All that comes to mind when I think of Exodus is ‘Jesus my Passover lamb.’ And that’s saying a lot, given all the other things the book is famous for.
Exodus is one of the most action-packed books in the Bible. There’s so much going on: Pharaoh oppressed the Israelites with slavery, Moses’ life was threatened then miraculously saved, he had a supernatural encounter with God in the burning bush, there were 10 plagues against Egypt and an exodus of the Israelites – and after all that they were still so quick to complain and turn away from Yahweh to idolatry (human fickleness at its peak).
I wish I could go in-depth on all these events, but I’m conscious you guys have lives to get back to so like I said, today’s focus is on Jesus as the ultimate Passover lamb.
A little bit of backstory: Passover is a Jewish holiday established in Exodus 12. Before the final plague (sending the angel of death to all firstborn sons) God instructs each Israelite household to protect themselves from it with the blood of a lamb they killed. In my next blog on the book of Leviticus we’ll talk about why blood is so important in the Bible. For now, try to gloss over the gory aspects and stay with me.
Let’s draw on three key physical features of the Passover lamb:
It must be without blemish
It must be male
Its bones must not be broken
I chose these because – as you’ve likely guessed – they are applicable to Jesus. He was perfect; the only person to ever keep all of God’s laws. He was male; enough said. His bones were not broken. This seems inconsequential, but John’s gospel notes God ensured it happened to fulfill the Scriptures. Which Scripture you may ask? The very one about the Passover lamb!
So, the cat’s out of the bag. Jesus as our Passover lamb is not my original revelation. In fact, Paul uses those exact words in his letter to the church in Corinth:
“… For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with bread without yeast, the bread of sincerity and truth.”
We’ve looked at the physical parallels between Jesus and the Passover sacrifice, but what is the spiritual significance and what is this ‘Festival’ we are to keep?
The Passover lamb is a symbol of God’s deliverance: after it was slaughtered and eaten, the Israelite slaves were finally freed from bondage and brought out of Egypt. In the same way Jesus delivered us from the bondage of sin and brought us out of the kingdom of darkness.
The blood of Jesus covers us: in the midst of God’s judgement on the Egyptians, the Israelites were protected because of the blood of the lamb on their doorposts. Likewise, the Bible says that we will be saved from God’s wrath through Jesus’ blood.
What I love most about Jesus being our Passover lamb is that the power of His sacrifice and blood is not dependent on us. The angel of death doesn’t care about who is inside the house – he only cares about the blood on the door. Our sinful past doesn’t endanger us when we come under the covering of Christ. In Him we are protected, we are spared, and we are delivered.
So my question to you now is: who is covering you?
If it is not Jesus, that’s a risky position to be in, putting it mildly. But it’s not too late to accept Him as your Saviour – your Passover lamb – and be brought under His protection.
And if it is Jesus, take a moment to bask in that. Our freedom was bought at a high price. May we never take it for granted. May we, like Paul says, celebrate our liberation with sincerity and genuineness.