Passover & The Feast of Unleavened Bread, Pt 1

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dI1ywPZI9k

Psalm 116 NIV

1 I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. 2 Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. 3 The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came over me; I was overcome by distress and sorrow. 4 Then I called on the name of the Lord: “Lord, save me!” 5 The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. 6 The Lord protects the unwary; when I was brought low, he saved me. 7 Return to your rest, my soul, for the Lord has been good to you. 8 For you, Lord, have delivered me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, 9 that I may walk before the Lord in the land of the living. 10 I trusted in the Lord when I said, “I am greatly afflicted”; 11 in my alarm I said, “Everyone is a liar.” 12 What shall I return to the Lord for all his goodness to me? 13 I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord. 14 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people. 15 Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful servants. 16 Truly I am your servant, Lord; I serve you just as my mother did; you have freed me from my chains. 17 I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the Lord. 18 I will fulfill my vows to the Lord in the presence of all his people, 19 in the courts of the house of the Lord— in your midst, Jerusalem. Praise the Lord.

Opening Hymn

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Baby Bottle Boomerang

Genesis 22:6–18 NIV

6 Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them went on together, 7 Isaac spoke up and said to his father Abraham, “Father?” “Yes, my son?” Abraham replied. “The fire and wood are here,” Isaac said, “but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?” 8 Abraham answered, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” And the two of them went on together. 9 When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called out to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!” “Here I am,” he replied. 12 “Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.” 13 Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, “On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided.” 15 The angel of the Lord called to Abraham from heaven a second time 16 and said, “I swear by myself, declares the Lord, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, 18 and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.”

Worship set

John 1:29–34 NIV

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is the one I meant when I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that he might be revealed to Israel.” 32 Then John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remain on him. 33 And I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit come down and remain is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 I have seen and I testify that this is God’s Chosen One.”

Prayer Chorus

Prayer

Worship through the hearing of the Word:

Passover & the Feast of Unleavened Bread, Pt 1

Exodus chapter 12 if probably one of the most significant passages in the Bible. It connects the entire message of the Bible from Genesis all the way through Revelation. It brings understanding and revelation to both earlier and later events.

There is so much packed into this chapter, it is overwhelming to take it all in, let alone preach it. Every time I study this passage, I learn something more.

Some of what you hear from me today may sound familiar as I have preached on this before. Some may be new due to my further understanding and there is probably more than can be gleaned through an individual study as it is very difficult to relate it all in one message.

So, without any further delay, let us jump into it.

Exodus 12:1–13NIV

1 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, 2 “This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year. 3 Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man is to take a lamb for his family, one for each household. 4 If any household is too small for a whole lamb, they must share one with their nearest neighbor, having taken into account the number of people there are. You are to determine the amount of lamb needed in accordance with what each person will eat. 5The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect, and you may take them from the sheep or the goats. 6 Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month, when all the members of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight. 7 Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs. 8 That same night they are to eat the meat roasted over the fire, along with bitter herbs, and bread made without yeast. 9Do not eat the meat raw or boiled in water, but roast it over a fire—with the head, legs and internal organs. 10 Do not leave any of it till morning; if some is left till morning, you must burn it. 11 This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste; it is the Lord’s Passover. 12 “On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn of both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord. 13 The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.

The Word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God.

Pray

I. Passover & the Feast of Unleavened Bread, Pt 1

When we last spoke of Moses and Pharaoh, they were squaring off for the last time. Pharaoh threatened Moses’ life if he were ever to be seen before Pharaoh again, and Moses announced one final plague. It would be the plague of all plagues.

When Moses left Pharaoh, he did not return to his home, kick up his feet, and sit back to wait. No, he rolled up his sleeves and got to work. There were preparations to make as they would be leaving Egypt this night.

God gave very specific and detailed instructions. The events of this night would be so significant, that God has said from here on forward, this is to be considered the 1st month of the Hebrew’s year. They were beginning a new life. This new life would separate them from every other nation in the world so much, that they would have their own calendar.

But what none of them understood was that the events of this night would foreshadow a time that was yet coming that would bring new life to all nations and generations.

As they are preparing for their exodus, God gives them instructions for establishing this as an everlasting holiday.

Exodus 12:14NIV

14 “This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord—a lasting ordinance.

Exodus 12:24NIV

24 “Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance for you and your descendants.

Now, I want to stop here for just a moment. I have heard people teach that we all as Christians should make the Feasts and Festivals of Israel ours as well since they were set up as an everlasting ordinance of God’s people. However, God is specifically directing this to the Hebrews (i.e. “your descendants”). We can appreciate them, and some may choose to make them a part of their lives, but this is not an ordinance for the Gentile.

So, moving on, God gives the Israelites the first holiday to be celebrated by their people. As time goes on, God will add to this list, but we begin with this one.

A. Passover (Exodus 12:1-13)

God’s instructions for the Passover that night was simple. Sacrifice a lamb. Take its blood and with a hyssop branch, paint the blood across the top of your threshold and on either side of it. Roast the lamb with fire and eat of it while standing and dressed for a fast retreat. Any of the lamb left over by morning was to be burned by fire. They did not have time for anything further.

With those essentials, we are going to focus in on the various details as given for future celebration as these are very significant to future events yet to take place.

The first thing we need to look at is...

1. A sacrifice was to be made: A Lamb(Exodus 12:3, 6)

On that night, this sacrifice was to be selected and sacrificed to prepare for their exodus, in haste. However, in the future, the celebration was something to be well thought out and prepared for. So, look with me at the interesting details of this future Passover ordinance.

a. The sacrificial lamb

• It is to be selected 4 days before Passover (10th day of the month).

• It is to be a first-born male (1st born lamb to replace 1st born son) (bring Abraham’s story in here)

• It is not to have any spot or blemish (pure/perfect)

• It is to live among the family for 4 days while they observe it to make sure there are no imperfections about it.

• The roasting by fire is signifying that it is a sacrifice. Note the instructions that they are not to boil it as was the common practice for eating. (Initially the sacrifice is made by the father, but later this action will be taken over by the priests).

• The animal needed to be slain to obtain its life blood. Blood literally symbolizes “Life.”

• One lamb for 1-2 families

b. The time of the sacrifice

• To be sacrificed at twilight on the 14th day

c. The blood of the lamb

• Hyssop branch was to be used to paint the blood across the doorway: above and on either side.

• The blood on door looked like the Hebrew letter chet (plegmy het) which stands for “life”

d. Final instructions

• The lamb was to be left intact with no broken bones during this process.

e. Purpose: So, that death would pass over and they would live

On this night in Egypt, death would visit the country of Egypt. He would pass through the land and bring death to every first born. This would be the final plague that would redeem them from Egypt.

The only way the Hebrews could escape this angel of death was to remain indoors and be protected by the blood over their door frame. When the angel of death came, he saw the blood and knew that a sacrifice had already been made providing life to remain.

So, why all the details for this holiday? Isn’t a celebration of their victory enough?

If it was only to celebrate their release from Pharaoh, the answer is probably “yes.” However, they were slaves to something deeper. They were no less sinners than the Egyptians were. They were as deserving as death as the Egyptian were. Their hands were not clean of idolatry. They had been known to worship the same gods that Egypt did. They even tried to recreate one a short time later at the base of Mount Sinai. The only reason their lives were spared that night was because of the blood of the lamb and God’s mercy. That blood signified death had come and covered the sins of that home for that night.

God had saved them from the slavery of Egypt, but God now needed to save them from the slavery of sin and the deliverance would come in similar fashion, with the sacrifice of a lamb found perfect enough to cover the offense of all the Hebrews and even all humankind.

The redemption of sin would require a sacrificial lamb. A first-born Son with no sin or stain upon Him. He had to be pure and perfect. The blood of this lamb would cover the doorposts of their hearts so that when death came for the last time, it would pass over for all time.

This perfect lamb would be recognized by the details He fulfilled. So, let’s look at those details again regarding Jesus as the Passover lamb.

2. Sacrifice lamb to be made: Jesus

a. The sacrificial lamb: Jesus

• The Passover lambs were selected on the 10th day of the month, 4 days before Passover. (Jesus arrived in Jerusalem on Palm Sunday which was the 10th day of the month, 4 days before Passover. The same day the lambs were chosen for sacrifice).

• Jesus was a first-born son (Both for Joseph/Mary and of God).

• The Passover lambs were to be inspected and pronounced unblemished/spotless. John the Baptist and Pilate both declared Jesus spotless without blemish.

John 1:29NIV

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

Matthew 27:23–24 NIV

23 “Why? What crime has he committed?” asked Pilate. But they shouted all the louder, “Crucify him!” 24 When Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere, but that instead an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. “I am innocent of this man’s blood,” he said. “It is your responsibility!”

There is an interesting note that should be made here. Later, when the priests began making the sacrifice, it became a practice that the person who selected the sacrificial lamb would hand it over for sacrifice and then wash their hands. Many believe even this to be a foreshadow of Pilates washing his hands after handing over Jesus for the slaughter.

• The lamb was to live among the family for 4 days while they kept an eye on it for any blemishes. (Pilate’s examination of Jesus satisfied this practice.)

• The lamb was a sacrifice for Israel, but Jesus would be a sacrifice for all humankind.

• At the time of the exodus one lamb provided for 1-2 families

There was a progression throughout time where the sacrifices were concerned. It is called the progression of the power of the blood. Here is the record of its progression as recorded in Joe Amaral’s book “Understanding Jesus.”

When Abraham offered up the ram for Isaac, its blood was powerful enough to cover one young man. When the blood of the lamb was shed on the night of the Passover, its blood was powerful enough to cover an entire family. When the blood of the goats and lambs was shed on the great Day of Atonement, the blood was powerful enough to cover the sins of an entire nation. But then there came One Whose blood was more powerful than any that came before. It was the blood of Jesus of Nazareth of whom John the Baptist declared, “Behold the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world!” The blood of Jesus is sufficient for the entire world. Not only that, His blood no longer covers up our sin like the blood of all those slain lambs before Him. His blood takes away our sin; He carries it away and removes it from us as far as the east is from the west (Ps. 103:12).

Amaral, Joe. Understanding Jesus (p. 161). FaithWords. Kindle Edition.

• The animal needed to be slain to obtain its life-giving blood. This blood was painted on the doorposts so death could not enter. Jesus shed blood and His death on the cross is the blood covered door for us.

John 10:9NASB95

9 “I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.

It is significant that Jesus was born in Bethlehem as Bethlehem was where the Passover lambs were raised.

b. The time of the sacrifice

• In later days, the sacrifices always occurred at 3 p.m. When the lambs neck was cut, the shofar would blow signifying the sacrifice was completed.

• In Matthew’s account, he is very specific of the time of Jesus death. This was important because it records that it was at 3 p.m. when Jesus said, “It is finished” and took his last breath.

c. The blood of the lamb

• Hyssop branch was to be used to paint the blood across the doorway: above and on either side. (It was a Hyssop branch that was dipped into gall and raised to Jesus lips when He was on the cross.

• The blood on door looked like the Hebrew letter chet which carries the meaning “life”. Jesus’ blood was sufficient to give us life eternal.

d. Final instructions

• The lamb was to be left intact with no broken bones

• Crucifixion was a long ordeal. When people were tired of watching, they would break the legs of the men so that they would die more quickly (this prevented them from breathing so they suffocated to death). Jesus died early and so they did not need to break his legs.

e. Purpose: So, death would pass over and those who put their faith in Him would have eternal life.

When we put our faith in Jesus Christ, His blood covers our sin, and we are now covered by His blood so that death no longer has a hold on us. It must pass us by.

On that night of the exodus, the Israelites also had to have faith and take obedient action. The sacrifice was public. All were outdoors and at the same time made their sacrifice. But they had to have enough faith to place the blood on their doorways. Each father made the decision whether or not to believe it would work.

But it didn’t end there. There was more. There were two holidays initiated that night. These holidays would both go hand-in-hand, as forever ordinances, and both are significant to salvation.

The second part was...

B. The Feast of Unleavened Bread (Exodus 12:14-20)

Here again we see a distinction between what took place that first night and what the everlasting ordinance was to be. Most significantly was the timing.

That night it was imperative that they be ready to leave in haste. They were to dress and be ready to go, so the meal was to be simple. They did not have time for yeast to rise, so they were directed to make bread without yeast.

It is not often talked about, but this is symbolic of how God often answers our prayer. Often, we have a long wait period, but when God answers, the answers often come very swiftly.

I had a friend who was newer to ministry. She and her husband were praying seeking God’s will for them. She felt discouraged that an answer was taking so long in coming. I told her to relax and rest because when the answer came, so would the action and she would be glad she had a rest break. Sure enough, when the answer came things moved very fast. She told me breathlessly one day while she was packing up their home which had sold instantly and she was making arrangements to get to South Korea, “You warned me to be ready! You weren’t kidding!”

During 8 plagues Israel was able to sit back and relax. They would have been unable to be forced into labor during those plagues. It gave them a chance to catch their breath. But now the time had come, and things would move fast. They had to pack up and be dressed ready to leave, as they would be given the green light at midnight and would need to make swift work of it. There were perhaps as many of 2 million of them. (Crowds aren’t fast moving. Ever seen a crowd disembark from a plane?). The Hebrews needed to get out before Pharaoh could change his mind.

As they prepared to leave, they were to sweep any yeast out of their homes. This was symbolic of the sin of Egypt. They were to make a clean break. They were to leave Egypt and its idols behind. God was to be their God and He alone.

In the future, there was no need for haste. They were to celebrate this feast for seven days. They were to work diligently to eliminate any yeast in their homes during this time. However, this evacuation of yeast was not for the purpose of haste now. Yeast was symbolic of sin and this sin relevance was understood by Israel. It was often discussed as such in the New Testament. Many such NT quotes make it evident that Israel understood this correlation between yeast and sin.

Even we know that a little yeast grows and sours the bread ingredients causing it to expand and rise. Sin does the same thing. A little sin begins to sour our soul and it grows leading to greater sin. Paul uses an example in 1 Cor 5:6-8.

1 Corinthians 5:6–8 NIV

6 Your boasting is not good. Don’t you know that a little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough? 7 Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened batch—as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 8 Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with the old bread leavened with malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

The unleavened bread now symbolizes sinlessness. Israel is to remember that we are not saved to continue to live in sin, but we are saved to live holy lives as people of God.

Conclusion:

The Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were developed more over the years. These instructions in Exodus were the beginning. We will see more later as we get to Mount Sinai when they received the law. The father’s made the sacrifices in Egypt. Later this job would be turned over to the priests. More ceremony was added but with each addition we find more significance.

I want to just touch on a couple final key elements from the Passover/Seder dinner. In the later Seder, including the one of today, there is a significant ceremony that is not understood by the Jews who do not know Christ. However, Jews that have come to know Christ see Jesus throughout this entire meal, but the most significant part goes like this. There is a linen bag with 3 compartments. A piece of matza is placed in each compartment. The middle compartment is called the Afikomen which means, “that which comes after.” Later in the ceremony, the Afikomen is removed and broken. Then it is wrapped in a special cloth and hidden in the house until still later. Many speculate what this all means and there are different ideas. However, when Jews are saved, they see the message of the Trinity. God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Son left the trio to come to earth where He was broken and killed, then buried in a tomb.

Allow me another quote from Joe Amaral’s book Understanding Jesus. He says,

During Passover, they have four cups of wine. It is significant that the 3rd cup is the Cup of Redemption. “You drink this cup after supper, which is precisely when the text in Luke says that Jesus took the cup and declared that from that moment on it would be the cup of the New Covenant. Jesus took the third cup of the seder, the Cup of Redemption, and declared that this cup filled with wine would now represent the redeeming blood that He was about to shed.”

Amaral, Joe. Understanding Jesus (p. 149). FaithWords. Kindle Edition.

Another interesting practice during the Feast of Unleavened Bread is that they clear all but 10 pieces of Leaven from their home. Then the 10 pieces are hidden, and the father goes through the house with a candle, a feather, and a wooden spoon. The purpose is to take time with great care to find and eliminate all the leaven from their home. When all the pieces have been found, they are placed in a bag and burned. They are then, and only then, permitted to start the feast. This tradition is symbolic of their obedience to God’s command to remove all sin from their home.

Now allow me to put Passover & the Feast of Unleavened bread in perspective for us.

Jesus began a new institution that included unleavened bread and a cup of wine. As Christians, we partake of this institution on a regular basis. It is called Communion and was instituted by Christ at the Passover/Last Supper he shared with His disciples. Like the practice in the Feast of Unleavened Bread of searching their homes for leaven, we are to take time to diligently search our hearts for any sin that needs corrected before we partake. I am afraid we too often overlook that aspect of communion. However, we should always take time as we prepare to take communion to search our hearts and ask for forgiveness for any fresh offense that God reveals to us.

Now, where the Feast of Unleavened Bread commemorated the Old Covenant, Communion commemorates the New Covenant founded in Christ and His sacrifice on our behalf.

The Old Covenant was devoted to the law, but the New Covenant is founded in the freedom from sin we have through Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf. We are no longer chained to the law but have freedom in Christ through His shed blood and the work of His Spirit within us. The law is made perfect through love.

It is the difference between “you must do something” and “your desire is to do something.” We do not like being told what we “must do.” However, when we do the right thing because we have no desire to do differently, we find freedom and joy.

Today, we will partake in communion. In preparation, I wish to blend the two accounts from Matthew and Luke for the best possible picture of that Last Passover Supper between Jesus and His disciples.

Luke 22:7–8NIV

7 Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. 8 Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.”

Luke 22:14–18NIV

14 When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. 15 And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. 16 For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.” 17 After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. 18For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

Matthew 26:26–28 NIV

26 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” 27 which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19).Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

Bow your heads as I pray over the elements and then you can come forward to receive your elements. We will take of communion together today, so once you have your elements, please return to your seat. During this time, please take time to examine your heart. Is there any leaven you need to sweep out today before you take of this meal?

Pray

Communion Song video = these should be timed and play by themselves.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfJkJavuz-s&list=PLrWUXsrUzpfNARSCjxvwvAb88eq5kHsVL

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SA3V3r0cxEc&list=RDQMmOlGV4z_bR0&start_radio=1

1 Corinthians 11:24–26 NIV

24 and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” 25 In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” 26For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Allow me to close with a traditional Passover Psalm

Psalm 117NIV

1 Praise the Lord, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples. 2 For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lordendures forever. Praise the Lord.