Last night at sunset begins the first day of Passover. There is so much beauty and richness in pondering what Passover means. It is a celebration of redemption and hope and being beloved. It is a tribute to a God who keeps his word and has a perfect plan to accomplish his will. It is the retelling of an ancient story of God delivering his people as he had promised long ago, when it must have seemed that he had forgotten or changed his mind. It is a reminder that through obedience, with the application of the blood of a sacrificial lamb on the doorpost of their homes, the Hebrew people were protected from death. There is so much richness in the account of this event recorded in Exodus, and so much application for us who trust in the God who saves.
As a follower of Jesus, who was Jewish and celebrated Passover, I love to also ponder his connection to this feast.
He entered Jerusalem on the very day the sacrificial lambs were being selected. He was crucified on the day of sacrifice. The next day was Shabbat (what we call the Sabbath), and I would imagine a terrible one for the followers of Jesus.
On the day after this particular Shabbat, an offering of the sheaf of firstfruits were to be brought to the priest (Lev. 23:10). The same day that Jesus was bound and crucified, an omer of barley was bound up in preparation to be cut from the ground. There was a ritual offering of the firstfruits of the the barley on the same day that Jesus was resurrected. Paul referred to Jesus as “the firstfruits of those who are asleep.” (1 Cor.15:20). The day of his resurrection began the 50 day count to Pentecost, or Shavu’ot. These are called days of Counting the Omer (Lev. 23:16). Jesus rose from the dead on the first day of the Counting of the Omer and he ascended into heaven on the 40th day of the counting. I find that amazing.
Shavu’ot is another of God’s appointed festivals, and it commemorates the giving of the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai. The literal translation of Exodus 20:18 says that all the people saw the voices and the torches. Shavu’ot is the Feast of Harvests, or Firstfruits, a joyful celebration of God’s provision. On this Shavu’ot after Jesus had ascended, the people were gathered in Jerusalem to celebrate when torches once again appeared and voices of different languages were heard. And this was the giving of the Holy Spirit.
To me this is all so amazing, and it is an assurance that we serve a God of order, one who has a plan—and it will be realized. Our God is a faithful God, who, in the midst of our troubles and sometimes despair, is still there and his story to us is that he loves us. We can depend on him. He is worthy of all of our trust and obedience. He promised the people of Israel a Messiah, and he delivered in such a powerful way. As is usually the case, God didn’t do it the way one would have expected. He did it his way and so much better than could have been imagined. And then he included the rest of the world in this plan of salvation—which means me. And you. And whoever will accept his great gift of redemption. Which is why i find it a joy and privilege to celebrate Passover.
