Lion N Lamb

 “But one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep. Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has prevailed to open the scroll and to loose its seven seals.” And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as though it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent out into all the earth.” Revelation 5:5-6 NKJV

The revelation of Jesus Christ as both the Lion and the Lamb presents the fundamental principle of peacemaking to believers. As rightly submitted in Nicky Gumbel’s devotional on Revelation 5, “doing hard things requires us to be lion-like - i.e., bold, steely and courageous. Doing things the right way means being like a lamb - i.e., gentle, meek and submissive”. Christ was bold, steely and courageous by His confrontations with sin and sinners; and He was gentle, meek and submissive to the consequences of these confrontations. By reflecting on how Mordecai stood his ground with Haman in defence of his conviction as a Jew and refused to bow or worship Haman, it teaches believers today the lion-like spirit. And by his meekness, patience in times of persecution, and submission to God in the face of the attending threats, the lamb-like disposition carried the day at the end: “For Mordecai the Jew was second to King Ahasuerus, and was great among the Jews and well received by the multitude of his brethren, seeking the good of his people and speaking peace to all his countrymen (Esther 10:3)”. If we are able to cultivate the combined lion-like disposition in our engagement with hard things and lamb-like decorum throughout their implementation, we will remain blessed as peacemakers and children of God.