WHAT DOES PASSOVER CELEBRATE?

What historical event is remembered in Passover?

(Exodus 12:42) It was a night of watching by the LORD, to bring them out of the land of Egypt; so this same night is a night of watching kept to the LORD by all the people of Israel throughout their generations.

Here the Bible says it is “a night of the Lord”, that God set apart to be celebrated “by all generations”. We can definitely thank God for this any day, but there isn’t any other day that is as special as this, because God chose it, he set it apart. This is the day in which God called upon His people to set a “Divine Appointment” with Him. How special!

CELEBRATING LIBERTY

Passover celebrates the freedom from slavery. It is not just a feast for those Israelites that left Egypt, but for all of us who have been set free from the slavery of sin.

(John 8:31-36) So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, (32) and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (33) They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?” (34) Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. (35) The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. (36) So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.

What sets us free?

Jesus pointed out two things:

1. The SON sets us free (v. 36)

2. The TRUTH sets us free (v. 32)

These assertions are not contradicting, but complementary:

(1) Our freedom begins when we believe in Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29). The Israelites went through this same step in Egypt when they believed that the blood of the Passover Lamb would save them from death.

(2) After believing in the Lamb of God, we have to search for the truth and remain in it. We used to live in sin, but after that point we have to make sure we live in obedience. This is what Paul explained:

(Romans 6:17-18) But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, (18) and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.

This is why it is no coincidence that, after celebrating Passover, the Lord calls us to keep seven days of “unleavened bread” (Lev. 23:4-6). The yeast is a symbol of sin, and eating bread without yeast reminds us of our compromise of living a holy life after being redeemed.

(Exodus 13:3-5) Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. (4) Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out. (5) And when the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month.

[Note: “Abib” is another name for the month of Nisan, the first of the year of the biblical calendar.]

This is a new beginning… it is an opportunity to do things as God commands.

Let’s take advantage of this opportunity!

God didn’t take us out of sin (Egypt), for us to live a mediocre life (in the desert), but for us to live in a life of abundance (the Promised Land). Let’s be diligent this year in searching for the truth, and therefore enjoy the freedom that we have received from the Son.