“The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, ‘This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old… and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight. Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.’ ” (v1-13 abr)
As the Israelites observed this newly designated tradition as told to them by God (through Moses and Aaron), their Egyptian slave masters suffered a great loss of all firstborn children from every household and field. Finally, at this point, Pharaoh summons Moses and Aaron and releases (more like kicks out) the Israelites. They are forced out so quickly it says that they aren’t even able to prepare food, they just have some left-over unleavened dough from their Passover meal. They do however have great riches that the Egyptians gave them – livestock, gold, silver, etc.
The institution of the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread are critical to the Jewish faith. This holy week and it’s rituals have multiple meanings, so many that we can’t cover them all in any detail in this message, but I can list a few in summary:
– it designate’s those who observe it as God’s people
– it is a remembrance of the release from slavery in Egypt
– it has several layers of symbolism (leaven [sin], bitter herbs [slavery], cooking over fire [leaves “bruising” on the bread and meat] are a few examples)
Most importantly, it is a foreshadowing of Jesus’ sacrifice (the Lamb of God) to free us from the slavery of sin. His blood covers us so we are no longer deserving of the penalty of death.
“And when the hour came, [Jesus] reclined at table, and the apostles with him. And he said to them, ‘I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.’ And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.’ And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, ‘This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.’ ” (Lk 22:14-20 abr)
Both the original Passover, and the Passover meal Jesus eats with His disciples are symbolic of His broken body and shed blood which pays the penalty for our sin.
God loves His people so much that He goes to great lengths to not only set them free from slavery (sin), but to institute feasts and celebrations to remind them of their past (and future), so they would hopefully not repeat some of their mistakes (forgetting who God is for example).
Our Lord Jesus Christ, the one who gave Your life for ours, we praise You and thank You for Your ultimate display of love in self-sacrifice. Your body and blood freed us from the bondage of slavery, and the debt of death as a result of our sin. Father God, we ask for Your forgiveness for our rebellion, and praise You for Your grace and mercy exhibited through Your Son. May all glory, honor and praise be to You our Lamb of God, who took away the sin of the world.
~ Conqueror in Training