Passover

Passover Seder

Kindling of the Candles

As Sarah & Reagan light the candles to begin the Passover,  

let us joyfully recall how God chose a woman to bring forth our Messiah, the Light of the world.

This act reminds us of the divine light that guides and

enriches our lives.

Isaiah 7:14 (NKJV) “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.”

(Light the candles)

Sarah- “Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the

universe, who has sanctified us with Thy commandments

and commanded us to be a light to the nations and Who gave

us Yeshua our Messiah the light of the world in whose Name

we light the festival lights.”

The Four Cups

Passover is a time to revel in God’s kindness and

celebrate the freedom He granted us in Christ.

The Passover Seder unfolds through four ceremonial

cups of wine or grape juice.

These cups are named in honor of the four

promises God made to Israel in Exodus.

Exodus 6:6-7(NKJV) “Therefore say to the children of Israel:        ‘I am the Lord; I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, I will rescue you from their bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. I will take you as My people, and I will be your God. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God who brings you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.”

Every cup symbolically aligns with a different phase in

the Seder’s progression, weaving a tapestry of tradition and

narrative that enriches our celebration:

1. The Cup of Sanctification- “I will bring you out”

2. The Cup of Plagues- “I will rescue you”

3. The Cup of Redemption- “I will redeem you”

4. The Cup of Praise- “I will take you as My people”

The Cup of Sanctification (1stcup)

The Seder continues with the Cup of Sanctification,

also known as the Cup of Blessing.

This inaugural cup is used to purify the feast that follows, marking it as a sacred and holy time.

Luke 22:14-18 (NKJV)

“When the hour had come, He sat down, and the twelve apostles with Him. Then He said to them, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.”

Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, “Take this and divide it among yourselves; for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.””

(Fill the cups)

Everyone - “Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the

universe, Creator of the fruit of the vine. Amen!”

Washing of Hands

In Jesus day, as everyone prepared to partake of the Passover meal, the leader of the Passover washed his hands

which was a customary practice that developed over time to symbolize ritual purity and readiness for the sacred meal.

The significance of this hand washing lay in its symbolic meaning rather than in any explicit scriptural mandate, as Jesus reminds us...

 Matthew 15:11

“It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man.”

The washing served as a sign of the desire to live lives of acceptable service to God.  It connected the Passover meal to the broader Jewish understanding of purity and preparation for worship, drawing from the priestly regulations, of washing hands and feet, but applying them in a new context.

Jesus, however, transformed the meaning of this practice during His Last Passover Supper before His death.

Rather than simply following the traditional hand washing, Jesus went further and taught His disciples humility

by washing their feet. 

This changed the practice from simply a ritual purification to instead an expression of humble service, emphasizing that true preparation for God’s presence comes through sacrificial love rather than ceremonial cleansing.

Jesus also is pointing forward to what was about to take place, as He was already pure so He washed their feet symbolizing purifying them as only He was able to do and did by laying down His life for us.

Let us reflect upon the gesture of humility and the lesson

of commitment made by Jesus, when on that night, He

washed His disciples’ feet.

(While guests wash their hands, the leader reads from John)

John 13 (LSB)

:5 “Then He poured water into the washbasin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel which He had tied around Himself.”

:12-15 “So when He had washed their feet, and taken His garments and reclined at the table again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? You call Me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you.””

Parsley

While the wine symbolizes the blood of the Passover Lamb,

the parsley symbolizes both life and the hyssop the Israelites used to apply the lamb’s blood to their doorframes.

The saltwater represents the tears shed in Egypt,

a reminder of the pain, suffering, and sorrow endured there.

As we dip this sprig of parsley into the salt water, let us

reflect on how life is often mingled with tears,

yet just as God brought the Israelites out of bondage

through that salty Red Sea, we remember that God will also bring us out of the bondage of sin by His promise

of redemption and hope through the Messiah.

(Everyone takes a piece, dips, & recites the blessing, then eats)

Everyone - “Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the universe, Creator of the fruit of the earth. Amen!”

The Four Questions

The youngest child (able to read) asks the four questions

Bellamy - Why is this night different from all other nights?

1. On all other nights we can eat leavened bread; why on this night do we eat only matzah which is

unleavened bread?

2. On all other nights we eat vegetables and herbs of all

kinds; why on this night do we eat only bitter herbs?

3. On all other nights we do not dip even once; why on this

night do we dip twice?

4. On all other nights we eat either sitting upright or

reclining; why on this night do we all recline?

Answer the Four

Questions

This night stands apart,

as we commemorate the Israelites

transition from slavery to freedom and to recall the mighty

works of our God.

The Matzah

On all other nights we eat bread with leaven, but on

Passover, we eat only matzah (unleavened bread).

Matzah represents the bread of affliction, the bread that the Israelites ate in the land of Egypt.

As the children of Israel fled from Egypt,

they didn’t have time for their dough to rise.

Instead, the hot desert sun baked it flat.

Exodus 12:39 (NKJV)

“And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they had brought out of Egypt; for it was not leavened, because they were driven out of Egypt and could not wait, nor had they prepared provisions for themselves.”

But even more than that, the scriptures teach us

that leaven symbolizes sin.

I Corinthians 5:6-7 (NKJV)

“Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore, purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.”

During this season of Passover, let us break our old

habits of sin and selfishness and begin a fresh, new,

and holy life.

The Matzah Tash

Three matzot are wrapped together for Passover.

There are various explanations for this ceremony.

The rabbis call these three a “Unity.”

Some consider it a unity of the

patriarchs- Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

 Others explain it as a

unity of worship- the high priest, the Levites,

 and the people of Israel.

We who know Messiah can see the truth,

 in this the unique tri-unity of God-

Father, Son, and Spirit. Three in one.

We take out the piece of matzah from the middle.

In the matzah we can see a picture of Messiah.

(See it is unleavened bread, without sin)

2 Corinthians 5:20-21 (NKJV)

“Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.”

(See how it is striped)

Isaiah 53:5 (NKJV)

“But He was wounded for our transgressions,

He was bruised for our iniquities;

The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,

And by His stripes we are healed.”

(See how it is pierced)

Psalms 22:16-17 (NKJV)

“For dogs have surrounded Me;

The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me.

They pierced My hands and My feet;

I can count all My bones.

They look and stare at Me.”

(Removing and breaking the middle matzah in half)

Just as the middle piece of the bread of affliction is

broken, Messiah, too, was afflicted and broken.

One half is now called the afikomen - “the coming one.”

It is wrapped in a white linen cloth, just as Jesus body was wrapped for burial.

(Wrap the afikomen and hide it)

Just as the afikomen is hidden, so Messiah was

placed in a tomb, hidden for a time.

But just as the afikomen will return

to complete our Passover seder,

 so, God raised the sinless Messiah from the dead to ascend into Heaven and He will one day return to earth as King.

Let us now share a piece of the

unleavened bread of Passover.

Everyone - “Blessed are You, O Lord our God, ruler of

the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.”

The Maror (Bitter Herbs)

On Passover, we eat maror, bitter herbs.

As sweet as our lives can be today, let us still remember

how bitter life was for

the children of Israel in the land of Egypt.

Exodus 1:11-14 (LSB)

“So they appointed taskmasters over them to afflict them with hard labors. And they built for Pharaoh storage cities, Pithom and Raamses. But the more they afflicted them, the more they multiplied and the more they spread out, so that they were in dread of the sons of Israel. So the Egyptians brutally compelled the sons of Israel to slave labor; and they made their lives bitter with hard slave labor in mortar and bricks and in all kinds of slave labor in the field, all their slave labor which they brutally compelled them to do.”

The bitter herb reminds us of the sorrow, persecution,

and suffering of Israel throughout the generations.

Therefore, we are bound to thank, praise, glorify, honor, bless, exalt, and revere God who performed all these

miracles for our spiritual fathers and us.

Through faith, in Jesus the Messiah, God brought us out from the slavery of sin to freedom, from sorrow to joy, from mourning to festivity, and from servitude to redemption.

It was at this time of the meal that Jesus told His followers that one of them would betray Him.

Matthew 26:21-23 (NKJV)

“Now as they were eating, He said, “Assuredly, I say to you, one of you will betray Me.”

And they were exceedingly sorrowful, and each of them began to say to Him, “Lord, is it I?”

He answered and said, “He who dipped his hand with Me in the dish will betray Me.””

John 13:26-27 (NKJV)

“Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I shall give a piece of bread when I have dipped it.” And having dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. Now after the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Then Jesus said to him, “What you do, do quickly.””

Psalms 41:9

“Even my own familiar friend in whom I trusted,

Who ate my bread,

Has lifted up his heel against Me.”

The maror represents bitterness and tears.

(Take a piece of matzah and dip it, say the blessing then eat)

Everyone - “Blessed are You, O Lord our God, ruler of the

universe, who has set us apart by His Word and commanded

us to eat bitter herbs.”

The Charoset

On all other nights we don’t dip even once, but tonight we dip

twice. The children of Israel toiled to make treasured cities

for Pharaoh, working in brick and clay.

The charoset symbolizes the mortar used

by the children of Israel.

The sweetness symbolizes the hope and promise of God’s redemption.

Tonight We Recline

On all other nights we eat either sitting or reclining, but

tonight we eat reclining.

The first Passover was celebrated by a people

enslaved in Egypt, likewise once we were slaves to sin,

but now we are free!

The children of Israel were instructed to eat the first

Passover in haste, their loins girded, their staffs in their hands,

their sandals upon their feet, awaiting departure

from the bondage of Egypt.

Today, because we are free from the bondage of sin through faith in Christ, we all may recline and freely

enjoy the Passover.

The Story of Passover

• Leader

The story of Passover is a story of miracles, a story of

redemption, a story of the mighty power of God

to overcome evil.

• Reader 1

The Lord had promised the land of Israel to Abraham, Isaac,

and Jacob. Yet here were their children in Egypt. The

Pharaoh who had come to power feared them.

“These foreigners in our midst are prospering and have grown

Numerous,” he thought. “Suppose they join with our enemies

and turn against us!” Pharaoh decided to exert greater control

over this people, imposing harsh and bitter slavery

upon the Israelites.

Still, God blessed His people in strength and number.

• Reader 2

Pharaoh grew more frightened and ordered every baby boy

among the Israelites to be drowned in the Nile River.

One Israelite couple hid their little boy

for three months.

Finally, entrusting his future to God,

they set him in a basket and placed him upon the river.

His sister, Miriam, watched as he

floated downstream.

Coming upon the basket, Pharaoh's

daughter took pity on the child and chose to raise him

as her own son.

She called him Moses, meaning "drawn from the water."

• Reader 3

Moses grew and became aware of the suffering of his people.

One day, in a rage, he lost control of himself and killed an

Egyptian who was beating a Hebrew slave.

Fleeing the palace and the eye of Pharaoh, Moses became

a shepherd in the land of Midian, far from the cries of his suffering brothers.

• Reader 4

The Lord, however, saw the affliction of the children of

Israel and heard their groaning. He would raise up a deliverer

to lead them out of bondage. It was then that the Angel of the Lord appeared to Moses in the midst of a bush

that burned with fire,

yet was not consumed.

Moses drew close and listened as God commissioned him to

go to Pharaoh. Fearful and reluctant, still Moses agreed to

bring God's message to the king of Egypt,

 "Let My people go!”

The Cup of Plagues (2ndcup)

God warned Moses of the resistance that he would encounter.

“But I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no, not even by a mighty hand. 20 So I will stretch out My hand and strike Egypt with all My wonders which I will do in its midst; and after that he will let you go.” Exodus 3:19, 20 (NKJV)

God sent plagues, one by one, yet with each plague,

Pharaoh hardened his heart. The Egyptians became afflicted

with discomfort and disease.

Still, Pharaoh would not relent.

With the tenth and most awful plague, God

pierced through the hardness of Pharaoh's heart.

“For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord.”  Exodus 12:12 (NKJV)

Let us fill our cups a second time.

A full cup is a symbol of joy and indeed on this occasion we are filled with joy at God's mighty deliverance.

But let us also remember the great

cost at which redemption was purchased.

Lives were sacrificed to bring about the release of God's people from the slavery of Egypt.

But a far greater price purchased our

redemption from slavery to sin - the death of Messiah.

As we recount each plague, let us dip a finger into

the cup, allowing a drop of liquid to fall, reducing the

fullness of our cup of joy.

Everyone-

1. Blood

2. Frogs

3. Gnats

4. Flies

5. Death of livestock

6. Boils

7. Hail

8. Locusts

9. Darkness

10, Death of the Firstborn

(DO NOT drink the second cup yet!)

The Passover Lamb

During the 10th plague God would spare the firstborn of Israel, but only on the condition that they properly

followed Moses’ instructions.

They were to slaughter a lamb and place its blood on the lintel and doorposts of their houses.

The blood served as a sign that distinguished the Israelites and separated them from the intended victims of the plague

Exodus 12:3-13 (NKJV)

Reader 1

“Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying: ‘On the tenth of this month every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take it according to the number of the persons; according to each man’s need you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. Now you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it.”

Reader 2

“Then they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted in fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

Do not eat it raw, nor boiled at all with water, but roasted in fire—its head with its legs and its entrails. You shall let none of it remain until morning, and what remains of it until morning you shall burn with fire. And thus you shall eat it: with a belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. So you shall eat it in haste.

 It is the Lord’s Passover.

‘For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. Now 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 the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.” 

Since the Temple in Jerusalem no longer stands, lamb is

not eaten at Passover. A shank bone of a lamb  

is used at Jewish Passover’s to remind them

of the sacrificial lamb that would have been sacrificed

if the Temple still stood, and a hardboiled egg used to symbolize the sacrificial process.

However, we who have trusted Yeshua (Jesus)

the Messiah, believe He is the Lamb of God, our Passover.

Jesus achieved final redemption from sin and death, so we have no need of a lamb to be sacrificed at Passover.

1 Corinthians 5:7 (LSB)

“Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, also was sacrificed.”

Because we believe in Jesus as our Savior,

we have the blood of His sacrifice on

the doorpost of our hearts.

So when death visits us,

it will pass over us also.

Read Psalms 113-114

(Drink the second cup now)

*Passover Supper*

The Return of the Afikomen

In John 6:51 Jesus tells us,

“I am the living bread which came down from heaven.

 If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever;

and the bread that I shall give is My flesh,

which I shall give for the life of the world.”

The search for the afikomen represents the fact that we

must search for the Messiah.

Luke 11:9-10 (NKJV) “So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.

For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.”

(Time for the kids to find the afikomen)

It’s time to share the afikomen, the dessert, the final food

eaten at Passover, but first let’s look at Jesus words

regarding this tradition.

It was at this time during the meal that Jesus declared that He was the afikomen - “the coming one.”

Matthew 26:26 (NKJV) “And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

Before we take the bread let us remember the warning given by the apostle Paul…

1 Corinthians 11:27-28

 “Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.”

Let us now eat the matzah (bread), meditating on the broken body of the Lamb of God who takes away

the sin of the world.

(Break the afikomen & distribute it, then say the blessing & eat)

Leader - Blessed are you, O Lord our God,

ruler of the universe,

who brings forth bread from the earth.

The Cup of Redemption

We fill our cups for the third time this evening:

the cup of redemption.

This symbolizes the blood of the Passover lamb.

It would have been that same cup “after the meal”

with which Jesus identified Himself.

Luke 22:20 (NKJV)

“Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.””

Here, He alluded to a redemption greater than what the

Israelites experienced in Egypt- instead He referred to

the redemption and

deliverance of humanity through the blood the lamb of God, His blood.

Jesus’ words point to the New Covenant prophecy

from Jeremiah…

Jeremiah 31:31-34 (NKJV)

“Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah - not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, though I was a husband to them, says the Lord.

But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord:

I will put My law in their minds, and write it on their hearts;

and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.

No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ for they all shall know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them, says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity,

and their sin I will remember no more.”

This would have been an amazing moment for His Disciples,  

They would have had Passover year after year their whole lives but only now could they fully understand it and recognize Jesus’ words as pointing to the prophecy in Jeremiah, which is the only place in the entire OT that uses the phrase

“New Covenant.”

(Take the cup, say the blessing and drink)

Everyone - Blessed are You, O Lord our God,

King of the universe,

Creator of the fruit of the vine. Amen!

We are told that whenever we partake of this part of the Passover that we are to do so

In remembrance of Jesus the Christ.  

1 Corinthians 11:23-26

“For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks,

He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.”

Elijah’s Cup

The Bible, in Malachi 4:5, foretells Elijah’s appearance

to announce the coming of the Messianic King:

“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet

Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.”

During Passover, it is a tradition to set an additional

place, complete with a cup for Elijah. The Seder leader often

sends a child to the front door to look for Elijah.

So far Elijah has not physically attended a Seder.

Or did he? The Bible says, in Luke 1:17, referring to

John the Baptist:

“He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”

John came in the spirit of Elijah to herald the first

coming of the Messiah, and John proclaimed

Jesus as the Christ.

John 1:29 (NKJV) “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”

John, when asked who he was, gave his answer in John 1:23  

“He said: “I am

‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

“Make straight the way of the Lord,” ’

as the prophet Isaiah said.”

Isaiah 40:3

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:

“Prepare the way of the Lord;

Make straight in the desert

A highway for our God.”

The Cup of Praise

Let us fill our cups for the fourth and final time and give

thanks to God, our great redeemer!

(Don’t drink yet)

Mark 14:26 (LSB)

“And after singing a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.”

Read Psalms 115-118

(Take the cup, say the blessing and drink)

Everyone - Blessed are You, O Lord our God, ruler of the universe,

who creates the fruit of the vine.