Christ in Exodus
Exodus 12 gives us the precursor pattern to Christ. I hinted as much yesterday, so let’s go into
that full-blown today. How do we see
Christ in this chapter?
Let’s examine the process of Passover. The lamb is chosen on the tenth day of the
month – when the feast of Passover begins – but the lamb isn’t slaughtered
until the fourteenth day of the month in preparation for the actual Passover
meal. The lamb is chosen and kept alive
for a few days knowing that it will be killed for a special religious
service. This sounds like Christ to
me. Jesus was the chosen one, God’s
Messiah. Jesus was kept here on this
earth as a teacher, a prophet, and a greater worker of miracles all the while
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit knew that He was ultimately going to
die in a special religious service. I
can only imagine what Christ thought as His time to be slaughtered drew near.
Of course, the lamb was to be without blemish. The lamb was spotless. And so was Jesus. Jesus was without fault. Yet He was slaughtered anyway.
As we move into Exodus 12:3-5, let’s look at an interesting
progression of identification of the lamb.
In Exodus 12:3 we see it called “a lamb.” In Exodus 12:4 it is called “the lamb.” In Exodus 12:5 it is called “your lamb.” There is an increasing personal relationship
with the lamb as the process continues.
So to it is with those who want to be in relationship with Jesus. It is one thing to call Jesus “a Savior” – as
if to say He is only one way of many ways to God’s presence. It is another thing to say that He is “the
Savior” – as if to say that He is the only way to God’s presence. It is finally the greatest thing to say He is
“your Savior” – or better yet, “my Savior” – as if to say that He is my only
way into God’s presence. I think it is
good for us to come to an understanding that Jesus is not just “the Savior of
the world” but also “my personal Savior.”
Yes, Jesus’ death opens the door for the salvation of anyone who
receives God’s gracious gift. But Jesus’
death specifically opens the door for me and for you.
There is another concept in here that seems like a
no-brainer at first, but there is a profound depth if we let it settle in for a
time. A living lamb does not save. Only a dead lamb does. The blood had to be put on the doorpost or
the angel of death didn’t pass over. The
lamb had to be consumed or burned in the morning. The same is true with Jesus. As great of a teacher, preacher,
miracle-worker, and healer as Jesus was, it is His death that saves us. The process of death was significant to the
ancient Hebrews and it was significant to Jesus. The process of death is significant to us,
for death and the grave is the gateway into eternal life. Just as Jesus rose out of death into new
life, so too shall we. But we should
never overlook the importance of death in this process.
Trust in God’s Word
I’d also like to spend a bit of time talking about trust
here. Can you imagine how much faith it
must have taken to trust that a little blood sprinkled on a doorpost would be
enough to keep out the angel of death?
Yet, the Hebrew people trusted and God’s Word was shown true. They were called to have faith and rely upon
God’s Word. It is no different for us
today. We are called upon to trust that
Christ’s blood is enough for us. And we
are also called upon to rely upon God’s Word as the promise that our faith will
not be in vain.
The Value of the Home
One final thought.
Passover was to occur in the home.
The Hebrews in Egypt didn’t go to some public gathering place and await
their salvation from the angel of death.
Rather, the place where they were saved was in their homes. So this leads me to ponder a question. Yes, I suppose I could ask the question as to
whether or not we should actually do more communing in the home than in the
church. That thought does have validity.
But I think there is even more validity in asking the
question as to whether or not we see the place where we receive communion as
our home? Do we really feel at home in
the church? Do we really feel at home in
God’s Word? Or is it simply a place where
we go and a thing that we read that never feels as comfortable as the things in
our own home? I think there is a point
here. If home is where your heart is,
what does it say about us when we consider anything “our home” more than our
time when we are in communion with our Lord?
Of course, that leads me to a very dangerous question. If Passover was done in the home and
Communion is our remembrance of Christ’s Passover – literally as the Lord’s
Supper and spiritually in remembrance of His death, then shouldn’t we want to
be “home” whenever we can be? Why should
we want to worship without participating in Communion and reminding ourselves
that it is here that we are “home?” Perhaps
I’m making a bigger deal out of this than I should be, but I don’t think
so. I think there is something really
powerful in redefining who we are as Christians as a people who are only truly
at home when we are in Communion with our Lord.
<><
No comments:
Post a Comment