2/15/2012-FOR YOUR INFORMATION This is the second of nine PowerPoint files on the Feasts of the Lord. The list includes: #1 (Intro to the Feasts), #2 (The Feast of Passover), #3 (The Feast of Unleavened Bread), #4 (The Feast of First Fruits), #5 (The Feast of Weeks-Pentecost), #6 (The Feast of Trumpets), #7 (The Ten Days of Awe), #8 (The Feast of Atonement), & #9 (The Feast of Tabernacles). Permission is given to download these for study, to show at your church, etc.
PASSOVER PASSOVER IS THE FIRST FEAST DAY THE JEWS CELEBRATED DURING THE SPRING PILGRIMAGE TO JERUSALEM & THE TEMPLE
IT HAS A TWO-FOLD PURPOSE CELEBRATES PAST It remembers that the death angel passed over the Hebrews in Egypt (Ex. 12). LOOKS TO FUTURE Christ (the Messiah) our passover is sacrificed for us (I Cor. 5:7). 3
BACKGROUND During the 7 lean years, the children of Israel wound up in Egypt. They settled there as the esteemed relatives of Joseph. At first, the Egyptians treated them well. But time passed & a new Pharaoh came to power.
This new Pharaoh made slaves out of them. He made their life hard. They cried out to God. God heard their cries. He raised up Moses. He sent Moses to tell Pharaoh to, Let my people go. Pharaoh refused.
GOD BEGAN TO PLAGUE EGYPT He turned the Nile into blood. He sent frogs into the land. He sent gnats into the land. He sent flies into the land. The Egyptian cattle died. The Egyptians were covered with sores. Hail & fire fell from heaven. Locusts plagued the people. Darkness covered the land.
FINALLY God sent one last plague The death angel would pass over Egypt. The firstborn children of those who obeyed God would be spared. But the firstborn children of those who didn t obey God would die.
THIS IS WHAT GOD WANTED THE PEOPLE TO DO (EX. 12) On the 10 th day of Nisan, select a lamb without blemish. On the 14 th day of Nisan, kill it & catch the blood. Don t break any bones when you kill it. Cook it and eat it at evening time, but don t share it with strangers and don t leave anything for the next day.
Sprinkle the blood upon the lintels & door posts of your houses. Go inside your houses & stay behind the blood until the death angel passes.
The death angel will pass by & look for blood. If the death angel sees the blood, he will pass over the house & the people will be saved. If the death angel doesn t see the blood, the death angel will enter the house and the firstborn will die.
THE JEWS OBEYED They applied the blood & the death angel passed over. Many Egyptians died including Pharaoh s firstborn son. But by obeying God & trusting in the blood of a lamb the Jews were saved. Pharaoh let them go.
THE JEWS LOOK BACK ON PASSOVER It is the oldest continuously observed Holy Day (holiday) in the history of mankind. Some scholars believe it is the first holiday ever celebrated by mankind. If they are right, the first holiday ever celebrated by mankind pointed to the death of Jesus on the cross.
Passover means to the Jews what the cross means to Christians: deliverance, redemption & salvation. God commanded them to remember it forever. Jesus went to Jerusalem to observe the Feast of Passover with His disciples just before He died. 13
PASSOVER LOOKED FORWARD TO ANOTHER LAMB The lamb in Moses day prefigured Jesus the Lamb of God (Jn. 1:29, 36). The lamb in Moses day was selected on the 10 th of Nisan & Jesus made His Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem on the 10 th of Nisan (Jn. 12:1, 12). Because the Jews waved palm branches Christians call this Palm Sunday (Jn. 12:13).
PASSOVER LOOKED FORWARD TO A PERFECT LAMB The lamb in Moses day was without blemish (Ex. 12:5). Concerning Jesus, Pilate said, I find no fault in him (Jn. 19:4). Peter called Him a lamb without blemish and without spot (I Pet. 1:19). Paul said, He knew no sin ( II Cor. 5:21).
PASSOVER LOOKED FORWARD TO THE DEATH OF A YOUNG MALE LAMB The lamb in Moses day was to be a male of the first year (Ex. 12:5). Jesus was a male who died when He was about 33 years old. Both lambs died in the prime of their life. For as by one man s [Adam s] disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience of one [man] shall many be made righteous (Rom. 5:19).
PASSOVER LOOKED FORWARD TO THE DEATH OF A MUCH LOVED LAMB The lamb in Moses day was selected on the 10 th of Nisan and kept until the 14 th of Nisan when it was killed (Ex. 12:3, 6). Jesus made His Triumphal Entry on the 10 th of Nisan & He was killed on the 14 th on Nisan. The Jews made a pet out of their lamb & learned to love it between the 10 th & 14 th. It was hard to kill their much loved pet. It was hard for God to let His well beloved Son die.
PASSOVER LOOKED FORWARD TO THE DEATH OF A LAMB AT 3 P.M. The lamb in Moses day was killed in the evening (Ex. 12:6). Evening in Israel is 3 p.m. The Jews needed to kill the Passover lamb at 3 p.m. so they could cook it & have it ready to eat by 6 p.m. Jesus died at the ninth hour (3 p.m.) (Matt. 27:45-50).
PASSOVER LOOKED FORWARD TO A LAMB WHOSE BONES WOULD NOT BE BROKEN Concerning the lamb in Moses day, God said, neither shall ye break a bone thereof (Ex. 12:46). While Jesus was hanging on the cross, the Jews wanted Pilate to break His legs, but the soldiers saw that He was dead and broke not His legs (Jn. 19:31-36).
PASSOVER LOOKED FORWARD TO A LAMB THAT HAD TO BE CONSUMED IN ONE DAY Concerning the lamb in Moses day, God said, ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning (Ex. 12:10). The Jews asked Pilate not to let the body of Jesus remain on the cross until the next day (Jn. 19:31). His body was removed on the same day He died.
PASSOVER WAS A CELEBRATION FOR BELIEVERS ONLY Concerning the lamb in Moses day, God said, No uncircumcised person shall eat thereof (Ex. 12:43). Circumcision was an outward sign that a person had a covenant with God. Concerning the Lord s Supper, Paul said some get sick and die because they take communion unworthily (I Cor. 11:27-30).
FIVE THINGS TO CONSIDER
ONE---It wasn t enough for the Passover lamb to die. It only benefited those who applied the blood to their houses. It wasn t enough for Jesus to die for the sins of the world. It only benefits those who trust in His blood & apply it to their hearts and lives.
TWO---The Passover lamb s blood had to be prominently displayed at the entrance of the house. The blood couldn t be displayed secretly, out back, in the attic or inside a closet. It is important to confess Jesus openly. He said, Whosever shall confess me before men, him will I confess before my Father which is in heaven: But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven (Matt. 10:32-33). One shouldn t try to be a secret Christian.
THREE---To be safe the Jews had to stay behind the blood until the danger had passed. They couldn t apply the blood & go outside. A person can t be a Christian & do whatever they want to do whenever they want to do it. We can t attend Church on Sunday & live for the Devil or do what-ever we want to do the rest of the week.
FOUR---Inside the house, the Jews ate the lamb with their loins girded, shoes on their feet & staffs in their hands. They fed on the lamb. They were prepared to leave on a moments notice. Christians should feed on Christ (pray, study, etc) & be prepared to leave this life on a moments notice by death or the Rapture.
FIVE---Nothing but the blood could stop the death angel. He entered Pharaoh s palace, the prisons, the locked Egyptian houses, etc. The death angel went anywhere he wanted to go & the only place he didn t want to go was behind the blood. Concerning Jesus, without the shedding of blood, there is no remission (Heb. 9:22).
FINAL REMARKS ABOUT PASSOVER At the cross, people thought they were in control. But God was in control. He was following a plan. The Feast of Passover reveals many details about God s plan & the death of Jesus at His first coming. We can expect the other feasts to reveal more details.