The Passover

Exodus 12:1-14

If you knew that your life was in danger, that for certain you would die unless you did one thing, wouldn’t you want to find out what that one thing was, and then be sure to do it?  This week we mark the final week of Jesus’ earthly life. One of the final things He did with His apostles was to celebrate the Passover, and then instituting the Last Supper remembrance.  Our reading for today tells the background of the Passover celebration, and what this celebration is really all about. Let’s look into the Scriptures and see what we can learn.

For several hundred years the Hebrew people, the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, had been enslaved by the Egyptians. After many years of servitude God raised up Moses to confront Pharaoh, and to bring down upon him and the nation the ten plagues.  Most of us have heard of them, the plagues of frogs, lice, locusts, darkness, etc. The final plague would be the worst and most devastating one, one that would finally convince Pharaoh to let the people go.  The tenth plague was the death of the firstborn throughout all the land of Egypt. God, however, would make a distinction between His people and the Egyptians, in those who believed in and followed Him, and those who didn’t. God gave Moses some simple instructions to give the people to follow in order to be spared death. If they obeyed and followed these, they would be spared from the death angel.

The instructions were really rather simple.  The people were to take a lamb that was perfect, with no blemishes or faults, kill it at twilight, and then roast it. They were to take the blood and apply it to the doorposts and lintel. When the Lord would pass through the land He would see the blood applied to the house, and would pass over them.  The blood of the lamb would separate them from the others, and they would not be killed.

The lamb was innocent - innocent blood was shed to deliver the people from death.  It was a substitute for the person who would have died in the plague. Today we are not at risk of being killed by a death plague like with Moses, but everyone is at risk of spiritual and eternal death.  To be spared from this death an innocent life must be sacrificed in our place. The lamb also needed to not have any flaws. It had to be perfect. Who is completely innocent of any faults, having no flaws or mistakes, and is perfect who could take my place so that I will not suffer eternal death?

Jesus was the perfect, the sinless Son of God.  He lived a perfect and sinless life (Hebrews 4:14).   Just as the lamb that was selected on that night of the final plague had to be without any fault or flaws, so Jesus was the Lamb of God who was sacrificed for us (John 1:29, 36).  Anything less than the sinless Son of God would not be a fit sacrifice. Jesus is the real, the true Passover Lamb (I Corinthians 5:7). The people had to apply the blood of that slain lamb to their doorposts in order to be spared death from the death angel.  Jesus delivers from sin and death all who apply His Blood to themselves.

Verse 6 states that the passover lamb was to be slain at twilight. According to Josephus, a Jewish historian at the time of Christ, the passover lamb was traditionally slain at 3 pm.  That way there was time to prepare the passover dinner to be eaten at evening. Jesus was crucified at noon at the beginning of Passover, and died at 3 pm. He truly is the true Passover Lamb.

If we believe that Jesus is who He says He is - the Lamb of God that died for the sins of the world, we are to apply His sinless Blood to our life.  When we die our natural death, God will look to see if the Blood of His Son has been applied. If He sees it, then He will pass over, and we will not suffer eternal death.  As verse 13 states, “When I see the blood, I will pass over you.” Be sure that you have accepted Jesus as your Savior, and His Blood has been applied to your heart!