Why Celebrate the Passover? (updated)

Isn’t your life already busy enough? Who has time for a six-hour Passover Seder commemorating something that happened thousands of years ago? What could this possibly have to do with my life here and now, you may ask? How can a 3500-year-old Biblical ritual in any way relate to those living in the age of the laser, satellites, the worldwide web, computers, genetic engineering, nanotechnology and artificial intelligence? Well, let’s find out!

The Preacher said in Ecclesiastes 3:15, “That which is has been already and that which will be has already been.…” Life is full of paradoxes. Do advancements in technology, science, economics, medicine, religion, and the spread of global government that all promise a man-made utopia of sorts really fulfill the promise to give man the rest for his weary soul and a deeper meaning to life that he longs for, as well as the answer to the age-old question: What happens when I die? Can I live forever? If so, how?

How about we take a different approach to the questions and problems facing modern man? Is it possible to go forward it time by going backwards in time? This is a thesis that Jeremiah, the ancient biblical prophet, proffered in his day, and which is still relevant to us. He declared, “Thus says YHVH, ‘Stand by the ways and see and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; and you will find rest for your souls. But they said, we will not walk in it,’” (Jer 6:16). What were those ancient paths to which this white-haired Israelite prophet referred? This question is answered three verses later: “Because they have not listened to My words, and as for My Torah, they have rejected it also,” (verse 19). YHVH through his prophets has been showing men the way of rest for their weary souls for thousands of years, yet men consistently refuse to listen. They always have a better way, or so it seems!

The festival of Passover is one of the most ancient paths to be found in the Scriptures. In the Passover celebration are clues that will help us to understand our past, present and the future. 

Switching gears, a God-hater, Karl Marx, the father of modern communism, said that religion is the opiate of the masses. Yes, this can be said of dead, truthless and Spiritless religion. But how about that religion which gives definition, purpose, meaning, hope and destiny to a man’s life? How could anything that comes directly from the Loving Father who created you and me in his own image be detrimental to us?

Moreover, it has been said that the religion of the Bible tells a person where he has come from, where he is at and where he is going. Could it not be said that a man who knows the answers to these questions possesses true wisdom and wealth, and has indeed found rest for his troubled soul and possible, even, the answer to the life-after-death question?

Moving along as we attempt to find rest for our weary souls and answers to the deep questions of life, let’s now consider another aspect. One of the most important scriptures in the Jewish faith is the famous shema passage of Deuteronomy 6:4–9. This passage, which is like a “pledge of allegiance” for the Jews, starts out by saying, “Hear [shema], O Israel …” The word shema literally means “to hear and to do.” Later, in verse five, the shema continues, “And you shall love YHVH your Elohim with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your might.” Loving our Heavenly Creator is not just a mind-thing, but also an action and a doing thing. It is something we act out and participate in. This is the Hebrew way…the ancient paths! As a path is for the purpose of walking down, even so, Passover is meant to be celebrated. This is how YHVH’s people showed their love and devotion to him. Yeshua, the Jewish Messiah, reiterated this when he said, “If you love me, keep my commandments [or Torah mitzvot]” (John 14:15). In so doing, one begins to discover rest for the weary soul and answers to life. The walk is the answer!

This is what the Passover Seder is all about. We, as humans, learn by doing. We learn obedience by obeying. We learn to love by loving. We learn about heavenly and spiritual mysteries by walking out the types and shadows found in Scripture (of which Passover is but one) that point to the heavenly and spiritual domain or dimension of YHVH himself. The French have a saying: L’appétit vient en mangeant. Translated this means: Appetite comes while eating. Or we could say that the more one eats (delicious food), the more one wants. David said in Psalm 34:8, “O taste and see that YHVH is good: blessed is the man that trusts in him.” The more we walk out the commandments of our Heavenly Father, the more of his goodness we behold, the more of his blessings we receive, the more our soul finds rest, the more we want to walk out his commandments, the more we behold his goodness, and so on goes this wonderful spiritual growth-cycle. Again, in the walk, we find rest and answers.

So why do we go to the trouble, expense and time to celebrate a Passover Seder? First, it helps us to fulfill the commands YHVH gave to us to do at Passover, such as eating lamb, unleavened bread and bitter herbs; telling our children the story of the Passover; holding a “set apart convocation” and so on (Exod 12:14–20, 43–49; Lev 23:4–5; Num 9:2–3; 28:16; Deut 16:1–3). But again we ask, what is the significance and relevance to us of this celebration? What can we gain from involving ourselves in this curious, ancient ritual? What mysteries has the Creator hidden therein that yield a treasure trove of answers to the deeper questions of life?

Passover is but the first piece of a panoramic puzzle, or the first thread in a rich tapestry of YHVH’s plan of redemption of mankind. Though the children of Israel kept the first Passover 3500 years ago in the land of Egypt, this ancient celebration is not only a memorial of what occurred then, but is of utmost significance to the spiritual life of the disciple of Yeshua today. It has future or prophetic implications as well. Passover is the first step of a spiritual journey that, if one continues in it faithfully to the end, will lead one into the very presence of YHVH Elohim, our Heavenly Father, himself. What a journey! Let’s take a closer look at it this step.

Ancient Israel, the covenant people through whom YHVH had chosen to reconcile all nations of the earth to himself, was in slavery in Egypt. YHVH heard their desperate cries, and remembering his promises to Abraham, with a mighty hand he brought down proud and powerful Egypt by his judgments and set his captive children free. Israel was in bondage to Egypt—a biblical metaphor for the world, the flesh and devil. And even as you and I were in bondage to our past sinful lives and under helpless control of the world, flesh and the devil. As the Israelites slew a perfect lamb and smeared its blood on the sides and top of the door posts of their homes, they were spared YHVH’s judgment on Egypt (again, a symbolic picture of unsaved sinners) and all those who were not under the blood. Likewise, there is deliverance for us if we simply recognize our state of sin and being spiritually lost, and if we but come repentantly to the cross of Golgotha upon which Yeshua, the bleeding Lamb of YHVH, slain from the foundation of the earth, hung. If we too will put our faith and trust in him and apply his sin-atoning blood to the door posts (thoughts and actions) of our lives, we, like our ancient forefathers, can escape YHVH’s terrifying judgment, for sin, the wages of which is death, will have no claim on our lives if we are under the blood of the Lamb.

Passover is but the first step in a parade of seven prophetic dress rehearsals or convocations (in Hebrew each is called a miqra or a command assembly) represented by the seven glorious festivals of YHVH (called moedim or appointed times) all of which point to the redemptive work of Messiah Yeshua in the life of the redeemed believer. There are three set-apart festivals (or moedim) in the spring of the year that are prophetic shadow-pictures of Messiah’s first coming to earth, and there are four set-apart festivals in autumn which are prophetic shadow-pictures of his second coming at the end of the age.

Passover represents the redeemed believer coming out of the spiritual Egypt of this world. Interestingly, Passover falls at the beginning of YHVH’s sacred biblical year. Not only is it at the beginning of the new year, but it is the first festival of the year and represents the first step in a new believer’s life—all falling in the spring season of the year, which is the time of rebirth and new beginnings both in the physical creation and in YHVH’s spiritual creation in the life of the individual!

Chag haMatzot (the Feast of Unleavened Bread), which immediately follows Passover and which is often considered to be a continuation of Passover, represents the believer putting Egypt out of his life, which is symbolized by putting leavening out of our homes and living in a leaven-free environment for seven days.

After that comes Shavuot (The Feast of Weeks or Pentecost). Since it is impossible for one to live sin-free for very long without help from above, man needs a guidebook on righteous living, and one needs divine enablement to follow the instructions within the guidebook. YHVH’s Torah (i.e., the first five books of the Bible) is that guidebook and was given to Ancient Israel at Mount Sinai. On the day of Pentecost in Acts 2, the first-century believers had not only been given Yeshua, the Living Torah (the Word of YHVH made flesh), but they were promised that the Ruach haKodesh (the Set-Apart or Holy Spirit) power of Yeshua, the Living Torah, would live inside of them empowering them to walk faithfully in the light and truth of YHVH’s Written Torah instructions in righteousness which are a river of life telling us how to love our Creator and our fellow man.

After the spring biblical festivals we come to the fall festivals, which speak of a great harvest of believers at the end of the age corresponding to the second coming of Yeshua. Those festivals are Yom Teruah (the Day of Blowing Trumpets or Shofars), Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement), and Sukkot (the Feast of Tabernacles) immediately followed by Shemini Atzeret (the Eighth Day). Each of these contains a whole world of spiritual and prophetic meaning of tremendous significance to the believer pertaining to the regathering of Israel, the resurrection of the righteous dead, the return of Yeshua the Messiah, the marriage of Yeshua the Lamb of Elohim to his spiritual bride (the believing saints) and the establishment of YHVH’s millennial kingdom on earth. Learn about them. You will be blessed!

The central theme of the Passover Seder celebration was the lamb, along with the matzah (unleavened bread) and the bitter herbs. The Lamb is a picture of Messiah Yeshua who was crucified for you and me at the exact moment when each family of the children of Israel was killing its own lamb, and later on when the high priest was killing the Passover lamb up on the temple mount in Jerusalem. 

In the Gospels we find recorded how Yeshua celebrated Passover or the Lord’s Supper memorial celebration with his talmidim (disciples). At that supper, he instructed them how he would perfectly fulfill the role of the Passover lamb and that they were to continue that memorial meal to which Paul makes reference in 1 Corinthians 11:17–34.

In the Seder are four cups of wine around which the Passover celebration revolves. They are called the Cup of Sanctification, the Cup of Deliverance, the Cup of Redemption, and the Cup of Praise or Completion. The four cups are based on Exodus 6:6–8, in which YHVH makes seven promises (called the Seven Steps of Redemption) to Israel where he elaborated how he would start by delivering Israel from Egypt and end up bringing them into the Promised Land that he would give them.

We believe that Messiah will drink of the Fourth Cup with his spiritual bride in his kingdom, for it is recorded in the Gospels that Yeshua drank of at least two of the four cups with his disciples during the Last Supper. But the last, or Fourth Cup of Praise or Completion, he said he would not partake of “until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom” (Matt 26:29). In this we see a reference to the long-awaited marriage supper of the Lamb to occur after his second coming.

And this, my beloved friends, is only the tip of the proverbial iceberg in the explanations of these wonderful events that Bible believers celebrate during the Passover Seder. It is a journey, if you stay faithful to him, that will never end, for the more you grow and learn, the more you will realize how little you know and how vast the ocean of YHVH Elohim’s unsearchableness really is!

 Now all these things happened unto them for examples and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. (1 Cor 10:11)

But as it is written, Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which Elohim has prepared for them that love him. But Elohim has revealed them unto us by his Spirit, for the Spirit searches all things, yes, the deep things of Elohim. (1 Cor 2:9–10)

Overview of Key Elements Pertaining to the Passover

Here are some important facts about the Passover.

Continue reading
 

How to Prepare YOURSELF for Passover

Passover (Heb. Pesach) is just around the corner and it is time to start preparing physically and spiritually. Pesach is the first step in YHVH Elohim’s plan of salvation or redemption to reconcile sinful man back to him. It is the first of seven steps in YHVH’s step-by-step plan of salvation as symbolized by the seven biblical feasts. Did you ever wonder how this amazing step-by-step process really works starting with preparing for Pesach? Let’s now find out.

There is never a better time to begin repenting of sin and getting under the blood of the Lamb of Elohim than just before Passover. As the children of Israel applied the lamb’s blood to the door posts and lintels of their house, in a similar fashion but on a spiritual level, Scripture instructs the saints to apply the sin-cleansing and Satan-defeating blood of Yeshua afresh to their lives (i.e., to our thoughts as represented by the door lintel and to our hands or actions as represented by the door posts). Cleansing from sin occurs as we repent of our sins, and pray for and receive YHVH’s forgiveness. Our loving and forgiving Father in heaven will then cover over us, then wash away our sins by Yeshua’s blood (1 John 1:9; Rev 1:5).

In Egypt at the first Passover, YHVH judged all those who failed to put the lamb’s blood on the door posts of their houses. In other words, they weren’t under the blood of the lamb, but were still under the death penalty for the sins they had committed, since the wages sin is death (Ezek 18:4; Rom 6:23). Any unrepented of sin in our lives brings the curse of death on us. To the degree that we have sin in our lives is the degree to which the law of sin and death has a legal claim on us (Rom 8:3). (For the record, “the law sin and death” mentioned in Rom  8:3 IS NOT referring to YHVH’s Torah-law, which are his standards of righteousness that if a person does they will bring life, not death. No! Rather, the law of sin and death is referring to the serpent’s sting of death or the venom that he injected into the human race at the tree of knowledge in the Garden of Eden that brings separation from YHVH resulting in death due to disobedience to the Creator’s laws or commandments.) So now, before Passover, is the time to put sin out of our spiritual houses by repenting of sin by confessing it and seeking Elohim’s forgiveness under the blood of Yeshua, and then forsaking that sin through YHVH’s grace or the divine empowerment of his Spirit in us (1 John 1:9 cp. John 16:8; Jer 31:31, 33; Ezek 11:19; 36:22–27; Heb 8:10–12). 

Let us now view through a spiritual magnifying glass of the Word of Elohim, let’s now view miraculous process of how to overcome sin. How do we go from being a lost sinner—the walking damned or the living dead (a spiritual zombie)—to becoming the glorified and immortalized children of Elohim? Passover is the first step in this glorious path that leads upward to our Father in heaven!

It works like this: When we confess and repent of our sins (i.e., the violations of YHVH’s Torah-commands; 1 John 3:4), Yeshua will pass over or forgive us of our past sins (Rom 3:25; Ps 103:8–12). From this point forward, it is up to us to embrace a new mindset and a new spiritual identity and reality; that is, we must reckon our old sinful man as having been crucified with Yeshua, in that we are now dead to sin, no longer slaves to sin; we have been freed from the power of sin, and made alive in our inner being to Elohim in Yeshua our Lord (Rom 6:7–11). Yeshua is the one who victoriously defeated the power or sting of sin, which is death, hell and the grave at the cross and through his resurrection (1 Cor 15:56–57; Col 2:13–15). Through our faith in him and our legal identification with his death, burial and resurrection through the symbolic ritual of baptism for the remission of sins, his victory is legally applied to us by the courts of heaven, which is how he has made us more than conquerors over sin and death (Rom 8:37; 6:1–14), such that the power of sin and death will no longer have dominion over us (Rom 6:12–14).  YHVH now gives us strength through his enabling and empowering grace and the miraculous work of his Spirit in us and by the washing of the water of his word to resist and overcome the power of sin, that is, to not allow sin (that  is, the violation of his Torah-commands) to control us any longer (Rom 6:12). He promises to give us a new, circumcised heart as he writes his laws or commandments on our hearts, so that we will be supernaturally inclined to love him by keeping his commandments (Jer 31:33; 24:7; Heb 8:10; 10:16; Ezek 36:25–27; Isa 51:7; Ps 40:8; 37:31; Deut 30:6; John 14:12 cp. Rom 7:22). What is that supernatural power that works in us to help keep us from sinning? It the Spirit of Elohim or the Comforter that Yeshua promised would come along side of us to aid us in the process of overcoming sin (John 14:16–18, 25–26; 15:26–27; 16:7–14). 

To summarize, this whole supernatural and miraculous process of being victorious over sin is activated when we first acknowledge our sin, confess our sin, repent of our sin and then place our faith in Yeshua’s death, burial and resurrection. This occurs when we appropriate or reckon, by faith, our old sinful man to have been crucified with Yeshua, and then been resurrected in the newness of spiritual life with him. We now embrace the new identity that he has given us—a spiritual reality that he has imparted to us and has been legally recorded in heaven (Col 2:14)—that we are a new creation and are victorious over sin (Gal 2:20; 2 Cor 5:17), and have become Spirit-begotten children of Elohim. This whole process is summarized from beginning to end in Paul’s Epistle to the Romans chapters six through eight. The end result, if we continue in a right spiritual relationship with Yeshua the Messiah for the rest of our lives, is that our names will be recorded in Elohim’s Book of Life, and our physical bodies will be glorified—we will be given immortality—at the resurrection of the righteous dead, which occurs at the second coming of Yeshua. 

This whole glorious salvation process and chain of events that transforms sinful humans from the walking dead into glorified and immortal children of Elohim begins at Passover which symbolizes the first step a person takes when he comes to faith in Yeshua the Messiah and begins to live as a saint, a set-apart or holy child of Elohim. This is the upward path of the righteous redeemed of Yeshua the Messiah.

Here are some things of which to repent: 

Pride. Do you always think that you’re right? Your opinion is what matters the most? Do you have a hard time with those who do not see something your way, or when you do not get your way? Do you have an emotional reaction when people disagree with you? Do you criticize others and put others down (especially those who are closest to you), when they do not agree with you, or do not act the way that you think they should act? Do you belittle, mock, scorn and ridicule others? Do you focus on other people’s faults? Do you have a hard time identifying any sins that you have committed? Are you proud of your humility? Are you proud of how Torah-observant you are (compared to others)? Are you overly defensive when someone corrects you or challenges you in anything you say, do or think? Do you blame or accuse others when things do not go right (according to you) instead of taking personal responsibility for your carnal reactions? Are you proud of (instead of grateful to YHVH for) your achievements in life? Do you constantly have to be talking about yourself? Is much of what you do, say and think focused on yourself? These are all signs of pride. Pride is self-idolization. Elohim hates pride and calls it an abomination (Prov 6:16–17).

Ungratefulness and selfishness. Are you ungrateful? Do you have a hard time being thankful? Are you a complainer and grumbler? Are you unhappy or discontent about your place in life, where you live, and what you have? Do you always want more? Are your material possessions and personal belongings really important to you? Do you have a hard time sharing your time, talent or treasure with others, or giving things away? This is a form of self-idolatry, pride and idolization of things. 

The love of this world. This sin involves our loving the things of the world more than the things of YHVH. Do we tend to bend or conform to the opinions of others, the trends, styles, customs, fads, fashions and mores of society rather than conforming our words, thoughts and actions to the Word, will, heart, mind and commandments of Elohim? Anything in our lives that we put ahead of YHVH and his Word is a form of idolatry. In this case, we are more concerned with what others think than what Elohim thinks about what we do. Our thoughts and actions are geared at trying to please ourself and gain the acceptance of others instead of pleasing Elohim (Jas 4:4; 1 John 2:15). Again, this is a form of idolatry.

Sins of the mouth. This sin include mean, selfish, unkind, angry, impatient, accusative, scornful, mocking, murmuring, egotistical, slanderous words and gossip. This is idolization of self. What matters most is what you have to say, how you feel, your opinions and you have the right to say what you want and when you want. This is also pride and egotism.

The lack of the fear of Elohim. Are you more concerned with what others think than what YHVH Elohim thinks about something? Do you do what you want to do when you want to do it? You view the commandments of Elohim to be more like suggestions than imperative commands? Do you pick and choose which commandments from Elohim you will follow and which ones you will disregard? If his commandments do not fit your lifestyle or you consider them to be inconvenient to follow, then you are lacking the fear of Elohim. To the degree that you disregard YHVH’s wise counsel in his Word is the degree that you fit the biblical definition of a fool. Again, anything in our lives that we put ahead of Elohim is idolatry and this makes us an idol worshipper. The Bible teaches us that the loving fear of Elohim is the beginning of wisdom and knowledge, and that it will help to keep us in his in paths of righteousness.

Ask yourself this: In everything that I do and say, am I advancing the kingdom of Elohim and bringing glory to Yeshua or am I doing the opposite? Am I being a river of life to all those around me, or am I dragging them downward by being a purveyor of negativity and darkness? Are my words, thoughts and deeds leading people to the light of YHVH Elohim and to Yeshua or away from them? If not, then we need to examine our lives, identify the areas of sin therein, repent of it, forsake it and begin to live a righteous, Elohim-centered, Torah-obedient life.

Passover is also the time to…

  • Tell the redemption story. It is the responsibility of parents and elders to pass on to the next generation the Passover story (Exod 12:24–27). Explain how the Israelites were enslaved in Egypt (a metaphor for the world), to Pharaoh (a metaphor for Satan), and how YHVH delivered the Israelites from the judgment of the destroyer (YHVH’s judgment against sin) because they put the blood of the lamb on their doorposts (a picture of Yeshua’s sin-atoning death on the cross). In reality, this is the basic gospel message. This is what the Passover seder is all about and why we celebrate it. 
  • Begin studying and celebrating the YHVH’s biblical feasts. Prepare your heart and mind to obey YHVH by keeping his appointed times starting with Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Are you willing to obey his commands pertaining to these observances? How much do you love him (John 14:15)? How much do you want to know him (1 John 2:6–7)? Celebrating YHVH’s feasts help us to love him and to know him better.
  • Examine yourself. At this time of the year, we must each examine ourselves to insure that we will not be partaking of the cup of redemption (i.e. the communion cup) unworthily (1 Cor 11:28).
  • Rediscover the cross. It is time to rediscover the cross of Yeshua again and your place at its foot. It is also time to rediscover the power of the resurrected Yeshua in one’s life. Marvel at the miracle of the resurrection and consider the fact that you have access to Yeshua’s resurrected life through faith in him and through the work of his Set-Apart Spirit as you obey the Word of Elohim. 
  • Awaken from spiritual slumber and to and for new beginnings. Passover occurs in the spring at the beginning of the biblical year. Spring is a time of new beginnings physically and spiritually. It is the time of year for each of us to take stock of our life, assess any weaknesses and deficiencies you have, and then resolve to make the necessary changes. It is the time to make improvements through the power of YHVH’s grace, his Word, his Spirit all through a vibrant, daily relationship with Yeshua our Master and Savior.
  • Clean your spiritual house. It is the time to deleaven our lives of sin.  Passover is time of spring cleaning and deleavening our physical houses (Exod 12:15–20), and removing the leaven of sin from our spiritual houses as well (Pss 26:2; 139:1, 23–24). We must root out and eradicate the old sin habits from the crevices and dark areas of our life. In Scripture, leavening represents sin, pride, hypocrisy and false doctrine.  Do the sinful practices, evil habits and illicit delicacies of Egypt still hold sway on you? Do any unclean spirits or filthy habits still have control over you? It is time to take control of these sins and to eliminate them and become wholly consecrated unto YHVH-Yeshua, his Word, his plans and purposes. It is time to seek first his kingdom and his righteousness (Matt 6:33). One cannot serve two masters at the same time (i.e. the world, the flesh and the devil and YHVH Elohim) and expect to be pleasing to YHVH (Matt 6:24). Passover is an excellent time to forsake all these things that drag us down spiritually and pull us away from our Father in heaven. It is time to move onward and upward spiritually!
  • Renew our first love for Yeshua. Take this time to rediscover the glorious beauty of Yeshua our Heavenly Bridegroom (Rev 2:4–5). Now is the time to rekindle our first love passion and zeal for Yeshua and to repent of spiritual lukewarmness (Rev 3:15–21).
 

Preparing Ourselves for Passover

Passover is just around the corner—in a couple of weeks. Here’s a checklist to help you prepare for this festival that YHVH commanded his people to celebrate, and which Yeshua, the apostles and early church also celebrated, and which will be celebrated in the Millennium.

Repent of Sin and Get Under the Lamb’s Blood. As the children of Israel applied the lamb’s blood to the door posts and lintels of their house, so we must apply the sin-cleansing and Satan-defeating blood of Yeshua afresh to our lives (i.e. to our thoughts as represented by the door lintel and and to our hands or actions as represented by the door posts). This occurs as we repent of our sins, and pray for and receive YHVH’s forgiveness. He will then cover our sins over or wash away our sins by Yeshua’s blood (1 John 1:9; Rev 1:5).

In Egypt at Passover time, YHVH judged all those who had failed to put the lamb’s blood on the door posts of their houses. In other words, they weren’t under the blood of the lamb, but were still under the penalty of sin, which is death (Ezek 18:4; Rom 6:23). Any unrepented of sin in our lives brings the curse of death on us. To the degree that one has sin in their life is the degree to which the spirit of death has a legal claim on us. Now is the time to repent of sin by confessing it and seeking Elohim’s forgiveness under the blood of Yeshua and then forsaking that sin through YHVH’s grace (1 John 1:9). 

Here are some things of which to repent. 

  • Pride. Do you always think that you’re right? Your opinion is what matters the most? Do you have a hard time with those who don’t see it your way, when you don’t get your way? Do you have a fit when people disagree with you? Do you criticize others and put others down (especially those who are closest to you)? Do you belittle, mock, scorn and ridicule others? Do you focus on other people’s faults? Do you have a hard time identifying any sins that you have committed? Are you proud of your humility? Are you proud of how Torah-observant you are (compared to others)? Are you overly defensive when someone corrects you or challenges your opinion? Do you blame others when things don’t go right instead of taking personal responsibility for your actions? Are you proud of (instead of grateful to YHVH for) your achievements in life? Do you constantly have to be talking about yourself? Is much of what you do, say and think focused on yourself? These are all signs of pride. Pride is self-idolization. Elohim hates pride and calls it an abomination (Prov 6:16–17).
  • Ungratefulness and selfishness. Are you ungrateful? Are you discontent about your place in life? Do you always want more? Are your material possessions and personal belongings really important to you? Do you have a hard time giving things away? This is a form of self-idolatry, pride and idolization of things.
  • The love of this world over love of YHVH and the things that matter to him. This is a form of idolatry. In this case, we’re concerned with what others think more than what Elohim thinks about things. Therefore, our thoughts and actions are geared at trying to please ourself and others instead of pleasing Elohim (Jas 4:4; 1 John 2:15).
  • Sins of the mouth include mean, selfish, unkind, angry, impatient, egotistical words and gossip. This is idolization of self. What matters most is what I have to say, how I feel, my opinions and I have the right to say what I want when I want. This is also pride.
  • The lack of the fear of Elohim. Are you more concerned with what others think than what YHVH Elohim thinks about something? Anything in our lives that we put ahead of Elohim is idolatry.
  • Ask yourself this: In everything that I do and say, am I advancing the kingdom of Elohim and bringing glory to Yeshua or am I doing the opposite? Am I being a river of life to all those around me, or am I dragging them downward by being a purveyor of negativity and darkness? Are my words, thoughts and deeds leading people to the light of YHVH Elohim and to Yeshua or away from them?

Tell the Redemption Story. It is the responsibility of parents and elders to pass on to the next generation the Passover story (Exod 12:24–27). Explain how the Israelites were enslaved in Egypt (a metaphor for the world), to Pharaoh (a metaphor for Satan), and how YHVH delivered the Israelites from the judgment of the destroyer (YHVH’s judgment against sin) because they put the blood of the lamb on their doorposts (a picture of Yeshua’s sin-atoning death on the cross). In reality, this is the basic gospel message. This is what the Passover seder is all about and why we celebrate it. 

Celebrate the Feasts. Prepare your heart and mind to obey YHVH by keeping his appointed times of Passover and Unleavened Bread. Are you willing to obey his commands pertaining to these observances? How much do you love him (John 14:15)? How much do you want to know him (1 John 2:6–7)? Celebrating YHVH’s feasts help us to love him and to know him better.

Examine Yourself. At this time of the year, we must each examine ourselves to insure that we will not be partaking of the cup of redemption (i.e. the communion cup) unworthily (1 Cor 11:28).

Rediscover the Cross. It is time to rediscover the cross of Yeshua again and your place at its foot. It is also time to rediscover the power of the resurrected Yeshua in one’s life. Marvel at the miracle of the resurrection and consider the fact that you have access to Yeshua’s resurrected life through faith in him and through the work of his Set-Apart Spirit as you obey the Word of Elohim. 

A Time of Spiritual Awakening and New Beginnings. Passover occurs in the spring at the beginning of the biblical year. Spring is a time of new beginnings physically and spiritually. It’s the time of year to take stock of one’s life, assess any weaknesses and deficiencies you have, and then resolve to make the necessary changes. It is the time to make improvements through the power of YHVH’s grace, his Word, his Spirit all through a vibrant, daily relationship with Yeshua our Master and Savior.

The Season for Spiritual Housecleaning. It’s Time to Deleaven.  Passover is time of spring cleaning and deleavening our physical houses (Exod 12:15–20) and removing the leaven of sin from our spiritual houses as well (Pss 26:2; 139:1, 23–24). We must root out and eradicate the old sin habits from the crevices and dark areas of our life. In Scripture, leavening represents sin, pride, hypocrisy and false doctrine.  Do the sinful practices, evil habits and illicit delicacies of Egypt still hold sway on us? Do any unclean spirits or filthy habits still have control over us? It is time to take control of these sins and eliminate them and become wholly consecrated unto YHVH-Yeshua, his Word, his plans and purposes. It is time to seek first his kingdom and his righteousness (Matt 6:33). One can’t serve two masters at the same time (i.e. the world and the flesh) and expect to be pleasing to YHVH (Matt 6:24). It’s time to forsake all these things that drag us down spiritually and pull us away from our Father in heaven. It’s time to move onward and upward spiritually!

Time to Renew Our First Love For Yeshua. Take this time to rediscover the glorious beauty of Yeshua our Heavenly Bridegroom (Rev 2:4–5). Now is the time to rekindle our passion and zeal for Yeshua and to repent of spiritual lukewarmness (Rev 3:15–21).

 

Communion or the Lord’s Supper Explained in Its Hebraic Context

The Importance of Memorials and Symbols

Obedient and truth-seeking disciples of Yeshua will want to love him by keeping his commandments (John 14:12), and by teaching and doing everything he commanded (Matt 28:20). They will be following Paul’s example to imitate Yeshua (1 Cor 11:1) as well heeding John’s admonition “to walk just as [Yeshua] walked” (1 John 2:6). 

With regard to obeying YHVH’s commands, symbols and memorials figure prominently in YHVH Elohim’s spiritual economy. Why is this? They are teaching aids. Physical humans need physical things to help them to comprehend spiritual truths and ideals. Using symbols, commemorations and memorials is a method of teaching and relates to pedagogy, which is “the method and practice of teaching, especially as an academic subject or theoretical concept.” A effective teacher endeavors to build bridges of understanding between what the student knows and what the teacher wants to teach the student— between the known and the unknown, between what the student understands now and what the teacher wants his students to learn. A successful teacher learns the skill of building bridges of understanding with his students to bring them to a higher level of understanding. The same is true of YHVH Elohim as we works with humans to teach them about spiritual things.

On a spiritual level, YHVH Elohim, our Heavenly Teacher, employes similar pedagogic or teaching techniques as he endeavors to bring men to a higher level of understanding heaven’s spiritual truths and realities. The use of symbols and memorials as teaching tools is essential to this process of teaching and learning.

The Bible is full of symbols and memorials that represent or point to something else and act as teaching aids to assist humans in learning about Elohim and what he requires of us. For example, Continue reading


 

How the First Passover Perfectly Pictured Yeshua the Messiah

For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Messiah, for it is the power of Elohim to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. (Rom 1:16)

For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God. (1 Cor 1:18)

Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved [except the name of Yeshua the Messiah]. (Acts 4:12)

According to the laws of statistical probability, what are the chances of an event happening and then fifteen hundred years later another event occurring bearing an uncanny resemblance to the first one? Now suppose that not only did fifteen hundred years separate the two events, but that they occurred in two different countries several hundred miles apart, which in the ancient world considering the difficulties of travel and communications may as well have been halfway around the globe. Now suppose that the second event involved the death of a person, and that the events leading up to their death including the manner and timing of that death was beyond the control of the individual dying so that in no way could the person dying stage his death to mirror the first event. In fact, those killing the individual possessed no foreknowledge of the event that had occurred fifteen hundred years earlier. What are the chances of this occurring? Well beyond the laws of possibility!

This is not a fictional story! Truth is sometimes stranger than fiction. The details of these two events are chronicled in the pages of the Bible. The first event occurred in ancient Egypt and is recorded in the Book of Exodus chapters eleven and twelve. There we find recorded the details of the children of Israel’s first Passover while they were yet slaves in the land of Egypt. A whole series of events led up to this first Passover, which culminated with each family’s ritual killing of a lamb, smearing its blood on the frame of their doors, roasting the lamb, and then eating it. Doing this insured that YHVH would pass over their homes leaving those inside alive. The firstborn of those whose homes did not have the blood on them were killed.

The second event involved a descendant of those ancient people who was born in a different land fifteen hundred years later. His name was Yeshua of Nazareth, a Jew, and viewed by many of his day as the long-awaited Messiah of Israel. One of the proofs of his Messiahship would be whether Continue reading


 

Why Celebrate the Passover?

Isn’t your life already busy enough? Who has time for a six-hour Passover Seder commemorating something that happened thousands of years ago? What could this possibly have to do with my life here and now, you may ask? How can a 3500-year-old Biblical ritual in any way relate to those living in the age of the laser, satellites, the worldwide web and computers? Well, let’s see!

The Preacher said in Ecclesiastes 3:15, “That which is has been already and that which will be has already been.…” Life is full of paradoxes. Do advancements in technology, science, economics, medicine, religion, and world government really promise to give men the rest for their weary souls for which they long?

How about a different approach to the questions and problems facing modern man? Is it possible to go forward by going backwards? This is a thesis that the ancient prophet Yermeyahu (Jeremiah) proffered to those who had ears to hear. He said, “Thus says YHVH, ‘Stand by the ways and see and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; and you will find rest for your souls. But they said, we will not walk in it’” (Jer 6:16). What were those ancient paths to which this white-haired Jewish prophet referred? This question is answered three verses later: “Because they have not listened to My words, and as for My Torah, they have rejected it also” (verse 19). YHVH through his prophets has been showing men the way of rest for their souls for thousands of years, yet men consistently refuse to listen. They always have a better way, so it seems!

The festival of Passover is one of the most ancient paths to be found in all of the Scriptures. In it are contained clues that will help the partakers of it to understand the past, present and the future. 

A God-hater, Karl Marx, the father of modern communism, said that religion is the opiate of the masses. Yes, this can be said of dead, truthless and spiritless religion. But how about that religion which gives definition, purpose, meaning, hope and destiny to a man’s life? How could anything that comes directly from the Loving Father who created you and me in his own image be detrimental to us?

It has been said that the religion of the Bible tells a man where he has come from, where he is at and where he is going. Could it not be said that a man who knows the answers to these questions possesses true wisdom and wealth, and has indeed found rest for his troubled soul?

One of the most important scriptures in the Jewish faith is the famous shema passage of Deuteronomy 6:4–9. This passage, which is like a “pledge of allegiance” for the Jews, starts out by saying, “Hear [shema], O Israel …” The word shema literally means “to hear and to do.” Later, in verse five, the shema continues, “And you shall love YHVH your Elohim with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your might.” Loving our Heavenly Creator is not just a mind-thing, but also an action and a doing thing. It is something we act out and participate in. This is the Hebrew way … the ancient paths! As a path is for the purpose of walking down, even so, Passover is meant to be celebrated. This is how YHVH’s people showed their love and devotion to him. Yeshua, the Jewish Messiah, reiterated this when he said, “If you love me, keep my commandments [or Torah mitzvot]” (John 14:15). 

This is what the Passover Seder is all about. We, as humans, learn by doing. We learn obedience by obeying. We learn to love by loving. We learn about heavenly and spiritual mysteries by walking out the types and shadows found in Scripture (of which Passover is but one) that point to the heavenly and spiritual domain or dimension of YHVH himself. The French have a saying: L’appétit vient en mangeant. Translated this means: Appetite comes while eating. Or we could say that the more one eats (delicious food) the more one wants. David said in Continue reading