“Faith Facts” is a series of short write-ups (approximately 350 words) that can be used in church bulletins or as brief explainers during Christian worship.
Download: Bulletin insert (5.5″x8.5″).
Faith Facts
The Lamb is a profound symbol in Christian artwork.
John the Baptist said of Jesus, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (Jn. 1:29). In Latin, “Lamb of God” is “Agnus Dei.” If you type “Agnus Dei” into a Google image search, you will discover hundreds of paintings, mosaics, stained glass window designs, and other artwork depicting a lamb.
Some artwork focuses on the lamb as a symbol of sacrifice. In the Old Testament, lambs were killed and offered to God as a sign that sin brings death and requires a costly atonement. When Israel left Egypt, they killed a lamb and spread its blood over the doorposts of their houses so that God’s angel of death would see and “pass over” them. Jesus is the Passover Lamb of God who was slain to save us from sin, death, and judgment. A famous painting titled “Agnus Dei” by Francisco de Zurbarán (c. 1635–1640) depicts a passover lamb with its legs bound by cords, ready to be sacrificed.
More commonly, however, Christian artwork depicts the victorious Lamb of the Book of Revelation. John saw the Lamb “standing, as though it had been slain” (Rev. 5:6), in the midst of the throne (Rev. 7:7), worshiped by heaven and earth (Rev. 5:12, 13), worthy to open the seven-sealed scroll (Rev. 6:1), and thus exalted to judge the world (Rev. 6:16; 13:8). Agnus Dei artwork often depicts the Lamb standing or seated on a seven-sealed book—standing in victory or seated as on a throne, having rested from the finished work of the cross. The Lamb is often holding a red and white flag—colors associated with victory and purity through Christ’s blood (Rev. 7:9, 14). The words of John 1:29 are often included in Latin.
Agnus Dei artwork also sometimes includes symbols of the Lord’s Supper, such as blood flowing out of the Lamb’s side and into a chalice. As Paul says, the cup is “a participation in the blood of Christ” (1 Cor. 10:16). The words of John 1:29 (“the Agnus Dei”) have been used for centuries at communion, “the Lamb’s high feast.”
