Often when I explore something in the Bible, I find more than I was looking for. Blog posts aren’t supposed to be super long; the same goes with sermons and lectures! So I try to simplify what I’m learning and if I can’t, I seek to make a series out of it.
That’s happening here. Thinking about Jesus as the Lamb of God drew me to Passover and that led me to ponder different types of sacrifices, which drew me to … Well, you get the idea!
When I write a blog series or teach a Sunday School class, I like to have at least an outline done in advance. This way, I know what points I’m trying to make, and how long it’s going to take.
But in this case, I’m just going for it. I’ve collected several Bible passages, so I’m not hitting this topic cold, but I don’t have specific insights and conclusions worked out in advance.
And that makes me a little nervous. I like being in control of what I’m communicating, but sometimes, the Lord wants us to trust Him as He takes us on a journey to unknown destinations.
So we’re off!
We’ll start with the account of the first Passover as laid out in the book of Exodus.
Before the Passover, the Lord had raised up Moses to deliver His people from slavery in Egypt but Pharaoh wasn’t having it. So God worked nine miracles (punishments really), to convince him to “let My people go!”
Passover would take place on the night of the tenth plague, the death of the firstborn. The Israelites had dwelt in Egypt for hundreds of years, and Pharaoh had ordered the murder of every newborn male child of God’s people. Israel was in trouble; it was in danger of disappearing as a nation by being dissolving into Egypt.
But God wasn’t going to let that happen. He had plans for His people, so He had to rescue them. The tenth plague, which broke Pharaoh’s resistance, secured Israel’s identity. Here’s how the book of Exodus begins the account:
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. 3Tell 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. 4If 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. 6Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month, when all the members of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight. 7Then 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. 8That 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. 10Do not leave any of it till morning; if some is left till morning, you must burn it. 11This 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.” – Exodus 12:1-11
The Passover event alters the Jewish calendar. The Israelites began keeping time based on their deliverance from Egypt.
I sense a spiritual lesson there, don’t you? We whom Jesus saved can base our spiritual “calendar” on our deliverance from bondage to the world, the flesh, and the devil. Our salvation in Christ can and should have an impact on how we treat time. Because God saved us for a purpose. He rescued Israel from slavery, but that was only part of the plan. God wanted the nation free to fulfill its calling and destiny. In the same way, Jesus has intentions for us. He saved us so we can serve Him without encumbrance.
After resetting their calendar, God then instructs His people about a ritual meal which requires the sacrifice of a lamb. But it’s more than a meal, because the Israelites were to apply the blood of the lamb to the doorways of their homes.
Why do this?
All ancient cultures were steeped in ritual and ceremony. People didn’t keep ideas in their heads; they communicated them through stories and expressed them through rituals. We could say that the ancients were dramatic. They proclaimed history, law, and wisdom in liturgies and festivals which embodied truths the people held.
And Israel was no different.
So God does more than deliver them; He memorializes the occasion by requiring their involvement. His people must keep a lamb in their homes for a few days, then slaughter it and apply its blood to the doorposts of their houses. Then, they are to eat the meat, along with bitter herbs and bread without yeast.
The bitter herbs most likely represent the hard labor the Jews endured (see Exodus 1:14).
And the people were to eat the meal in haste, like they were about to leave. That’s why God told them not to use yeast; it takes time to leaven dough, and their time in Egypt was wrapping up. They couldn’t even prepare any leftovers; they weren’t going to be around the next day! And the people were to eat this dinner wearing their traveling garb. They had to be ready to hit the road!
An important ritual, but fast-paced.
We can see how elements of Passover apply to aspects of our spiritual life. As followers of Christ, we’re on a journey. We can’t afford the time to dwell on the misery of Egyptian bondage. The Lord frees us so we can travel with Him. He’s saved us for a purpose. Praise His name!
But why the blood on the doorways?
Let’s pick up on that next week!
