March is a month of transition. It’s often said that March “comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb.” In other words, it’s often cold and blustery at the beginning of March, but by the end of the month you generally see warmer temperatures and milder weather. Of course, sometimes the month starts out “like a lamb” and then the weather turns more lion-like late in the month.
In the Bible, Isaiah 35:9 notes that, at some point in the future, lions won’t be allowed in paradise. The verse says, “No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it shall not be found there; but the redeemed shall walk there.” I find this to mean paradise is peaceful, and that calmness prevails with Christ.
The lion is the symbol of the tribe of Judah, and Jesus is a descendant of the house of Judah. The lion represents the tribe’s bravery, leadership and courage in battle.
During his life on earth, Jesus understood that he would be king — much as we view the lion as the king of the jungle — but he would also be as gentle as a lamb. At the crucifixion, Jesus was slain like a lamb. In Jewish tradition, a spotless lamb is sacrificed to God for the forgiveness of sin. The lamb also represents the power and royalty with which Jesus will appear at his second coming.
As a lamb Jesus was slain, but as a lion he conquered. Jesus is both the Lion of Judah and the Lamb of God which was slain to take away the sins of the world.
Read 1 Peter 1:18-19: “Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”
We are now at the midpoint of March.
Have you heard of the Ides of March? The Ides of March falls between March 13-15. On the ancient Roman calendar, the 15th of March was associated with misfortune and doom because that was when the Roman emperor Julius Caesar was assassinated.
And don’t forget about March Madness, the annual NCAA basketball tournament.
There are so many things associated with the month of March that can be seen as either “doom and gloom” or as uplifting.
We are in the season of Lent now, but look at the end of March — we’ll be celebrating the glorious resurrection of Christ at Easter.
March may start out like a lion, but it ends with the promise of a lamb. May the promise of God be fulfilled in glory for us all this month.
