Introduction: (Scripture read - offstage)
Exodus 12:3-14
…This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the LORD--a lasting ordinance.
Joke - Moses was sitting in the Egyptian ghettos. Things were terrible. Pharaoh wouldn't even speak to him. The rest of the Israelites were mad at him and making the overseers even more irritable than usual. He was about ready to give up.
Suddenly a booming voice spoke from above:
"You, Moses, listen to me! I have good news, and bad news."
Moses was staggered. The voice continued:
"You, Moses, will lead the People of Israel from bondage. If Pharaoh refuses to release your bonds, I will smite Egypt by changing the Nile River to blood."
"You, Moses, will lead the People of Israel to the Promised Land. If Pharaoh blocks your way, I will smite Egypt with a plague of Locust."
"You, Moses, will lead the People of Israel to freedom and safety. If Pharaoh's army pursues you, I will part the waters of the Red Sea to open your path to the Promised Land."
Moses was stunned. He stammered, "That's.... that's fantastic. I can't believe it! --- But what's the bad news?"
"You, Moses, must write the Environmental Impact Statement."
It’s a pivotal part of Israel’s history, where, 430 years to the day, they will leave Egypt and pursue the promise God long before made to Abraham. Pharaoh’s heart has become hard and cold. He has allowed his people to endure the first 9 plagues. It was time for the 10th plague.
Throughout Israel’s history, observing the Passover was one of the most important of all holidays. It was a kind of independence day celebration, recalling how God brought the nation out of slavery and into freedom. Everyone was to observe it every year. Over the centuries, several different traditions were developed. By the 1st century, there were many specific rituals every family would go through as they celebrated. Modern-day Jews still celebrate the Passover each year, and while its basic purpose hasn’t changed, the traditions continue to vary some.
Here tonight, we’re looking in on a re-creation of a 1st cent. Passover and some of the traditions that were probably observed during it.
On the 10th of Nisan, a 1 year old male sheep or goat was purchased. It would be taken care of by the family for the next few days, until it was sacrificed.
On the 13th of Nisan, the house is searched for anything leavened. Everything that’s found is eaten or given away. All of the regular dishes of the house are put away, and a special set, just for the Passover, is brought out.
On twilight of Thursday, the Passover Lamb is taken to the temple and slaughtered. The Passover sacrifice was the only sacrifice where the family participated in the slaying of the animal. The lamb was to be roasted without breaking any of its bones. All of it was to be eaten by morning, or the rest was to be burned. With the lamb prepared, it was time to celebrate the Passover.
Jewish women light 2 candles to begin every Sabbath and Jewish festival. The day begins at night - when the 3rd star can be seen in the evening sky. The candles are functional lights, to make sure that the family has light so they can eat, talk, and study. Many women light one candle for every member of their family. Everyone reclines around the table. The 1st Passover was eaten in a hurry, as if everyone was about to leave. But now, the Jews assumed the position of free people, reclining around the table.
There are 3 or 4 cups in the 1st century Passover meal, each with a different significance. The first is called the cup of Deliverance. A special wine, made by soaking raisins, would be poured into the cups along with hot water. The head of the house would then offer a blessing - to God, not to the cup, but to the God who provided it. This was called the Kiddush:
“You are blessed, our God, Ruler of the world, Creator of the fruit of the vine, You are blessed, God, You hallow Israel and the festive seasons.” Everyone would drink, and then the cups would be refilled.
Jewish meals and festivals included various ceremonial washings. At this point in a 1st Cent. Passover, a ceremonial washing called the Rachtzah would have prepared everyone for the handling of food. You might recall how Jesus’ disciples were criticized for eating with what the Pharisees called “unwashed hands.” It makes me wonder if Jesus included hand washing the night He observed the Passover with the 12. He certainly washed feet, but it wasn’t just because His men had dirty feet. It was to teach a lesson in humility.
Bitter herbs were eaten now - a reminder of the bitterness of slavery. They were dipped in saltwater, a reminder of the tears of the enslaved Israelites, and sometime in the 1st cent. another special dip called charoseth was added as a reminder of the mortar used by the slaves.
Next came the retelling of the story. It begins with the youngest member of the household who was able asking 4 questions (The Mah Nishtanah):
Why is this night different from all the other nights?
1. Why is it that on all other nights during the year we eat either bread or matzoh, but on this night we eat only matzoh?"
2. Why is it that on all other nights we eat all kinds of herbs, but on this night we eat only bitter herbs?"
3. Why is it that on all other nights we do not dip our herbs even once, but on this night we dip them twice?" and
4. Why is it that on all other nights we eat either sitting or reclining, but on this night we eat in a reclining position?"
And according to the understanding of the son his father instructs him. He begins with the disgrace and ends with the glory. He retells the story of the Exodus – how Israel was enslaved in Egypt, how the Lord sent 9 plagues on Egypt, and how, on the final night, He killed the firstborn of everyone in the land, except for those whose homes were marked with the blood of the Passover Lamb.
Exodus 12:29-30 At midnight the LORD struck down all the firstborn in Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sat on the throne, to the firstborn of the prisoner, who was in the dungeon, and the firstborn of all the livestock as well. Pharaoh and all his officials and all the Egyptians got up during the night, and there was loud wailing in Egypt, for there was not a house without someone dead.
He tells how Israel ate the very first Passover, and how they left Egypt in a hurry, so that their bread dough had no time to rise.
Psalms 113-118 were sung together and known as the Hallel. For the Passover, the first half would be sung at this point in the meal.
The 2nd cup, called the cup of Freedom, is now drunk.
Then another blessing is spoken as the unleavened bread is broken and distributed. The unleavened bread is called matzah. It’s made simply of flour and water. It recalls the way that Israel was freed from Egypt – not by some long military conquest, but in a hurry.
Now, the lamb is served as the main course. This lamb served to remind Israel how the blood of a lamb once was used to mark their doorposts and lintels so that God passed over their houses instead of killing their 1st-born. It wasn’t enough to just be born within the race. It wasn’t enough just to live in the land of Goshen. For God to not take the life of any house’s 1st-born, it took a lamb. So, in the Passover meal, a lamb is eaten, and the people remember how God saved them from slavery, and spared them because of the blood of a lamb.
Normally, at this point in the meal, a single cup would be poured and shared by everyone. The 2nd part of the Hallel would be sung, a 4th cup was poured, and the rest of the night was spent in prayer and talking about God.
But somewhere right around this time, in the course of the Passover Meal, Jesus took the Passover and changed it forever.
Luke 22:19-20
And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me." In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
I’ll never forget how, as a Jr. High student, the light suddenly came on for me one day and I understood for the 1st time what the Passover was really all about. It wasn’t just about the Jews being freed from slavery in Egypt, it was also about the way God frees us from the clutches of sin.
It wasn’t just about the blood of a lamb that had to die, it was about the blood of Jesus, the Lamb of God Who died to take away the sin of the world. It wasn’t just about God passing over a house and not killing the firstborn there because the blood of a lamb marked the doorposts, it was about God’s wrath passing over me and sparing me from hell because I am marked with the blood of His Son!
Paul says it in 1 Co 5:7 Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed
Tonight, we celebrate a memorial feast – highly symbolic – to remember our deliverance from slavery. Now, we remember the blood of the Lamb that, if we’re marked by it, will cause the wrath of God to pass over.
Now we take unleavened bread – a matzah – interestingly, if you looked at this bread, you’d see that it’s pierced through – and He was pierced for our transgressions. You would also see that it’s striped – and by His stripes we are healed. He was crushed for our iniquities – and tonight we take the bread and break it, and we remember how Jesus was broken for us, though not a bone of His body was broken, just like the lamb’s.
Tonight we take the juice of grapes – grapes that have been crushed and pressed out. It’s the outcome of their destruction – and we recall the blood of Jesus that covers us – the blood that will cause the wrath of God to pass over us at judgment. Without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sins. It takes a Lamb.
Jesus forever changed the meaning of Passover – not by just saying it was so, but by fulfilling it, and what it was really all about in the first place. It wasn’t just for Jews over 3,000 years ago. It was also for you and for me. We need to be freed from slavery to sin. The wrath of God is coming, and it will destroy those who’ve sinned. We need the blood of a perfect Lamb to mark us, so that that wrath of God will pass over. It takes a Lamb.
This special evening, we offer this memorial in honor of Jesus. If you wish to remember Him and honor Him, then we invite you to participate in this time of self-examination and rededication to Him. The Lord’s Supper is prepared. We ask that as you participate you come forward, to take a piece of the bread, and to dip it in the juice nearby. If you’re unable to come to one of the tables, please just raise your hand and remain seated and you’ll be served where you are.
(Lord’s Supper is served.)
Invitation and Conclusion
I’m not sure of many of the reasons that God chooses what He chooses. For instance, why did He have the Israelites, year after year, take a lamb and take care of it for a few days before putting it to death? Maybe it was to make sure that it didn’t have any diseases. I’m not sure. But I can imagine that over those few days, keeping a yearling around would be almost like having a pet – that it would become somewhat a likeable thing, and that having to put it to death would be a pretty sobering experience.
Could it be that God wanted His people to understand that the shedding of blood on their behalf is no small thing? Can you imagine the children of a household questioning, “Why does the lamb have to be killed, Daddy?” and a father trying to explain to his children that God had commanded it, and that many years before the death of those lambs is what saved the lives of the 1st born. The more precious the life of that lamb was to them, the deeper was the impression made by its death.
The longer you know and grow up in Jesus, the more precious His life becomes to you. And the better you get to know Jesus, the more precious is His death for you as well.
1 Peter 1:18-20 For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake.
All this is for your sake. Imagine, a Jewish household on the night of that 1st Passover, there is their lamb, slain. There is its blood, waiting. But for some reason, the head of the household doesn’t mark the doorposts with it.
After all, that would mean stepping outside. It would mean doing something that the people across the street might think was a little odd. It was messy, and besides, he’d done everything else the Lord said to do. How could a little blood on the doorpost change anything? Suddenly, there comes a pounding on the door. It’s your friend. “Hey! Why haven’t your marked your doorposts yet? What are you waiting for?” So you proceed to explain to your friend how the neighbors might not understand, and how it sounded messy, and for those reasons you just don’t want to bother with it. Oh, the blood’s there. You just don’t want to mess with it.
You see, if you haven’t ever accepted Jesus Christ, you’re kind of like that person who has decided to not mark the doorposts with the blood. It wouldn’t be some heroic feat if you did it. It’s really pretty simple. But you just don’t want to bother with it. You’re afraid of what someone might think. You don’t want to step outside your zone. It’s a simple condition that could save your life. But, for whatever reason, you aren’t doing it. And we’re like that friend at the door: “Hey, why haven’t you given you life to the Lord yet? Why aren’t you letting Him cover you with His blood so that His wrath will pass over you? What are you waiting for?”
What are you waiting for? The wrath of God is going to make the rounds again one day. And only those whose lives are marked with the blood of the perfect Lamb Jesus are going to be spared. Why wait any longer? Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.
