The
Lamb of God: The Main Event
Have you
ever been in a play, recital or sporting event?
If you have, then you know that there are many rehearsals
all focused on the main event – the long awaited
performance. Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection
was the performance of a lifetime that brought about
God’s redemptive plan for all mankind. The Feasts
of the Lord, as recorded in Leviticus chapter 23,
all look to their fulfillment in Jesus Christ, the
long awaited Messiah.
Passover
is the first of the Feasts of the Lord, which occurs
during the springtime. Each year Passover is celebrated
remembering the children of Israel's deliverance
from 430 years of Egyptian bondage through the shed
blood of the slain Passover lamb. Exodus 12 records
that each family brought a perfect, spotless lamb
into their home and on the 14th day of
the month killed it. The blood of the lamb was
then applied to the doorposts of their home. They
were instructed to remain inside the home because
the Lord was about to release the 10th
plague. The plague would kill all of the firstborn
in the land in order to bring terror on their captors
so they would let His people go! When the
Lord saw the blood of the lamb on the doorposts,
He would Passover the home and the plague
would not strike them. The Lord commanded from
that point on for there to be a celebration remembering
that awesome day of deliverance. (Lev. 23:14)
Jesus begins
His celebration of Passover by sending Peter and
John to “go and prepare the Passover for us that
we may eat” (Luke 22:7-8). The preparation
for Passover begins with ‘the search for leaven’.
Where all leavened items, all breads and cakes containing
yeast, were removed from the home. Leaven is symbolic
of sin. For seven days they would eat unleavened
bread purging not only their homes but also their
bodies of leaven/sin.
The night
before He died on the cross, Jesus celebrated Passover
with His disciples.
This feast is typically known as The Last
Supper.The Passover table is set with symbolic foods,
4 glasses of wine, unleavened bread and the roasted
meat of the sacrificed lamb. While they were eating,
Jesus, The Bread of Life who was without sin, took
the bread that was without leaven—symbolic of sinlessness,
broke it and declared boldly "This
is my body, which is given for you." (Luke
22:19) Jesus
was revealing Himself AS the unleavened bread.
After the
supper, Jesus took the 3rd cup from the Passover
meal, called the cup of redemption and said, "This
cup is the New Covenant in my blood, which is shed
for you." (Luke 22:20) A covenant
is always cut in blood. The cup of wine represented
the blood of the innocent Passover lamb that gave
its life so its blood could be applied to their
doorposts. Jesus instituted communion by taking
these elements, the bread and the wine and applied
them to Himself revealing that He was the final
Passover Lamb. Jesus and His disciples were celebrating
Passover in remembrance of what God had done by
delivering them out of Egyptian bondage. Jesus
said “do this in remberance of Me” because
He wanted us to remember that it was now His blood
we’d apply to the doorposts of our hearts delivering
us from the bondage of sin.
At 3pm the
following day*, the lambs were being slain
at the Temple as the High Priest stretched out his
arms declaring, “It is finished.” Outcast
to Golgotha with His arms stretched out on the cross,
at 3pm*, Jesus, our High Priest declared
in a loud voice, “It is finished” before He surrendered His life for the world.
(John 19:30, Heb. 9:11, Matt. 27:26 & Ex. 12:6)
On the 3rd
day of the Passover season, the Feast of Firstfruits
is celebrated. The first of the barley crop was
ready showing the evidence or promise of the full
harvest still to come. The first of the barley
harvest was taken to the priest who waved the sheaves
before the Lord to be accepted on the people’s behalf.
Jesus is our High Priest who was resurrected/raised
up to Heaven and appeared before God to present/wave
His own blood on our behalf. (Heb. 9:11-28) Jesus
was the First One (firstfruit) that rose from the
dead and the promise of the harvest still to come
is that we too will be raised from the dead. (1Cor.
15:20-23)
