Jesus is Our Passover Lamb
Passover is not just a Jewish holiday. Passover means – skip over or spare, i.
e. exemption. The Passover marked the time when God brought a final
plague upon Egypt. In this plague, God destroyed the firstborn of the
Egyptians but spared (passed over) those Israelites who had followed the
command to place the blood of a lamb on their doorposts. God commanded
that the day be observed as holiday (Exodus 23:14-15). In the New
Testament Passover was used figuratively to emphasize that Christ, our
Passover Lamb, had been sacrificed for us. Believers were urged to keep
the feast with the new unleavened bread of purity and truth, and not with the
old yeast bread of wickedness and evil (I Corinthians 5:7-8) “purge out
therefore, the old leaven (sin) that you may be a new lump, as you are
unleavened. For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us. Therefore let
us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and
wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth”. This is New
Testament showing us to keep the feast. Just as the Israelites were told to
apply the blood from their Passover lamb (Exodus 12:7, 12-14) “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. For I will pass through the land
of Egypt this night, and will smite 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 Yahweh. 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, when I smite the land of Egypt.
And this day shall be to you, for a memorial, and you shall keep it a feast to
the Lord Yahweh throughout your generations, you shall keep it a feast by an
ordinance for ever”. We as Christians are told to apply the blood of Jesus to
our hearts by submission to Him as Lord of our lives. The Israelites rehearsed
the Passover by remembering their freedom from Egypt and looking forward to
the Messiah”s coming, and now we remember our freedom from sin by the
sacrifice of Jesus and look forward to His second coming. John the Baptist
presented Jesus as our Passover Lamb “Behold the Lamb of God, which
takes away the sin of the world”(John 1:29).
Jesus was crucified in the city during the Passover celebration. Some
scholars have suggested that Christ was actually hanging on the cross when
the Passover lamb was being slaughtered for the ritual meal that every Jewish
family would eat. The last supper with His disciples occurred just prior to the
Passover (John 13:1), when Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus to the Pharisees
(Luke 22:4-6). The breaking of bread and the drinking of wine at the
Passover celebration were used by Jesus to picture His coming death (Mark
14:22-25). In fact, Jesus instructed His disciples to continue the ritual of
eating bread and drinking wine in order to always, remember His death on
their behalf. The Apostle Paul gave instructions to the church to continue this
ritual in I Corinthians 11:24-26. In addition the Passover and feast of
unleavened bread were of great importance in the life of Christ (John 12;1-
26). Jesus participated actively in the Passover rituals (Luke 2:42; John 2:13,
6:4). Like the blood of the lamb that saved the Hebrew people from
destruction in Egypt, His blood, as the ultimate Passover sacrifice, redeems us
from the power of sin and death (I Corinthians 5:7-8).
By New Testament times, the festivals of Passover and Unleavened Bread
were well attended celebrations (Luke 22:1; Acts 12:3). The great celebration
was a reminder to the people of God’s miraculous intervention on their behalf
and His constant presence with them.
Jesus actually died on Passover, He was buried on Unleavened Bread and
was raised on the feast of First fruits. The early church picked up many
aspects of these Hebrew feasts. For example, the Apostle Paul considered
the earliest Hebrew Christians to be like the first fruits of Israel (Romans 11:
16). In Romans 8:23 the Holy Spirit is regarded as a token of what was to
come for believers. It was called the “first fruit” of the Spirit. Christians
themselves were described in James 1:18 as being like first fruits “His choice
possession”. The resurrection of Jesus was considered by Paul to be the
“first of a great harvest of those who will be raised to life again” (I Corinthians
15:20).
Because we have established that God commanded this feast to be observed,
and Jesus told His disciples to continue in it, let us do as the Bible tells us, and
not be a hearer only.
Study by: Harriet Bond
Date: April 3, 2007
Passover is not just a Jewish holiday. Passover means – skip over or spare, i.
e. exemption. The Passover marked the time when God brought a final
plague upon Egypt. In this plague, God destroyed the firstborn of the
Egyptians but spared (passed over) those Israelites who had followed the
command to place the blood of a lamb on their doorposts. God commanded
that the day be observed as holiday (Exodus 23:14-15). In the New
Testament Passover was used figuratively to emphasize that Christ, our
Passover Lamb, had been sacrificed for us. Believers were urged to keep
the feast with the new unleavened bread of purity and truth, and not with the
old yeast bread of wickedness and evil (I Corinthians 5:7-8) “purge out
therefore, the old leaven (sin) that you may be a new lump, as you are
unleavened. For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us. Therefore let
us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and
wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth”. This is New
Testament showing us to keep the feast. Just as the Israelites were told to
apply the blood from their Passover lamb (Exodus 12:7, 12-14) “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. For I will pass through the land
of Egypt this night, and will smite 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 Yahweh. 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, when I smite the land of Egypt.
And this day shall be to you, for a memorial, and you shall keep it a feast to
the Lord Yahweh throughout your generations, you shall keep it a feast by an
ordinance for ever”. We as Christians are told to apply the blood of Jesus to
our hearts by submission to Him as Lord of our lives. The Israelites rehearsed
the Passover by remembering their freedom from Egypt and looking forward to
the Messiah”s coming, and now we remember our freedom from sin by the
sacrifice of Jesus and look forward to His second coming. John the Baptist
presented Jesus as our Passover Lamb “Behold the Lamb of God, which
takes away the sin of the world”(John 1:29).
Jesus was crucified in the city during the Passover celebration. Some
scholars have suggested that Christ was actually hanging on the cross when
the Passover lamb was being slaughtered for the ritual meal that every Jewish
family would eat. The last supper with His disciples occurred just prior to the
Passover (John 13:1), when Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus to the Pharisees
(Luke 22:4-6). The breaking of bread and the drinking of wine at the
Passover celebration were used by Jesus to picture His coming death (Mark
14:22-25). In fact, Jesus instructed His disciples to continue the ritual of
eating bread and drinking wine in order to always, remember His death on
their behalf. The Apostle Paul gave instructions to the church to continue this
ritual in I Corinthians 11:24-26. In addition the Passover and feast of
unleavened bread were of great importance in the life of Christ (John 12;1-
26). Jesus participated actively in the Passover rituals (Luke 2:42; John 2:13,
6:4). Like the blood of the lamb that saved the Hebrew people from
destruction in Egypt, His blood, as the ultimate Passover sacrifice, redeems us
from the power of sin and death (I Corinthians 5:7-8).
By New Testament times, the festivals of Passover and Unleavened Bread
were well attended celebrations (Luke 22:1; Acts 12:3). The great celebration
was a reminder to the people of God’s miraculous intervention on their behalf
and His constant presence with them.
Jesus actually died on Passover, He was buried on Unleavened Bread and
was raised on the feast of First fruits. The early church picked up many
aspects of these Hebrew feasts. For example, the Apostle Paul considered
the earliest Hebrew Christians to be like the first fruits of Israel (Romans 11:
16). In Romans 8:23 the Holy Spirit is regarded as a token of what was to
come for believers. It was called the “first fruit” of the Spirit. Christians
themselves were described in James 1:18 as being like first fruits “His choice
possession”. The resurrection of Jesus was considered by Paul to be the
“first of a great harvest of those who will be raised to life again” (I Corinthians
15:20).
Because we have established that God commanded this feast to be observed,
and Jesus told His disciples to continue in it, let us do as the Bible tells us, and
not be a hearer only.
Study by: Harriet Bond
Date: April 3, 2007
