Did God provide for himself a lamb or a ram?
Ron Cantor provides prophetic insights and a deeper look at lessons from the story of Abraham and Isaac and what it teaches us about Passover.
Ron Cantor is President of Shelanu.tv, the 24/7 Hebrew language, digital, gospel channel sharing the good news of Yeshua, the Messiah, with the entire nation.
With the culmination of Passover and the day of Christ’s resurrection upon us, we must talk about Unleavened Bread—a vivid Old Covenant symbol of His finished work. If you read my last article, “Passover Season—God’s Appointed Time,” you will see the depth of God’s wisdom and love for us demonstrated through this historic season. Passover is vitally important to God, so much so that He reset Israel’s calendar just before establishing it and delivering the Israelites out of Egypt (Exod. 12:1–2). As Blood-bought believers, Passover reminds us that the moment we accept JESUS, everything changes forever—by the power of His blood that delivers us from sin and death.
The Lord instructed Moses, “[In the celebration of the Passover in future years,] seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, but on the first day you shall remove the leaven from your houses [because it represents the spread of sin]; for whoever eats leavened bread on the first day through the seventh day, that person shall be cut off and excluded from [the atonement made for] Israel” (Exod. 12:15, AMP). Now we understand why Passover is also called The Feast of Unleavened Bread.
The bread was unleavened because the Israelites had to leave Egypt “in haste” (Deut. 16:3; see also Exod. 12:39, AMP). The first usage of the word leaven in the Book of Exodus (which we know as yeast) represented sin: “As leaven spreads through dough, sin spreads through a population” (Footnote “a,” Exod. 12:15, AMP). As a result, the process of removing all leaven from every home in Israel was meticulous. Not one spec could remain. (See Exod. 12:17–20.)
ENTER…JESUS, “…the Living Bread that came down out of heaven” (Jn. 6:51, AMP)! First Peter 1:19 tells us, “but [you were actually purchased] with precious blood, like that of a [sacrificial] lamb unblemished and spotless, the priceless blood of Christ” (AMP). Jesus was tempted like us all, yet without sin (Heb. 4:15). He is our Passover Lamb (1 Cor. 5:7) who delivered us from the power of the enemy, wiping out every spec of sin, when we accepted Him.
How? Isaiah 53:5 breaks it down: “But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him, and with the stripes [that wounded] Him we are healed and made whole” (AMPC).
Now, remember the image of matzah (unleavened bread) that appears with this article. It is bruised and pierced, symbolizing the wounds inflicted upon Christ for the sin of humanity. After dying on the cross and rising again, Jesus now holds the keys to hell and death (Rev. 1:18). His willing, obedient self-sacrifice stripped the enemy of his power and made an open show of all “principalities and powers” (Col. 2:14–15, NKJV). And during His ministry on earth, Jesus even used “leaven” to describe the Kingdom (Matt. 13:33)—taking what the enemy meant for evil and turning it for our good. In Christ, we are whole.
Abba (Father God) was intentional in every aspect of Passover—the Feast of Unleavened Bread. In turn, Jesus was set in His resolve. He fulfilled every detail of the Father’s plan and gave us NEW LIFE under a New Covenant, based on the Old, yet fully fulfilled.
Knowing this, we have good reason to celebrate Passover and Firstfruits, the day Jesus rose from the grave. This holy season is significant to our Jewish brethren, and to every Blood-bought believer from every nation and tribe on the earth. That includes you and me, my friend!
When you were saved, didn’t you experience something new, greater, almost unexplainable in your heart? As you have followed the Lord, hasn’t your life radically changed? The moment we gave our heart to Jesus, our personal “calendar” was reset. Our thoughts and desires began to change. The Holy Spirit was actively working within us…and much more was to come as we continued seeking and obeying the Lord. My friend, JESUS is REAL. The Old Covenant foundation He built upon is indestructible. His influence in our hearts and lives is undeniable.
It is hard for me to say enough about the significance of the Passover season! But, for now, let us close in prayer: “Lord Jesus, we bless You for loving us and for being obedient to the Father’s will on the cross. You set us free! Sin no longer controls us—You Lead and Empower Us. Thank You for coming to Earth, living a sinless life, and fulfilling everything Abba Father set in place in the Old Covenant. We pray for the nation of Israel, and for Jerusalem, this Passover season. May Your peace cover all our Jewish brethren and draw them near to You. Lord, keep us mindful of and thankful for the depth of what You have done for us—now and every day of our life. We love and worship You for Your supreme sacrifice as the “unleavened bread” from Heaven. In Your mighty Name we pray, Amen.”
#InspireGem
___
Read more on the GOD TV Blog – godtv.com
You can also watch GOD TV – god.tv
As we remember this final week of Jesus’ life on earth, it is a wonderful time to see how everything in the Bible ties together. Let us start with Passover (God’s appointed time), the story of how God’s tenth and final plague upon Egypt broke Pharaoh’s resolve not to let His people go and worship Him.
By applying the blood of innocent lambs to their doorposts and lintels at God’s instruction, the death angel “passed over” the Israelites’ homes, after which they were quickly released from Egypt. This pivotal event became God’s “appointed time” for Israel to remember throughout their generations (see Exod. 12:1–39). Prophetically, Passover is an Old Covenant symbol of what Christ has done for you, for me, and for every believer through His finished work on the cross.
Now, take your time. Take this in. Because Passover (which many see as being the final days of Lent that include Passion Week) culminates with Firstfruits (also known as Resurrection or Easter Sunday). Any way you shake it, we are currently in a significant appointed time of God. Just as the Israelites were liberated into a brand-new life, when we accept Christ, we are delivered out of the enemy’s hands into a new beginning—by the power of His blood.
Passover reminds us that God is willing and able to forgive, heal, and restore us when we call upon Him. It demonstrates that He can always give us a fresh start. Yet we also need to understand there is something special about responding to the Lord at His appointed time. Think of it this way. People can treat you well all year long, but when they remember and celebrate you on your birthday, it’s special. If you are married, you and your spouse express love to one another every day, but on your anniversary, you do special things for each other in ways that stand out from all the others. During this historic season, no matter what may be happening in our lives, our expectations in God should be high!
God’s appointed time of Passover is one of three special times on the Hebrew calendar when the men of Israel were commanded to go to the place of God’s choosing to meet with Him (which would ultimately be the Temple in Jerusalem): The Feast of Unleavened Bread/Passover (spring), the Feast of Weeks/Pentecost (summer), and the Feast of Booths/Tabernacles (fall). (See Deut. 16:16, AMP).
In ancient Egypt, God instructed the Israelite families to sacrifice a lamb on the 14th day of Nisan; to eat the Passover meal that same night (Nisan 15, since Hebraically, each new day begins in the evening), and that they were to eat unleavened bread for seven days. So, this ancient event took place from Nisan 14–21 (see Exod. 12:14–20). The Feast of Firstfruits would later take place the next day, the day after the Sabbath (see Lev. 23:4–11, AMP).
On the Western (Roman) calendar, Passover began this year on the evening of Saturday, March 27 (Nisan 14) and runs through sundown on Saturday, April 3 (Nisan 21). Then Firstfruits (Nisan 22) begins that evening and runs through sundown on Sunday, April 4—the day we celebrate Christ’s resurrection.
Now, let us look at the events of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. In fulfillment of God’s Old Covenant plan, Jesus, our “Passover Lamb” (1 Cor. 5:7), was crucified on the first day (Nisan 14); on the second day (the Sabbath, Nisan 15), His body rested in the tomb (Jn. 19:14, 31 & 42, AMP). Then He rose again on the third day (Nisan 16) as “…the firstfruits…of those that have fallen asleep [in death]” (Jn. 20:1–18; 1 Cor. 15:20–21, AMP; see also 1 Cor. 15:22–23). Jesus, the fulfillment of the innocent lamb portrayed in the first Passover, also fulfilled His own words that if they destroyed “this temple” (His body), in three days He would “raise it up” (Jn. 2:19, AMP).
It is important to know WHY we believe WHAT we believe—to understand how everything in the Bible ties together. This is what assures us by the Spirit that Passover is a symbol of spiritual renewal. The events of the first Passover, as well as the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, demonstrate this, giving us hope in this appointed time of God. Even the arrival of Spring during this time every year confirms we are in a special season of new beginnings.
For this reason, now more than ever, let us remember our spiritual history: in particular, the events that took place on the final night the Israelites were in Egypt and their fulfillment in Christ. Let us come to God this week with even greater hope and expectation for the future, remembering ALL He has established and EVERYTHING Jesus has done for us! The Power of His Blood has given us NEW LIFE in a New Covenant of grace.
So, let us thank God for new beginnings. I pray the Lord would allow this truth to resonate in our spirit and soul as we experience His appointed time for us. Amen.
#InspireGem
___
Read more on the GOD TV Blog
You can also watch GOD TV
“There is no Christianity without Passover. Jesus is the Passover lamb. So, you can’t separate the two,” said Ron Cantor, the president of Shelanu TV. Shelanu TV is the only 24/7, digital, Hebrew-speaking, gospel television channel in Israel.
For Jewish people, “Passover is one of the most, if not the most, powerful narratives in the entire history of the Jewish people,” he told The Stream. “It celebrates the Jewish people coming out of Egypt after 400 or so years of slavery.” Ron added that “it is important to Jewish people, because without Passover, we would still be slaves in Egypt, or we would all be dead. And it becomes a symbol of God’s faithfulness to the Jewish people, faithfulness to His promises.”
Ron, a Messianic Jew who lives in Israel, said the Passover is full of symbolism that points to Jesus as the Messiah. For example, Jewish people in Egypt were told to kill a lamb “without blemish” and brush its blood on their doorposts and the Lord would pass over their house. He would not let the destroyer kill their firstborn sons. (Exodus 12:21-23) Ron said as a believer, Passover takes on greater meaning. As he pointed out, John the Baptist said of Jesus, “Behold, the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29) “And that’s the first time we hear this phrase, ‘Lamb of God,’ in Scripture — Old Testament or New Testament.” Ron believes John was making a connection between Jesus and the Passover lamb. He continued:
And then the blood applied to the doorpost of the house that saved the people. It was the death of Jesus, and then his blood applied, if you will, to the doorpost of our hearts, that brings us eternal life that causes us to escape God’s judgment.
Mitch Glaser, PhD, also a Messianic Jew, is the president of Chosen People Ministries. Chosen People Ministries plants Messianic congregations and uses digital media to reach Jewish people for Jesus. “There’s just so much imagery that pops out in technicolor,” he told The Stream. “[Jesus is] perfect, He’s a perfect lamb. His blood averts the judgment of God.”
Mitch takes it one step further. “So, there’s almost a direct connection with the death of the lamb substituting for the first born. … Jesus is our substitute. We are saved from our sins because of His shed blood. This is why I believe Passover provides a prophetic picture of God’s salvation power unleashed in the lives of the Jewish nation through the lamb in Exodus Chapter 12 and more so for individuals, through the sacrifice of Jesus.”
Another symbol that points to Jesus is the Matzah served at the Passover Seder meal. There are three pieces of Matzah. The leader of the ceremony takes the middle one, or the second one. “He then breaks it in half. … It is a piece of unleavened bread with stripes, piercings and bruises — very much like Isaiah 53,” Ron explained.
But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with his stripes we are healed. — Isaiah 53:5 (RSV)
“So, you get a pierced, bruised and striped piece of unleavened bread. Jesus was without sin or ‘unleavened.’ So, the symbolism is amazing.” Ron said that the leader then places the Matzah in linen, like the body of Jesus, and hides it, “as if in a grave.” At the end of the meal, children look for it.
Mitch also talked about the symbolism of the cups and the Matzah in the Passover ceremony. “We hide the broken piece of wrapped Matzah and at the end of the meal we bring it back. It was at that moment during the Last Supper that Jesus took the Matzah and said, ‘This is my body given for you. Do this in remembrance of Me.’ And so, the very elements of communion grow out of the Passover Seder.” For Mitch, Passover also became more meaningful to him after he accepted Christ, “because now I understood that He is the Passover lamb and also the bread of life.”
Of course, Passover 2021, like last year, will be a bit different than in the years before COVID. In New York, Mitch will be able to gather with only a few family members for the ceremony. But he just filmed a “virtual” Passover for all to attend. It will be held on March 31. Over 4,000 people have already registered.
Ron’s 2020 Passover took place under complete lockdown, but that didn’t stop him or others in his neighborhood from celebrating. In his apartment complex, all of the backs of the apartments face each other. “So, it was neat to see people come out on their balconies last year and singing some of the Passover songs together. So, that was a challenge, but it was also a victory because we found a way to find unity, even in the midst of not being able to be together.”
“The Passover is a very hopeful holiday,” said Mitch. “It ends with a Hebrew song entitled ‘L’Shana Haba’ B’Yerushalayim.’ Translated, that means ‘next year we’ll be in Jerusalem.’ And so, Passover always looks forward to a greater day of redemption. As believers in Jesus, Yeshua the Messiah, we know that the greater salvation has come through the Jewish Messiah and one day He will return to Jerusalem to reign as King!”
He added that Passover can be “a great opportunity” to share the Gospel with Jewish people. “Jewish people, even if they’re not religious, know all about the Passover. And so, it’s a great tool for presenting Jesus in the Jewish way to their Jewish friends.” Ron agreed. “It’s … a wonderful way to share with Jewish people about Yeshua, Jesus.”
To celebrate the virtual Passover on March 31, please go to chosenpeople.com/passoverlive.
(This article was written by Nancy Flory and was originally published at The Stream. Republished with permission.)