LESSON 3
PASSOVER, UNLEAVENED BREAD AND FIRSTFRUITS
1. PASSOVER
“These are the Lord’s appointed feasts, the sacred assemblies you are to proclaim at their appointed times.
“The Lord’s Passover begins as twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month…” Leviticus 23:4, 5.
INTRODUCTION
These three feasts are grouped together because they took place over a period of eight days, beginning with Passover on 14th Nisan; Unleavened Bread which began on the day after Passover and continued for seven days; and First-fruits which was celebrated on the first Sabbath after Passover.
Below is a table of the dates of these three feasts in the year of Jesus’ death. Please note that Jesus died on the Thursday, not on the Friday as traditionally taught by the church.
THE MEANING OF PASSOVER
Before we examine the meaning of the Passover, there is something fundamental we must understand about the death of Jesus. The Bible presents His sacrifice from two perspectives: from the perspective of eternity and from the perspective of time (history).
From the perspective of eternity
“Christ being slain from the foundation of the world illustrates not only that He was foreordained to be slain, but also that the efficacy, or the beneficial effect of that death, is the same as if that sacrifice had been made before the creation of the world. Thus, Old Testament saints are washed clean in Christ’s blood the same as we are today. In other words, the efficacy of Christ’s sacrifice is not limited by time. God had already chosen who He would save before creation, and had thus already ordained the Saviour to shed His blood for them, to make this possible. Their salvation wasn’t something which could be thwarted, it was something which was as good as ‘done’ from the time that God ordained it.”
(http://www.mountainretreatorg.net/faq/slainfounda.html)
“For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver and gold that you were redeemed from your empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.” 1 Peter 1:18-20.
“All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast – all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world.” Revelation 13:8.
From the perspective of time
God set up the sacrificial system of the Old Covenant to teach His people about the price of sin. The blood of sacrificial animals was meant as a visual aid to prepare them to understand Messiah’s death as the payment for the debt of sin.
“When Christ came as high priest of the good things that are already here, He went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not man-made, that is to say, not a part of this creation. He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but He entered by His own blood, having obtained eternal redemption.” Hebrews 9:11, 12.
“But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, He sat down at the right hand of God. Since that time he waits for His enemies to be made His footstool, because by one sacrifice He has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” Hebrews 10:12-14.
Although Jesus’ death had eternal significance, it had to happen at a specific point in time; He would actually suffer and shed His blood for the human race on the day and at the time that the Passover lambs were sacrificed so that we could see what He had done. He was “revealed in these last times” for our sake.
Passover was the first step in this learning process.
“The first Passover came into holy history nearly 3500 years ago. The family of Israel were captives in Egypt at that time. They were about to embark on their first great adventure as a people. And under Moses a new nation was about to come into being. On the eve of that epic exodus out of the bondage of Egypt they were given their instructions for Passover. They were to sacrifice a lamb and place the blood upon their door posts.
“That night the angel of death passed over Egypt and over the Israelites dwelling at Goshen. Those households with the blood of the lamb upon the door were protected. Through the blood of the lamb they were saved from death. This was a salvation event of huge significance. And they would remember it forever. The Passover marked the national salvation and the deliverance of the children of Israel from the bondage of Egypt.
“This was more than a national political salvation. At that time the blood of the Sacrifice Lamb was showcased before the whole nation of Israel. It was something personal to every household. It was also a portent of something far greater than they could imagine. Something that would happen on a future Passover.
“The great salvation afforded those who were obedient to YHVH-God was demonstrated in the family of Israel. And later, at the time of the Exodus, the power of the blood of the lamb to save was demonstrated before all the families of Egypt, the gentile superpower of the day. Everyone with eyes to see stopped and to look and take note. The atoning blood of the lamb secured salvation for the firstborn of all the families who were obedient. Salvation came through the atoning blood sacrifice of a lamb.
“This was, and always will be, the essential meaning of Passover. All the previous blood sacrifices even going back to the Garden of Eden looked forward to a coming greater, ultimate, Sacrifice Lamb. In His atoning blood all the previous accounts based upon faith and a blood sacrifice would be taken note of and covered. If there was faith in the heart of the one making the sacrifice then their sins would be accounted for, and settled.
“Our father Abraham knew about that promised Sacrifice Lamb. God asked Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac. Abraham’s willingness to do this believing God would bring life back from death was the essential faith of Abraham. And this faith was necessary on his side of the covenant. The lamb with his head caught in the thicket of thorns was of course provided by YHVH-God. The lamb provided for Abraham on this occasion was a substitute for the life of his son Isaac.
“We see the crucifixion drama foreshadowed in that awesome scene. Abraham’s only son Isaac was a little boy submissive and humble unto death. Isaac carried the wood necessary for his own sacrifice up a lonely hill. He allowed himself to be bound by his father.
“This was an awesome, even an awful place of slaughter. It was also the Holy Place that would bring atonement for sin. YHVH-God saw faith demonstrated in the obedient actions of His covenant partner Abraham. And so the God of Abraham then acted powerfully on His side of the covenant on behalf of His friend.
“The rest of the story of Abraham’s family is a matter of written record. Holy history is the story of the family of the faithful. The account of the ultimate Sacrifice Lamb is laid out in the pages of Holy Scripture. We see the promised New Covenant fulfillment recorded in the pages of the New Testament.
“So this event, the Passover sacrifice, was more than a celebration of the salvation of the Israelites from the death angel on their exodus out of Egypt. Four millenia ago our father Abraham had testified that
“God will provide Himself, a Lamb”. (Gen.22:8)”