Our Journey
1 Corinthians Chapter 10
Bible Study
(part 2)
PASSOVER
“Brethren, I would not want you to be ignorant of this: that our fathers were all under a cloud, and all passed through the sea, 2 and were all baptized under Moses in the cloud and in the sea, 3 and did all eat of the same spiritual food, 4 and did all drink of the same spiritual drink. And they drank of that spiritual rock that followed them, which rock was Christ. 5 But in many of them, God had no delight. For they were overthrown in the wilderness.”
- 1Cor 10:1-4 NMB
Preceding the wilderness journey of God’s people was the Passover. I believe we must start here. Without this event, the chosen of God would never have been set free or taken even a first step toward their inheritance. Likewise, without the blood of the slain Lamb of God we would be bound still in our sin with no eternal hope.
So, as Passover represents the first step in our Christian walk, let us take a brief look at this first Feast established by God for His people in the Exodus.
Somewhere around the 14th Century BC the Israelites had now been in Egypt for approximately 400 years. Moses had been born, raised in Pharaohs household, fled to Midian, met with God at the burning bush, and the deliverance of God’s people was at hand. The first great promise in the Scripture was about to begin to be fulfilled.
Gods chosen people Israel were not only in physical bondage to the Egyptians, but were also in spiritual bondage to the gods of Egypt.
“In the course of those many days the king of Egypt died. And the people of Israel groaned under their bondage, and cried out for help, and their cry under bondage came up to God. 24 And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. 25 And God saw the people of Israel, and God knew their condition.”
– Exodus 2:23-25 RSV
In Joshua’s farewell speech he warns the people not to return to serving the false gods that their fathers had served in Egypt. These they had come to worship mostly out of ignorance. But now they had been set free.
“Now therefore fear the Lord, and serve Him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River, and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.”
– Joshua 24:14 RSV
As we’ll see, it was not because the Israelite’s were seeking or following God that He delivered them; but it was because of His promise to Abraham. They didn’t know His Name; but it was for His Name’s sake that He purposed to bring them out of the land of Egypt and into the land He had sworn to give to Abraham’s descendants.
In the Book of Acts Stephen recounts God’s promise to Abraham -
“Brethren and fathers, listen: The God of glory appeared to our father Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he dwelt in Haran, 3 and said to him, ‘Get out of your country and from your relatives, and come to a land that I will show you.’ 4 Then he came out of the land of the Chaldeans and dwelt in Haran. And from there, when his father was dead, He moved him to this land in which you now dwell. 5 And God gave him no inheritance in it, not even enough to set his foot on. But even when Abraham had no child, He promised to give it to him for a possession, and to his descendants after him. 6 But God spoke in this way: that his descendants would dwell in a foreign land, and that they would bring them into bondage and oppress them four hundred years. 7 ‘And the nation to whom they will be in bondage I will judge,’ said God, ‘and after that they shall come out and serve Me in this place.”
- Acts 7:2-7 NKJV
The covenant made with Abraham had passed to Isaac; then Jacob, to the 12 sons of Israel (Jacob). And God would not forget the promise made to His friend generations earlier -
“Then He said to Abram: “Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years. 14 And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions. 15 Now as for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good old age. 16 But in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.”17 And it came to pass, when the sun went down and it was dark, that behold, there appeared a smoking oven and a burning torch that passed between those pieces. 18 On the same day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying: “To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the River Euphrates— 19 the Kenites, the Kenezzites, the Kadmonites, 20 the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Rephaim, 21 the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites.”
- Gen 15:13-21 NKJV
The “covenant with Abraham” was the reason God gave - to Moses and to Israel - for the redemption of His people. The promise of a coming Journey and inheritance had been prophesied to Abram before his son had even been born.
During his preparation, Moses was taught by God of the promise and the covenant He had established with the line He Himself had chosen to bear His Name and His Judgments in the earth.
“And God spoke to Moses and said to him: “I am the Lord. 3 I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name YHWH I was not known to them. 4 I have also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land of their pilgrimage, in which they were strangers. 5 And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel whom the Egyptians keep in bondage, and I have remembered My covenant. 6 Therefore say to the children of Israel: ‘I am the Lord; I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, I will rescue you from their bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments. 7 I will take you as My people, and I will be your God. Then you shall know that I am the Lord your God who brings you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. 8 And I will bring you into the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; and I will give it to you as a heritage: I am the Lord.’”
– Exodus 6:2-8 NKJV
And when the time was fulfilled, God indeed prepared and sent the deliverer He had raised up; to save His people and bring glory to His Name. Yet they never really did fully grasp or understand God’s purpose and ways. They seemed to think it was all about them at times; rejoicing when God blessed or protected them, but just as readily complained when they were uncomfortable or things didn’t go the way they liked. Sounds like us in the churches today; we are happy when we’re healthy and wealthy, but blame God when disaster strikes or a loved one falls ill or dies. And we really don’t like being made uncomfortable. In mistakenly thinking it is all about us, just like “our fathers”, we end up blaming God when He allows or sends necessary trials into our lives.
“Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your wonders;
They did not remember the multitude of Your mercies,
But rebelled by the sea—the Red Sea.
8 Nevertheless He saved them for His Name’s sake,
That He might make His mighty power known.”
- Psalm 106:7-8 NKJV
But the Lord God will have those through whom His Name is glorified. And we know it is the Name of Jesus that will be lifted above all other names in both the physical and spiritual realms. Even this, the lifting of Jesus’ Name above all others, is for God’s glory, as we read in Philippians 2, speaking of the Man who “humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. 9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
- Phil 2:8-11 NKJV
It’s about Him, not us.
“I acted for My Name’s sake, that it should not be profaned before the Gentiles…”
- Eze 20:9a
After bringing them out, God gave them His Law. His Law was a judgment against not only the Egyptians and Canaanites, but against the spiritual rulers from of old who rebelled and been cast down. It was for His own Name, YHWH, Yah, I Am, the Becoming One, that He did this, and gave the seed of Abraham the opportunity to make His Name known on the earth.
“Pay strict attention to everything I have said to you. You must not invoke the names of other gods; they must not be heard on your lips.” – Ex 23:13 HCSB
They were warned and called to be faithful to the One True God, to His “glorious and awe-inspiring Name: Yahweh your Elohim.” (Deut 28:58b NOG)
This is truly a wonderful topic to delve into later: The Name. But let us get back to the Passover…
So, just as the time came when the “iniquity of the Amorites was full” and God sent one to deliver His people from Egypt so that they might be the instrument through which God would judge the fallen gods and “build a house for His Name”, Scripture tells us that when the fullness of time had come God sent us a Deliverer to save us, and transform His Elect to “make His enemies His footstool”, be made One with Christ, and bring glory to His Name. And it is because of a promise made to His Firstborn Son that God sent Jesus to be not only our Deliverer, but also the sacrificial Lamb.
"Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world. 4 But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”
– Gal 4:3-5 NKJV
As His sons, brothers of His Firstborn, these (hopefully “we”) shall be known by His Name. And honestly, the promise given in Psalm 2 to the Messiah will be the same promise given all His sons; to all who prove worthy to bear His Name.
“The Lord has said to Me,
‘You are My Son,
Today I have begotten You.
8 Ask of Me, and I will give You
The nations for Your inheritance,
And the ends of the earth for Your possession.”
- Psalm 2:7-8 NKJV
This is yet another study for another time… the relationship between the Father & the Son, and the purpose of God for Man at the culmination of the ages, the convergence of the spiritual & physical realms. But always, all is for the glory of God.
As Jesus neared the time of His sacrifice upon the Cross, we read of His very real struggle between His human will and His Divine nature -
“Now My soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save Me from this hour’? But for this purpose I came to this hour. 28 Father, glorify Your Name.”
Then a voice came from heaven, saying,
“I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.”
– John 12:27-28 NKJV
The purpose God set Israel free, and would bring them through their testing in the wilderness in preparation to enter into their inheritance, was to bring glory to His Name in the earth. Sadly, as we will see, they failed often to see God’s purpose and plan, and they fell short of His blessings that are always the result of faithfulness.
Friends, every step of our Christian walk can be seen in the type of Israel’s formation, calling, captivity, deliverance and inheritance. May we learn from the examples, both good and bad, of their journey.
So, they were saved by God and delivered out of the land of oppression by His mighty hand. No works were done by the Israelites to earn this deliverance. When the time came, they needed only to believe God's command to sacrifice a lamb “without blemish”, eat it, and sprinkle its blood on the doorposts of their homes.
“every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household.” (Ex 12:3b) “Your lamb shall be without blemish” (Ex 12:5) “It is the Lord’s Passover.” (Ex 12:11c)
“For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord. 13 Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.”
- Ex 12:12-13 NKJV
We can see the type here of our initial salvation from bandage to sin and the world. While we were still in bondage to sin the Lord had compassion on us (Rom 5:8-9) and redeemed us (1Pet 1:18). Our deliverance from the world is not of our own doing (Eph 2:8-9), we must believe God's Word (John 3:16), and eat and drink the body and blood of Jesus (John 6:54-56) who is the sacrificial Lamb without spot or blemish (1Pet 1:19)
I say “initial salvation” because as we see from the bulk of the New Testament, this is only the beginning. But of course, there must be a beginning. And it began with the Passover Lamb. This we must always remember.
So, “if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; 18 knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”
- 1Pet 1:17-19 NKJV
"when I see the blood, I will pass over you..." (Ex 12:13). The Angel of the Lord brought death to every house that lacked the blood of a slain lamb upon its doorposts. In the same way, God has promised we will be spared from His wrath in the Day of the Lord if He finds we have the blood of Christ upon us. (Rom 5:9).
Accepting the blood atonement of Christ on Calvary is our first step of Christian walk, our own Passover. The reconciliation to the Father, and the opportunity for the inheritance of God’s creation was only made possible by the sacrifice of the Lamb of God.
“the church of the Lord and God which He purchased with His own blood.”
- Acts 20:28b
“In Him we have redemption through His blood.” - Eph 1:7
For reasons we may look at at another time, God requires blood in order for redemption to be complete. This was true under the Old Covenant, which we see in the various sacrifices as well as the initial slaying of the lamb at the first Passover; and it is true under the New Covenant, which required the blood of The Lamb to bring redemption to mankind. And while all will not accept this Atonement, it is available to all.
“For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, 12 teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works.”
– Titus 2:11-14 NKJV
And once we have received the Atonement and been set free from the bondage of sin and the world, we must also receive the conditions of the covenant, which we shall look at in the coming weeks. For with the wonderful opportunity of salvation comes great personal responsibility to turn from the darkness of this world and to walk in the Light.
“The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.” – 2Pet 3:9 NKJV
And in Paul’s letter to Timothy we read of “God our Savior…who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” – 1Tim 2:4 NKJV
So now begins our journey toward the Kingdom of God, just as Israel began their journey toward the Promised Land. We are to leave behind that which we were freed from. The example the Israelites left us is not one we want to follow. The Israelites did not leave all behind in Egypt, no longer looking back as God had also commanded Lot's family as they left Sodom. They brought along some of the false idols. And they brought along their old nature as well, often complaining about the path God was leading them on, and longingly looking back to Egypt.
“On the day when I chose Israel and raised My hand in an oath to the descendants of the house of Jacob, and made Myself known to them in the land of Egypt, I raised My hand in an oath to them, saying, ‘I am the Lord your God.’ 6 On that day I raised My hand in an oath to them, to bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land that I had searched out for them, ‘flowing with milk and honey,’ the glory of all lands. 7 Then I said to them, ‘Each of you, throw away the abominations which are before his eyes, and do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.’ 8 But they rebelled against Me and would not obey Me. They did not all cast away the abominations which were before their eyes, nor did they forsake the idols of Egypt. Then I said, ‘I will pour out My fury on them and fulfill My anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt.’ 9 But I acted for My Name’s sake, that it should not be profaned before the Gentiles among whom they were, in whose sight I had made Myself known to them, to bring them out of the land of Egypt.10 “Therefore I made them go out of the land of Egypt and brought them into the wilderness.”
- Eze 20:5-10 NKJV
Our challenge is the same: to throw away our abominations and forsake the idols of the world. Any fragment of sin that remains, no matter how seemingly small or insignificant, can grow, and left unchecked can overtake us.
“Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed. 8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”
– 1Cor 5:6-8 NKJV
Amen.
Next… Running the Race - QUALIFIED