“And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye 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.” Exodus 12:13
The Passover in the time of Israel’s slavery in Egypt was a crucial event that powerfully set a nation free from their 400 years of slavery in Egypt. For the Jewish people, it was a night of contrasting predicament: the terrible 10th and final plague of the death of all the firstborn of Egypt, both from man and beast of the Egyptians and the merciful and mighty deliverance and protection for all the children of Israel, descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exo 12: 11-14). The Lord commanded Israel to observe the Passover as a Feast, a memorial throughout their generation. The Feast of Passover commemorates not only their deliverance and freedom from Egypt but also Israel’s birth as a nation. The Passover was a prophetic type of the ultimate “Passover Lamb” who was slain for the redemption of all mankind- the Lord Jesus Christ some 1,200 years from the time that it was first observed by Israel on that fateful day of judgment on Egypt and mighty deliverance for God’s people. The day Jesus was crucified was the exact day of the Passover celebration. While every household in Israel was slaying the Passover lamb, the Lord Jesus hanged on the cross, His sinless blood shed for us and His life offered to atone for the sins of mankind. It was at 3:00, when Jesus finally cried out, “It is finished” giving up His spirit – the exact moment that the Passover lamb was sacrificed and the shofar was blown from the Temple. At the very instant, the veil of the Temple (a three-inch thick, several story high cloth that demarked the Holy of Holies) tore from top to bottom- representing a removal of the separation between God and man.
Unknown to many Christians today, the Lord made seven promises connected with the keeping of the Feast of Passover and the subsequent feasts of Unleavened Bread and Firstfuits. These seven promises were embodied in Exodus 23: 20-29 when the Lord instituted the Feasts before all Israel. These seven blessings that we can claim through our Passover Lamb who is the Lord Jesus (I Cor 5:7) are:
- God will assign an angel to His people (Exo 23: 20, 23)
- God will be an enemy to the enemies of His people (v. 22)
- God will give prosperity to His people (v. 25)
- God will take sickness away from His people (v. 25)
- God will give long life to His people (v. 26)
- God will bring increase and inheritance (v. 30)
- God will give a special year of blessing (v. 31)
Indeed, the blessings of our Passover Lamb, the Lord Jesus Christ did not only set us free from sin and death but place us in a position of His grace and favour to enable us to live in the abundant life that He has promised to His people (Deut 28: 1-14; John 10:10). Let us celebrate the essence and fulfillment of the Feast of the Passover, Unleavened Bread and Firstfruit. Their essence and fulfillment is our Lord Jesus Christ!
Kuya Dan
Also published on Eagle Christian, Issue No. 381 on March 31, 2013
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