Remember the Lamb.

For this Pastor’s Note, we are going back to the Passover teaching from Exodus 12. Imagine the poverty and oppression under which God’s people have lived for years by the time Exodus 12 occurred. Pharaoh hated the growth and success of the Jewish people. Pharaoh had such animosity toward the Hebrew nation, now close to 2 ½ million people, that he was determined and willful in killing off the most vulnerable among them. Newborn baby boys were to be ruthlessly killed (Exodus 1:16, 22); Satan believes that if you want to destroy God’s people, you start with the youngest among them. 

Satan’s ploy is to destroy their children in body, mind and spirit. The devil operates with much the same philosophy today. Thankfully, Exodus names two women who were willing to shield many of these baby boys from Pharaoh’s seething hatred: Shiphrah and Puah. Pharaoh remained nameless; God was showing His disgust of the ungodly and obstinate leader of Egypt as well as displaying his grace to those like Puah and Shiprah (Exodus 1:15).

God preserved Israel and through another mother, Jochebed, brought up a future leader named, Moses. Through Moses, God brought His Kingdom power to rescue His people. Through Moses, God displayed “a finger” of His strength so that even the Egyptians would notice God at work: “Then the magicians said to Pharaoh, ‘This is the finger of God.’ But Pharaoh's heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, as the LORD had said” (Exodus 8:19).

Imagine what God was saying to Pharaoh. If all these nine plagues showed such immense power, and this was “only” the finger of God, what would it be like if God bared his arms and struck Egypt with the full force of his might? We have an amazing, powerful God.

The finger of God is unleashed in the plague of blood - the Nile turns to blood. Then there are eight more plagues that usher in armies of frogs, gnats, flies, disease for the livestock, boils, hail, locust and darkness. In all of this small display of God’s Kingdom strength, Pharaoh folds his arms in stubborn refusal to listen to God.

But there is more. With God there is always more - His power infinite. His knowledge and wisdom is unfathomable. Now comes the most personal of the plagues. This tenth plague is not reserved for the Egyptians. It will strike any and every family in Egypt . . . UNLESS, there is blood from the Lamb to mark that family household. Only blood from the Lamb will secure safety for anyone inside that dwelling. Here is how this plays out: “The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, ‘This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you’” (Exodus 12:1-2).

The First Month

This month, which roughly comes in our spring (March to April) is determined by the lunar calendar. In fact, our Easter celebration fairly closely connects to the time of year when the Jews celebrate the Passover. This is why Lent and Easter (Resurrection Day) jumps around each year. We are following the heritage of the Jewish believers in Jesus, the Messiah.

This particular month was to be the head or beginning of their year, not January. It is significant that God would pick the month of deliverance as the time on which the Jewish nation would build its calendar year. How awesome and telling that is. God wants us, as believers, to build off of His rescue mission. We can live our lives, built off of what Jesus, the Lamb of God, has accomplished for us.

The Lamb

Now the process of rescue begins. It centers on a lamb. This lamb comes into each household, cute and fuzzy on the tenth day of Nissan. God knows how to weave a tale of love and He begins it with this lamb. The children get attached to the lamb - how could you not! No doubt even some of the adults think the lamb is cute and scratch its scruffy little head, maybe even let is settle on their laps while they recline for the evening meal.

God’s instructions for choosing a lamb are, “Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers' houses, a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month…” (Exodus 12:3-6).

The lamb finds a comfortable place in the family and God has purposely set the timeframe of five days (from the 10th to the 14th). There are five days for the children to play with the lamb and take naps with the lamb. The lamb sucks on their fingers and gets the attention of everyone. The lamb steals the hearts of the family and symbolizes another Lamb, chosen by God the Father, who rode into Jerusalem on the tenth day of Nissan; we call it Palm Sunday. Palm Sunday is the lamb selection day.

Those who spent time with Jesus, the Lamb, became attached to Him too. Peter was attached to Him. All the disciples except Judas had an affinity for this Lamb from God. Mary Magdalene loved the Lamb and shed tears over Jesus’ tired feet to show her deep affection. Even we New Testament believers find that our hearts are drawn to the Lamb. He cares for us. He is fun and engaging and grabs our hearts with His constant endeavors to interact with us.  He daily comes to us in The Very Words of Scriptures and stirs a passion in us, to be in love with God because of the Lamb.

“Tell all the congregation of Israel . . .  the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight” (Exodus 12:3, 6).

How crushed the children would’ve been when it was time for the lamb to die! What did they say to their fathers when he put a knife to the throat of the lamb? But each of the fathers knew, from God’s clear word, that if the lamb did not die for the sinful grievances of their family, God’s justice would come down hard on the eldest son in the family. Unless the lamb dies, someone in this house must die - each father, with tear stained eyes, knew that the lamb must die.

Our Father in Heaven knew that the Lamb of God must die for the sins of His people. Unless the Lamb dies, we die. And God would not have that be so. The knife is raised; the Lamb dies.

The Blood

Now the father takes the lamb’s blood and smears it as a signal for all the inhabitants of this house AND for God Himself. When we see the blood, we can know that God’s justice will pass over us because of the blood of the Lamb. And this blood is also for God to see; God sees that each inhabitant is “covered” in the blood of the Lamb.

“Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs… ‘On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn of both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD. 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. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt” (Exodus 12:7, 12-13).

Remember . . . 

This event, this divine display of Justice and Salvation and Rescue must be remembered. The Jews do this well! They are to be commended for their yearly observance of this sacrifice and rescue. If you know a Jewish family, ask them about their Passover celebration. There is much that we can learn from 3400 years of “remembering” this Passover.

But we now have, I must humbly say, the fulfilled insight on the Passover celebration. We know the Lamb. We may even Love the Lamb - rightly so! This Lamb, Jesus Christ, is our eternal reason to be free from the Justice of God raining down on us - we go free! We will experience Death passing over us.

Now we are called to remember. Remember that Death was our destiny, our final end. Remember that the Lamb’s blood is what comes in between us and death. Remember that the Lamb is Jesus whom we can daily remember in great relief. 

“This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD; throughout your generations, as a statute forever, you shall keep it as a feast” (Exodus 12:14).

Let us Remember the Lamb! Let us remember that sin is now paid for by the blood of the Lamb and death will pass over us; we are eternally marked in the blood of the Lamb. Remember John 10 where Jesus said He is “the door”, the entrance. His death means that we safely enter God’s presence, God’s eternal home. Remember, remember!