QT 18 Mar 10

Ex 12:8-17 (NIV) That same night they are to eat the meat roasted over the fire, along with bitter herbs, and bread made without yeast. 9 Do not eat the meat raw or cooked in water, but roast it over the fire — head, legs and inner parts. 10 Do not leave any of it till morning; if some is left till morning, you must burn it. 11 This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste; it is the Lord's Passover.

12 "On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn . . . 13 The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. . . .

14 "This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord — a lasting ordinance. 15 For seven days you are to eat bread made without yeast. . . . On the first day hold a sacred assembly, and another one on the seventh day. . . .

17 "Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread, because it was on this very day that I brought your divisions out of Egypt. Celebrate this day as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come.

NOTE: There are two festivals here; the first is the Passover (when God struck down the firstborn of Egypt), and the second which begins immediately afterwards is the feast of unleavened bread, when Israel, in haste, left their bondage in Egypt to head to the Promised Land.

The Passover is a precursor to Jesus' death (God's firstborn) on the cross. Jesus is the Lamb of God. None of his bones are broken. He dies at the very moment that the Jews ceremonially kill the Passover lamb for the nation at the temple. I think the feast of unleavened bread is a precursor to the resurrection, when Jesus led captives with him to heaven (the OT saints). It also represents our freedom from slavery to sin when we put our faith in Jesus for the forgiveness of our sin. We are set free from the bondage of sin, and given the ability to obey God. At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit will come and indwell the believers giving them the power to live godly lives for God. All of this is done with purpose and forethought.