The Lord has “caused his wonders to be remembered” (Psa. 111:4). With the Passover Seder (order), we are remembering the wonder of God’s great salvation. We are not only remembering it but we are telling others about it and reliving it. For this reason the Passover program itself is also known as the Hag-ga-dah (telling forth).

The story of salvation is a very old story. Pictures of this salvation are seen as far back as the Garden of Eden, after man first sinned. The Passover itself is ancient and may well be the oldest continuous religious festival on earth. It is at least 3500 years old and really has changed very little during much of that time. Obviously it will continue on, for the scriptures testify that it is a “statute forever” (Lev. 23:14). Jesus, in speaking of the Passover cup, promised that he would drink it anew with his disciples in the kingdom.

Today Christians are turning back to examine the Passover as they search for the Hebrew roots of their faith. We know from our Bibles that Jesus (Yeshua) was tried, convicted and crucified immediately prior to the Passover. Jesus was also resurrected on the first day of the week after the Sabbath of Passover. We also know that our own Lord’s Supper was taken from the latter portion of the seder. For generations the early church celebrated Passover and the resurrection together. It was not until the fourth century that they were officially separated by the church.

The first Christians obviously learned a lot from the Passover since we see teaching about it in the New Testament. So what can Christians today learn from this ancient feast? Let us try to deal with some of its main themes.

THE IMPORTANCE OF PREPARATION

In Matthew 26:17-19, we see Jesus’ disciples making preparation for the Passover meal. What kind of preparation did they make? They probably did the same things that Jews are still doing as they get ready for the seder. They more than likely cleaned the house and searched it for leaven (yeast) according to Exodus 12:19: “For seven days no yeast is to be found in your houses. And whoever eats anything with yeast in it must be cut off from the community of Israel, whether he is an alien or native-born.”

Leaven represents sin in the scriptures. Today, before Passover begins, Jews rid their houses of every last crumb of leaven. The picture is clear that sin must be put out of the believer’s life. In 1 Corinthians 5:7, we read: “Get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new batch without yeast—as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.” In 1 Corinthians 11:28, Paul advises us that as we approach communion, we should examine and prepare ourselves, lest we enter into the sacrament in an unworthy manner. So communion, which was originally part of the Passover, requires much
preparation too.

THE NEED FOR SANCTIFICATION

In the seder there are many pictures of sanctification or holiness. It is one of the dominant themes of the celebration. The idea is present as we have seen in the search for leaven or the symbolic purifying of the house from sin. It is also seen in the first portion of the seder called the Kiddush (sanctification). Here attention is drawn to the four cups of the Passover meal. These cups are based on Exodus 6:6-7. In this passage, the Lord makes four promises to Israel: “I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being slaves to them,…I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment…I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God.” All these statements figuratively have to do with separation from Egypt or sin
and its bondage.

The father then lifts and blesses the first cup, known as the “Cup of Sanctification.” The celebrants drink, remembering that God has brought them out of Egypt and bondage.

The picture of sanctification is also seen immediately after this cup in the ritual washing of the hands. It was during the ritual washing that Jesus took off his robe and washed the disciples’ feet. When Peter objected, Jesus warned that if he were not washed he would have no part with the Messiah.

Sanctification, separation or the sinless life is pictured in the unleavened bread of Passover. This bread is first and foremost a picture of Jesus who was perfectly sinless and who was striped, pierced and broken for us. In the traditional Jewish unleavened bread we can still see the stripes and tiny holes. However, the picture is plain that we also are to follow in Jesus’ steps, that our lives by his power and through his Holy Spirit should become unleavened and free from the sin that puffs us up. We also may gain some stripes and piercing in the process.

For a whole week following the Passover, the Jewish people eat only the cracker-like unleavened bread. In Israel, the grocery stores do not sell any leavened item during this whole period. Most bakeries simply take a holiday for a whole week. Of course, the restraints of Passover work a great hardship on fast-food places. The lesson throughout the seven days is that our lives must be free from leaven or sin.

Even the eating of the bitter herbs during the seder meal is a strong reminder of the importance of sanctification. The spicy horseradish is eaten and often brings tears to the eyes of the celebrants. The experience is a reminder that once we are saved we must not go back to Egypt. The land of Egypt which represents sin is a land of tears, sorrow, bondage and much suffering. Today the modern church could well use some of these visual tools to help us understand this ever-present danger of backsliding.

CELEBRATING SALVATION

The Passover is first and foremost a festival of salvation. The Israelites were delivered from Egypt by God’s outstretched arm, with signs and with miracles. Likewise, by believing in Jesus we too have been delivered. Egypt as we remember represents flesh, sin, slavery and death. The splashing of the lamb’s blood upon the doorposts and lintel is a beautiful sign of Jesus’ blood and the deliverance brought by it. The signs and wonders including the crossing of the Red Sea are all symbolic of God’s great salvation.

In the Passover seder, much of the redemptive story is recounted to those present. The father mentions to his children and the other celebrants: “I do this because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt” (Exodus 13:8). The expression “when I came out,” denotes a personal experience. Each one of us who has accepted Jesus has come out of Egypt or sin, and has such a personal testimony. Thus, for Christians, the festival of Passover may surely be interpreted as a festival of our own personal salvation in Jesus. He was and is the Paschal Lamb, whose blood was shed for our deliverance from sin and bondage. To those yet unsaved, it is a testimony and an invitation for others to join in the great salvation. It is a splendid opportunity to tell our children and others what has happened to us.

THE LORD’S SUPPER

For many Christians, the most interesting part of the seder is that portion after dinner when the afikoman is “redeemed.” The afikoman is that piece of matzah (unleavened bread) which, at the beginning of the seder, is broken, wrapped in a white cloth, and hidden away to be found after the meal. The afikoman is an astonishingly clear picture of Jesus, as he too was broken in death, wrapped in a shroud and hidden in the tomb. The children search the house for this hidden matzah and bring it to the father for a reward.

In the New Testament account, Jesus took the afikoman, blessed it, broke it and distributed it to his disciples. He then began to institute the New Covenant as he took the bread, broke it, gave thanks and distributed it saying: “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me” (Lk. 22:19). In the Passover, no food is eaten after this matzah. How true it is that for us Christians, Jesus is our final food.

After the afikoman, Jesus took the third cup of the Passover (cup of redemption), blessed it, and passed it to his disciples. He spoke of the cup of wine in this wise: “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you” (Lk. 22:20).

After the cup, the Lord and his disciples no doubt sang from the Hallel Psalms (113-118) just as Jewish people still do today. Then the disciples probably drank the fourth and final cup of Passover before going out to the Mount of Olives.

The Passover like so many other things in scripture was only a shadow of the things to come. It was on the Mount of Olives where the real drama of redemption was about
to begin.

-Jim Gerrish

April, 2002

Picture credit Wikimedia Commons