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Passover occurs on the 14th day of the month of Abib,
often called Nisan today. Abib is the first
month of the year as given by G-d (see Exodus 12:2
And the story of Passover is found in the 12th
chapter of Exodus). The Passover seder (meal)
is absolutely full of "pictures" of Messiah.
"And as they were eating Jesus took bread, and
blessed it, and broke it, and gave it to the
disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body."
(Matthew 26:26)
Of course Jesus didn't mean that it was literally His
body, but the bread eaten at Passover is such a
beautiful picture of our Lord.
(Gentiles who are not familiar with the bread
eaten at Passover can go to just about any grocery
store and buy a box of matzoh. This is the
Passover bread.)
- It's made without leaven (in the Bible leaven
symbolizes sin.)
"Thou shalt therefore sacrifice
the passover unto the L-RD thy
G-d... Thou shalt eat no leavened bread with
it..." (Deuteronomy 16:2, 3)
"Who did no sin..." (I Peter 2:22)
"...tempted like as we are, yet without sin."
(Hebrews 4:15)
- Because the bread is cooked on a grill it's
striped.
"...and with his stripes we are healed." (Isaiah
53:5)
"Then Pilate therefore took Jesus, and scourged
him." (John 19:1)
- The bread has holes where it was pierced.
"...and they shall look upon me whom they have
pierced..." (Zechariah
12:10)
"But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his
side..." (John
19:34)
"...they pierced my hands and my feet." (Psalm
22:16)
"Where they crucified him..." (John 19:18)
And there's even more to Jesus's statement of the
bread being His body. At the beginning of the
seder 3 pieces of the bread are placed in a piece of
linen containing 3 compartments - 1 piece of bread in
each compartment. This is then "buried" behind a
cushion, under a chair, in a drawer, etc.
When the time comes to partake of this bread with the
third cup of wine, the cup of redemption, it's
retrieved from its place of "burial". Now the
middle piece of bread (Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit) is removed and blessed. This blessing is the
same one said at the first Passover, the same one
that Jesus said at the Last Supper, and the same one
still said at seders today: Blessed art Thou O
L-RD our G-d, King of the
universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.
- "For the bread of G-d is he which cometh down
from heaven, and giveth life unto the world...And
Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life..."
(John 6:33, 35)
- "...neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to
see corruption." (Psalm 16:10)
- "And they found the stone rolled away from the
sepulchre...He is not here, but is risen..."
(Luke
24:2, 6)
The bread is broken and a piece given to each
person.
- "And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and
said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is
broken for you..." (I Corinthians 11:24)
The third cup of wine, the Cup of Redemption - This
blessing said over this cup also is the same one said
at the first Passover, the same one that Jesus said
at the Last Supper, and the same one still said at
seders today: Blessed art Thou O L-RD our G-d, King of the universe,
Creator of the fruit of the vine.
- "And He [Jesus] took the cup, and gave thanks,
and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;
For this is my blood of the new testament,
which is shed for many for the remission of sins."
(Matthew 26:27, 28)
- "I am the vine, you are the branches: he
that abides in me, and I in him, the same brings
forth much fruit..." (John 15:5)
Pretty neat, isn't it? But the most
important and exciting fulfillment of Passover is the
lesson of the first Passover. (Please read at
least Exodus 12:1-14) God was going to go
through Egypt and kill all the first born of both man
and animal. The only thing that would
save His people, Israel, from this fearful and
terrible event was the blood of the lamb. How
good or bad the people had been was completely
irrelevant. The only thing that mattered, the
only thing that would save them was the blood of the
lamb.
- "And they shall take of the blood, and strike it
on the two side posts and on the upper door post of
the houses, wherein they shall eat it...And the blood
shall be to you for a token upon the houses where you
are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over
you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy
you..." (Exodus 12:7, 13)
- "The next day John [the Baptist] saw Jesus coming
unto him, and said, Behold the Lamb of G-d, which
takes away the sin of the world." (John 1:29)
- "Even the righteousness of G-d which is by faith
of Messiah Jesus unto all and upon all them that
believe: for there is no difference: For all
have sinned, and come short of the glory of G-d;
Being justified freely by His grace through the
redemption that is in Messiah Jesus: whom G-d has set
forth to be a propitiation through faith in His
blood..." (Romans 3:22-25)
- "Much more then, being now justified by His
[Messiah's] blood, we shall be saved from wrath
through Him." (Romans 5:9)
Have you been trusting in your own deeds to escape
the wrath, hoping that you've been good enough?
"For all have sinned and fall short of the
glory of G-d." (Romans 3:23) "For by grace are
you saved through faith; and that not of yourselves:
it is the gift of G-d: Not of works, lest any
man should boast." (Ephesians 2:8, 9) Is there
no work then that you must do to be saved?
"Jesus answered and said to them, This is the
work of G-d, that you believe on Him whom He has
sent." (John 6:29) "For G-d so loved the world
that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever
believes in Him should not perish but have
everlasting life." (John 3:16)
It was the blood of the lamb which saved; it is
the blood of the Lamb which saves.
Now on to the Feast
of Unleavened Bread!
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