April 21, 2011
Exodus 12:1-14
“When I See the Blood, I Will Pass Over You”
“For I will go through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments–I am the LORD. The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live; and when I see the blood I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.”
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My friend asked me about “Pass Over” today. During this week of remembering the Lord Jesus as He came to His death and Resurrection, so many people do not remember or never learned the Old Testament events underlying so many New Testament practices. Today, let us review the basics of the Passover.
The Death Plague. God sent Moses to deliver the people of Israel from bondage in Egypt about 1445 B.C. Pharaoh would not let the people go immediately, but God sent plagues upon Egypt to convince Pharaoh. It took ten plagues to persuade Pharaoh, and the last plague was a plague of the death of the firstborn males of Egypt, both man and beast (Exodus 12:12).
The Passover Lamb. Every household in Israel was to take a male lamb, one year old, without blemish. At twilight, on the fourteenth day of the first month of the year, the entire congregation of Israel was to kill the lamb at twilight. Then, each household would take some of the blood of the lamb and sprinkle it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses in which they eat it that same night, roasted with fire, and eaten with unleavened bread and bitter herbs (Exodus 12:1-8).
The Passover of the Destroyer. God sent the destroyer to the houses of Israel that same night, at midnight. The LORD struck all the firstborn of the house of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, to the firstborn of the captive in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the cattle, and the cry of the Egyptians was great, for every home experienced death (Exodus 12:23-30). Because the people of Israel had followed the command of the LORD to put blood on their doorposts and lintel, no one died in those homes protected by blood of the lamb.
Christ Our Passover Today. In the New Testament, we see references to Jesus as the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29), where Jesus is also pictured as the sacrifice of the lamb in the Old Testament sacrificial system. But Jesus also stands as our Passover. In 1 Corinthians 5:7, Christ is called our Passover who has been sacrificed for our sin.
So we learn more about the Passover today.
● The Old Testament Passover reminds us of both the judgment of God upon sin, and also upon the saving power of the blood of the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ.
● God required the death of the Passover lamb, and everyone in Israel would kill their own lamb at twilight, and put that blood upon their own houses. God reminds us again that the wages of sin is death, just like all the Egyptian households suffered. But because God provided a blood sacrifice for our sins in Jesus, we can apply His blood by faith to our lives, and walk free from the penalty of sin and the bondage of sin. Jesus gave His life so that when I apply His blood to my life by faith that Christ died for my sins, then I live and escape the judgment for sin I deserve and the bondage of sin in my life.
● As you meditate upon Christ this week, remember Him too as the Passover Lamb, given for you. His resurrection shines all the brighter because of His sacrificial death.
Application for Today
Today I will remember the Passover story. God will see the blood of the Lamb in my life, and the destroyer will pass over me. I will go free because the Lord Jesus shed His blood so that I may apply it to my life and escape the destroyer. Are you alive today spiritually because you have applied the blood of Jesus to your heart? Will you remember the Passover Lamb, Jesus, today?
