Church of God, New World Ministries

Passover

God’s Plan of Salvation begins with the Passover. Millions have rejected this most important day thinking it is for the “Jews” only. They have been deceived into believing the pagan holiday Easter is the day to be observed for modern day Christians. Little do they know that their very eternal life is wrapped around this ancient ceremony. Notice what your Bible says about the PASSOVER .

Turn to the twelfth (12 th ) chapter of Exodus and begin reading in verse one. “And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, this month shall be unto you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. Speak you unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, in the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the 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 first born in the land of Egypt, both men and beasts; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment. I am the Lord. And the blood for you will be 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 unto you a MEMORIAL; and you shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; you shall keep it a feast by an ORDINANCE FOREVER.” (Exodus 12:1-7, 12-14).

The slain lamb, without blemish, represented Jesus Christ. “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation (conduct) received by tradition from your fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:” (I Pet. 1:18-19). So you see that as the children of Israel had to come under the blood of this slain lamb, WE TOO have to come under the blood of Jesus Christ. Christ is referred to as a lamb in several passages in the Bible. As John the Baptist saw Christ approaching he said, “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” (John 1:29).

Jesus Christ observed the Passover His entire life. However, the night before He was crucified He instituted a great change in this ceremony. He knew that He was going to fulfill the real meaning of the Passover, so, “He took bread and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave it unto them saying, This is my body which is given for you; this do in remembrance of me. Likewise also the cup after supper saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for your.” (Luke 22:19, 20).

In John 6:53-54 Jesus said, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except you eat the flesh (bread) of the Son of man, and drink His blood, (wine) ye have no life (eternal) in you.  Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. (resurrection).”

After implementing the NEW SYMBOLS for the Passover “He (Christ) riseth from supper, and laid aside His garments; and took a towel, and girded Himself.” (John 13:4, 5).  “After that He poureth water into a basin and began to wash the disciple’s feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith He was girded.” (John 13:13, 14).  He continues, “You call me Master and Lord; and you say well; for so I am.  If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; you also ought to wash one another’s feet.” Christ was teaching us to be servants and to be humble in our Christian lives.

We no longer slay a lamb at this time of the year.  Christ fulfilled that role.  We do however, take the bread and wine as a MEMORIAL to Christ’s death.  John was inspired to write that failure to observe this simple ceremony would negate our eternal life. (John 6:53-54).  Paul wrote to the Church in Rome that “…all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God”, however, “…being justified (made clean) freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in His blood, to declare His righteousness for the remission forgiveness) of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;…” (Rom. 3:23-25).

The Passover is only the beginning. Once we have been cleansed of our sins through the blood of Christ, what does God require of us?  The Days of Unleavened Bread reveal this ageless secret.

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