February 22

February 22.

Moses & the Passover -- The origin of the Passover Lamb & Jesus our Passover Lamb.

Today's Readings:

Reading 1: Exodus 11

Reading 2: Exodus 12

Reading 3: 1 Corinthians 5:7

Today, God carefully completes the work He has been doing, to liberate every one of His people from slavery. The instructions for the Passover focus on the death of a young animal brought into the family and then killed. This death is necessary for the family to be saved as God passes over the nation and kills all the firstborn of families not submitting to God in this way.

Is God a bloodthirsty God? No; there is nothing in these instructions that suggests the blood and death are necessary to satisfy some thirst for vengeance in God. Rather, God has been very patient with Pharaoh, giving him multiple opportunities to obey and comply. Also, God is using this night of powerful liberation as a symbol to pre-figure what He is going to do in the future, as Jesus becomes our Passover Lamb. For the Israelites, it cost them a valuable member of their flocks. For God, it cost Him His only Son.

There are multiple symbolic messages in these chapters, and another is the exclusion of yeast. Anyone who has baked knows that yeast starts small but has a large effect, getting into the whole loaf and causing it to puff up with carbon dioxide, just as a little selfishness can puff up a person into a proud and stubborn resister of God. That is what happened to Pharaoh, it is also what happened to satan, and Paul writes to the Corinthians warning them to avoid such things happening to them.

We can celebrate today, that God is willing to go to such lengths to set us free from sin and pride, bringing us out into the promise of a relationship with Him.

Have a great day!

Mark.