Preparing for Passover 4/2/23

Pyramids  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  33:14
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Pyramids

Recap
-Today we’re wrapping up the book of Exodus
-What I want to do to day is just take a little bit of time and recap the journey that we’ve gone on through this book.
-We opened the book 430 years after the book of Genesis ends
-When they went in to Egypt with the Help of Joseph they were on good standing with Pharaoh.
-They enjoyed comfort and peace, and security.
-But now after almost half a millenium Kings rise and fall, eventually they are forgotten about.
-Pharaoh, in an attempt to shore up his empire and his political control employs them as slave laborers.
-He forces them to build his military outposts and store cities.
-He subjects them to back-breaking labor
-He commits grave atrocities against the Israelite people
-And God notices.
-It gets bad enough that God decides he needs to step in
-So God intervenes with fate, he saves one boy.
-God leads moses into the Desert.
-And God calls him to a mission: To deliver God’s people out of slavery.
-To redeem his people.
-To uphold the promises that he Made to Abraham.
-So moses goes back, he tells the Egyptian Pharaoh what the Lord had said but Pharaoh Refuses.
-And Pharaoh ends up getting into a toe to toe battle, not with Moses, but with God Himself.
-And it doesn’t end well for Pharaoh.
-God takes his people out, he lets them pass through the Red Sea, he destroys Pharaohs Army.
-And that’s the point at which the story really starts to Go down hill.
God’s people immediately start to crave oppression.
-Even though they had Seen God’s glory, they wanted the opression they had back in egypt because for them that was easier.
-God doesn’t allow that to happen.
-God provides for their physical needs, he provides for their spiritual needs,
-Until finally he delivers the Law to them
He says
Exodus 19:5–6 NIV
5 Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, 6 you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.”
-And then he gives them the ground rules for what it’s going to look like in that new kingdom that he’s making them into.
-Not only that but God promises to Moses that he is going to live Among them.
-Despite the disobedience of the Israelites again and again, God is on a mission to Live with them.
-And what we’re going to read about today is the culmination of all of that.
I want to impress upon you the importance of the book we just got done reading.
Not only is this book rich with theology and teachings and understandings about the nature of God, but from the standpoint of the Jewish people and their history and their origins, this is the most influential book of the entire old testament.
Genesis is the first book of the Bible, and it tells the story about God’s creation of the world and humanity. But Exodus is the book that singles out God’s chosen people and his redemptive plan for humanity.
If you’re reading the Bible like a history book, exodus is the first book, and Genesis is like a prequel.
It tells the story of how God recognized the suffering that his people were going through. How he acted in their midst, how he outsmarted the most powerful kings and leaders of the world. How he set aside Moses to lead his people, how he destroyed pharaoh and performed miracles.
It also tells the story of how he reconciles humanity to himself through his law. How he deals with his chosen people, how he handles their disobedience. How he makes his presence known.
And ultimately the book is going to end on a little bit of a cliff hanger. Where he’s getting ready to lead them into the land that he promised to Abraham.
I want to pick up in Exodus chapter 40. This is right after the people have experienced the power of the Holy Spirit working through Moses, and they have built all of the components for the tabernacle where God is going to live with them.
Exodus 40:1–2 NIV
1 Then the Lord said to Moses: 2 “Set up the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, on the first day of the first month.
If you’re taking notes, or highlighting in your Bible I want you to circle those last few words. “On the First Day of the First Month” That’s important, and I don’t want you to miss it. I’ll explain a little later why it’s so important. Exodus 40:3-15
Exodus 40:3–15 NIV
3 Place the ark of the covenant law in it and shield the ark with the curtain. 4 Bring in the table and set out what belongs on it. Then bring in the lampstand and set up its lamps. 5 Place the gold altar of incense in front of the ark of the covenant law and put the curtain at the entrance to the tabernacle. 6 “Place the altar of burnt offering in front of the entrance to the tabernacle, the tent of meeting; 7 place the basin between the tent of meeting and the altar and put water in it. 8 Set up the courtyard around it and put the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard. 9 “Take the anointing oil and anoint the tabernacle and everything in it; consecrate it and all its furnishings, and it will be holy. 10 Then anoint the altar of burnt offering and all its utensils; consecrate the altar, and it will be most holy. 11 Anoint the basin and its stand and consecrate them. 12 “Bring Aaron and his sons to the entrance to the tent of meeting and wash them with water. 13 Then dress Aaron in the sacred garments, anoint him and consecrate him so he may serve me as priest. 14 Bring his sons and dress them in tunics. 15 Anoint them just as you anointed their father, so they may serve me as priests. Their anointing will be to a priesthood that will continue throughout their generations.”
This is the point that everyone has been waiting for. Everything we’ve been reading up until this point has been just lead up to this moment. The moment where God is finally going to come down off of the mountain and live with his people. No more waiting. No more talking about it. They were setting up the place where God was finally going to enter into their midst and live with them.
Exodus 40:16 NIV
16 Moses did everything just as the Lord commanded him.
He placed the Table. He placed the lampstand. He placed the He placed the altar. He did all of the necessary preparations. And in verse 33 we read
Exodus 40:33 NIV
33 Then Moses set up the courtyard around the tabernacle and altar and put up the curtain at the entrance to the courtyard. And so Moses finished the work.
This was the Lord’s house. Imagine the anticipation of this moment. God has been promising again and again “you will know that I am God” He’s made covenants with the people. I will be your God.
And now Moses is making the final touches on the tabernacle, and they’re just waiting to see what’s going to happen.
Anybody here ever worked on electrical stuff? Outlets and light switches and all of that?
If you’re safe about it, you go and turn off the breaker before you start working on it. A couple weeks ago I had to fix our dryer. It had a fuse that was blown. So I went and shut off the breaker, Unplugged the 220 outlet.
I pulled the dryer out from the wall, I had the back taken off of it. there were screws and wires everywhere. I was looking at the wiring diagram. and I finally after like 30 minutes got it torn apart, found the fuse, drove to the hardware store to the right fuse. came back put it in. Put the wires back where they went, put the back cover on, put the screws back in. pushed it against the wall, plugged it in, turned the breaker back on.
And there was that moment right before I pushed the start button on the dryer where I thought to myself.
I really hope I did that right. Because I’ve been working at this thing all morning. And I swear if I did something wrong, put the wrong wires together, forgot something.
And I push this button and nothing happens. I’m gonna lose it.
That’s like a fraction of the kind of anticipation they were going through.
Exodus 40:34–35 NIV
34 Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. 35 Moses could not enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle.
Exodus 40:36–37 NIV
36 In all the travels of the Israelites, whenever the cloud lifted from above the tabernacle, they would set out; 37 but if the cloud did not lift, they did not set out—until the day it lifted.
Exodus 40:38 NIV
38 So the cloud of the Lord was over the tabernacle by day, and fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the Israelites during all their travels.
It worked. God was with them.
-And it wasn’t because of anything the Israelites did.
-When we read through the book and get to this point, I can count on one hand the number of Not bad things that the Israelites did.
-In fact, I can think of two, really.
-They praised God with a beautiful song in Chapter 15.
-And they built the Tabernacle in chapters 35-39
-Other than that, they haven’t really done anything deserving
-Because God’s presence is not conditioned on our behavior
-It’s a condition of his mercy. Of His Goodness.
-And the same is true for us.
-God doesn’t love you because you did anyhing good
-God loves you because He is good.
-Ok so I want you to go back to verse 2
-On the First day of the First Month
Exodus 40:2 NIV
2 “Set up the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, on the first day of the first month.
-Why did I make such a big deal about that?
-Go back with me to chapter 12.
-When God institutes the Passover
Exodus 12:2 NIV
2 “This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year.
Exodus 12:14 NIV
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.
That means that the passover festival that they were commanded to celebrate was exactly 14 days away.
Chronologically, the very next book after exodus is actually Numbers. And in numbers chapters 1-8 we get a mad dash of getting ready for the passover.
-They take a census to make sure they know exactly how many people there are, They set apart the Levites so that they can do all of the prescribed sacrifices. They take up an offering. They get everything ready, and in Numbers chapter 9 God says
Numbers 9:2–3 NIV
2 “Have the Israelites celebrate the Passover at the appointed time. 3 Celebrate it at the appointed time, at twilight on the fourteenth day of this month, in accordance with all its rules and regulations.”
So in the midst of all that they had two important tasks to prepare for passover.
The first was to remove all of the leaven from their tents. All of the yeast.
And the second was to pick out a lamb to be slaughtered.
Exodus 12:3 NIV
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.
Exodus 12:6 NIV
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.
-In the jewish calendar twilight is the start of the new day. So right at twilight would have been the 15th day of the month.
-Immedeately after God enters into their midst, the Israelites started Preparing for the Passover.
-They went out into the fields
-They selected a pefect lamb…no spots, no blemishes.
-and they brought it into their home, they fed it up, they took care of it.
-They kept it from getting any injuries, any blemishes.
-Until it was time to perform the Passover sacrifice.
-They did this for five days until the passover celebration began.
John 12:1-3
John 12:1–3 NIV
1 Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. 3 Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.
John 12:12 NIV
12 The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem.
The very next day. five days before the passover. The day a lamb was selected, and brought in from the fields to be prepared for slaughter, Jesus was brought in to Jerusalem to be prepared for slaughter.
John 12:13–15 NIV
13 They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Blessed is the king of Israel!” 14 Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written: 15 “Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.”
The day we celebrate as Palm Sunday was the exact day that the lamb was brought in for slaughter.
From the time that the tabernacle was built for nearly 1500 years, every year on the 10th day of the Jewish calendar they would select a lamb. They would prepare it to be sacrificed as an attonement for their sins. Every single year. But this year. this year was different.
All those people waving palm branches, shouting blessed is the one who comes in the name of the lord. Hosana. They all went home after that and picked out a lamb for the passover, not knowing that the final lamb had already been selected. The perfect lamb. They had no idea.
-Jesus was right in front of them and they didn’t see it.
-They saw that he was the messiah
-They saw that he was king
-They recognized Him as someone who was going to free them from Rome
-As someone who was going to provide for their phsyical needs.
-But they had No idea that he was coming to redeem them from sin
-To die on a cross, to take away the sins of the world
-They didn’t recognize him.
-And As we think about our exodus series, that phrase that has come up again and again
-So that you will know that I am God.
-Jesus, entered into Jerusalem specifically on the day that the lambs were chosen for slaughter,
-so that we would know that He is God
-And if you take absolutely nothing away from this book that we’ve gone through, I want you to know that He is God
-I want you to recognize his authority in your life
-I want you to recognize the working of the Holy Spirit in you
-I want you to KNOW that he sees your suffering, just like he did the Israelites
-that he wants to redeem you just like he did them
-that he wants to make you into a royal kingdom of priests
-that he wants to guide your thoughts and actions
-that he wants to dwell in your midst.
-So that you will know that He is Lord of your life.
[Pray]
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Before I start our song of invitation, I want to take this opportunity to talk about where we’re going from here as a Church.
Next week We are going to celebrate the fact that our Lord Rose from the dead. Amen?
-I want you to come next week and enjoy a good meal.
-I want you to bring any songs you want to sing
-I want you to bring any passages of scripture you want to read
-Bring all of that stuff because next week church is not going to be ME standing up here and talking at YOU.
-It’s going to be US, sitting around a table and talking to each other.
-You’re going to have the opportunity to lead us in song, to lead us in prayer, to lead us in scripture.
-It’s going to be very impromptu, and so please if there’s something you want to share with the Church bring it.
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And then I want to give you a little sneak peak of what we’re going to start studying after Easter.
A Summer in the Book of Matthew
-Starting after easter we’re going to read through the book of Matthew.
-We’re going to be looking at the values of the kingdom, and the glory of the King.
-So bring your Bibles, read up on the book of Matthew
-and be ready for that.
-I think it’s going to be a lot of fun.
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