God Passes Over

We had a wonderful weekend together as a family. Thanks for allowing us to have a couple days just to rest. Our weeks are pretty hectic when the kids are in school and Trish is working every day. With our schedule on Sunday that only leaves Saturday to rest, which is difficult with a house to clean, clothes to wash, groceries to buy, and a "honey do" list longer than my arm (ok, no short jokes). You all know the drill I'm sure.

At any rate, I didn't want to pass over the Passover in Exodus 12. This is the oldest and most important of the Jewish festivals, that commemorates the final release of Israel by Pharaoh and God's great works in bringing them out. In its most basic form the Passover involves the ritual slaughter of a lamb. The lamb's blood is placed on the lintel and posts of the door, and it's flesh is roasted and eaten by each family.

God commanded this be done in order that the first born of that family might be preserved from death in accordance with the 10th and final plague on Egypt. As God went through the land on the prescribed night, any family who He saw had the blood on their door would be "passed over." Notice in Exo. 12:23, it is the LORD who "will pass through to strike the Egyptians," but when He sees the blood, He will not allow the destroyer to enter and kill.

Jesus observed the Passover in obedience to the command of the Lord, but as we now know, He changed its observance at the "Last Supper," as it is commonly called since it was His final earthly meal with His disciples before the crucifixion. I've often thought it should be called the "Last Passover" since we no longer observe this festival annually, but the "First Supper" since we observe the Lord's Supper regularly until He comes again. 

We no longer slaughter Lambs in the prescribed manner, and we do not place their blood on our doors. Rather, Jesus is the final Lamb of God to be slaughtered, and His blood is applied to the doorway of our hearts. In the Lord's Supper we observe the ritual now in eating the bread, which is the body of Christ, and drinking the wine, which is the blood of Christ. In this manner we participate with Christ in His sacrificial death, and the destroyer passes us over.

Praise God!