April arrived and next to him, the time to celebrate the Passover, or Easter for a better understanding. Most begin with their usual runs to buy the cod and the chocolate eggs that each year become more expensive. In some countries people take advantage of the wonderful truce of the routine to have a few days of rest because of the holiday. They strive to set departure and arrival times in their destinations and enjoy these days in the best way.
The only problem I see in the midst of all this is that, as usual, the Lord’s affairs often fall into the background. Many churches strive to show the true meaning of this celebration. But by analyzing our society as a whole and the bible, we are far from celebrating in the right way.
The first Passover
Every Christian should know about this. But before I was converted, I spent eighteen years inside a church without even reading the Bible intentionally. So I think it’s important to say how this celebration originated. If you want, you can read more about it on Exodus 12.
First of all, it is very important to understand that Easter (in Hebrew Pessach) means “Passage”. Which in turn has an even deeper meaning.
In the time of Moses the people of Israel, who descended from Jacob, Isaac and Abraham, were slaves in the land of Egypt. The Lord had already said how the whole process would be when he made an alliance with the patriarch Abraham:
Genesis 15:13 “Then the Lord said to him, “Know for certain that for four hundred years your descendants will be strangers in a country not their own and that they will be enslaved and mistreated there. (14) But I will punish the nation they serve as slaves, and afterward they will come out with great possessions”.
We all know well the punishment and the history of the ten plagues that came upon Egypt. And just to contextualize those who do not know. The Lord severely punished the people who enslaved the nation of Israel until it finally freed them from forced labor of four hundred years.
The ultimate punishment and worst of all plagues was the death of every firstborn among Egyptian citizens. From the son of the poorest servant to the son of Pharaoh. The instruction that God gave Moses was that every Israelite family should sacrifice a lamb that night and use the blood to mark the doorposts. Then the angel of death would make a passage through Egypt and take the life of every firstborn. Unless they had on their houses the mark of the blood of the lamb, as God had ordained.
From this, Pharaoh decided to free the people. God then commanded Moses to instruct all Israel that from generations to generations this occasion should be celebrated. The passage of God through Egypt. As well as the passage from slavery to freedom or, symbolically, from death to life.
The Passover of Jesus
After thousands of years of the people’s liberation, the Jews continued to celebrate the Passover. Jesus was a Jew, a descendant of Abraham and followed all the traditions of the people of Israel, so much that he celebrated the Passover with his disciples on the occasion we remember today as the Holy Supper. The most interesting point among all is that similar to what happened years before in the land of Egypt. Jesus gave himself up like a lamb so that his blood would mark all that would be freed from death. The situation is identical except for the fact that Jesus was God Himself in the form of a man. And that the value of his blood free from all sin was sufficient to deliver from death all who were believers in his sacrifice and purpose to this day and to the end of time.
The current Passover
Unlike what we have seen happen in our society, Easter should continue to be a celebration of the passage. From our bondage to sin and freedom to eternal life. Or if you prefer, from death to life.
Enjoy these days to rejoice in Christ Jesus and to remember his favor. Use this time and this reflection to think about the way you have lived and for which you still have to let your flesh die so that the Lord will be more and more alive in your life. After all, we must follow this remembrance and instruction, given to us by Paul in Galatians 2:20 “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me”.
May the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the lamb offered as a sacrifice to give us freedom and eternal life, be like all of you! Amen!
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