Redemption Starts at Passover

This article was written in 2014, so the dates stated in this article are from that year!

Many believe that our Creator Yahweh’s plan of redemption was finished when Yahshua was impaled on Passover day. They assume that His death marked the end of the old Jewish system, including the laws of the Old Testament.

His ascension and the Feast of Pentecost of Acts 2 also allegedly marked the start of a new faith called Christianity, which replaced Israel as the chosen of Yahweh. Consistent with this notion is the belief that Christianity has little use for the Old Testament or its commanded observances.

The facts tell a far different story, which show that the church lost its way early on.

The truth is, Yahshua as the Passover Lamb holds the key role in a continuation of Yahweh’s design for His human creation.

Passover: The Plan Begins

The Passover is the first of the annual observances of Yahweh and is the starting point for the rest of Yahweh’s design for salvation.

Granted, the original hopes that Yahweh had of an exclusive, special people who would follow and worship Him, had now changed. Because of Israel’s continual rebellion, Yahweh opened up His calling to all who would repent and turn to Him. Not only is Israel still included in His plan, but they are still central to it. Romans 9:27 says a remnant of Israel shall be saved.

When we look at the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread that follows, we see a progression – and not an end – of a salvation plan that was established at creation itself.

Passover is a memorial of an actual event that occurred long ago in Egypt. Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread that follows also foreshadow events to occur later in the New Testament and into our own future. What Yahshua did by becoming the Passover Lamb was realized only in part. He spoke of another fulfillment of Passover yet to come. He said just as He was taking Passover with His disciples that He would keep it anew in His Father’s Kingdom, Matthew 26:29.

We see the importance of this special observance throughout history. From ancient days to the Kingdom, the Passover is key to Yahweh’s blueprint for the salvation of His creation and the establishment of a coming Kingdom on earth.

When in chapter 12 of Exodus as one Egyptian firstborn died after another, Yahweh was sending a clear message to all of mankind. It was to the firstborn that twice the family inheritance was given, which was known as the birthright. With the death of the firstborn, Yahweh demonstrated a salvational fact that those not covered by the blood of the lamb will have no life – meaning no inheritance in His Kingdom.

The other lesson we learn is that we can be covered by that blood only if we follow Yahweh’s instructions explicitly. If anyone in Israel had not done exactly as Yahweh commanded by putting the lamb’s blood on all sides of the doorpost then he would have faced the same consequences as the Egyptians. Yahweh had to see the blood of protection at each home, Exodus 12:23. The entire door frame had to have a blood covering, symbolic of His people’s being completely surrounded by the blood of the Lamb.

A Calling Out

Without the blood of Messiah covering for our sins, we face everlasting death. Rather than having little meaning for us today, the Passover and Feast have much more serious implications. The immediate physical consequences that came anciently for disobedience translate today into serious spiritual ramifications if we are not in total compliance.

Looking back in history, we see that Yahweh began a recalling of His people at the Passover, ultimately to take them out of Egypt and unto Himself through their worship and devotion.

He does the same today in the New Covenant observance of the Passover. It is an annual memorial and lesson for all who would be His elect to come clean and not get involved in the sin of the world. The world can easily enslave us, just as Israel was enslaved in Egypt for repeatedly refusing to obey their Heavenly Father.

Passover was an opportunity to re-dedicate their lives to Him, to turn back to Him again in truth.

The Passover was also Yahweh’s judgment on the false religion of Egypt, and figuratively on the false religions of the world. Lest we think that this is just an ancient judgment on ancient people, think again. In today’s world the Passover is a lesson in True Worship as well.

Certain Plagues Are Coming Back!

The Passover, which gets its name from the passing over of the death angel, was the last of 10 plagues unleashed on Egypt and the finishing stroke that finally freed Israel.
Note that each plague was directed against a certain deity worshiped by the pagan Egyptians (see Ex. 9:14-16 and chapters 7-11):
1) River to blood (against Hapi, spirit of the Nile, who had life-giving waters)
2) Frogs (Hekah, frog-headed deity who symbolized fertility)
3) Lice (against the earth deity Geb)
4) Flies (Beelzebub, lord of the flies)
5) Murrain or disease on the cattle (against Apis, the bull deity, and Hathor, a cow deity)
6) Boils (ashes from the altar of Typhon, to whom human sacrifices were offered)
7) Hail (against Isis and Osiris, the deities of crops, v. 25, and Nut, female deity of the sky)
8) Locusts (Seth, deity of storms and chaos)
9) Darkness (RaAmon, the sun god)
10) Firstborn (because Pharaoh him-self was worshiped as a god, his own son and heir to the throne would die).

In Revelation 6 we learn that some of the same plagues that Egypt suffered will be unleashed on earth in the last days.

With the opening of the third seal we see famine and disease; famine because of the locusts and disease from the murrain. Next is darkness. Then devastating hail will also fall, Revelation 8:7; a third of the seas will become blood, v. 8, followed by a plague of locusts, 9:3.

Just as Israel was protected from the latter plagues but felt the effects of the initial ones, so Yahweh’s people who obey Him now and faithfully keep His appointed days will be protected after the first several plagues are unleashed (Rev. 7:3). They will be sealed in their foreheads and safeguarded through Yahweh’s Name, Revelation 9:4 and 14:1.

Yahweh will even have two witnesses testify of Him (11:7), just as He did in the persons of Moses and Aaron who witnessed against the Kingdom of Egypt.

A Crucial Matter

To keep the Passover is a deadly serious matter. Many think of Yahweh not as a Heavenly Father but as a kindly old grandfather who puts up with spoiled children who disobey Him. Not so.
Yahweh punished even believers in the New Testament with sickness and death for observing Passover carelessly, 1Corinthians 11:27-31.

This year the Passover will be observed on the night of the 13th of April, which is the 14th day of Abib, the first biblical month.

The Jews keep it a day later, on the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, thus making Passover a High Day.

John 18:28 shows that in Yahshua’s day, after Yahshua had observed the Passover and was arrested around midnight, the Jews still hadn’t kept it.

But from John 13:27-30, among many other passages, we see that the Passover is a memorial. It is not a High Day where no buying or selling or work may be done. Therefore the Passover is called the preparation day, a preparation for the Feast that follows, John 19:14, 31. One could not do any preparation work if it were a High Day, nor would it be called a preparation for the Feast of Unleavened Bread if it also fell on the first day of the Feast.

Exodus 12:19-20 is a warning against anyone who would not take the Feast of Unleavened Bread seriously enough to avoid eating leavening. “Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eateth that which is leavened, even that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a stranger, or born in the land. Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread.”

Remove Offensive Leaven

Each time we participate in the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread, we undergo a renewal with Yahweh. Our obedience to these commanded times resonates with Him and carries untold blessings. No other observances of the world do that. That is why it is necessary to keep these annual set times and forget the empty holidays.

Most important of all, He calls them “My feasts.” They honor Him. And they are central to the redemption of His people.

The Feast of Unleavened Bread is a time to rededicate our lives to the Father as we recount the sacrifice of His Son, and remove leaven from our lives in the seven-day Feast that follows Passover.
“For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Messiah, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to Elohim, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living Elohim?”

Suppose you took a survey and simply asked, “What is leavening?” More women than men would probably know, by virture of their experience in the kitchen. Most who know would probably answer, yeast. But yeast is only one substance that we are to refrain from having or consuming during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Other leavening agents include cream of tartar, baking powder, baking soda, and calcium phosphate. Any chemical that causes a puffing up of a cereal grain would be classified as leavening. (See p. 19 for more.)

Of course, it is what leavening symbolizes that is important for the Truth seeker.

Leavening in the Scriptures pictures hypocrisy, false teachings, and wickedness. When leaven is removed, the evils that it represents are symbolically removed as well. Yahweh’s people are called “peculiar” in Titus 2:14 (KJV): “Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”

This verse speaks directly of Yahshua’s sacrifice at Passover and what it does to renew our dedication to Him. “Peculiar” means a people who are His possession. Additionally, if you are not seen as “peculiar” by the world around you, then you need to reassess your walk with Yahshua.

Yahweh’s people should be an exceptional beacon of righteousness to those around them. And the further this world sinks into darkness, the more your light should stand out as a witness.

Losing A Sense of Sin

Yahweh’s people should be vastly dif-ferent from the world and distinct from churchianity. Churchianity sets its standards and values mostly by public opinion, just as the world does. If the masses don’t like a certain stand the church may take on a moral issue, today’s church will water it down to be less offensive and more inclusive.

But Truth doesn’t change with the times. If you harbor sin in your life, the Word will offend you because it opposes sin in its many manifestations.

Today’s appalling lack of right Biblical counsel from those who are supposed to represent the Word is throwing the floodgates wide open to self-destruction. If more who claim to teach the Bible had the backbone to speak out against sin, the less we would find sin acceptable today. Look back only 50 years to see the difference in the culture when the Word was preached with authority and less compromise.

Come the judgment, Yahshua isn’t going to take a public opinion survey to determine the worthiness of an individual. His standards are right and true forever. And if we don’t meet them, we face His judgment. We answer to the supreme Judge and no one else. He doesn’t come down to our level, we rise up to His.

Society’s moral collapse is an example of Biblical leavening. It permeates every-thing and works slowly to induce change. Spiritually, it is corruption of the heart.

When we were in grade school science we learned of the various changes to substances. The simplest was physical, like water to ice or steam. A physical change leaves the molecular structure intact. Then there are chemical changes that change the very nature of the substance.

Leavening induces a chemical change. It symbolizes changes that alter our spiritual constitution.

To be constantly exposed to the leaven of hypocrisy, false teachings and wickedness of the world will eventually create a dynamic spiritual change in a person not unlike the substance change brought on by leavening.

The lesson of the Feast of Unleavened Bread makes us aware that we live among influences that can alter our behavior and the way we live if we are not careful. To be unaware of leaven is to be unaware of the Satanic influences that can destroy us spiritually.

You can’t continually be bombarded daily by trash and not get any on you. You may even come to accept it as normal. That is what we see today. People are not recognizing sin for what it is.
The evil of the 1960s was in its iconoclasm. At no other time in history have so many bedrock traditions and societal authority come under such attack and held up to ridicule.

The fallout today is an unending stream of perversion and iniquity that is force-fed families through many powerful conduits. Each year the Evil One pushes more limits and tramples more moral barriers until what would never have been tolerated even 10 years ago is now acceptable.

The masses are preconditioned and, like leavening, their thinking and behavior have been permeated with corruption.
No wonder Yahshua asked that when He returns, would He find faith on the earth? Luke 18:8.

Return to the Source of Truth

Many are searching for meaning in all the wrong places.

It is a testimony to Yahweh’s power that at the beginning of our world’s intense moral decay that Yahweh was calling believers to begin a restoration of the truth of His Name and Sabbaths. It is during a time of great decline that Yahweh is raising up a people who would stand for His truth and challenge not just the corruptions of the pop culture but also years of false teachings.

Yahweh tells us here is the way, now walk in it. But most will accept anything so long as it isn’t the Truth. People thirst for the latest dead-end craze. But to go back to the foundation of all teachings for life itself, the Old Testament? Not on your life!

For 2,000 years churchianity has been ignoring the Bible’s true teachings, that were first established with ancient Israel, in favor of empty traditions mixed with ancient mystery worship.

Discover the real thing. Forget hollow traditions of man. Learn the teachings that Yahshua and His disciples taught from the Old Testament and gain insight you never had before. When you do, the Bible will finally start to make sense.

For more info on the Passover and Passover Day check out our 2020 LIVE Passover service.

Here is another great article on the Passover and Passover Day: Passover and Salvation.

For more great articles be sure to check out our articles page.