for the lamb part. It still has twelve days to make an appearance, but all of us are feeling overcome by the constant rain, wind, and gray clouds that shield the sun from shining and are beginning to cause some seasonal despair and depression. Add that to the list of worries and woes that we're facing, pain that increases with wet and cold weather; a broken-down truck that will cost thousands to repair and the implications of that on a family business; rising gas prices that make us re-think every drive we make and keep us from making trips to visit family; anxieties about job losses; house-bound children that begin to drive their parents up the walls; and even worse, anxiety and concerns for family members undergoing medical operations and treatments. This list could go on, these are just the ones that people have talked about. Each one of us always carries around other burdens that we don’t share with other people. But I was thinking about the lion and the lamb.

Many people experience mood changes at this time of year because the winter weather has kept us more cooped up and the sunlight is scarce. Sometimes feelings can erupt into full-blown depression that can become more dangerous. So we hope for the lion to go away and for the lamb to make his appearance. This is a great analogy for this time of year having to do with the Resurrection!

Jesus is referred to as the Lamb that takes away the sin of the world, and also as the Lion of Judah, mighty on His throne. So we have a picture of a gentle and innocent creature, yet slaughtered as a sacrifice to cover sins of mankind. He who knew no sin was made sin for us, all of us. His sacrifice covers our sorrows and griefs, and sometimes each one of us let those overcome us to the point that we forget what the Lamb did for all of us.

As for the Lion, He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords, there is none greater than Him. I have this picture in my mind of the majestic and powerful Lion with a scepter, the symbol of His power. When He opens His mouth, it is with a strong voice that protects those of His kingdom, but is a warning to those who would attempt to trample His kingdom or His children. The lion in C.S. Lewis' book, 'The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe' or in Disney's 'Lion King' are both powerful pictures of this creature and yet they don't do my King of kings and Lord of lords near justice!

So, we have this Lamb and this Lion, both symbols of the character and personality of Jesus Christ, the Son of God Most High. And we have this miserable weather that overhangs our list of woes. There isn’t a whole lot that we can do about the things that happen to us. Most of the time, we can accept the things that happen because of our own wrong choices. They may cause problems, significant changes and even worse. But there are also a lot of things that come from the outside and drop in uninvited and at a bad time. How can we move through all of these and come out at the end with more thankfulness and wisdom?

You would call me a fool if I told you that you should smile through all this. I think of the young family in my church whose daughter died suddenly a week after her first birthday. This is one of three funeral services, the other two were for a 59-year old grandmother, and a 22-year old husband and father of one child with another on the way, that my pastor has had to preach right after coming back from an African trip that has changed his ministry and will change a people, maybe a nation. This family is mourning their empty arms, but each week for each service I see them praising God and entering into worship with even more passion.

We’ve all got burdens, problems, pains, anxieties, and worries. So what are we going to do about them? Will despair help? Will depression make a difference? Actually, I’m all for the cleansing power of tears. In fact, when I asked God about the death of the baby in our church, I felt the Holy Spirit remind me that I don’t have all the answers and on this side of heaven, there are going to be a lot of questions without answers. But one thing I do have are tears.

I can hold my family to me and say, “I know it’s rough and I don’t understand and I don't have any way to make this any different than what it is. But I’m here to cry with you, and to remind you that we have a Heavenly Father that cares so much that He sent the One He loved most as the Lamb and the Lion that can change our lives, as we let Him.”

My heart is full for people going through all that they’re going through. And yet, through our tears, let’s look outside of the despair and depression to consider how God can heal us and use us; not to get more for our own selves, but to reach out to other people with the same comfort that He gives to us in these times.

I didn’t want this to be depressing, I hope it isn’t. If you’ve come onto this feeling really happy and joyful and everything is going great in your life, Wow! Wonderful, I’m really happy for you! But because my passion in life is to see people change from the despair where they sit, and move into the Light and Life of Jesus Christ, I have to address depression and problems and the future in the only way that I know and that’s through the Word of God.

He is the only Hope, the only Holy and Unique God, there is none other like Him. At the sound of His voice the earth trembles and mountains are moved from one place to another. His breath is like fire burning through all that is not real, and purifying the gold that is left. There is no escaping His justice and His love, His throne is everlasting! And He sent us the Lamb first, followed by the Lion to bring us back into His kingdom.

This word that we have heard, that our eyes have looked upon, and our hands have handled is manifested to us and we proclaim and testify of it to you so that you may have fellowship with all the saints, but mostly with the Father and His Son.

Praise Him today, because His grace and peace are for us now and we can experience His mercy through the Lion and the Lamb every day. As always, give mercy the opportunity to change your life, and in giving it to someone else today.