How did Jesus fulfill Passover? Part 4

According to Exodus 12 there were five basic requirements for celebrating Passover.

1. Set aside a lamb on the 10th of Nisan- one without defect 
2. Slaughter the lamb on the 14th - but don’t break any bones 
3. Put some of the lamb’s blood on the sides and top of the doorframe 
4. Finish the Passover on the 14th - don't let it spill over into the next day 
5. Celebrate the Passover perpetually

In this post I'll show you how Jesus fulfilled requirement #4.

The fourth requirement of Passover was that it had to be finished on the 14th, which for the Jew meant by twilight (approximately 6pm). Remember, for a Jew twilight was the end of one day and the beginning of the next. They did this because God commanded in Exodus 12:10 regarding the Passover “Do not leave any of it till morning; if some is left till morning, you must burn it.” God didn’t want the Passover spilling into the next day. If any of it was left after the meal they were to burn it before the day ended.

Notice the parallel here between the Passover lamb and Jesus...

As the Passover lamb was done away with before the start of the next day, so Jesus was taken down from the cross and buried before the start of the next day. We read in John 19 that on the same day Jesus was crucified, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus took Jesus' body down from the cross, wrapped it in strips of linen and buried it in a tomb in a garden at the site of the crucifixion. 

Note: Joseph was a wealthy man and could've paid for Jesus to be buried somewhere else, but God didn't allow that to happen. God provided a tomb on site so Jesus could be buried quickly (before the end of the day) thus fulfilling the fourth requirement of Passover. 

So to summarize: As the Passover lamb had to be finished and done away with before the start of the next day, so Jesus was taken down from the cross and buried before the Passover day had ended. 

So we see that Jesus fulfilled the fourth requirement of the Passover.

How did Jesus fulfill Passover? Part 3

According to Exodus 12 there were five basic requirements for celebrating Passover.

1. Set aside a lamb on the 10th of Nisan- one without defect 
2. Slaughter the lamb on the 14th - but don’t break any bones 
3. Put some of the lamb’s blood on the sides and top of the doorframe 
4. Finish the Passover on the 14th - don't let it spill over into the next day 
5. Celebrate the Passover perpetually

In this post I'll show you how Jesus fulfilled requirement #3.

The third requirement of Passover was that some of the slaughter lamb's blood be put on the sides and top of each Israelite doorframe.

Notice the first parallel between the Passover lamb and Jesus...

1. As some of the blood of the Passover lamb stained the top of the doorframe, so Jesus' blood stained the top of the cross. We read in Matthew 27:29 that they "...twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on his head."

Notice the second parallel between the Passover lamb and Jesus...

2. As some of the blood of the Passover lamb stained each side of the doorframe, so Jesus' blood stained each side of the cross. We learn from John 20:25 that when they crucified Jesus they drove nails through his hands to fasten him to the cross.

Notice: Apart from Jesus the blood on the top and sides of the door frame has no significance whatsoever. But when Jesus' crucifixion is seen as the fulfillment of the Passover lamb's slaughter, the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe takes on great significance.

To Summarize: By applying the blood of the lamb the Israelites were spared from death. When the angel God sent to judge the Egyptians came to the door and saw the blood, he passed over that house. (this is how we got the name Passover). In the same way today, by faith we apply the blood of the lamb Jesus to the door frame of our heart - and in so doing we are spared from the penalty of our sins, which is death (Romans 6:23). 

So we see that Jesus passed the third requirement of Passover. 

How did Jesus fulfill Passover? Part 2

According to Exodus 12 there were five basic requirements for celebrating Passover.

1. Set aside a lamb on the 10th of Nisan- one without defect 
2. Slaughter the lamb on the 14th - but don’t break any bones 
3. Put some of the lamb’s blood on the sides and top of the doorframe 
4. Finish the Passover on the 14th - don't let it spill over into the next day 
5. Celebrate the Passover perpetually

In this post I'll show you how Jesus fulfilled requirement #2.

The second requirement of Passover was that the lamb had to be slaughtered on the 14th. And God commanded that none of the bones were to be broken during the slaughtering process.

Notice the first parallel between the Passover lamb and Jesus...

1. As the Passover lamb was slaughtered on the 14th day of Nisan, so Jesus was crucified on the 14th day of Nisan. 

And notice with me the similarities between the Passover lamb and Jesus (the Lamb of God) on that day.

• By 9am on the day of the Passover the Jews were busy with preparations for sacrifice. This was the exact time (9am) that Jesus was nailed to the cross. We read in Mark 15:25 “Now it was the third hour, and they crucified Him.” The third hour was 9am in Jewish time. At the same time the Jews were making preparations for sacrifice, Jesus was prepared to die by being nailed to a cross. 
• At 3pm the people were slaughtering their lambs. I know a Jewish pastor named David. He's a Christian who annually celebrates Passover. We worked on this message together and he told me that the last sacrifice took place by 3pm. When the priest had slaughtered the last lamb he would say "It is finished." Well, the Bible records that Jesus died at exactly 3pm. We read in Mark 15:33-37 that “…at the ninth hour [3pm Jewish time] Jesus cried out in a loud voice…“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” [Then] With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last. And we know what that last loud cry was, don't we? John 19:30 reveals that Jesus' last loud cry was "It is finished!" 

Now notice the second parallel between the Passover lamb and Jesus...

2. As the Passover lamb was slaughtered without a bone being broken, so Jesus was crucified without a bone being broken. 

We read in John 19:30-37 that the Roman soldiers broke the legs of the two thieves who were crucified next to Jesus - but when they came to Jesus they saw that he was already dead, so they did not break his legs.

Notice: Jesus died on the same month (Nisan), day (the 14th) and even hour (3pm) as did the Passover lamb.

To summarize: As the Israelites slaughtered a lamb on the 14th of Nisan, so Jesus was crucified on the 14th of Nisan. And as the bones of the Passover lamb were preserved, so Jesus’ bones were preserved - not one of them was broken.

So we see that Jesus met the second requirement of Passover. 

How did Jesus fulfill Passover? Part 1

According to Exodus 12 there were five basic requirements for celebrating Passover.

1. Set aside a lamb on the 10th of Nisan- one without defect 
2. Slaughter the lamb on the 14th - but don’t break any bones 
3. Put some of the lamb’s blood on the sides and top of the doorframe 
4. Finish the Passover on the 14th - don't let it spill over into the next day 
5. Celebrate the Passover perpetually 

In this post I'll show you how Jesus fulfilled requirement #1.

The first requirement of Passover was that a lamb be set aside on the 10th of Nisan, four days prior to Passover. During these four days leading up to Passover the lamb was to be examined to be proven to be without defect, for this is what God had commanded.

Notice the first parallel between the Passover lamb and Jesus...

1. As the Passover lamb was set aside on the 10th, so Jesus entered Jerusalem on the 10th, to be set aside as the human lamb Isaiah and John the Baptist prophesied about.

Let me explain. John 12:1 says, “Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany…” Since Passover was celebrated on the 14th, this would mean that Jesus came to Bethany on the 9th. Then we read in John 12:12 that, “The next day the great crowd that had come for the [Passover] festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem.” Since Jesus was in Bethany on the 9th, that makes the next day the 10th. Jesus entered Jerusalem to be set aside as the human Lamb of God on the exact day that God told the Jews to set aside their lambs for Passover.

Notice the second parallel between the Passover lamb and Jesus...

2. As the Passover lamb was without defect, so Jesus was found to be faultless.

When Jesus arrived in Jerusalem the Jews tried to find some fault in Jesus they could use to discredit him. For example, in Matthew 21 the religious leaders questioned his authority. In Matthew 23 they asked Him trick questions hoping he would give a wrong answer they could then use against Him. But they found nothing. In frustration, the Jews turned Jesus over to Pilate, hoping he could find something to accuse Jesus of. But even after interrogating and beating Jesus, Pilate said of him in John 19:4 “I find no fault in Him.” Of course he didn't for Jesus was a Lamb without defect!

Now notice this: All these things happened between the 10th and the 14th - that is, during the same exact time when the Jews were examining their lambs - looking for faults - in preparation for sacrifice.

To summarize: As the Israelites set aside a lamb on the 10th of Nisan, so Jesus was set aside on the 10th of Nisan. And as the Israelites examined their lamb to be sure it was without defect, so Jesus was examined and found to be without defect. 

So we see that Jesus fulfilled the first requirement of Passover. 

The Seven Feasts

God instructed the Israelites to annually celebrate seven feasts. In Leviticus 23:1-2 The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘These are my appointed feasts, the appointed feasts of the Lord, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies. The seven feasts are then listed…

First we have the Spring Feasts.

1. The Passover, v.5

2. Unleavened Bread, v.6

3. First Fruits, v.11

These took place during the Spring Harvest in the Jewish month of Nisan, which on our calendar falls between March and April. 

Second we have the Summer Feast. 

4. Pentecost, v.16 

This took place during the Summer Harvest in the Jewish month of Sivan, which on our calendar falls between May and June.

Third we have the Fall Feasts.

5. Trumpets, v.24
6. Atonement, v.27
7. Tabernacles, v.34

These took place during the Fall Harvest in the Jewish month of Tishri, which on our calendar falls between September and October.

The Bible says these feasts were "sacred assemblies". The Hebrew word for "sacred assembly" is mikrah and means "dress rehearsal". One day God was going to send Messiah into the world to act out a redemption 'play'. And when that came came God wanted the Jews to recognize 'the play'. So He had the Israelites act it out over and over again for 1,500 years prior to Messiah coming into the world. God's hope was that through 1,500 years of dress rehearsal the Jews would recognize the play when it came to town. 

Here's another way to think of the feasts. Think of them as pictures. Each feast was a picture of Messiah. God's hope was that by looking at the pictures of Messiah for 1,500 years the Jews would recognize him when he came.

You could also think of the feasts as shadows. The apostle Paul said of the feasts in Colossians 2:17, “For these rules [the rules of the feasts] are only shadows of the reality yet to come. And Christ himself is that reality.” A shadow isn’t a person. A shadow only points to the reality of a person. In the same way the feasts were shadows that pointed to the person of Christ. God’s hope was that by seeing the shadow for fifteen hundreds years, they would recognize the person the shadows pointed to.

Though God went through great lengths to help the Jews recognize their Messiah, the failed to do so. John 1:11 records that Jesus came to that which was his own (the Jews), but his own did not receive him. As we study the feasts, let us not make the same mistake as the Jews. As we study the feasts may we see the Messiah as God intended and make this Messiah both Savior and Lord. 

Acts of Service

Biblically, there are five ways God expresses his love for us. And these are the five ways that we are to express love to our spouse (and others). In this post we'll unpackage God's fourth expression of love.

4. Acts of Service 

John 13:1-4, "It was just before the Passover Festival. Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end…so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him." Through the humble act of washing dirty feet, Jesus showed his love for his disciples, and then instructed them to follow his example.

If we want a happy and healthy marriage we too should follow this example of serving.

At our house Kristin does the laundry, but she absolutely hates it. Now I hate doing laundry too, but I love my wife so I did a couple loads for her while she was out having coffee with her sister. This is an example of a practical act of service.

Andrew, our executive pastor here at New Day, isn’t just a good pastor, he’s also a good husband. And since it’s hard for Kristi to go to the grocery store with four kids, Andrew often takes care of the grocery shopping for her. It’s a practical way he shows his love for Kristi.

Though I grew up in a traditional home where my dad made the proverbial bacon and my mom cooked it, my dad isn't above helping around the house. At Thanksgiving or when we all come over his house to eat, he always does the dishes so that my mom doesn’t have to. It’s a simple, but meaningful way to express love through an act of service.

These are all examples of acts of service. They require thought, planning, time, effort and energy. And if done with a positive attitude, they count as meaningful expressions of love! Jesus wasn’t above showing us love by serving us, so who are we to be above showing love to our spouse by serving them? Why not think of a practical act of service you could do for your spouse today? 

Keep the Tank Full

To have a healthy and happy marriage, it's important to learn how to keep your spouse's love tank full. 

Christian author Gary Chapman, in his book The Five Love Languages writes "...inside your spouse is an ‘emotional tank’ that is waiting to be filled with love. At the heart of mankind’s existence is the desire to be intimate and loved by another. And God designed marriage to meet this need for intimacy and love. That being the case, keeping your spouse’s emotional love tank full is as important to a marriage as maintaining the proper oil level is to an automobile. Running your marriage on an empty love tank may be even more costly than running your car without oil."

So how do we do it? 

Well, Jesus gives us some insight in Mark 12:29-31 when he said: The most important commandment is this…Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”

From these verses it's clear that we're to love God and love others, but what does biblical love look like? Fortunately, God hasn't left us hanging. The Bible lays out at least five ways that God expresses his love for us - and these in turn are the five ways that we are to love each other.

Here are five biblical expressions of love that we'll unpackage in the following posts. 

1. Words of Affirmation
Matthew 3:16-17 says: As soon as Jesus was baptized...a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” God showed Jesus he loved him by speaking kindly to him. 

2. Quality Time
Genesis 3:8-9 reveals that God took time daily to walk and talk with Adam and Eve. God showed Adam and Eve he loved them by spending time with them.

3. Gift Giving
Romans 6:23 says "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." God has shown us how much he loves us by giving us the gift of eternal life (through faith in his Son Jesus).

4. Acts of Service
John 13:4-5 says, "Jesus took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him." Jesus showed his love for his disciples by serving them, and then instructed them to follow his example.

5. Physical Touch
In Mark 10:16 Jesus took the children in his arms and placed his hands on their heads and blessed them. When Jesus' disciples assumed Jesus was too important to bother with children, Jesus showed his love for the children with appropriate, loving touch. 

These are five ways that God loves us and five great ways that we can express love to our spouse.

The Honesty Test

There are three tests historians use to determine the credibility and trustworthiness of any ancient document. The Honesty Test, the Telephone Test and the Corroboration Test.

The Honesty Test asks: Do we have reason to believe that the writer cares about the truth and is telling the truth? In the Gospels (the four accounts of Jesus' life) we have five evidences that help us conclude the gospel writers cared about the truth and were telling the truth.

Evidence #1: The Eye Witness Testimony 
Why should we believe what we read about Jesus in the Bible? Well, for starters, we have eyewitness testimony (the most powerful kind of testimony there is). Historians say: The closer the writer was to the events he/she recorded determine the extent of the credibility (or believability). The closer the writer was to the events recorded, the more credible the writer. This fares well for those who believe the Bible can be trusted because the New Testament accounts of the life and teaching of Jesus were recorded by men who had been either eyewitnesses themselves or who related the accounts of eyewitnesses.

• Matthew: recorded his own first hand account of the life of Jesus
• Mark: records Peter’s first hand account of the life of Jesus 
• Luke: records various first hand accounts of the life of Jesus 
• John: recorded his own first hand account of the life of Jesus, I John 1:1, “We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life.” NLT 

Evidence #2: The Minor Variations 
Some skeptics ask “How can the Gospels be accurate if they give different accounts of the same event?” Well, a surprising discovery is that many historians consider minor variations to be evidence in favor of the truth of an account. The idea is that if the writers were lying, they’d be sure to get their stories straight and agree in every detail. What seems to be a contradiction is often just the same event viewed from a different perspective. You see, the four accounts of Jesus’ life are given from four different perspectives, much like four witnesses who all saw the same accident but reported different details of what happened. So we see that the differences in the accounts of Jesus’ life and teaching are actually evidence of their truthfulness.

Evidence #3: The Specificity
When people make up a story, do they give you lots of details you can check out or do they intentionally leave it vague? They leave it vague, right? That’s why myths start off in a galaxy far, far away or in a land once upon a time. But were the gospel writers vague or specific in what they wrote? Let’s look at the gospel writer Luke. Notice how many particular details that can be checked out by historians.

Luke 3:1-2, “In the fifteenth year [not the 14th, not the 16th] of the reign of Tiberius Caesar [not Augustus Caesar or Tiberius Caesar or Caligula Caesar or Nero Caesar]—when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod tetrarch of Galilee, his brother Philip tetrarch of Iturea and Traconitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene—2 during the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness.” NIV

How much more specific could you get!!?? And if these details weren’t true what could any skeptic do and what could any historian do? They could check it out and they could disprove it. But the problem (for skeptics) is that even irreligious scholars agree that Luke is an incredibly accurate historian. Do you see what the writers are doing? They’re saying: We care about the truth and we care about the details!

Evidence #4: The Embarrassment 

Warner Wallace is a cold case detective who used to be an atheist. Cold case detectives study old cases with fresh eyes. They often times don’t have eyewitnesses so they rely on circumstantial evidence. Well, he was challenged to consider the claims of Christ, so he applied forensic evidence to the New Testament. After doing so, he became a Christian! What happened? Well, he said the New Testament, specifically the gospel of Mark, had all the signs you look for of credible testimony. So for example one thing that he looked for (and historians also look for) is something called the criterion of embarrassment. What this means is if we want to know if a witness cares about the truth we look and see if the witness reports things that are disparaging to his or her character. If someone reports something that’s embarrassing what’s the only reason that person would report it? Because they care about the truth! Nobody makes up stories to make themselves look bad! People make up stories to make themselves look good!

This is what’s so interesting about the gospels: When you look at the Gospels do you think the Gospel writers make themselves look good? Or do they make themselves look bad? Let’s take a look...

In John chapter 18, when Jesus was arrested and brought into the courtyard of the high priest, Peter, the leader of the disciples, was asked by a little servant girl “You aren’t one of this man’s disciples too are you?” How did Peter respond? Did he stand on a table and say “Listen up everybody. I don’t care if I die for saying this but I am a follower of Jesus and I believe that he is the Son of God sent from heaven to die for our sins. Repent and place your faith in Him!”? No! The Bible records that Peter denied that he even knew who Jesus was! And he didn’t do this once or twice. The Bible records that he denied Jesus three times! What could be more embarrassing than that?!!!

Here’s another example...In Luke 18 Jesus is teaching his disciples about how his death will fulfill what’s been written by the prophets concerning him. When Jesus finishes his teaching, what happens? Do the disciples say “We totally understand everything you just said”? No! The Bible records in v.34 “The disciples did not understand any of this.” This same thing happened in John 12. Jesus had just done something of spiritual significance and did the disciples discern its meaning? No! Verse 16 records “His disciples didn’t understand...” Truth be told - The Bible repeatedly records the disciples embarrassing shortcomings, lack of faith and lack of spiritual discernment. If the disciples just made up these stories about Jesus, we have to ask ourselves why they didn’t make themselves the heroes of the story, instead of as the guys who are constantly getting it wrong?

How do we know the authors of Scripture cared about the truth? Because they regularly report embarrassing accounts disparaging to their character! The only reason they would do that is because it was the truth!

Evidence #5: The Cost 
We have reason to believe the accounts of Jesus’ life are true because of what it cost the disciples to stick to their story. What did it cost them to believe in and teach others about Jesus? It ultimately cost them their lives. Some were crucified, some were beheaded, some were tortured - all because they wouldn’t recant that Jesus was the Son of God who rose from the dead.

When I look at the disciples I have to ask myself: What more could they do to convince us that they cared about the truth? They gave their own lives! They gave their own lives when all they had to do was walk away from their belief in Jesus and they would’ve been spared. That’s meaningful to me because many people won’t walk across the street for what they believe today. Yet the disciples gave their lives.