The Spiritual Significance of the Holy Days, Part 3

The Days of Unleavened Bread:  The second step toward our salvation

[Study Aired August 31, 2025]

Exo 12:15  Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.
Exo 12:16  And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you.
Exo 12:17  And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever.
Exo 12:18  In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even.
Exo 12:19  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.
Exo 12:20  Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread.

The emphasis in Leviticus is on “a sheaf of the firstfruits”:

Lev 23:9  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Lev 23:10  Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits [typifying Christ] of your harvest unto the priest:
Lev 23:11  And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.
Lev 23:12  And ye shall offer that day when ye wave the sheaf an he lamb without blemish of the first year for a burnt offering unto the LORD. [Typifying Christ]
Lev 23:13  And the meat [meal] offering thereof shall be two tenth deals of fine flour mingled with oil, an offering made by fire unto the LORD for a sweet savour: and the drink offering thereof shall be of wine, the fourth part of an hin.
Lev 23:14  And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor green ears, until the selfsame day that ye have brought an offering unto your God: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.

Both the “he lamb” and the “sheaf of the firstfruits” typify our Lord who gave Himself to redeem us. While ‘unleavened bread’ is not specifically mentioned, no leaven is specified as part of this wave sheaf offering:

Lev 23:13  And the meat [meal] offering thereof shall be two tenth deals of fine flour mingled with oil [no leavening], an offering made by fire unto the LORD for a sweet savour: and the drink offering thereof shall be of wine, the fourth part of an hin.

Our last study demonstrated that acknowledging our part in the death of our Savior is the spiritual significance of the Passover, which is the first holy day in the law of Moses. We are admonished against observing the “days, months, times, and years” of the law of Moses, just as we are informed that Christ is our Passover, and we no longer need the blood of bulls and goats which cannot cleanse us of our sins:

Gal 4:9  But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements [The law of Moses, vs 1-5], whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?
Gal 4:10  Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years.
Gal 4:11  I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.

Heb 9:1  Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary.
Heb 9:2  For there was a [worldly] tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary.
Heb 9:3  And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all;
Heb 9:4  Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;
Heb 9:5  And over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat; of which we cannot now speak particularly.
Heb 9:6  Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God.
Heb 9:7  But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people:
Heb 9:8  The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing:
Heb 9:9  Which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience;
Heb 9:10  Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation.

Christ is now our redemption:

Heb 9:11  But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this [physical] building;
Heb 9:12  Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

Nevertheless, the gospel of Christ establishes the fact that these holy days were given to Israel for our admonition.

1Co 10:11  Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world [G165: ‘aion’, ages] are come.

There is a lot of spiritual admonition for us in this second festival, the days of unleavened bread.

Christ told His disciples to “beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Saducees”:

Mat 16:5  And when his disciples were come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread.
Mat 16:6  Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.
Mat 16:7  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have taken no bread.
Mat 16:8  Which when Jesus perceived, he said unto them, O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread?
Mat 16:9  Do ye not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets ye took up?
Mat 16:10  Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets ye took up?
Mat 16:11  How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning [physical] bread, that ye should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees?
Mat 16:12  Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

The Lord was signifying the doctrine of the Pharisees and the Sadducees with the symbol of ‘leavened bread.’ He did not use the symbol of a stone or a serpent because neither of those are of any nourishment to anyone, but bread can and does nourish and physically feed us just as the doctrine of Christ spiritually nourishes and feeds us.

Luk 11:11  If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?

It is not mere coincidence that Christ fed the multitudes twice with ‘loaves and fishes’, signifying His doctrine.

We are also informed that ‘a little leaven leavens the whole lump’:

1Co 5:6  Your glorying [in your tolerance of fornication in your midst, vrs 1] is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven [of self-righteous malice and wickedness, vs 8], that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:
1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
1Co 5:9  I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators [G4205: ‘pornos’]:
1Co 5:10  Yet not altogether with the fornicators of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world.
1Co 5:11  But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.
1Co 5:12  For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within?

The leavening of this Corinthian fornicator would ‘leaven’ the whole church of Corinth if the Corinthians refused to “purge [him] out.” The ‘leavening’ of the churches of Babylon is also called fornication:

Rev 17:4  And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet colour, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication [G4202: ‘porneia’ her ‘leavening’]:

Paul associates leavening with “the leaven of malice and wickedness” while contrasting the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees with “the unleavened bread of sincerity and Truth.”

The goal of those of us who are seeking to know that unleavened mind of Christ is to put out all leaven, the symbol of ‘malice and wickedness’, all of the false doctrines of Babylon out of our house, and according to the New Testament, you and I are both the individual and corporate “house of God, which is the church”:

1Ti 3:15  But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

Heb 10:21  And having an high priest over the house of God;
Heb 10:22  Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.

1Pe 4:17  For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?

The Lord will judge whether we are putting any and all  ‘leaven’ out of our spiritual house, and if He finds that we are not doing so, we will be “cut of from” His people:

Exo 12:15  Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.

The severity of this infraction is repeated in verse 19:

Exo 12:19  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.

In cleansing the physical temple of His day, Christ signified how He feels about “the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.” He will purge out all false lying doctrines and the “malice and wickedness” of both overt and covert secret sins in our lives which are His true temple:

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

Paul exhorted the Corinthian church to “purge out therefore the old leaven”:

1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven [of self-righteous “malice and wickedness”, vs 8], that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:
1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Christ’s body and His blood both signify His unleavened doctrines. The days of unleavened bread are seven to signify that the purging of sin includes our complete time in service to Christ while we are in the vessels of clay and on this earth.

Exo 12:16  And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you.

Christ is the beginning of the days of unleavened bread in our lives, and He is the end of the days of unleavened bread in our lives. These seven days signify our complete struggle against our old man with his lying false doctrine and his weaknesses and passions of his flesh. The convocations of the Lord’s people at both the beginning and the end of the seven days of unleavened bread signify the unity and the singleness of mind of those who come together in obedience to our Lord’s words:

Heb 10:23  Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;)
Heb 10:24  And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
Heb 10:25  Not forsaking the assembling [“holy convocation”] of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

What is the spiritual significance of… “no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you?”

Every holy day and every weekly sabbath were to be work free. Being free from labor in the Lord’s service signifies our deliverance from the captivity and the slavery to our own works. When we acknowledge that it is our sins which put Christ on the cross, at that point we begin to put sin out of our lives, and with Christ in us we begin to have the dominion over the sins of our flesh. That is the meaning of being made free from the captivity to sin.

Rom 6:14  For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

Christ came to set the captives free and to give rest to those who were weary of the burden of sin, their own works, to which they were enslaved. “No manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you”, means that we are now free to do what is necessary to feed ourselves… “that may be done of you.” In Christ we are no longer fed of our own works but of what He does in us. That is what the rest of the first and last day of the feast of unleavened bread signifies. That is why Paul exhorts us:

Heb 4:10  For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.
Heb 4:11  Let us labour therefore [on the first and last days of unleavened bread and on every other sabbath] to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.

Our salvation is “His workmanship” (Eph 2:10) and “He performs the thing that is ordained for me” (Job 23:14). We are to “cease from our own works” (Heb 4:10), and acknowledge that “we are His workmanship”:

Eph 2:8  For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Eph 2:9  Not of [our] works, lest any man should boast.
Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

The way Christ kept these two sabbaths at the beginning and end of the days of unleavened bread, and the way He kept all the other sabbaths which were ordained in the law of Moses was by ceasing from His own works and doing the works of His Father instead:

Joh 5:13  And he that was healed wist not who it was: for Jesus had conveyed himself away, a multitude being in that place.
Joh 5:14  Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.
Joh 5:15  The man departed, and told the Jews that it was Jesus, which had made him whole.
Joh 5:16  And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had done these things on the sabbath day.
Joh 5:17  But Jesus answered them, My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.
Joh 5:18  Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself equal with God.

Christ  had ‘ceased from His own works” and was doing only His Father’s works (vs 17). In so doing, “He… had broken the [outward] sabbath.”

The Truth of our salvation is that it is Christ who causes us to come out of Egypt and out of Babylon under duress. No one comes out of Babylon without first being brought to their wits’ end (Psa 107:27).

Exo 12:39  And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they brought forth out of Egypt, for it was not leavened; because they were thrust out of Egypt, and could not tarry, neither had they prepared for themselves any victual.

Psa 107:25  For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof.
Psa 107:26  They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble.
Psa 107:27  They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end.

It is the Lord Himself who performs what He has ordained for us, and it is He who completes the purging of sin from our lives:

Eph 2:10  For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.

Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

The feast of unleavened bread immediately follows the Passover for the very purpose of admonishing us to immediately begin putting sin out of our own lives and out of our fellowship and replace that corrupting ‘leaven’ with the incorruptible “unleavened bread of sincerity and Truth.”

Christ’s sacrifice of His life was not to die in our stead, as the leavened bread of the false doctrine of “substitutionary atonement”, a false doctrine of the modern day Pharisees and the Sadducees of today teaches. Christ did not die in our stead, so we do not need to die to our old man. Rather, through His death He is given of His Father to take up His abode within us and live His life of “dying daily” (1Co 15:31) within us. If Christ had not died to His flesh, He would not have been able to live within His scattered ‘body’ all around the world:

Joh 16:7  Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away [Physically die]: for if I go not away, the Comforter [G3875: ‘parakletos’, Christ, (1Jo 2:1)] will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.

1Jn 2:1  My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate [G3875: ‘parakletos’] with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

Yes, the personal pronoun ‘he’ is used to refer to “the holy spirit of God”, by whom Christ was conceived in Mary’s womb:

Eph 4:30  And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

Mat 1:18  Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost.

If Mary were pregnant “of the holy spirit” that makes the holy spirit His Father. Obviously Christ’s Father used His spirit to simply say the Word, and Mary was impregnated “of the holy spirit… of God… the Father… of Christ.” Here is Luke’s version of how Mary became pregnant by “the holy spirit of God”:

Luk 1:35  And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of [the holy spirit of ] God [The Father of Christ].

By using the personal pronoun, ‘He’ to refer to “the holy spirit of God” (Eph 4:30), Christ is telling us very plainly that it is through His Father’s spirit, which the Father has now given to Him, that He, Christ, can now take up His abode within us.

Joh 16:14  He [the holy  spirit] shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.
Joh 16:15  All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

Christ claims the comforter, the ‘parakletos’, is His because His Father has given it to Him, and now He can give His Father’s spirit, the ‘parakletos’ to whomever He chooses:

Personifying His Father’s spirit to explain how He can come to us, does not make His Father’s spirit “a separate and co-equal part of the Godhead”, as the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees of today teaches. If that were the case, then ‘sin’ is therefore a separate and co-equal part of the great red dragon because Christ when talking to Cain personifies sin by using the personal pronouns, ‘him’ and ‘he’:

Gen 4:6  And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
Gen 4:7  If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.

The phrase “another comforter” does not insinuate another person. What “another comforter” means is that Christ’s disciples would no longer need to see Him in a body of flesh and blood. Rather it is He, Christ, who would not leave them comfortless. He would come to them through “the holy spirit of God.”

Joh 14:16  And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he [Christ, through His Father’s spirit] may abide with you for ever;
Joh 14:17  Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you [Christ right there with them in the flesh], and shall be in you.
Joh 14:18  I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

So much of the leaven of the modern day Pharisees and Sadducees is founded upon the false doctrine which teaches that the “holy spirit of God” is a separate person in the Godhead. Without that false doctrine there could be no triune man with an unscriptural ‘immortal soul’ which will supposedly burn in literal flames of literal fire for all eternity simply because He used his fabled ‘free will’ to choose to go to hell for all eternity instead of choosing to be obedient to God.

No one reading all these words of our Lord speaking about how He will use the spirit of His Father, which His Father gave to Him, to come to His disciples after His crucifixion and live within them… No one without the false ‘trinity’ colored glasses would fail to understand that it is Christ who, through His Father’s spirit “will come to us… take up His abode within us and not leave us comfortless.”

Joh 14:18  I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

The false doctrine of a trinitarian God is the false foundation upon which the false doctrine of a triune man is founded. It is circular reasoning which proclaims that “the holy spirit of God” (Eph 4:30) is a separate and co-equal part of the Godhead. It is upon that lie that it is deduced that mankind, being in God’s image, must also be a triune being consisting of flesh and blood, an immortal soul, and a spirit. Never mind the fact that we are plainly told “the soul that sinneth, it shall die” (Eze 18:4, 20) and that the “wages of sin is death” not immortality, which ‘immortality’ is “put  on” only at the time of the resurrection of the dead. Mankind is not a triune being with an immortal soul which cannot die:

Eze 18:4  Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die [no mention of eternal fire].

Eze 18:20  The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.
1Co 15:51  Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed [Future tense],
1Co 15:52  In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
1Co 15:53  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality [“At the last trump”].
1Co 15:54  So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
1Co 15:55  O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?

The false doctrines of a triune God, a triune man with an immortal soul which a supposed loving heavenly Father will torment in eternal flames of literal fire for all eternity are one and all but a few modern examples of “the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees” which must be purged out of our hearts and minds and replaced with the good news of a truly loving and patient and merciful heavenly Father “who will have all  men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the Truth”:

1Ti 2:4  Who will [Does this say that He merely desires? See Job below] have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

Job 23:13  But he is in one mind, and who can turn him? and what his soul desireth, even that he doeth.
Job 23:14  For he performeth the thing that is appointed for me: and many such things are with him. [So much for both the leaven of the false doctrines of free will and an immortal soul in eternal hell fire]

1Ti 4:10  For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially [Not exclusively] of those that believe.
1Ti 4:11  These things command and teach.

2Pe 3:9  The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

1Jn 2:2  And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

The apostle Paul agrees with Peter and John:

1Co 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
1Co 15:23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.
1Co 15:24 Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.
1Co 15:25 For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.
1Co 15:26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.
1Co 15:27 For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him.
1Co 15:28 And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.

Here we have, in very plain language, a sequence of events which reveals the fact that God will, in Christ, save for Himself “all in Adam.” We are told that it will be accomplished in a certain, God-ordained order which will culminate with God being “all in all.”

The Passover is the beginning of the fulfilling of that goal of God becoming “all in all.” The days of unleavened bread are the next step in that process:

Exo 12:17  And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever.
Exo 12:18  In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even.
Exo 12:19  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.
Exo 12:20  Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread.

“The first month” signifies the beginning of our calling. The fourteenth day of the first month demonstrates that the Lord prepares our hearts to acknowledge the work He is doing in us.

We do not begin eating unleavened bread on the very first day of our calling. Remember what we were told earlier in this 12^th chapter:

Exo 12:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying,
Exo 12:2  This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you.
Exo 12:3  Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house:

Israel’s time in the wilderness signifies our own time in Babylon. Israel crossed the Jordan and prepared to conquer the giants in the land on the exact same day they were commanded to prepare the sacrificial lamb for the Passover forty years earlier:

Jos 4:19  And the people came up out of Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, in the east border of Jericho.

It was at Gilgal that all the Israelites who had been born during the forty years in the wilderness were circumcised. Circumcision, like the seven days of unleavened bread, is just another way of signifying putting sin out of our lives:

Col 2:10  And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:
Col 2:11  In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:

Christ is both our seven days of unleavened bread, and He is our circumcision without hands. He is preparing us by each step we take to give up our lives in His service:

1Ch 29:18  O LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people, and prepare their heart unto thee:

Psa 10:17  LORD, thou hast heard the desire of the humble: thou wilt prepare their heart, thou wilt cause thine ear to hear:

The symbol of the next step in the Lord’s plan for mankind is the feast of Pentecost which we will consider in our next study:

Lev 23:15  And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete:
Lev 23:16  Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the LORD.
Lev 23:17  Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the LORD.
Lev 23:18  And ye shall offer with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall be for a burnt offering unto the LORD, with their meat offering, and their drink offerings, even an offering made by fire, of sweet savour unto the LORD.
Lev 23:19  Then ye shall sacrifice one kid of the goats for a sin offering, and two lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace offerings.
Lev 23:20  And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits for a wave offering before the LORD, with the two lambs: they shall be holy to the LORD for the priest.
Lev 23:21  And ye shall proclaim on the selfsame day, that it may be an holy convocation unto you: ye shall do no servile work therein: it shall be a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.
Lev 23:22  And when ye reap the harvest of your land, thou shalt not make clean riddance of the corners of thy field when thou reapest, neither shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest: thou shalt leave them unto the poor, and to the stranger: I am the LORD your God.

[The next section of this study series can be found here.

Numbers 9:1-23 Celebrating the Passover

[Study Aired June 26, 2023]

Num 9:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt, saying, 
Num 9:2  Let the children of Israel also keep the passover at his appointed season. 
Num 9:3  In the fourteenth day of this month, at even, ye shall keep it in his appointed season: according to all the rites of it, and according to all the ceremonies thereof, shall ye keep it. 
Num 9:4  And Moses spake unto the children of Israel, that they should keep the passover.
Num 9:5  And they kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month at even in the wilderness of Sinai: according to all that the LORD commanded Moses, so did the children of Israel.
Num 9:6  And there were certain men, who were defiled by the dead body of a man, that they could not keep the passover on that day: and they came before Moses and before Aaron on that day:
Num 9:7  And those men said unto him, We are defiled by the dead body of a man: wherefore are we kept back, that we may not offer an offering of the LORD in his appointed season among the children of Israel? 
Num 9:8  And Moses said unto them, Stand still, and I will hear what the LORD will command concerning you. 
Num 9:9  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Num 9:10  Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If any man of you or of your posterity shall be unclean by reason of a dead body, or be in a journey afar off, yet he shall keep the passover unto the LORD. 
Num 9:11  The fourteenth day of the second month at even they shall keep it, and eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 
Num 9:12  They shall leave none of it unto the morning, nor break any bone of it: according to all the ordinances of the passover they shall keep it. 
Num 9:13  But the man that is clean, and is not in a journey, and forbeareth to keep the passover, even the same soul shall be cut off from among his people: because he brought not the offering of the LORD in his appointed season, that man shall bear his sin. 
Num 9:14  And if a stranger shall sojourn among you, and will keep the passover unto the LORD; according to the ordinance of the passover, and according to the manner thereof, so shall he do: ye shall have one ordinance, both for the stranger, and for him that was born in the land. 
Num 9:15  And on the day that the tabernacle was reared up the cloud covered the tabernacle, namely, the tent of the testimony: and at even there was upon the tabernacle as it were the appearance of fire, until the morning. 
Num 9:16  So it was alway: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night. 
Num 9:17  And when the cloud was taken up from the tabernacle, then after that the children of Israel journeyed: and in the place where the cloud abode, there the children of Israel pitched their tents. 
Num 9:18  At the commandment of the LORD the children of Israel journeyed, and at the commandment of the LORD they pitched: as long as the cloud abode upon the tabernacle they rested in their tents. 
Num 9:19  And when the cloud tarried long upon the tabernacle many days, then the children of Israel kept the charge of the LORD, and journeyed not. 
Num 9:20  And so it was, when the cloud was a few days upon the tabernacle; according to the commandment of the LORD they abode in their tents, and according to the commandment of the LORD they journeyed. 
Num 9:21  And so it was, when the cloud abode from even unto the morning, and that the cloud was taken up in the morning, then they journeyed: whether it was by day or by night that the cloud was taken up, they journeyed. 
Num 9:22  Or whether it were two days, or a month, or a year, that the cloud tarried upon the tabernacle, remaining thereon, the children of Israel abode in their tents, and journeyed not: but when it was taken up, they journeyed. 
Num 9:23  At the commandment of the LORD they rested in the tents, and at the commandment of the LORD they journeyed: they kept the charge of the LORD, at the commandment of the LORD by the hand of Moses. 

Introduction

This chapter talks about celebrating the Passover and also shows us how Israel’s movement in the wilderness is dictated by the cloud covering the tabernacle. The Passover feast was in recognition of the miraculous exodus of the Israelites from Egypt. The name ‘Passover’ comes from the story of the tenth plague (the death of the firstborn), meted out against Pharaoh and the Egyptians, which passed over the Israelites’ houses, sparing their children.

Exo 12:5  Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, 
Exo 12:6  and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight. 
Exo 12:7  “Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. 
Exo 12:8  They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. 
Exo 12:9  Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. 
Exo 12:10  And you shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. 
Exo 12:11  In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the LORD’s Passover. 
Exo 12:12  For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the LORD. 
Exo 12:13  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 no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt. 
Exo 12:14  “This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD; throughout your generations, as a statute forever, you shall keep it as a feast.

Being the firstborn in the Bible, positively signifies the might or strength and the source of power:

Gen 49:3  Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:

Deu 21:17  But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn, by giving him a double portion of all that he hath: for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his.

The plague of the death of the firstborn, therefore, signifies the destruction or the stripping of the power or the strength of the old man (Pharaoh) who dominates us. This is achieved by the coming of the Lord with His words (the spirit of His mouth) into our lives after we have come to clearly see the old man or the beast within us.

2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

The Passover, therefore, signifies the process of the destruction or the stripping of the power or the strength of our old man when Christ comes with His brightness in our lives.

Num 9:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt, saying, 
Num 9:2  Let the children of Israel also keep the passover at his appointed season. 
Num 9:3  In the fourteenth day of this month, at even, ye shall keep it in his appointed season: according to all the rites of it, and according to all the ceremonies thereof, shall ye keep it. 
Num 9:4  And Moses spake unto the children of Israel, that they should keep the passover.
Num 9:5  And they kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month at even in the wilderness of Sinai: according to all that the LORD commanded Moses, so did the children of Israel.

The Lord speaking to Moses in the first month of the second year is to let us know that to keep the Passover, we must be perfectly joined to the body of Christ, having one mind, as we serve as the Lord’s witnesses on this earth. Keeping the Passover on the fourteenth day of the first month is also significant. The number fourteen means spiritual progression.  It is as we progress spiritually through the judgment of our old man that we can keep the Passover. 

Once the source of our strength or power of the old man is being dealt with by the Lord through judgments of the death of the firstborn, we are able to offer a sacrifice of unleavened bread throughout the rest of our lives, which is signified by the seven days of the feast of eating unleavened bread. The unleavened bread here signifies sincerity and truth. This means that through judgment, our understanding of the word of the Lord is deepened and is accompanied by a life of sincerity and truth. In other words, our lives then reflect the righteousness of Christ.

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: 
1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. 

The seven days of unleavened bread refer to the complete period of our lives during which we offer our bodies as a living sacrifice to the Lord by living a life of Christ’s righteousness.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. 

Num 9:6  And there were certain men, who were defiled by the dead body of a man, that they could not keep the passover on that day: and they came before Moses and before Aaron on that day:
Num 9:7  And those men said unto him, We are defiled by the dead body of a man: wherefore are we kept back, that we may not offer an offering of the LORD in his appointed season among the children of Israel? 

As we indicated in previous studies, being defiled by the dead means taking in or accepting the teachings of those who are spiritually dead. We become spiritually unclean when we take in or accept the teachings of those who are spiritually dead. That is what characterized our walk with Christ when we were in Babylon. We accepted the teachings of our leaders who were spiritually dead, and so we became defiled. 

2Pe 2:17  These are wells without water, clouds that are carried with a tempest; to whom the mist of darkness is reserved for ever. 
2Pe 2:18  For when they speak great swelling words of vanity, they allure through the lusts of the flesh, through much wantonness, those that were clean escaped from them who live in error. 
2Pe 2:19  While they promise them liberty, they themselves are the servants of corruption: for of whom a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage. 
2Pe 2:20  For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 
2Pe 2:21  For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. 
2Pe 2:22  But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.

Verse 7 shows us that when we become defiled in our minds by accepting false doctrines, propagated by those who are spiritually dead, we disqualify ourselves from keeping the Passover. This means that we cannot offer our bodies as living sacrifices to the Lord as required by the Lord in keeping the Passover at the appointed time of the Lord. The appointed time here is our time here on earth.  

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. 

Num 9:8  And Moses said unto them, Stand still, and I will hear what the LORD will command concerning you. 
Num 9:9  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 
Num 9:10  Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If any man of you or of your posterity shall be unclean by reason of a dead body, or be in a journey afar off, yet he shall keep the passover unto the LORD. 
Num 9:11  The fourteenth day of the second month at even they shall keep it, and eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.
Num 9:12  They shall leave none of it unto the morning, nor break any bone of it: according to all the ordinances of the passover they shall keep it. 

It is very insightful to note that whenever Moses was approached about an issue, he sought the Lord’s guidance as to what should be done. He did not depend upon his own insight but relied wholly on the Lord for direction. This should be our attitude as we seek to know the Lord. 

Pro 3:5  Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 
Pro 3:6  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. 
Pro 3:7  Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. 

The good news is that those who get defiled by false doctrines from those who are/were spiritually dead will have the chance to also celebrate Passover. However, this will happen in the fourteenth month of the second month. As we have indicated earlier, the number fourteen means spiritual progression. The number two, or the second, means a witness. This signifies that our brothers and sisters in Babylon, who are defiled by false doctrines, together with those come out of Babylon but are defiled by their idols of the heart due to false doctrines, will have the opportunity for Christ to come into their lives to destroy the strength and power of their old man (firstborn) during the lake of fire age in the presence of the elect as witnesses (the second month).

Eze 16:55  When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters, shall return to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former estate, then thou and thy daughters shall return to your former estate.

During this period in the lake-of-fire age, they shall eat the flesh of the lamb with unleavened bread together with bitter herbs for seven days in keeping with the celebration of Passover.

Exo 12:8  And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. 

The flesh of the lamb must be roasted with fire and eaten in the night. This is to let us know that we cannot separate the judgment of the Lord (roasting with fire) from His words. As we are being given insight into the mysteries of the kingdom of God, we are being judged to conform to His image.

Mat 13:21  Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended. 

The lamb must be eaten with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs. The unleavened bread here signifies sincerity and truth. This means that our understanding of the word of the Lord must be accompanied by a life of sincerity and truth. In other words, our life must reflect the righteousness of Christ.

1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. 

It is so exciting when the Lord reveals some aspects of the truth of the word of the Lord to us. In other words, it is sweet in our mouth. However, when it enters our belly, it is bitter. The bitter herb that must accompany the eating of the unleavened bread refers to the bitter experience we must go through to actualize the word we have received. 

Rev 10:10  And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

Eze 3:1  Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel. 
Eze 3:2  So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll. 
Eze 3:3  And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. 
Eze 3:4  And he said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them. 

This bitter experience also includes the words of those we are sent to minister, as shown in Ezekiel’s case.

Eze 2:6  And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house. 
Eze 2:7  And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear: for they are most rebellious.

In verse 12, letting nothing remain of the lamb in the morning means we must not neglect any part of the word of the Lord. We must endeavor to understand the whole counsel of God through His words. 

Act 20:27  For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God. 

Our lives here on earth are considered as a long night. It is during our time here on earth that we have to eat the lamb; that is, to know Christ and His words. The morning in verse 12 signifies Christ coming with His elect (the cloud) during the first resurrection.  

Rom 13:12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness and let us put on the armour of light.

Not breaking a bone as we eat the lamb in verse 12 is another way of saying that we should not go beyond what is written in the word of the Lord, which is His flesh. 

1Co 4:6  I have applied all these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, brothers, that you may learn by us not to go beyond what is written, that none of you may be puffed up in favor of one against another.

Num 9:13  But the man that is clean, and is not in a journey, and forbeareth to keep the passover, even the same soul shall be cut off from among his people: because he brought not the offering of the LORD in his appointed season, that man shall bear his sin. 

A man who is clean is someone who is not in touch with a dead body. In other words, such a person has begun to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of God. Not being on a journey means one has come out of the world (Egypt) and Babylon and has come into the assembly of the firstborn or the elect. Such a person must keep the Passover. That means Christ has come with His brightness into his life to destroy the power of the flesh or the old man. If we allow our flesh to dominate us, then it means that we are not observing Passover, even though we have been enlightened and tasted the heavenly gift. In this case, we shall not be counted as part of the Lord’s elect and therefore will not be part of the first resurrection. We shall be cast into outer darkness.     

Heb 6:4  For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, 
Heb 6:5  And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, 
Heb 6:6  If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. 
Heb 6:7  For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God: 
Heb 6:8  But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned. 
Heb 6:9  But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak. 

Mat 8:12  But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Num 9:14  And if a stranger shall sojourn among you, and will keep the passover unto the LORD; according to the ordinance of the passover, and according to the manner thereof, so shall he do: ye shall have one ordinance, both for the stranger, and for him that was born in the land. 

We, the Gentiles, were not part of the commonwealth of Israel, but by the grace of God, we, the strangers, are part of the commonwealth of Israel and therefore can partake of the Passover. Verse 14 also means that the Lord will find a way to bring in all strangers of Christ (those banished) to partake of Him as the Passover.

Eph 2:12  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: 
Eph 2:13  But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. 
Eph 2:14  For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; 
Eph 2:15  Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; 
Eph 2:16  And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby: 

2Sa 14:14  For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God respect any person: yet doth he devise means, that his banished be not expelled from him.

Num 9:15  And on the day that the tabernacle was reared up the cloud covered the tabernacle, namely, the tent of the testimony: and at even there was upon the tabernacle as it were the appearance of fire, until the morning. 
Num 9:16  So it was alway: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night. 

As we are aware, our bodies represent the temple of the Lord or the tabernacle. When Christ, who is the cloud, comes to us, He comes with His judgment to remove all that offends within us so that He can stay in us. The appearance of fire in the evening is therefore our judgment while we live here on earth. Since we represent Christ here on earth, we are also the cloud covering the tabernacle.

Mal 3:1  Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts. 
Mal 3:2  But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap: 
Mal 3:3  And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness. 
Mal 3:4  Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former years.

2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 
2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: 

Heb 12:1  Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, 

Num 9:17  And when the cloud was taken up from the tabernacle, then after that the children of Israel journeyed: and in the place where the cloud abode, there the children of Israel pitched their tents. 
Num 9:18  At the commandment of the LORD the children of Israel journeyed, and at the commandment of the LORD they pitched: as long as the cloud abode upon the tabernacle they rested in their tents. 

These verses are to show us that we are not on our own. In this life, everything that we do, both good and evil, is ordered by the Lord. In other words, our deeds are all written in the Lord’s book even before we were born. 

Psa 139:16  Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them.

Jer 10:23  O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.

Act 17:26  And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, 
Act 17:27  that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, 
Act 17:28  for “‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’

Num 9:19  And when the cloud tarried long upon the tabernacle many days, then the children of Israel kept the charge of the LORD, and journeyed not. 
Num 9:20  And so it was, when the cloud was a few days upon the tabernacle; according to the commandment of the LORD they abode in their tents, and according to the commandment of the LORD they journeyed. 
Num 9:21  And so it was, when the cloud abode from even unto the morning, and that the cloud was taken up in the morning, then they journeyed: whether it was by day or by night that the cloud was taken up, they journeyed. 
Num 9:22  Or whether it were two days, or a month, or a year, that the cloud tarried upon the tabernacle, remaining thereon, the children of Israel abode in their tents, and journeyed not: but when it was taken up, they journeyed. 
Num 9:23  At the commandment of the LORD they rested in the tents, and at the commandment of the LORD they journeyed: they kept the charge of the LORD, at the commandment of the LORD by the hand of Moses. 

These verses reflect how the Lord deals with us at various phases of our lives. There are periods of our lives where the Lord tests our patience as it looks like we are going round in circles, and nothing seems to work even though we cry to the Lord. For example, the Israelites stayed on Mount Sinai for so long until the Lord commanded them to leave. In our lives, we may be battling with some issues which take a long time before we are given a break. There are other times that before we speak, He hears us and comes to our aid. 

Heb 10:36  For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.

Jas 1:3  Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.
Jas 1:4  But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

Deu 1:6  The LORD our God spake unto us in Horeb, saying, Ye have dwelt long enough in this mount: 
Deu 1:7  Turn you, and take your journey, and go to the mount of the Amorites, and unto all the places nigh thereunto, in the plain, in the hills, and in the vale, and in the south, and by the sea side, to the land of the Canaanites, and unto Lebanon, unto the great river, the river Euphrates. 

Isa 65:24  And it shall come to pass, that before they call, I will answer; and while they are yet speaking, I will hear.

May the Lord help us to be patient in our walk with Him in order to win the prize of His higher calling. Amen!!

[Study Aired June 13, 2022]

Exo 13:1  The LORD said to Moses, 
Exo 13:2  “Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.” 
Exo 13:3  Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. 
Exo 13:4  Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out.
Exo 13:5  And when the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month.
Exo 13:6  Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the LORD. 
Exo 13:7  Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory. 
Exo 13:8  You shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.’
Exo 13:9  And it shall be to you as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the law of the LORD may be in your mouth. For with a strong hand the LORD has brought you out of Egypt. 
Exo 13:10  You shall therefore keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year. 
Exo 13:11  “When the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you, 
Exo 13:12  you shall set apart to the LORD all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be the LORD’s. 
Exo 13:13  Every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. Every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. 
Exo 13:14  And when in time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall say to him, ‘By a strong hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. 
Exo 13:15  For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the LORD killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the LORD all the males that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ 
Exo 13:16  It shall be as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes, for by a strong hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt.” 
Exo 13:17  When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.” 
Exo 13:18  But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle. 
Exo 13:19  Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones with you from here.” 
Exo 13:20  And they moved on from Succoth and encamped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. 
Exo 13:21  And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. 
Exo 13:22  The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people. 

Today’s study focuses on what happened to Israel immediately after they left Egypt. The study deals with the sanctification of the firstborn of Israel and their beasts for the Lord, the observance of the Passover and the Lord’s guidance and protection of the people of Israel as they began their journey through the wilderness. The journey from Egypt into the wilderness reflects our coming out of Babylon to serve the living God in this world (wilderness). As we come out of Babylon, we need to prepare the way of the Lord for the glory of the Lord to be revealed in our lives. The question is, “How do we prepare the way of the Lord?” The verses below show us how to prepare the way of the Lord.

Isa 40:3  The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
Isa 40:4  Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain:
Isa 40:5  And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.

Preparing the way of the Lord means exalting every valley, bringing down every mountain and hill, making straight the crooked and rough places plain. As you can see, Isaiah 40:4 is cast in passive voice, and with the passive voice the subject is acted upon by some other performer of the verb. As we have said over and over, our salvation is the Lord’s work. Therefore, the performer of the verb to exalt the valley and make low the mountains and hills is all the work of the Lord. Now, the question is, “What does it mean to exalt a valley?” In the scriptures, a valley serves as the gulf that separates the people of the world and the Lord’s people as shown in the following examples:

1Sa 17:3  And the Philistines stood on a mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on a mountain on the other side: and there was a valley between them.

Luk 16:25  But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. 
Luk 16:26  And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.

Now, this gulf or chasm or valley is the Lord’s judgments which separate the elect from the people of the world.

Joe 3:12  Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about.

Joe 3:14  Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.

So, every valley being exalted means that the Lord takes us as people of the world (fleshy) and makes us His people (Israel) through His judgments. Every mountain or hill being brought low means that the beast or the old man within us shall be destroyed by the Lord. The crooked being made straight and the rough places becoming plain is another way of saying that the Lord will straighten us up to become His people. That is when the glory of the Lord will be revealed in our lives for all flesh to see.

Isa 60:1  Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. 
Isa 60:2  For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. 
Isa 60:3  And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.

With this in mind as the introduction, let’s look at how the Lord sanctifies us as His firstborn children to bear His glory.

Exo 13:1  The LORD said to Moses, 
Exo 13:2  “Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.”

We, the elect, are the Lord’s firstborn and therefore constitute the church of the firstborn. In verse 2, we are admonished to be consecrated to the Lord. As we have indicated in earlier studies, both man and beast refer to us.

Heb 12:22  But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, 
Heb 12:23  To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
Heb 12:24  And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

Ecc 3:18  I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts.

Consecration means to purify. Purification is attained through the Lord’s judgment of our old man.

Psa 119:67  Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.

Exo 13:3  Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten.
Exo 13:4  Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out.

It is the Lord’s strong hand by which He has taken us out of our slavery to sin in this world to become His people. The strong hand of the Lord refers to His judgment of our old man through the ten plagues. The essence of His judgment is for us to learn His righteousness which is symbolized by the eating of unleavened bread.

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

The name “Abib” by implication means a young ear of grain. The Israelites coming out of Egypt in the month of Abib is therefore to let us know that when we come out of Babylon, we are still young in the faith. It takes time therefore, after coming out of Babylon to mature.

Exo 13:5  And when the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month.

This land that the Lord is bringing us to is our bodies. There is the need to possess our bodies to offer them as living sacrifice to the Lord. The Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites and the Jebusites are all part of the enemy within us that we must conquer. This composite enemy is the old man or the beast or the flesh.

We are told that the land the Israelites are going to inherit after leaving Egypt is a land flowing with milk and honey. Let’s try to understand what milk and honey stands for. Milk in the scriptures represents the basics of the Lord’s word as shown below:

Isa 28:9  Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts.

1Co 3:2  I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. 

Heb 5:12  For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
Heb 5:13  For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.

1Pe 2:2  As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:

Honey can also mean the milk of the word of Christ. It only helps us to distinguish between good and evil.

Isa 7:15  Butter and honey shall he eat, that he may know to refuse the evil, and choose the good. 

On the other hand, honey essentially deals with how we hear the word of the Lord. When the word of the Lord comes to us, it tastes so sweet as honey. After we start to apply to our lives, that is when it becomes bitter.

Eze 3:3  And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. 

Rev 10:9  And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey. 
Rev 10:10  And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

So, the Lord delivering the Israelites from Egypt and taking them to the land flowing with milk and honey is to let us know that when we come out of the world, we are to start with the milk of the word of the Lord and must be zealous for the word of the Lord.

Exo 13:6  Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the LORD. 
Exo 13:7  Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory. 
Exo 13:8  You shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.’

According to Strong’s Dictionary, the word “feast” can also mean sacrifice as shown in the following scripture in which the Hebrew word for feast is translated as sacrifice:

Exo 23:18  Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning.

Once the source of our strength or power of the old man is dealt with by the Lord through judgments of the death of the firstborn, we are able to offer a sacrifice of unleavened bread throughout the rest of our lives which is signified by the seven days of the feast of eating unleavened bread. The unleavened bread here signifies sincerity and truth. This means that through judgment, our understanding of the word of the Lord is deepened and is accompanied by a life of sincerity and truth. In other words, our life then reflects the righteousness of Christ.

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: 
1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

The seven days of unleavened bread refers to the complete period of our lives that we offer our bodies as a living sacrifice to the Lord by living a life of Christ’s righteousness.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. 

In verse 8, we are told to tell our sons of what the Lord has done for us when we came out of Babylon. What the Lord did to liberate us from the world is the unleashing of the ten plagues on our old man to set us free from the shackles of sin. Our message to our sons and daughters in Christ is that it is through tribulation that we enter the kingdom of God.

Act 14:22  Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.

Exo 13:9  And it shall be to you as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the law of the LORD may be in your mouth. For with a strong hand the LORD has brought you out of Egypt. 
Exo 13:10  You shall therefore keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year.

What the Lord has done must be a sign to us on our hands and a memorial between our eyes. The Lord’s work here refers to His judgment of our old man. A sign to our hands symbolizes that our works, a symbol of our hand, becomes pleasing to the Lord as He works in us both to will and to do His good pleasure. The Lord’s work being a memorial before our eyes means that our eyes are enlightened to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of God. It is when we come to see this that we are able to have the word of the Lord in our mouth.

Php 2:13  For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.

Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 

Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

In verse 10, we are required to keep the statute of the Passover. Every elect of every generation is required to observe the Passover throughout his/her life through faith. Every day of our walk with the Lord is the feast of the Passover.

Heb 11:28  Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.

The question is, “What does it mean to keep the passover?” First and foremost, we need to understand the sacrificial offering of the Lord on our behalf.

1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:

Secondly, we need to know that our lives were spared by the Lord from destruction. This has nothing to do with anything we have done. It was just the mercies of the Lord that He showered on us.

Rom 9:18  Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.

Thirdly, we need to know that the blood of Christ purges our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. In spite of our wickedness and flaws, the Lord has chosen us and purged us of our sins so that we can worship him acceptably.

Heb 9:14  How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

The Passover also commemorates our eating of the lamb. This lamb is Christ who is also the word. This means that through the mercies of the Lord, our eyes are being enlightened to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.

Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.

Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.
Mat 13:17  For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

The enlightening of our understanding is accompanied by the Lord’s judgment which destroys the power and influence of the old man or the flesh in our lives. This is signified by the roasting of the lamb eaten at the Passover.

Exo 12:8  And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

Mat 13:21  Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

Observing the Passover also means that we are eating the lamb with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs. The unleavened bread here signifies sincerity and truth. This means that our understanding of the word of the Lord must be accompanied with a life of sincerity and truth. In other words, our life must reflect the righteousness of Christ. When our lives reflect the righteousness of Christ, then we are observing the Passover in our lives.

1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

It is so exciting when the Lord reveals some aspects of the truth of the word of the Lord to us. In other words, it is sweet in our mouth. However, when it enters our belly, it is bitter. The bitter herb that must accompany the eating of the unleavened bread refers to the bitter experience we must go through to actualize the word we have received.

Rev 10:10  And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

Exo 13:11  “When the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you,
Exo 13:12  you shall set apart to the LORD all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be the LORD’s. 
Exo 13:13  Every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. Every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem.

As indicated earlier, we, His elect, are the firstborn (whether from man or beast) being set apart for the Lord to become part of the church of the firstborn. Being set apart means to be consecrated to the Lord. That means, we are to be purified. The attainment of purification is through the Lord’s judgment of our old man. In verse 13, we are told that the firstborn of an ass must be redeemed with a lamb. That means that it is through the Lord Christ, who is our lamb, that we have been redeemed or rescued from destruction. In the scriptures, breaking the neck is related to breaking the yoke of bondage as shown in the following:

Jer 28:11  And Hananiah spake in the presence of all the people, saying, Thus saith the LORD; Even so will I break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon from the neck of all nations within the space of two full years. And the prophet Jeremiah went his way.

Jer 30:8  For it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, that I will break his yoke from off thy neck, and will burst thy bonds, and strangers shall no more serve themselves of him:

So, what verse 13 is implying is that if we are not redeemed by our Lord Jesus Christ from the burden (yoke) of sin, then we shall face spiritual death through the breaking of our necks.

Exo 13:14  And when in time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall say to him, ‘By a strong hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery.
Exo 13:15  For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the LORD killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the LORD all the males that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’

What is said here in verse 14 and 15 embodies what we are to teach in our assembly. Firstly, our teaching must address the strong hand of the Lord in delivering us from bondage to sin. This strong hand of the Lord refers to the ten plagues or the judgment of our old man. Secondly, our teaching must emphasize the stubbornness of our old man or the beast within, signified by Pharaoh’s stubbornness. This implies that the defeat of the beast through the dying of the firstborn is all the work of God and that we play no part in our salvation. Thirdly, we must clearly demonstrate the goal of our being called and chosen as the firstborn, that is, to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to the Lord. The goal also includes the reward to be received which involves the role of the elect in the salvation of the world.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Exo 13:16  It shall be as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes, for by a strong hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt.”

The strong hand of the Lord leaves a mark or imprint on our hands. The mark left by the Lord’s judgment of our old man is that our works (our hands) become pleasing to the Lord as we walk in the spirit and do not fulfill the desires of the flesh.

Gal 5:16  This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. 

Gal 5:22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 
Gal 5:23  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. 
Gal 5:24  And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. 
Gal 5:25  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

The judgment that we go through, also enables us to appreciate the word of the Lord better. In other words, our understanding of the word of God is deepened which is signified by the frontlets between our eyes.

Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 

Mat 13:21  Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

Exo 13:17  When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.” 

As we have stated earlier, our exit from Babylon does not mean that we have matured. It takes time to mature in the things of God. Our fight against the flesh is a war which the Bible describes as trying to break a bow of steel with our arms. Iron is hard and is almost impossible to break, but steel is several times harder than iron. It is, therefore, impossible to war against the flesh and be successful unless the Lord does it on our behalf. The Philistines stand for the war against the flesh. In the wisdom of the Lord, He leads us in this world (wilderness) toward the red sea so that we encounter the Philistines later. In doing this, He takes His time to train our hands for war before engaging the Philistines. If we start our walk by engaging the flesh (Philistines), we will be discouraged by the cycle of defeat and may give up.

Psa 18:31  For who is God save the LORD? or who is a rock save our God? 
Psa 18:32  It is God that girdeth me with strength, and maketh my way perfect. 

Psa 18:33  He maketh my feet like hinds’ feet, and setteth me upon my high places. 
Psa 18:34  He teacheth my hands to war, so that a bow of steel is broken by mine arms.

Exo 13:18  But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle. 

The Lord leading us in the wilderness toward the red sea is for our benefit. The Lord was going to demonstrate to the us (the people of Israel) how to war against the flesh by leading the Israelites towards the Red Sea. This is to serve as training for the people of Israel on how to war against the flesh. It was after the Red Sea experience that the people of Israel started battling against other nations that opposed them. The color red means the ground of the earth which represents mankind as we were made out of the ground of the earth (dust). This means that the Red Sea represents the sea of flesh or simply, our flesh. As we shall see in the next chapter, the Lord making a way through the Red Sea for the people of Israel to walk through is to demonstrate the fact that overcoming the flesh is the work of God. When we are able to learn this lesson of the Red Sea, then we are ready to overcome the flesh or Philistines. That is how the Lord teaches our hands to war so that we are able to break a bow of steel.

Jos 4:23  For the LORD your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over:

Immediately after leaving Egypt, the Amalekites waged war with the Israelites, and this war was to teach the Israelites how to war – that is to depend entirely on God.  This war was such that the Israelites were fighting, but victory depended on Moses’ hands being raised.  So technically, the Israelites fighting the Amalekites is not what wins the war. It is the hands of Moses. Moses’ hands here are the hands of the Lord who fights our battles for us. This war against the flesh within is not to be fought in our strength. The reason we are losing this fight is that we are depending on ourselves!!  It is the Lord’s battle. Let us lift up our eyes unto the hill from whence cometh our help.  Our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth!! This help is what wins the war, not our strength.

Exo 17:8  Then came Amalek, and fought with Israel in Rephidim.
Exo 17:9  And Moses said unto Joshua, Choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek: to morrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in mine hand. 
Exo 17:10  So Joshua did as Moses had said to him, and fought with Amalek: and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 
Exo 17:11  And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. 
Exo 17:12  But Moses’ hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat thereon; and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands, the one on the one side, and the other on the other side; and his hands were steady until the going down of the sun. 
Exo 17:13  And Joshua discomfited Amalek and his people with the edge of the sword.

Psa 121:1  A Song of degrees. I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help. 
Psa 121:2  My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth. 
Psa 121:3  He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.
Psa 121:4  Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. 
Psa 121:5  The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand.

Exo 13:19  Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones with you from here.” 

As we mentioned in the previous review, the first mention of bone in the Bible was in relation to the Lord taking the rib (bone) of Adam and using it to form a woman. The woman was produced from a bone taken from Adam. This means that a bone signifies life. This life is the Spirit of the Lord and it is this Holy Spirit (bone) which came upon the disciples on the day of Pentecost to form the bride of Christ (woman).

Gen 2:21  So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh.
Gen 2:22  And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. 
Gen 2:23  Then the man said, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.”

Joseph is a symbol of Christ. So, Joseph prophesying about the Israelites carrying His bones is another way of saying what the Lord told His disciples about the promise of the Holy Spirit when He was about to be taken away at the Mount of Olives. This means that Moses taking the bones of Joseph with him is a symbol of the people of Israel (the elect) receiving the promise of the Holy Spirit which is what is needed to form the church of the firstborn.

Act 1:4  And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me. 
Act 1:5  For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence. 
Act 1:6  When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel? 
Act 1:7  And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. 
Act 1:8  But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

Exo 13:20  And they moved on from Succoth and encamped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. 

Succoth means booths or tents.  Succoth signifies that as His elect, we are in this world, but not of this world. Our journey through this world must be a journey of faith with the view of inheriting the promise. In other words, we are looking for the city whose foundation is Christ and the builder being our Lord.

Heb 11:9  By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:
Heb 11:10  For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

Encamping at Etham is spiritually significant. Etham means their plowshare.  A plowshare is the most important part of a plow as it does the cutting of grass and soil. In the Bible, grass signifies the flesh as follows:

1Pe 1:24  For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:

This means that moving from Succoth to Etham signifies that we start our walk in faith (Succoth) and then we move to the next stage of dealing with the flesh (Etham).

Exo 13:21  And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. 
Exo 13:22  The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people. 

These verses show the Lord’s protection and guidance throughout the Israelites’ journey in the wilderness. As we are aware, ‘cloud’ signifies the elect as witnesses. Therefore, the pillar of cloud refers to the Lord’s elect.  In the sight of the Lord, both night and day are the same. What this means is that in this life (wilderness), we, His elect, are protected and led or guided by the assembly of the elect through His word which is the pillar of fire which gives us light in the night of our walk.

Heb 12:1  Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

Psa 139:12  Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee. 

Jer 5:14  Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

May the Lord teach our hands to war so that we may be able to war against the Philistines (flesh or the old man) within us!! Amen!!

[Study Aired June 6, 2022]

Exo 12:33  And the Egyptians were urgent upon the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste; for they said, We be all dead men.
Exo 12:34  And the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading troughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders.
Exo 12:35  And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they borrowed of the Egyptians jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: 
Exo 12:36  And the LORD gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they lent unto them such things as they required. And they spoiled the Egyptians. 
Exo 12:37  And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot that were men, beside children. 
Exo 12:38  And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle. 
Exo 12:39  And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they brought forth out of Egypt, for it was not leavened; because they were thrust out of Egypt, and could not tarry, neither had they prepared for themselves any victual. 
Exo 12:40  Now the sojourning of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years. 
Exo 12:41  And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt. 
Exo 12:42  It is a night to be much observed unto the LORD for bringing them out from the land of Egypt: this is that night of the LORD to be observed of all the children of Israel in their generations. 
Exo 12:43  And the LORD said unto Moses and Aaron, This is the ordinance of the passover: There shall no stranger eat thereof: 
Exo 12:44  But every man’s servant that is bought for money, when thou hast circumcised him, then shall he eat thereof. 
Exo 12:45  A foreigner and an hired servant shall not eat thereof. 
Exo 12:46  In one house shall it be eaten; thou shalt not carry forth ought of the flesh abroad out of the house; neither shall ye break a bone thereof. 
Exo 12:47  All the congregation of Israel shall keep it.
Exo 12:48  And when a stranger shall sojourn with thee, and will keep the passover to the LORD, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as one that is born in the land: for no uncircumcised person shall eat thereof.
Exo 12:49  One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you. 
Exo 12:50  Thus did all the children of Israel; as the LORD commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they. 
Exo 12:51  And it came to pass the selfsame day, that the LORD did bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their armies.

The effect of all the ten plagues meted out to the Egyptians resulted in the release of the children of Israel to go into the wilderness to serve the Lord. The review today focuses on the exit of the children of Israel and the ordinance of the Passover that we are to keep by faith, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch us.

Heb 11:28  Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.

Exo 12:33  And the Egyptians were urgent upon the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste; for they said, We be all dead men.

The assertion by the Egyptians that they were all dead men is to let us know the extent of the impact of the ten plagues of the Lord’s judgment of the old man (Pharaoh) within us. The judgment of the Lord destroys or puts to death the old man within us. The fact that the Egyptians were so eager to send the Israelites out of their land in haste to go into the wilderness to serve the Lord is another way of saying that the death of the old man gives rise to the birth of the new man within us. This new man enables us to worship the Lord acceptably in this world (wilderness) as we offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to our Lord.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Exo 12:34  And the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading troughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders. 

In the scriptures, leaven signifies what is sinful, evil, corrupt and unclean in the eyes of the Lord.

1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. 

The use of leaven is to make something softer or easier to eat. For example, if there is no yeast (leaven) in bread, it would be hard to chew. The function of yeast spiritually, is to make sin easier to commit. The teachings of man’s wisdom is a kind of yeast in this world and in the physical churches of this world which makes sin easier to commit.

Because the children of Israel were driven out in haste from Egypt, they had no time to bring leavened food as shown in verse 34. This is because leavened bread takes time to prepare. This indicates that apart from judging us to put to death the old man within, the Lord also deals with our environment to such an extent that it gives us no time to commit sin. The process of committing sin takes time. First, we are drawn away by our own lust, then lust is conceived and after this conception, sin is produced.

Jas 1:14  But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. 
Jas 1:15  Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

It is significant to note that the kneading troughs which were used to prepare both leavened and unleavened bread were all bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders. As we are aware, both the old man and the new man are within, representing the kneading trough. This kneading trough within us produces either leavened or unleavened bread depending on whether the trough is that of the old man or the new man. The death of the old man, giving birth to the new man, is this kneading trough which is wrapped by clothes. We know that clothes represent the righteousness of the saints. This righteousness is that of Christ given to us. So, the kneading troughs bound up in clothes means the new man within us is clothed in Christ righteousness making it difficult for us to carry leaven as we journey through this world (wilderness).

Rev 19:8  it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright and pure”— for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. (ESV)

Exo 12:35  And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they borrowed of the Egyptians jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: 
Exo 12:36  And the LORD gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they lent unto them such things as they required. And they spoiled the Egyptians. 

As we indicated in an earlier review, the borrowing of the jewels of silver and gold is another way of saying that the little knowledge of the Lord that the churches possess have been taken away and given to us.

Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 
Mat 13:12  For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. 

The Lord giving the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians is another way of saying that when a man’s way pleases the Lord, He makes his enemies to be at peace with him.

Pro 16:7  When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.

Exo 12:37  And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot that were men, beside children.

The Israelites started their journey from Ramses, which was in the land of Goshen in Egypt. From there, they left Egypt and went to Succoth, which means ‘booth’ or ‘tent’. Going to Succoth signifies that, as His elect, we are in this world but not of this world. Our journey through this world must be a journey of faith with the view of inheriting the promise. In other words, we are looking for the city whose foundation is Christ and the builder being our Lord.

Heb 11:9  By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:
Heb 11:10  For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

The fact that six hundred thousand men left Ramses in Egypt is to let us know that our exit from Babylon to come to the church of the firstborn does not mean that the Lord had completed His work in us. We were carnal or fleshly as we left Babylon as signified by the number 600,000 (600,000 = 6x10x10x10x10x10). However, the Lord is perfecting us through His judgment to bring us to maturity, and we are His work in progress.

Gen 6:3  Then the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh: his days shall be 120 years.” (ESV)

Exo 12:38  And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle. 

We must also know that not all who came out of Babylon (Egypt) to the church of the firstborn will end up receiving the reward, as signified by the mixed multitude that left Egypt. Later on in our walk, we shall encounter Korah’s rebellion, Achan, etc. This is all part of the ways designed by the Lord to sift the wheat from the tares.

1Co 11:19  For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.

Mat 13:38  The field is the world; the good seed (the wheat) are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;

As we have explained in the previous study, going out of Egypt with the flocks, herds and cattle is maintaining our livelihood as we serve the Lord. Recognizing the need to work for a living while serving the Lord is one of Paul’s main messages to the churches He ministered.

Act 20:34  Yea, ye yourselves know, that these hands have ministered unto my necessities, and to them that were with me. 
Act 20:35  I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.

Exo 12:39  And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they brought forth out of Egypt, for it was not leavened; because they were thrust out of Egypt, and could not tarry, neither had they prepared for themselves any victual. 

As we have explained earlier in verse 34, the people of Israel did not have ample time to make leavened bread. This is all the Lord’s doing as He puts us in a situation where it becomes easier for us to pursue the righteousness of Christ.

Exo 12:40  Now the sojourning of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years. 
Exo 12:41  And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt. 

According to the Lord’s prophecy when He made a covenant with Abraham, the people of Israel were supposed to spend four hundred years in servitude before they became free. However, verses 40 and 41 talk about four hundred and thirty years. Thus, verses 40 and 41 seem to be in contradiction with the following verses:

Gen 15:13  And he said unto Abram, Know of a surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs, and shall serve them; and they shall afflict them four hundred years;
Gen 15:14  And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge: and afterward shall they come out with great substance.

Unlearned and unstable minds, however, think that the Bible is full of contradictions. People who think that way are not meant to know the truth as predicted by Apostle Peter:

2Pe 3:14  Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.
2Pe 3:15  And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; 
2Pe 3:16  As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.

This is what accounts for the apparent discrepancy: These four hundred and thirty years began in Genesis 12 when the Lord made the promise to Abraham that He would give the good land to Abraham’s seed. From that day until the night of the exodus was exactly four hundred and thirty years. The four hundred years began with Ishmael’s mocking of Isaac in Genesis 21. This means that from Genesis 12 to Genesis 21, there was a period of thirty years, and from Genesis 21 to Exodus 12, there was a period of four hundred years. Spiritually, the number four hundred and thirty signifies the whole of our lives from our birth until the time we leave Babylon after the Lord had come with His brightness to judge us as a result of the fulness of our flesh (sins).

Exo 12:42  It is a night to be much observed unto the LORD for bringing them out from the land of Egypt: this is that night of the LORD to be observed of all the children of Israel in their generations.
Exo 12:43  And the LORD said unto Moses and Aaron, This is the ordinance of the passover: There shall no stranger eat thereof: 

According to the instructions given to Moses and Aaron, strangers are not allowed to observe the Passover. The observation of the Passover includes the eating of the lamb and unleavened bread with bitter herbs, the marking of the house where the lamb is eaten with the blood of the lamb and the need to stay in the house until morning. The spiritual meaning of observing the Passover was explained in the previous study as follows:

Every elect of every generation is required to observe the Passover throughout his/her life through faith. Every day of our walk with the Lord is the feast of the Passover.

Heb 11:28  Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.

The question is, “What does it mean to keep the passover?” First and foremost, we need to understand the sacrificial offering of the Lord on our behalf.

1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:

Secondly, we need to know that our lives were spared by the Lord from destruction. This has nothing to do with anything we have done. It was just the mercies of the Lord that He showered on us.

Rom 9:18  Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.

Thirdly, we need to know that the blood of Christ purges our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. In spite of our wickedness and flaws, the Lord has chosen us and purged us of our sins so that we can worship him acceptably.

Heb 9:14  How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

The Passover also commemorates our eating of the lamb. This lamb is Christ, who is also the word. This means that through the mercies of the Lord, our eyes are being enlightened to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.

Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.

Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.
Mat 13:17  For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

The enlightening of our understanding is accompanied by the Lord’s judgment which destroys the power and influence of the old man or the flesh in our lives. This is signified by the roasting of the lamb eaten at the Passover.

Exo 12:8  And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

Mat 13:21  Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

Observing the Passover also means that we are eating the lamb with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs. The unleavened bread here signifies sincerity and truth. This means that our understanding of the word of the Lord must be accompanied with a life of sincerity and truth. In other words, our life must reflect the righteousness of Christ. When our lives reflect the righteousness of Christ, then we are observing the Passover in our lives.

1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

It is so exciting when the Lord reveals some aspects of the truth of the word of the Lord to us. In other words, it is sweet in our mouth. However, when it enters our belly, it is bitter. The bitter herb that must accompany the eating of the unleavened bread refers to the bitter experience we must go through to actualize the word we have received.

Rev 10:10  And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

So, the question is, “Who is the stranger who is not to participate in the observance of the Passover?” A stranger is one who is without Christ, being alienated from the covenant of promise and having no hope in the world. This includes people of the world and our brothers and sisters in Babylon who are aliens from the commonwealth of the elect (Israel). It is only the elect who are required to observe the Passover. 

Eph 2:11  Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands; 
Eph 2:12  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: 
Eph 2:13  But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.

Exo 12:44  But every man’s servant that is bought for money, when thou hast circumcised him, then shall he eat thereof. 

Being bought as a slave with money is being redeemed by the Lord with His blood. In times past, we were following the course of this world with our father the devil dictating our walk in this world. However, God, being rich in mercy, came to our aid by redeeming us from the slavery of sin with His blood. He then circumcised us spiritually to become part of the commonwealth of the elect (Israel). Thus, though we were servants to sin in times past, we are qualified to eat the lamb of the Passover.

Eph 2:2  Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
Eph 2:3  Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
Eph 2:4  But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 
Eph 2:5  Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)

Eph 2:18  For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.
Eph 2:19  Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
Eph 2:20  And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

Exo 12:45  A foreigner and an hired servant shall not eat thereof. 

As we have indicated, we were strangers and hired servants in time past, and during that period, we were not qualified to eat of the lamb of the Passover. In other words, our eyes were not enlightened by the Lord.

Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them (foreigners and hired servants) it is not given.

Mat 13:13  Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.
Mat 13:14  And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:
Mat 13:15  For this people’s heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

Exo 12:46  In one house shall it be eaten; thou shalt not carry forth ought of the flesh abroad out of the house; neither shall ye break a bone thereof. 

“In one house” signifies that we, who at some point in time were strangers, are united with the elect. In other words, we, the strangers and hired servants, are now one with the people of Israel (the elect), eating the same lamb of the word of God.

Eph 2:13  But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ.
Eph 2:14  For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
Eph 2:15  Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; 
Eph 2:16  And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:

Here in verse 46, we are also told that we should not take the flesh of the lamb we are eating outside the house. Outside is used severally in the scriptures to denote the dwelling place of those with contagious diseases like leprosy as shown below:

Lev 13:45  “The leprous person who has the disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose, and he shall cover his upper lip and cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean.’
Lev 13:46  He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease. He is unclean. He shall live alone. His dwelling shall be outside the camp.

People who dwell “outside” with contagious diseases like leprosy symbolize the people of the world, including our Babylonian brothers and sisters. The fact that we are not to take any of the flesh outside the house is another way of saying that we should not cast our pearls before swine. That is, we should not take what is holy and give it to the dogs, because they have no regard for what is holy and will instead attack us.

Mat 7:6  “Do not give dogs what is holy, and do not throw your pearls before pigs, lest they trample them underfoot and turn to attack you.

We are also admonished not to break a bone of the lamb while eating the Passover. The first mention of bone in the Bible was in relation to the Lord taking the rib (bone) of Adam and using it to form a woman. The woman was produced from a bone taken from Adam. This means that a bone signifies life that impart life. The bone taken from Adam imparted Adam’s life into Eve. Adam here represents Christ who imparts His eternal life to us, the church. When Christ was crucified as our Passover lamb, His legs (bones) were not broken. These unbreakable bones of Christ refer to His eternal life or His spirit. The statement that we are not to break a bone while eating the lamb, therefore symbolizes the fact that we must not lose sight of the spiritual implication of the word of the Lord which gives life.

Gen 2:21  So the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and while he slept took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh.
Gen 2:22  And the rib that the LORD God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. 
Gen 2:23  Then the man said, “This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.”

Joh 19:32  So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been crucified with him. 
Joh 19:33  But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs.
Joh 19:34  But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. 

Joh 6:63  It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.

Exo 12:47  All the congregation of Israel shall keep it.
Exo 12:48  And when a stranger shall sojourn with thee, and will keep the passover to the LORD, let all his males be circumcised, and then let him come near and keep it; and he shall be as one that is born in the land: for no uncircumcised person shall eat thereof.

All the congregation of Israel keeping the Passover means that the elect of every generation is required to eat the lamb of the Passover, the unleavened bread with bitter herbs and to smear the blood of Christ on our doorpost. Observing the Passover spiritually means that our eyes are being enlightened to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of God and that we live a life of righteousness. All of this is done on the basis of the fact that the blood of Christ has purged our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. In spite of our wickedness and flaws, the Lord has chosen us and purged us of our sins so that we can worship him acceptably.

Heb 9:14  How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

In verse 48, a distinction is made of circumcised and uncircumcised persons. Only circumcised persons can observe the Passover. Uncircumcised persons cannot participate in the Passover. We, the elect, are the circumcised who are admonished to come near to the Lord and observe the Passover. Circumcision signifies the doing away of the flesh which had dominated us in our earlier walk with Christ.

Rom 2:28  For he is not a Jew, which is one outwardly; neither is that circumcision, which is outward in the flesh:
Rom 2:29  But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

The uncircumcised person is anyone who is dominated by the flesh. Such a person walks after the flesh. This is what walking after the flesh (uncircumcised) is all about:

Gal 5:19  Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 
Gal 5:20  Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 
Gal 5:21  Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

Exo 12:49  One law shall be to him that is homeborn, and unto the stranger that sojourneth among you.

We, the strangers, are joined together with the homeborn through the law of the spirit of life which sets us free from the law of sin and death.

Rom 8:2  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.

Eph 2:11  Wherefore remember, that ye being in time past Gentiles in the flesh, who are called Uncircumcision by that which is called the Circumcision in the flesh made by hands;
Eph 2:12  That at that time ye were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world: 
Eph 2:13  But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. 
Eph 2:14  For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
Eph 2:15  Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; 
Eph 2:16  And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:

Exo 12:50  Thus did all the children of Israel; as the LORD commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they. 

It is through the Lord’s judgment of the ten plagues, culminating in the death of the firstborn, that we become obedient and therefore righteous. As indicated in verse 50, all the children of Israel obeyed the Lord’s commandment.

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee.
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

Exo 12:51  And it came to pass the selfsame day, that the LORD did bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their armies. 

It is significant to note that the children of Israel came out of Egypt as the Lord’s army. We are the Lord’s army here in this world to serve the Lord and His interest.

Rev 19:14  And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.

As the Lord’s army, our fight is not against a physical enemy but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world and against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Eph 6:12  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.

Rev 19:19  And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army.

The Lord has already given us all the weapons we need to prepare for this war of our lives.

Eph 6:13  Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 
Eph 6:14  Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 
Eph 6:15  And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 
Eph 6:16  Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 
Eph 6:17  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 
Eph 6:18  Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

We thank God for the opportunity to count us worthy to observe the Passover. Our prayer is that through the adherence to His guidelines regarding how we are to observe the Passover, we shall be presented blameless and faultless in His presence. Amen!!

[Study Aired May 30, 2022]

Exo 12:12  For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite 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. 
Exo 12:13  And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. 
Exo 12:14  And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever. 
Exo 12:15  Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel. 
Exo 12:16  And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you. 
Exo 12:17  And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever. 
Exo 12:18  In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even. 
Exo 12:19  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. 
Exo 12:20  Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread. 
Exo 12:21  Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the passover. 
Exo 12:22  And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the bason; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning. 
Exo 12:23  For the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you. 
Exo 12:24  And ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons for ever. 
Exo 12:25  And it shall come to pass, when ye be come to the land which the LORD will give you, according as he hath promised, that ye shall keep this service. 
Exo 12:26  And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this service? 
Exo 12:27  That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the LORD’S passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed the head and worshipped. 
Exo 12:28  And the children of Israel went away, and did as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they. 
Exo 12:29  And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle. 
Exo 12:30  And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead. 
Exo 12:31  And he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the LORD, as ye have said. 
Exo 12:32  Also take your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone; and bless me also. 

Today’s study continues with the plague of the death of the firstborn and the Passover. The tenth plague, which is the death of the firstborn, completes the Lord’s judgment of Pharaoh which caused the release of the people of Israel. As we know, the number ten signifies the completeness of the flesh. It is when the sins of the flesh have reached their apex that we come to see clearly the old man or Pharaoh in our lives. That is when the Lord comes with His judgment (the plagues) to destroy Pharaoh (the old man) to set us free to worship the Lord in the wilderness (this world).

2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: 

The ten plagues are the same as the seven plagues of the seven angels which we must fulfill to enter the temple to worship the Lord. The seven angels here represent the elect, or Moses and Aaron who administered the ten plagues.

Rev 15:8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.

Exo 12:12  For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite 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.

The plague of the death of the firstborn affected both man and beast. As we know, all mankind are like beasts before the Lord. This means that this judgment affects all humanity. However, in this age, it is only the elect who are being judged. The rest of humanity will be judged in the lake of fire age.

Ecc 3:18  I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts.

Here in verse 1, we are given additional information that this plague also affects the gods of Egypt. The gods here refer to the works of our hands or simply, our works, as shown in the following scripture:

Hos 14:3  Asshur shall not save us; we will not ride upon horses: neither will we say any more to the work of our hands, Ye are our gods: for in thee the fatherless findeth mercy.

We know that our works relate to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life. All these are destroyed during the plague of the firstborn.

1Jn 2:15  Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 
1Jn 2:16  For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 
1Jn 2:17  And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever. 

As indicated in the previous study, the firstborn signifies the might or strength and the source of power:

Gen 49:3  Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:

Deu 21:17  But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn, by giving him a double portion of all that he hath: for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his.

The plague of the death of the firstborn, therefore, signifies the destruction or the stripping of the power or the strength of the old man (Pharaoh) who dominates us. This is achieved by the coming of the Lord with His words (the spirit of His mouth) into our lives after we have come to see clearly the old man or the beast within us.

2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

Exo 12:13  And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. 

The blood of the lamb was supposed to be used to mark the doorposts of the houses where the Israelites were eating the lamb. The houses where we are feasting on the word of the Lord are our bodies. The significance of the application of the blood of Jesus to our bodies (houses) is to purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

Heb 9:11  But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; 
Heb 9:12  Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. 
Heb 9:13  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: 
Heb 9:14  How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? 

Heb 9:22  And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. 
Heb 9:23  It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 
Heb 9:24  For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: 

In addition to purging our conscience from dead works, we are justified through the blood of Jesus, forgiven and spared from the wrath of God through Jesus.

Rom 5:9  Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. 

Eph 1:7  In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

Exodus 12:13 says that when the Lord sees the blood, He shall pass over us and that the people of Israel shall not be destroyed by the plague of the firstborn. This is not to say that we are not to be judged, for we cannot enter the kingdom of God without persecution.

Jer 25:27  Therefore thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Drink ye, and be drunken, and spue, and fall, and rise no more, because of the sword which I will send among you. 
Jer 25:28  And it shall be, if they refuse to take the cup at thine hand to drink, then shalt thou say unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Ye shall certainly drink.

However, verse 13 is another way of saying that in every temptation or judgment, the Lord will provide us with a way of escape so that we may be able to bear it.

1Co 10:13  There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

Exo 12:14  And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever. 
Exo 12:15  Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.
Exo 12:16 And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you.
Exo 12:17  And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever.

According to Strong’s Dictionary, the word “feast” can also mean ‘sacrifice’ as shown in the following scripture in which the Hebrew word for feast is translated as sacrifice:

Exo 23:18  Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning.

Once the source of our strength or power of the old man is dealt with by the Lord through judgments of the death of the firstborn, we are able to offer a sacrifice of unleavened bread throughout the rest of our lives, which is signified by the seven days of the feast of eating unleavened bread. The unleavened bread here signifies sincerity and truth. This means that through judgment, our understanding of the word of the Lord is deepened and is accompanied by a life of sincerity and truth. In other words, our life then reflects the righteousness of Christ.

Isa 26:8  Yea, in the way of thy judgments, O LORD, have we waited for thee; the desire of our soul is to thy name, and to the remembrance of thee. 
Isa 26:9  With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early: for when thy judgments are in the earth, the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness.

1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us: 
1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

The seven days of unleavened bread refers to the complete period of our lives that we offer our bodies as a living sacrifice to the Lord by living a life of Christ’s righteousness.

Rom 12:1  I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 
Rom 12:2  And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

We are warned here in verse 15 that if we continue to eat leavened bread, we shall be cut off from Israel. In other words, if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, we shall be cast out into outer darkness.

Heb 10:26  For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, 
Heb 10:27  But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. 

Mat 8:12  But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Mat 25:30  And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Exo 12:18  In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even. 
Exo 12:19  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. 
Exo 12:20  Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread.

The number fourteen signifies spiritual progression. It is when we have progressed spiritually through the Lord’s judgment that we are able to eat for a period of seven days the unleavened bread of living a life of sincerity and truth. The seven days refer to the complete period of our walk with the Lord in sincerity and truth. Verse 18 says that the eating of unleavened bread ends on the twenty-first day. The number twenty-one is a multiple of seven and three (21=7×3). This means that the number twenty-one signifies the fact that this complete period of the eating of unleavened bread brings us to spiritual maturity through the Lord’s judgment.

Again, here we are warned of the consequence of continuing to eat leavened bread of malice and wickedness. Doing this will cause us to be cut off from the people of Israel which is another way of saying that we shall be cast into outer darkness.

Mat 8:12  But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Mat 25:30  And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Exo 12:21  Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the passover. 
Exo 12:22  And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the bason; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning. 
Exo 12:23  For the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you. 

Our whole life here on earth is one long night as we observe the Passover.

Psa 17:3  Thou hast proved mine heart; thou hast visited me in the night; thou hast tried me, and shalt find nothing; I am purposed that my mouth shall not transgress.

Rom 13:12  The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. 
Rom 13:13  Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.

We are instructed in verse 22 not to go out of the door of the house where we are eating the lamb until the morning. On another perspective, the house where we are eating the lamb, or our understanding being enlightened by the word of the Lord, is the church of the firstborn or the elect. This means that during our walk here on earth, while we are getting more understanding of the word of the Lord, we are not to dissociate from the fellowship of the saints. If we come out of the house, or the fellowship, the Lord will not pass over us. Not being passed over means that we do not have any regard for the blood of the lamb which we have sprinkled on our door post. This blood is the shed blood of Christ, and so we are basically trampling on the blood of Christ.

Heb 10:29  Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? 
Heb 10:30  For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. 
Heb 10:31  It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Exo 12:24  And ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons for ever.
Exo 12:25  And it shall come to pass, when ye be come to the land which the LORD will give you, according as he hath promised, that ye shall keep this service. 
Exo 12:26  And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this service?
Exo 12:27  That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the LORD’S passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed the head and worshipped.

Verses 24 and 25 stress the need to keep the Passover in every generation. This means that every elect of every generation is required to observe the Passover throughout our lives through faith. Every day of our walk with the Lord is the feast of the Passover.

Heb 11:28  Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.

The question is, “What does it mean to keep the passover?” First and foremost, we need to understand the sacrificial offering of the Lord on our behalf.

1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:

Secondly, we need to know that our lives were spared by the Lord from destruction. This has nothing to do with anything we have done. It was just the mercies of the Lord that He showered on us.

Rom 9:18  Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth.

Thirdly, we need to know that the blood of Christ purges our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. In spite of our wickedness and flaws, the Lord has chosen us and purged us of our sins so that we can worship him acceptably.

Heb 9:14  How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? 

The Passover also commemorates our eating of the lamb. This lamb is Christ who is also the Word. This means that through the mercies of the Lord, our eyes are being enlightened to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven.

Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 

Mat 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. 
Mat 13:17  For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.

The enlightening of our understanding is accompanied by the Lord’s judgment which destroys the power and influence of the old man or the flesh in our lives. This is signified by the roasting of the lamb eaten at the Passover.

Exo 12:8  And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

Mat 13:21  Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

Observing the Passover also means that we are eating the lamb with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs. The unleavened bread here signifies sincerity and truth. This means that our understanding of the word of the Lord must be accompanied with a life of sincerity and truth. In other words, our life must reflect the righteousness of Christ. When our lives reflect the righteousness of Christ, then we are observing the Passover in our lives.

1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

It is so exciting when the Lord reveals some aspects of the truth of the word of the Lord to us. In other words, it is sweet in our mouth. However, when it enters our belly, it is bitter. The bitter herb that must accompany the eating of the unleavened bread refers to the bitter experience we must go through to actualize the word we have received.

Rev 10:10  And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

Exo 12:28  And the children of Israel went away, and did as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they. 
Exo 12:29  And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle. 
Exo 12:30  And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead.

The coming of the plague of the death of the firstborn took place at midnight. Midnight spiritually refers to the period of the coming of Christ into our lives with His judgment as shown in the following scriptures:

Job 34:20  In a moment shall they die, and the people shall be troubled at midnight, and pass away: and the mighty shall be taken away without hand.

Psa 119:62  At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of thy righteous judgments.

Mat 25:6  And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.

As we have said earlier, the death of the firstborn of the Egyptians and the death of the firstborn of cattle or beast represents the same thing. It refers to the death of the old man or the flesh within us. The fact that not one house was spared in Egypt means that the elect of every generation is destined to be judged. There is no exception. Another way of saying this is that we must pass through the flaming sword of the Cherubims which turns in every way such that no one can escape the flaming sword in accessing the tree of life.

Gen 3:24  So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

The agony we go through as the Lord judges us is represented here in verse 30 by the great cry in Egypt. This is also exemplified by David’s mourning of Saul’s death. Here David represents the elect, and Saul signifies the old man within us which must die.

2Sa 1:11  Then David took hold on his clothes, and rent them; and likewise all the men that were with him:
2Sa 1:12  And they mourned, and wept, and fasted until even, for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the people of the LORD, and for the house of Israel; because they were fallen by the sword.

2Sa 1:17  And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son: 

2Sa 1:19  The beauty of Israel is slain upon thy high places: how are the mighty fallen! 
2Sa 1:20  Tell it not in Gath, publish it not in the streets of Askelon; lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.

Exo 12:31  And he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the LORD, as ye have said.
Exo 12:32  Also take your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone; and bless me also.

Without the death of the old man or the flesh signified by the death of the firstborn, we are not free to serve the Lord in the wilderness (in this world). This is what the Lord meant when He said that if the son sets you free, you shall be free indeed!! Our liberation from the power of the old man within us is the beginning of the period of our walk where sin has no dominion over us.

Joh 8:34  Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
Joh 8:35  And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. 
Joh 8:36  If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

Remember that in one of the previous studies, we discussed what it means to go into the wilderness to serve the Lord with our women, children and our flocks. Going into the wilderness to serve the Lord with the women means being part of the church of the firstborn or the New Jerusalem. The importance of the church in our spiritual development cannot be overemphasized. It is through what every joint supplies that we become mature in our relationship with the Lord. Without the church, we will be blown about by every wind of doctrine. We are perfected by the church.

Eph 4:11  And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; 
Eph 4:12  For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 
Eph 4:13  Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 

Going to the wilderness to serve the Lord with the children is also significant. Children are the result of the union between a husband and wife. Thus, children spiritually represent the righteousness of Christ which we attain through our union with Christ.

1Jn 3:10  In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.

Rev 19:8  And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

Serving the Lord with our cattle means maintaining our livelihood as we serve the Lord.

Zec 13:5  But he shall say, I am no prophet, I am an husbandman; for man taught me to keep cattle from my youth.

Recognizing the need to work for a living while serving the Lord is one of Paul’s main messages to the churches He ministered.

Act 20:34  Yea, ye yourselves know, that these hands have ministered unto my necessities, and to them that were with me. 
Act 20:35  I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.

Our prayer is that the Lord grants us the grace so we continue to keep the Passover!! Amen!!

[Study Aired May 23, 2022]

Exo 11:1  And the LORD said unto Moses, Yet will I bring one plague more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go hence: when he shall let you go, he shall surely thrust you out hence altogether. 
Exo 11:2  Speak now in the ears of the people, and let every man borrow of his neighbour, and every woman of her neighbour, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold. 
Exo 11:3  And the LORD gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants, and in the sight of the people. 
Exo 11:4  And Moses said, Thus saith the LORD, About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt: 
Exo 11:5  And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts. 
Exo 11:6  And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it any more. 
Exo 11:7  But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that ye may know how that the LORD doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel. 
Exo 11:8  And all these thy servants shall come down unto me, and bow down themselves unto me, saying, Get thee out, and all the people that follow thee: and after that I will go out. And he went out from Pharaoh in a great anger. 
Exo 11:9  And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you; that my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt. 
Exo 11:10  And Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh: and the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go out of his land. 

Exo 12:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 
Exo 12:2  This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you. 
Exo 12:3  Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house: 
Exo 12:4  And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb. 
Exo 12:5  Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats: 
Exo 12:6  And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. 
Exo 12:7  And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it. 
Exo 12:8  And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it. 
Exo 12:9  Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof. 
Exo 12:10  And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; and that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire. 
Exo 12:11  And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD’S passover.

Chapter 11 and the whole of chapter 12 talk about the last plague which is the death of the first born of the Egyptians and that of beasts together with the preparation for the passover. This last plague resulted in Pharaoh relinquishing his hold on the people of Israel in Egypt. It was the last straw that destroyed the resistance of our old man (Pharaoh) and resulted in the people of Israel (the elect) ready to serve the Lord in the wilderness (the world). The death of the old man is the birth of the new man within us who is after the image of Christ. The effect of the plagues (tribulations) is the birthing of the new man within us. It is the same as Christ coming to His temple (within us).

Mat 24:29  Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: 
Mat 24:30  And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 
Mat 24:31  And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

Exo 11:1  And the LORD said unto Moses, Yet will I bring one plague more upon Pharaoh, and upon Egypt; afterwards he will let you go hence: when he shall let you go, he shall surely thrust you out hence altogether.

The last plague here is the tenth plague which completes the Lord’s judgment of Pharaoh, which caused the release of the people of Israel. As we know, the number ten signifies the completeness of the flesh. It is when the sins of the flesh have reached their apex that we come to see clearly the old man or Pharaoh in our lives. That is when the Lord comes with His judgment (the plagues) to destroy Pharaoh (the old man) to set us free to worship the Lord in the wilderness (this world).

2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

The ten plagues are the same as the seven plagues of the seven angels which we must fulfill to enter the temple to worship the Lord. The seven angels here represent the elect, or Moses and Aaron, who administered the ten plagues.

Rev 15:8  And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.

Exo 11:2  Speak now in the ears of the people, and let every man borrow of his neighbour, and every woman of her neighbour, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold. 
Exo 11:3  And the LORD gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh’s servants, and in the sight of the people.

Remember that Egypt can signify Babylon out of which the people of the Lord (Israel) must come to serve the Lord. Thus, the borrowing of jewels of silver and gold from the Egyptians is another way of saying that the little knowledge of the word of the Lord (silver and gold) is taken away from our brothers and sisters in Babylon and given to us.

Mat 13:11  He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.
Mat 13:12  For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.

In verse 3, the Lord giving the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians is another way of saying that when a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes His enemies to be at peace with him.

Pro 16:7  When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.

The Plague of the Death of the Firstborn

Exo 11:4  And Moses said, Thus saith the LORD, About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt:
Exo 11:5  And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts.
Exo 11:6  And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it any more.

As we can see in the following verses, the firstborn signifies the might and the source of power:

Gen 49:3  Reuben, thou art my firstborn, my might, and the beginning of my strength, the excellency of dignity, and the excellency of power:

Deu 21:17  But he shall acknowledge the son of the hated for the firstborn, by giving him a double portion of all that he hath: for he is the beginning of his strength; the right of the firstborn is his.

The plague of the death of the firstborn, therefore, signifies the destruction or the stripping of the power or the strength of the old man (Pharaoh) who dominates us. This is achieved by the coming of the Lord with His words (the spirit of His mouth) into our lives after we have come to see clearly the old man or the beast within us.

2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: 

In verse 4, the coming of the plague of the death of the firstborn took place at midnight. Midnight spiritually refers to the period of the coming of Christ into our lives with His judgment as shown in the following scriptures:

Job 34:20  In a moment shall they die, and the people shall be troubled at midnight, and pass away: and the mighty shall be taken away without hand.

Psa 119:62  At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto thee because of thy righteous judgments.

Mat 25:6  And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.

In Job 34:20 above, it is at midnight that we experience trouble, and it is through this that the mighty (the old man or Pharoah) is taken away ‘without hand’. The phrase “without hand” means that we play no part in the death of the old man. It is purely the work of the Lord!! In Psalm 119:62 above, it is as we experience the Lord’s righteous judgements that we can offer a pleasing sacrifice of thanks to the Lord.

In Exodus 11:6 the effect of the plague of the death of the firstborn is expected to cause a lot of suffering as there shall be a great cry throughout Egypt such that there was none like it. This is another way of saying that this great tribulation is incomparable to anything we have or will experience.

Mat 24:21  For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. 
Mat 24:22  And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.

Exo 11:7  But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that ye may know how that the LORD doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel.

In the scriptures dogs signify the assembly of the wicked or evil workers.  This verse, therefore, highlights the benefit of the Lord’s judgment in the life of His elect. Through the Lord’s judgment of the plague of the death of the firstborn, we are kept by the Lord against all that comes against us from the assembly of the wicked or evil workers.

Psa 22:16  For dogs have compassed me: the assembly of the wicked have inclosed me: they pierced my hands and my feet.

Php 3:2  Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.

Verse 7 also says that through the plague of the death of the firstborn, the Lord puts a difference between the Egyptians and Israel. This is to let us know that there is a great chasm between us and the people of the world, including our brothers and sisters in Babylon. This chasm or great gulf is what our Lord Jesus mentioned in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.

Luk 16:24  And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. 
Luk 16:25  But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. 
Luk 16:26  And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.

This chasm or great gulf is His judgments which distinguish between the elect and other people making it impossible for one to cross easily into another. Those who have taken hold of the tree of life (Christ) have passed through the flaming sword of His judgments (the plague of the death of the firstborn) which is this chasm administered by the Cherubims (His elect) to protect the way of the tree of life!!

Gen 3:24  So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

Exo 11:8  And all these thy servants shall come down unto me, and bow down themselves unto me, saying, Get thee out, and all the people that follow thee: and after that I will go out. And he went out from Pharaoh in a great anger. 
Exo 11:9  And the LORD said unto Moses, Pharaoh shall not hearken unto you; that my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt. 
Exo 11:10  And Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh: and the LORD hardened Pharaoh’s heart, so that he would not let the children of Israel go out of his land. 

Verse 8 lets us know that in the fullness of time the old man or the beast within us shall be overcome. It is the same as Saul’s admission that David would become king. This is to give us hope that what the Lord starts, He is able to bring to completion!!

1Sa 24:16  And it came to pass, when David had made an end of speaking these words unto Saul, that Saul said, Is this thy voice, my son David? And Saul lifted up his voice, and wept. 
1Sa 24:17  And he said to David, Thou art more righteous than I: for thou hast rewarded me good, whereas I have rewarded thee evil. 
1Sa 24:18  And thou hast shewed this day how that thou hast dealt well with me: forasmuch as when the LORD had delivered me into thine hand, thou killedst me not. 
1Sa 24:19  For if a man find his enemy, will he let him go well away? wherefore the LORD reward thee good for that thou hast done unto me this day. 
1Sa 24:20  And now, behold, I know well that thou shalt surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in thine hand.

Verses 9 and 10 are to caution us that it is not an easy road to overcome due to the hardening of Pharaoh’s (the old man) heart. However, at the end of the day, it all works for our good as the resistance of our old man provides the occasion for the Lord to perform His signs and wonders (the plagues) to work a great salvation for us!!

Heb 2:3  How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; 
Heb 2:4  God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will? 

This is what we said in our previous study regarding the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart:

The hardening of Pharaoh’s heart, or our old man, by the Lord is for our benefit. This is shown as follows:

Rom 9:15  For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. 
Rom 9:16  So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. 
Rom 9:17  For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth.

So, the Lord hardening Pharaoh’s heart, or causing the old man within us to resist Him, is for us to appreciate the mercies of the Lord and to learn to show mercy as a result. This is not obvious when we are frustrated by our old man within us as we resist the Lord. However, in the final analysis, we shall come to know His mercies. One of the qualities the Lord is inculcating within us is being merciful. This is because it is through the mercies we have received we can show mercy to the masses of humanity which will result in the ultimate salvation of the whole world. Therefore, inasmuch as we need the Lord’s mercy, we must also show mercy to others in our daily lives.

Rom 11:30  For as ye in times past have not believed God, yet have now obtained mercy through their unbelief: 
Rom 11:31  Even so have these also now not believed, that through your mercy they also may obtain mercy. 
Rom 11:32  For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.

Another lesson that we can learn from the hardening of Pharaoh’s heart is that we come to see that this battle against the flesh is not our fight. It is the work of the Lord to deliver us from the old man or the flesh. By ourselves we can do nothing. As we can see, the resistance put up by Pharaoh is incomprehensible. That is why the beast within, or the old man, is compared to a mountain. A mountain can only be removed, not by might nor by power, but by the spirit of the Lord!! It is the word of Christ that destroys this mountain or the old man.

Zec 4:6  Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.
Zec 4:7  Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it.

The Passover

Exo 12:1  And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 
Exo 12:2  This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you. 

The adjective “first” represents Christ as shown in the following verses:

Rev 1:11  Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.

Rev 1:17  And when I saw him, I fell at his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon me, saying unto me, Fear not; I am the first and the last:

The coming of the plague of the death of the firstborn signifies the first month of the year for the Israelites. This implies the beginning of our union with Christ as we journey in this life. In other words, the death of the old man is the birth of the new man who is after the image of Christ.

Exo 12:3  Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house: 

The lamb that every man is required to take symbolizes Christ as shown in the following verses:

Joh 1:29  The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” 

Rev 17:14  They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.

The fact that it was in the tenth month that every Israelite was expected to take a lamb is to make us aware that it is when sin had run its course in our lives (the significance of the number 10) that Christ came to be offered as a lamb on our behalf. For all have sinned and fell short of the glory of God and therefore every man needed Jesus to be offered as a lamb on our behalf to atone for our sins.

Rom 3:23  For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; 
Rom 3:24  Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: 
Rom 3:25  Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; 

The meaning of the house of their fathers.

Luk 2:49  And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”

Joh 2:16  And he told those who sold the pigeons, “Take these things away; do not make my Father’s house a house of trade.”

Here Jesus was referring to the temple as His father’s house which is our bodies. A lamb for every house, therefore, means that every individual (elect) must be cleansed by the blood of Christ (the lamb) before one can worship the Lord acceptably in this life (wilderness).

Heb 9:24  For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:

Exo 12:4  And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb.

The lamb to be killed must be eaten with the blood to be sprinkled with hyssop on the door post. As we are aware, the lamb is Christ and Christ is the word of the Lord. The eating of the lamb is being granted the understanding of the mysteries of the word of the Lord. As verse 4 states, some households were too little to eat a whole lamb. In that case, their neighbor must join them to share the lamb according to the number of people in their households. The neighbor here represents an elect as portrayed by the Lord as follows:

Luk 10:29  But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?
Luk 10:30  And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
Luk 10:31  And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 
Luk 10:32  And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. 
Luk 10:33  But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, 
Luk 10:34  And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 
Luk 10:35  And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee. 
Luk 10:36  Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? 

So, what is being said in verse 4 is another way of saying that we must support those who are weak in our midst.

Rom 15:1  We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves.
Rom 15:2  Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification. 
Rom 15:3  For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me. 
Rom 15:4  For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.

Exo 12:5  Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats: 
Exo 12:6  And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. 

The lamb being without blemish means that Jesus Christ was without sin and therefore, was a perfect sacrifice to God on our behalf.

2Co 5:21  For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Heb 7:26  For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;

The number fourteen signifies spiritual progression. Keeping the lamb until the fourteenth day to kill it means that it is when we have progressed spiritually (fourteen days) in our walk with Christ that we come to realize that we are responsible for the death of Christ (the killing of the lamb).

Act 4:10  Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by him doth this man stand here before you whole.

This is what Jesus had to say about the fact that we are guilty of the death of the men of God whom the Lord sent to us.

Luk 11:49  Therefore also said the wisdom of God, I will send them prophets and apostles, and some of them they shall slay and persecute:
Luk 11:50  That the blood of all the prophets, which was shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation;
Luk 11:51  From the blood of Abel unto the blood of Zacharias, which perished between the altar and the temple: verily I say unto you, It shall be required of this generation.

Exo 12:7  And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it. 

In verse 7, the blood of the lamb was supposed to be used to mark the door posts of the houses where the Israelites were eating the lamb. The houses where we are feasting on the word of the Lord are our bodies. The significance of the application of the blood of Jesus to our bodies (houses) is to purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

Heb 9:11  But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; 
Heb 9:12  Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us. 
Heb 9:13  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: 
Heb 9:14  How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? 

Heb 9:19  For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people, 
Heb 9:20  Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you. 
Heb 9:21  Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry. 
Heb 9:22  And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. 
Heb 9:23  It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 
Heb 9:24  For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us: 
Heb 9:25  Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others; 
Heb 9:26  For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

In addition to purging our conscience from dead works, we are justified through the blood of Jesus, forgiven and spared from the wrath of God through Jesus.

Rom 5:9  Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. 

Eph 1:7  In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

Exo 12:8  And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

The flesh of the lamb must be roasted with fire and eaten in the night. This is to let us know that we cannot separate the judgment of the Lord (roasting with fire) from His words. As we are being given insight into the mysteries of the kingdom of God, we are being judged to conform to His image.

Mat 13:21  Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.

The lamb must be eaten with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs. The unleavened bread here signifies sincerity and truth. This means that our understanding of the word of the Lord must be accompanied by a life of sincerity and truth. In other words, our life must reflect the righteousness of Christ.

1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

It is so exciting when the Lord reveals some aspects of the truth of the word of the Lord to us. In other words, it is sweet in our mouth. However, when it enters our belly, it is bitter. The bitter herb that must accompany the eating of the unleavened bread refers to the bitter experience we must go through to actualize the word we have received.

Rev 10:10  And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.

Eze 3:1  Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel. 
Eze 3:2  So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll. 
Eze 3:3  And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. 
Eze 3:4  And he said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them.

This bitter experience includes the words of those we are sent to minister to, as shown in Ezekiel’s case.

Eze 2:6  And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.
Eze 2:7  And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear: for they are most rebellious.

Exo 12:9  Eat not of it raw, nor sodden at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof. 

Eating the lamb raw or boiling the lamb in water means trying to understand the word of the Lord but excluding the suffering aspect or the Lord’s judgment as a necessary part of the walk with Christ. This is what our brothers and sisters in Babylon believe and teach. As indicated in verse 9, the head, the legs and the inner parts must be roasted. The fire of the word of the Lord burns false doctrines from our heavens (head), destroys the beast within (inner parts or purtenance) and anything that negatively affects our walk with Christ (legs).

Exo 12:10  And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; and that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire. 

Letting nothing remain of the lamb means we must not neglect any part of the word of the Lord. We must endeavor to understand the whole counsel of God through His words.

Act 20:27  For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.

Burning with fire what remains is the same as saying that if we neglect the whole counsel of the Lord or neglect parts of the word of the Lord, we shall suffer loss through the lake of fire.

1Co 3:15  If any man’s work shall be burned (the burning of the remains of the lamb), he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

Exo 12:11  And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD’S passover.

This verse tells us about how we should prepare as our eyes are being opened to the mysteries of the word of the Lord. Ephesians chapter 6 verses 10-18 makes us aware of how we should prepare.

Eph 6:10  Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 
Eph 6:11  Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 
Eph 6:12  For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 
Eph 6:13  Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 
Eph 6:14  Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 
Eph 6:15  And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 
Eph 6:16  Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 
Eph 6:17  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 
Eph 6:18  Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

So, girding our loins as we eat the Passover lamb means we must uphold the truth of the word of the Lord. Shoes on our feet reflect the need for us to be ready with the preparation of the gospel of peace. Peter puts it this way:

1Pe 3:15  But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:

Our staff in our hands signifies the sword of the spirit which is the word of God. Eating in haste means the time is far spent or the time is at hand.

Rom 13:12  The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.
Rom 13:13  Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.

May the Lord continue to show mercy to us as we learn to walk with Him!! Amen!!

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Awesome Hands – part 149

“The feasts of the Lords will”

February 2, 2019

While preparing for this study, I didn’t really know where I was going to start. So, like with many of my studies, I simply relied on the Lord to guide my thoughts as His spirit flowed through the words I was reading to the typing of my keyboard.

This study is an example of how the Lord is not random in what He is doing, but it quite precise.

That knowledge is like a two-edged sword because if they Lord is working everything after the counsel of His own will, then even then things we think are negative are happening as a direct effect of His will working it.

In our study today, we are going to see how the Lord has pre-orchestrated events which cause us to acknowledge His will in our lives.

Without this causation we might think all things are coincidence or “karma” or some other sort of causation NOT pointing to the Lord.

Our verses for today are found in Deuteronomy 16.

Deu 16:9  Seven weeks shalt thou number unto thee: begin to number the seven weeks from such time as thou beginnest to put the sickle to the corn.
Deu 16:10  And thou shalt keep the feast of weeks unto the LORD thy God with a tribute of a freewill offering of thine hand, which thou shalt give unto the LORD thy God, according as the LORD thy God hath blessed thee:
Deu 16:11  And thou shalt rejoice before the LORD thy God, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite that is within thy gates, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are among you, in the place which the LORD thy God hath chosen to place his name there.
Deu 16:12  And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt: and thou shalt observe and do these statutes.

I started with verse 9 because our first verse with the word hand or hands is in verse 10, and I always like to read these verses in context.

This chapter is listing out three time periods which the Lord has purposed for His people to come together in acknowledgement. These times of acknowledgement are given to the people of God so that they can acknowledge the accomplishments the Lord has done in their lives both present day and in the past.

Though we are started at the feast of weeks, also known as the feast of ingathering, the earlier verses speak about the Passover.

Of the verses I have chosen to start reading from, the number 7 is the first prominent point that is being made. With seven being the number of completion, especially of judgment, we can see that the Lord is completing the process of the bounty He has given Israel in the form of a harvest.

There are several things to note here that carry spiritual types for us to implement in our thinking and in our lives today.

Obviously, I will be listing things that are brought to my mind about this topic, but there certainly are many examples that can be taken from these verses.

The next things mentioned that stands out to me is that the Lord tells us to bring a freewill offering according to how the Lord has blessed us.

It is easy to look at the freewill part of these verse, but the real focus is on, “according as the LORD thy God hath blessed thee”. Freewill mentioned here is not speaking about your will free from God’s but rather gives us a perfect example of showing how we have nothing to offer unless God has already blessed us.

The third thing I see in these verses is the inclusion of others around us. The Lord doesn’t simply bless only us, but He blesses others via us as well.

The feast of weeks is a feast that the Lord wants to make sure all participate in. In other words, the Lord wants us to sympathy towards those that are around us versus holding grudges, despising or looking down on others.

This phrase “thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite that is within thy gates, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are among you” tells us that the Lord wants us to acknowledge that He has placed these people where they are and we would do well to recognize that.

We are all servants of the Lord no matter what we are doing because the Lord will use what is happening for the good that will inevitably come about from it. Our intentions have not bearing on how the Lord works things in the end.

Gen 50:18  And his brethren also went and fell down before his face; and they said, Behold, we be thy servants.
Gen 50:19  And Joseph said unto them, Fear not: for am I in the place of God?
Gen 50:20  But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.
Gen 50:21  Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you, and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them.

Rom 14:1  Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations.
Rom 14:2  For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs.
Rom 14:3  Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him.
Rom 14:4  Who art thou that judgest another man’s servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.

Isa 46:10  Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:

Why have I mentioned all of these verses together? Well, the stranger in the land is to be treated just as the “son, daughter or servants”. If we really hearken unto what the Lord teaches us concerning these things, then our outlook should change how we treat others.

We do this because we are commanded to remember that we were once “bondmen in the land of Egypt”. Any other outlook is not acceptable to the Lord and does not glorify Him.

The next set of verses finds us look at the feast of tabernacles.

Deu 16:13  Thou shalt observe the feast of tabernacles seven days, after that thou hast gathered in thy corn and thy wine:
Deu 16:14  And thou shalt rejoice in thy feast, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite, the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are within thy gates.
Deu 16:15  Seven days shalt thou keep a solemn feast unto the LORD thy God in the place which the LORD shall choose: because the LORD thy God shall bless thee in all thine increase, and in all the works of thine hands, therefore thou shalt surely rejoice.
Deu 16:16  Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty:
Deu 16:17  Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD thy God which he hath given thee.

These feasts were to all designed to acknowledge God in both the blessings of the past, present and future. That is because the Lord encompasses it all.

Passover shows us what the Lord has done for us, the feast of weeks shows us what the Lord us doing for us and the feast of booths shows us that we can celebrate because the Lord has brought us to where we are, and more importantly, where we are going. Without a bountiful harvest, we will not be going anywhere as far as progress with the Lord is concerned.

It is during the time of the feast of tabernacles that we reflect on the blessing of being able to gather in corn and wine. It takes a lot of work and a lot of blessing of the Lord to get us to this point.

Anyone that has gardened, farmed, raised livestock or even been around these things understands the toils involved, but more importantly the absolute reliance on the Lord for the increase to happen. IF the rains don’t come, the crops don’t grow, and the animals die too.

Additionally, the feast of tabernacle shows us that the Lord WANTS us to delight and take grateful pleasure in the work of our hands of which He has blessed. There is absolutely nothing wrong with enjoying the blessings the Lord gives us, but He wants us to SHARE those blessings as well. That sharing obviously comes in many forms.

Both of these events tell us to be conscious of those around us.

“Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD thy God which he hath given thee,” is telling us that the Lord knows what He has given us and wants a loving offering given back to the Lord as acknowledgement.

Pro 3:1  My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments:
Pro 3:2  For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee.
Pro 3:3  Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart:
Pro 3:4  So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man.
Pro 3:5  Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
Pro 3:6  In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Pro 3:7  Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.

This is all good in well, but how do we look at these feasts and apply it to our lives today? Each event we have in our lives leads to the eventual crossing of the finish line where we will no longer need to toil.

However, the Lord wants us to acknowledge Him in all ways until we get there.

Much of our present day lives correspond to the “time period” of Pentecost. Passover certainly happens in ours lives, as well as, the feast of tabernacles.

I find that my daily activities have me reflecting on my walks with the Lord in the form of Pentecost or of being a kind of first-fruit unto the Lord. What do I mean by that?

“Seven weeks shall thou number” tells me this is about completely living my life to the Lord. A week is 7 days, and this is 7 weeks. There is a witness to this completion being works in our lives.

This period begins with the waving of the sheaf offering.

Lev 23:11  And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.

It was after this time that the baked loaves were presented to the Lord.

Lev 23:16  Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the LORD.
Lev 23:17  Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the LORD.

This shows us that we are to dedicate our lives to the Lord because we are a kind of firstfruits. The baked bread represents us acknowledging that the bread is life in us and we are the bread bring offered up unto the Lord.

This all starts with the “Passover sheaf” and ends with the wave of the wave loaves. This all points to a time and cycle in our lives.

Joh 9:3  Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.
Joh 9:4  I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.
Joh 9:5  As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.

We are the light of the world because we have the light in us, and that is how we need to live our lives. If we are always concentrated on the past events of our lives, then we cannot keep our eyes on the mark of the prize of the high calling.

Peter sinking in the water is a perfect example of this. The storm that caused the waves to crash against the boat was a storm of the PAST so to speak. It happened BEFORE Peter was called out onto the water, but it continued into the present time of Peter being called onto the water.

Instead of Peter keeping his eyes on Jesus, Peter looks around and continues to focus on the storm that has already been conquered by Jesus who is currently walking on the water.

Mat 14:22  And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away.
Mat 14:23  And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.
Mat 14:24  But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.
Mat 14:25  And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.
Mat 14:26  And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.
Mat 14:27  But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.
Mat 14:28  And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
Mat 14:29  And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
Mat 14:30  But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
Mat 14:31  And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

What we need to do is concentrate on Jesus coming before us as seen in the Passover.

(ESV) Rom 11:16 If the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches.
Rom 11:17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree,
Rom 11:18 do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you.

1Co 15:19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.
1Co 15:20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.

We must remember that Jesus died on the Passover and the Spirit of God didn’t come until the Pentecost was fully come.

I point this out to say there is always a waiting period with the Lord when He is working a situation that causes us to wait upon Him.

In the old testament examples, we have read today, the Israelites were being given directions on how to keep the feasts in the flesh, while we can take many, many lessons from the ways we should keep these feasts on both a macro and micro level.

These feasts were kept both individually and as a collective nation.

Jas 1:18 Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

I hope we can all continue to dwell upon the mindset that we are indeed very important to the Lord because of the position in His kingdom that He has placed us in, but not only for ourselves but for everyone around and connected to us in one way or another.

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Awesome Hands - part 115 Discussion

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Awesome Hands – Part 115

“Thy brothers blood crieth from the ground”

April 21, 2017

Our previous study left us looking at how it is we, as the body and bread of Christ, participate with Jesus Christ in going to the altar, table and cross of the Lord so that “through death” Life can come forth.

This Life in Jesus, also involves many facets that aren’t apparent to most of the world because they have been hidden in scripture and by the Spirit of God.

In our study today, we are going to move to our next set of verses which shows us just how important the blood of Jesus is but also how it is we deal with the blood of Jesus within our everyday lives.

The verses for consideration today are found in Leviticus 7.

Lev 7:25  For whosoever eateth the fat of the beast, of which men offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD, even the soul that eateth it shall be cut off from his people.
Lev 7:26  Moreover ye shall eat no manner of blood, whether it be of fowl or of beast, in any of your dwellings.
Lev 7:27  Whatsoever soul it be that eateth any manner of blood, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.
Lev 7:28  And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Lev 7:29  Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, He that offereth the sacrifice of his peace offerings unto the LORD shall bring his oblation unto the LORD of the sacrifice of his peace offerings.
Lev 7:30  His own hands shall bring the offerings of the LORD made by fire, the fat with the breast, it shall he bring, that the breast may be waved for a wave offering before the LORD.
Lev 7:31  And the priest shall burn the fat upon the altar: but the breast shall be Aaron's and his sons'.
Lev 7:32  And the right shoulder shall ye give unto the priest for an heave offering of the sacrifices of your peace offerings.
Lev 7:33  He among the sons of Aaron, that offereth the blood of the peace offerings, and the fat, shall have the right shoulder for his part.

As with most of scripture, there is a lot being said within a few verses, and when that is coupled with spiritual types and shadows, there can be an overwhelming amount of extra information that doesn’t always rise to the surface without a little digging.

There are a few points of interest I would like to cover in this study as it pertains to the verses we just read, and of course there is more that can be said beyond what will be covered in this study.

When I read about “blood”, “peace offerings”, “fire”, “wave offerings”, “heave offerings” and the altar, I tend to be a little intrigued at what could be gleaned from all of these topics being mentioned together within a few verses.

As many of you know, I have written about these very topics within the context of the “Awesome Hands” series, but I am going to bring those topics all together in this study in a much more condensed version, Lord willing. However, this will all be familiar if you’ve read those studies, but it should also provide a way to gel them all together nicely in why it matters for us.

“Thy brothers blood crieth from the ground”

When you look at Leviticus 7:25-27, these verses are mentioned before “And the Lord spoke with Moses…”. When we see this phrase, it usually indicates to us another “session” or transition that the target has with the Lord; in this case Moses. I say “session” because right before verse 28 we are being told of different commandments pertaining to the other offerings, and then we are given new information about what “blood” represents. “Blood” is going to be somewhat of the focus of this study.

Before this “new information” concerning blood is recorded in Leviticus 7, we have some other very significant events happen with blood, so we are going to mention those here for a little context.

Gen 4:7  If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
Gen 4:8  And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.
Gen 4:9  And the LORD said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: Am I my brother's keeper?
Gen 4:10  And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.
Gen 4:11  And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand;
Gen 4:12  When thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength; a fugitive and a vagabond shalt thou be in the earth.
Gen 4:13  And Cain said unto the LORD, My punishment is greater than I can bear.
Gen 4:14  Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the earth; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me.
Gen 4:15  And the LORD said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And the LORD set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.
Gen 4:16  And Cain went out from the presence of the LORD, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.

This story is, of course, the story of the first murder in scripture. Notice that Cain is cursed from the earth, and scripturally speaking, Cain’s seed after him will be cursed to not gain the strength of the “earth” either. We know that the physical application of this applies but so, too, does the spiritual.

As with any story, we have both men being discussed, and the new man, in type, has had His blood shed so that the EARTH has opened “her mouth” to receive the blood of “righteous” Abel.

When you start to put together that since the foundation of the world the Lord has been establishing His people to rule with Him, then these stories start to speak much more to what our purpose of living life is today. We are all in training for something much more glorious than anything this life itself and alone has to offer.

“Shed no blood”

Our next significant mentioning of blood as we build up to Leviticus is found with the story of Joseph and his brothers selling him as a slave. Those verses are found in Genesis 37.

Gen 37:18  And when they saw him afar off, even before he came near unto them, they conspired against him to slay him.
Gen 37:19  And they said one to another, Behold, this dreamer cometh.
Gen 37:20  Come now therefore, and let us slay him, and cast him into some pit, and we will say, Some evil beast hath devoured him: and we shall see what will become of his dreams.
Gen 37:21  And Reuben heard it, and he delivered him out of their hands; and said, Let us not kill him.
Gen 37:22  And Reuben said unto them, Shed no blood, but cast him into this pit that is in the wilderness, and lay no hand upon him; that he might rid him out of their hands, to deliver him to his father again.
Gen 37:23  And it came to pass, when Joseph was come unto his brethren, that they stript Joseph out of his coat, his coat of many colours that was on him;
Gen 37:24  And they took him, and cast him into a pit: and the pit was empty, there was no water in it.
Gen 37:25  And they sat down to eat bread: and they lifted up their eyes and looked, and, behold, a company of Ishmeelites came from Gilead with their camels bearing spicery and balm and myrrh, going to carry it down to Egypt.
Gen 37:26  And Judah said unto his brethren, What profit is it if we slay our brother, and conceal his blood?
Gen 37:27  Come, and let us sell him to the Ishmeelites, and let not our hand be upon him; for he is our brother and our flesh. And his brethren were content.
Gen 37:28  Then there passed by Midianites merchantmen; and they drew and lifted up Joseph out of the pit, and sold Joseph to the Ishmeelites for twenty pieces of silver: and they brought Joseph into Egypt.

And then a few verses later we see:

Gen 37:31  And they took Joseph's coat, and killed a kid of the goats, and dipped the coat in the blood;
Gen 37:32  And they sent the coat of many colours, and they brought it to their father; and said, This have we found: know now whether it be thy son's coat or no.
Gen 37:33  And he knew it, and said, It is my son's coat; an evil beast hath devoured him; Joseph is without doubt rent in pieces.

This familiar story is one that shows us the plan of God in full effect on the seed of the free woman versus the seed of the bondwoman. Though Joseph and his brothers are not directly mentioned as representing these two groups, we know that they do from the “sum of thy Word”.

Again, we see the “earth” being used of God to “swallow” up the new man, in type, as represented by Joseph. Additionally, we see that blood is directly connected to the earth in that blood is used to deceive Jacob into thinking that Joseph is dead while Joseph is actually alive.

There is much more to this story, but for this study’s purposes we are going to move to the next example of blood being mentioned found in Genesis 49.

Gen 49:1  And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the last days.
Gen 49:2  Gather yourselves together, and hear, ye sons of Jacob; and hearken unto Israel your father.

Gen 49:8  Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise: thy hand shall be in the neck of thine enemies; thy father's children shall bow down before thee.
Gen 49:9  Judah is a lion's whelp: from the prey, my son, thou art gone up: he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up?
Gen 49:10  The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall the gathering of the people be.
Gen 49:11  Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes:
Gen 49:12  His eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk.

When we hear or read the words “last days” we should immediately be brought into remembrance that these are very significant clue words into what is being talked about.

In this story we have Jacob telling his twelve sons what it is that shall happen with each of their tribes. There is so much being said here in just a few verses that a whole study could be dedicated to breaking them apart, and it would barely touch the surface on what is contained here.

However, for the sake of this study, we will concentrate on just a few points.

Judah’s prophesy of what he and his tribe shall represent is very revealing for the true spiritual Jews who are God’s children, and it is important to grasp this so that, as God’s children, we can draw on the strength that can be found in these Words of Life.

The power of God rests upon His children and has freely been given to them. Do you believe this and believe you are a child of God? Are you a son of God now? The rod of authority will not depart from you if you know you are a son of God.

The foal mentioned in verse 11 is significant in several ways since it is the same word translated as “ass” elsewhere in scripture.

Since Christ comes from the tribe of Judah, and this prophecy is about the coming “Shiloh” or savior, it is interesting to note that Christ comes riding on a donkey that was tied to a vine.

See, the beast that is given a deadly wound and then healed has ALWAYS been tied to the vine since the foundation of the world.

Mat 21:1  And when they drew nigh unto Jerusalem, and were come to Bethphage, unto the mount of Olives, then sent Jesus two disciples,
Mat 21:2  Saying unto them, Go into the village over against you, and straightway ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her: loose them, and bring them unto me.
Mat 21:3  And if any man say ought unto you, ye shall say, The Lord hath need of them; and straightway he will send them.
Mat 21:4  All this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying,
Mat 21:5  Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass.

Zec 9:9  Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.

Joh 15:1  I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.

Joh 15:5  I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

We have always been tied to the vine. We are a peculiar people indeed but very scattered. Not only are we scattered geographically in most cases, but much more importantly, we are scattered among the nations of the earth that dwell within us.

While one of us may have conquered one nation of depression, with Christ in us doing the work, others in the body still struggle with the war that rages in the heavens. While one of us may have conquered the land of addiction, many others of us may still be trying to stop using pain medicines, stop smoking, stop viewing inappropriate material on the internet, etc.

Indeed we are scattered on the earth, and that is exactly why we must be in fellowship with one another. Christ is the Head who sits upon His shoulders. Christ is the Head who rides upon the donkey who has always been tied to Him, the vine.

However, there is a time that we, as His body, realize that this truly does come at a price, and the price is the blood of Christ; the new man.

Indeed, even the waters will be turned to blood in our hearts and minds. The very thing that gives us hope, the Word of God as represented in water, will be brought into remembrance as bringing DEATH TO ALL OF US.

That is where we find ourselves in Exodus 7, the next mentioning of blood before our verses found in Leviticus.

Exo 4:1  And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say, The LORD hath not appeared unto thee.
Exo 4:2  And the LORD said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod.
Exo 4:3  And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it.
Exo 4:4  And the LORD said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand:
Exo 4:5  That they may believe that the LORD God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath appeared unto thee.
Exo 4:6  And the LORD said furthermore unto him, Put now thine hand into thy bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous as snow.
Exo 4:7  And he said, Put thine hand into thy bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again; and plucked it out of his bosom, and, behold, it was turned again as his other flesh.
Exo 4:8  And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee, neither hearken to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign.
Exo 4:9  And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe also these two signs, neither hearken unto thy voice, that thou shalt take of the water of the river, and pour it upon the dry land: and the water which thou takest out of the river shall become blood upon the dry land.

Continuing, we see this come to pass in the water bring turned to blood as a plague on Egypt.

Exo 7:17  Thus saith the LORD, In this thou shalt know that I am the LORD: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood.
Exo 7:18  And the fish that is in the river shall die, and the river shall stink; and the Egyptians shall lothe to drink of the water of the river.
Exo 7:19  And the LORD spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone.
Exo 7:20  And Moses and Aaron did so, as the LORD commanded; and he lifted up the rod, and smote the waters that were in the river, in the sight of Pharaoh, and in the sight of his servants; and all the waters that were in the river were turned to blood.
Exo 7:21  And the fish that was in the river died; and the river stank, and the Egyptians could not drink of the water of the river; and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.
Exo 7:22  And the magicians of Egypt did so with their enchantments: and Pharaoh's heart was hardened, neither did he hearken unto them; as the LORD had said.

The magicians can always simulate the blood of Christ with their enchantments. Yep, you heard me correctly. The blood of Christ can be simulated and faked by the magicians who claim to have the power of God.

Sure, they may not directly make these bold claims, but in their actions they certainly convey the concept. The rod of authority, the scepter, is given to those that are from the spiritual tribe of Judah, the house of God.

When you couple this together with the water of the Nile being turned into blood by the rods given to Moses and Aaron, then it is easy to conclude that these actions have significant importance.

The first plague upon Egpyt, which affected both the Egyptians and the Israelites, was turning water into blood. Likewise, the first miracle done by Christ, as recorded in scripture, was Jesus turning water into wine.

Before you look at this miracle as NOT being blood but wine, I present to you Exhibit A.

Mat 26:26  And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body.
Mat 26:27  And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it;
Mat 26:28  For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
Mat 26:29  But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.

Ahh, how intriguing it is!

We are now brought full circle around to what communion with the Life of Christ is all about and how this all relates to Leviticus.

In Leviticus we see the Israelites being given very specific commandments on how to participate in the various offerings being mentioned. However, we want to participate in these offerings spiritually, and we want to be living a life with whatever time remains for us in such a way that this participation is relevant and out there for the world to see.

The world of Christianity just celebrated Easter, a very pagan-oriented holy day holiday, and they didn’t flinch in their ignorance of what they are doing. Truly, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the most important event to happen to all of humanity as it relates to the meaning of Life!

Let’s connect this to Paul’s writing on 1 Corinthians.

1Co 11:23  For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:
1Co 11:24  And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.
1Co 11:25  After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.
1Co 11:26  For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come.
1Co 11:27  Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
1Co 11:28  But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.
1Co 11:29  For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
1Co 11:30  For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.
1Co 11:31  For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.
1Co 11:32  But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.
1Co 11:33  Wherefore, my brethren, when ye come together to eat, TARRY ONE FOR ANOTHER
1Co 11:34  And if any man hunger, let him eat at home; that ye come not together unto condemnation. And the rest will I set in order when I come.

How does all of this connect to the verses in Leviticus which we started with in this study?

Lev 7:27  Whatsoever soul it be that eateth any manner of blood, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.

Wow, there is so much contained in this one verse! The life is in the blood! The Israelites were forewarned that they would be cut off from “their people” if they ate any manner of blood, but we see Christ TELLING us to DRINK HIS BLOOD.

Let me ask all of you if you have been cut off from your people for daring to JUDGE YOURSELF and drink the blood of Christ. When you drink the blood of Christ, you are GUILTY of the BODY and the BLOOD of the Lord.

Isn’t it interesting that Paul tells us all about the blood and body of Christ, moves to judgment, and then moves directly back to WAIT FOR EACH OTHER? That is followed up by “if a man is hungry let him eat at home”.

Now, I ask you what “home” are we to think about here. Sure there is a physical and outward application, but there is also a Holy Spirit inspired “house of God” that we need to consider.

The body of Christ does not go to the world, which worships other gods named “Ishtar” or “Eostre” or any other variation through the ages; for example, on Easter, for gaining sustenance to maintain the Life within them.

The body of Christ cannot EAT at the altar of devils and the altar of the Lord. I ask again what is the altar of the Lord?

The altar of the Lord is where we go to receive Life THROUGH death. Judging yourself means that YOU and I, Steven Crook, must pick up our cross and follow Christ to His. It means we must participate in seeing our lives consumed in His. It means we find meaning in living a life that will produce the fruits of the spirit by having fruit of our lives fall to the ground and die first so that Christ can increase.

When we start taking ourselves a lot less seriously, then our lives begin to have room for Christ to grow in them. If you consider what is able to be tempted by the devil in you, it is mostly items that have to do with YOU individually. If you take the 'YOU' out of the equation, Jesus increases, and He will give you victory over the flesh, eyes and pride of life that is in the world within you.

The importance of the blood of Christ is that the authentic blood can be seen when Christ is your covering and the garment you wear is Him. This garment can be SEEN by others because LESS of you is seen, and more of Christ Jesus is available to shine through from within you.

Jesus Christ’s ACTIONS and WORKS showed the Father to all around Him and likewise Christ Jesus is shown by His works in us to decrease “US”.

I conclude this study with these verse which sum up this study.

2Co 4:3  But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost:
2Co 4:4  In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
2Co 4:5  For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake.
2Co 4:6  For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
2Co 4:7  But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us.
2Co 4:8  We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair;
2Co 4:9  Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;
2Co 4:10  Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.
2Co 4:11  For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.
2Co 4:12  So then death worketh in us, but life in you.

Audio Links

Awesome Hands – part 85

“The judgments” Part P

August 26th, 2015

In the previous study we saw the Lord instituted periods of rest for His people. In this study, we are going to skim the surface of the times of feasts the Lord has given His people and what they mean in our lives today as Christians.

Three times a year

Exo 23:14  Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.
Exo 23:15  Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:)
Exo 23:16  And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.
Exo 23:17  Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord GOD.
Exo 23:18  Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning.
Exo 23:19  The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk.

There are seasons for all sorts of things in our lives. Though it is true that the study today will be covering feast times, even these times have hidden meanings which help us gain a better understanding of the Lord workings His will for us into our lives.

“There is a time for …. _________” and you can fill in the blank. There is a time “under the sun” for everything.

Ecc 3:17  I said in mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked: for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.
Ecc 3:18  I said in mine heart concerning the estate of the sons of men, that God might manifest them, and that they might see that they themselves are beasts.

As beasts and sons of men, we should be concentrating more on what makes us sons of God. When we evaluate the verses at the focus of this study today, let us concentrate on how we should be applying them to our daily lives and not only for specific times of the year.

Exo 23:14  Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.
Exo 23:15  Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:)
Exo 23:16  And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.

In the feasts that are mentioned here, we see three time periods which are obviously separated by varying degrees of time passing. In a “black letters on white paper” sense, we see that during the year the Israelites has to keep three particular feasts.

The first was to recognize their rescue from Egyptian slavery. All males must appear “before the Lord” to keep the feast of unleavened bread.

The feast of unleavened bread

This first feast symbolized a much deeper spiritual meaning for Jews which are inward and of the heart.

Rom 2:29  But he is a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God.

We yearn for the praise of God, and to gain that praise we must spiritual partake of the feast of unleavened bread. In this feast, we fully recognize that Jesus Christ was the sacrifice made for all of mankind so that we could be freed of the spiritual bondage and death.

This is the feast which represents our savior coming into our lives and there is NO leaven permitted to taint this sacrifice and offering. This also represented the purist form, the purest form of not having any false doctrine in our lives because Truth – Jesus Christ – cannot be mixed with lies.

1Co 5:5  To deliver such an one unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.
1Co 5:6  Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?
1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:
1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Gal 5:7  Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?
Gal 5:8  This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you.
Gal 5:9  A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.

Yes, leavening represents untruth, lies and false doctrine. As we live out this feast in our lives, we must always be worshipping the Lord in Spirit and in Truth. We do this by always keeping in mind who Jesus Christ is to us.

We have been freed and we are now His workmanship. Selah.

The feast of harvest/firstfruits

The second feast we are studying today is one which continues to build upon who Jesus Christ is.

Jesus Christ is a Head and Body. He is a Father and Son. He is a Husband with a Bride.

Exo 23:16  And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field:

There are a few foundational things to remember about who it is we are in Christ Jesus. We are His body. We are his church.

The church is added to Jesus Christ at Pentecost. I am going to cover a few easily missed, but very important points, if one if just quickly reading through these verses.

Act 2:1  And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.

Yes, everyone that is fully brought to the “day of Pentecost” is brought to have the same mind and be in the same place spiritually. We must all be at the point Peter described as witnessing during this day of Pentecost.

Act 2:19  And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke:
Act 2:20  The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:
Act 2:21  And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

One must call on the name of the Lord. Only we, as His body, know that “His name” is not simply the English words, “Jesus Christ”. His name is so much more than that.

However, calling on the name is not the only requirement that is made.

Act 2:40  And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation.
Act 2:41  Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls.

One must also “receive His Word” and be baptized by the “washing of water BY the Word” (Eph 5:26). Receiving His Word is believing His Word.

Rom 10:6  But the righteousness which is of faith speaketh on this wise, Say not in thine heart, Who shall ascend into heaven? (that is, to bring Christ down from above:)
Rom 10:7  Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.)
Rom 10:8  But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach;
Rom 10:9  That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
Rom 10:10  For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

The “day of Pentecost” comes to those who have a deceitful heart and to “the generation” which must shortly have these things come to pass in their lives.

Acts 2:40 tells us to “save yourselves” from this untoward generation much in the same way we are told to “work out our own salvation with fear and trembling”.

See, we are both taken from the field and left in the field. That is to say, the old man is taken, and the new man is left IN THE FIELD.

Mat 24:38  For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
Mat 24:39  And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Mat 24:40  Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

What is the field?

Gen 24:65  For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a vail, and covered herself.

The “servant of the Master”, whether it be Christ presenting God the Father to His people, or His angels presenting Jesus to His bride, presents the Master to the future up and coming bride “in the field”.

Here is the field:

Mat 13:38  The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;
Mat 13:39  The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.

Why is it important to recognize what the field is in context of these feasts the Lord is instituting in Exodus 23?

Act 2:42  And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers.
Act 2:43  And fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.
Act 2:44  And all that believed were together, and had all things common;
Act 2:45  And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.
Act 2:46  And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,
Act 2:47  Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.

These feasts are feasts which are to be kept daily while it is “to day”. The key to understanding the linking of the field to Exodus 23 and the feasts is that the field is the world.

We, as the children of God, are in the world but are not OF the world. We are in the field laboring, but are not OF the field.

It is true that we have been Of the field BEFORE Pentecost, but part of confessing and believing is being baptized into newness of life and being BORN AGAIN into something different.

Eph 2:1  And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
Eph 2:2  Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
Eph 2:3  Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

Gal 4:3  Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:

Jas 4:4  Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

1Co 2:12  Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.

Joh 15:18  If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.
Joh 15:19  If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.

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

“The ends of the world” are come upon us. What that means for us is that our LABORS are “in the world” but are not “of” the world, and this is CONTINUOUS.

Exo 23:16  And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.

In Acts we just read that they continued daily breaking bread house to house. When we connect that Christ is the Passover and the unleavened bread is sincerity and Truth, when do we stop worshipping God in Spirit and Truth? The answer is we never stop.

If we see that the field is the world, then what we are SOWING in the world are the labors the Lord has given us, and those labors are not something that we need to guess about.

Mat 13:39  The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the REAPERS are the angels.

In “spiritual speak”, for those with eyes to see and ears that hear, Jesus could not have been any more clear. His messengers are the reapers who are told to sow to the field. The reason why is that “the kind of firstfruits” are just first in the process and the feast of INGATHERING of all of mankind will be coming upon everyone!

The feast of ingathering

Exo 23:16  And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.
Exo 23:17  Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord GOD.
Exo 23:18  Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning.
Exo 23:19  The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk.

The three parts of this “year” we are reading about in this study is the process in which God is saving all of mankind. Therefore, we see that “all males” shall appear before God tells us spiritually that all “sons of God” must go through this process.

We cannot offer Truth and untruths during this process. That is to say, that God will not be mocked and anything that is leaven will be cast out of us.

As sons of God, we will be put through the fire but ONLY in our appointed time during this “year long” process of salvation of the Lord.

To bring home this point, Exodus 23:19 ends with “thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk”. Mike wrote a great article about this “seething”, but the word means to boil.

Boiling is a process to mature something whether for eating or purification. However, there is another connection that “seething” has to this conversation.

H1310
bâshal
Total KJV Occurrences: 30
seethe, 9
Exo_16:23 (2), Exo_23:19, Exo_29:31, Exo_34:26, Deu_14:21, 2Ki_4:38, Eze_24:5, Zec_14:21
sodden, 5
Exo_12:9, Lev_6:28 (2), 1Sa_2:15, Lam_4:10
boil, 4
Lev_8:31, Eze_46:20, Eze_46:24 (2)
boiled, 2
1Ki_19:21, 2Ki_6:29
ripe, 2
Gen_40:10, Joe_3:13
bake, 1
2Sa_13:8
baked, 1
Num_11:8 (2)
brought, 1
Gen_40:10
forth, 1
Gen_40:10 (2)
roast, 1
Deu_16:7
roasted, 1
2Ch_35:13
seething, 1
1Sa_2:13
sod, 1
2Ch_35:13

I am going to read the two verses that really bring out a spiritual concept for us on when we are to spiritually “seethe/boil” and when we are not to “seethe/boil”.

Gen 40:9  And the chief butler told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, In my dream, behold, a vine was before me;
Gen 40:10  And in the vine were three branches: and it was as though it budded, and her blossoms shot forth; and the clusters thereof brought forth ripe(H1310) grapes:

Joe 3:9  Proclaim ye this among the Gentiles; Prepare war, wake up the mighty men, let all the men of war draw near; let them come up:
Joe 3:10  Beat your plowshares into swords, and your pruninghooks into spears: let the weak say, I am strong.
Joe 3:11  Assemble yourselves, and come, all ye heathen, and gather yourselves together round about: thither cause thy mighty ones to come down, O LORD.
Joe 3:12  Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about.
Joe 3:13  Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe(H1310): come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great.

This is a process we are to keep in mind daily as hard as that is to do sometimes. When the time is RIPE, we have been told we are the reapers of the harvest.

However, when someone in our lives is NOT YET being worked with my the Lord, we are told not to try to bring the fire of the Word of God to that person because they have not yet even went through TRUE baptism.

They are still on milk of the Word.

Num 31:23  Every thing that may abide the fire, ye shall make it go through the fire, and it shall be clean: nevertheless it shall be purified with the water of separation: and all that abideth not the fire ye shall make go through the water.

In order for us to live out these commandments of the Lord in Exodus, we must never despise those around us who do not know what we know or who could be being worked with but are still getting nourishment from the milk of the word.

The latter group must be placed into the “washing of the water by the Word”, the baptism of the “water of separation” of the old and new man before they can have the fire of the world start to burn up the wood, hay and stubble.

I hope this has helped expound upon the ways we keep these feasts in our Christian lives today and every day “unto the end”.

Audio Links

The Biblical Overview of The Plan of God – Part 3

The Instrument of His Power

Introduction

Review of first study – God does have a plan for all mankind

In the first study in this series on the Biblical overview of the plan of God we saw all the scriptures witnessing to the fact that God does indeed have a plan and a purpose for effectuating the salvation of all men of all time. What we saw was that His immutable intention is to head up all of His creation, in heaven and in earth, in the Christ:

Eph 1:10 For an administration of the fulness of the seasons, to reunite for himself (under one head) the all things in the Christ, the things upon the heavens, and the things upon the earth, in him: (REV)

Col 1:15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature:
Col 1:16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him:
Col 1:17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
Col 1:18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
Col 1:19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;

Everything the Father is doing is being done “by [Christ] and for [Christ]”. God is the author of this plan, and He does not beat around the bush in explaining why He has given Christ the preeminence in all things. He is a God of love, so all He does is out of His love for us, but the reason He gives for placing Christ at the head of His creation is simply this:

Col 1:19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;

So God has revealed to us that He has a purpose and a plan in all He is doing and Christ has been chosen of His Father to be the head of all things, and through Christ the Father is in the process of redeeming to Himself “all things in heaven and in the earth” (Eph 1:10).

Eph 1:9 Having made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he hath purposed in himself:

That was the essence of our first study.

Second study – The sequence of events in the plan of God

In our second study we saw the sequence of the main events of that plan and purpose. Though we did not include the holy days given to ancient Israel in that study, I want to include them in this study because they have hidden within them the revelation of those who will be in that “blessed and holy… first resurrection”, who we are later informed will be the instrument by which Christ will accomplish all His Father sent Him to do. That is the subject of our study today, so I will go back through the Biblical sequence of events, which lead to the salvation of all men of all time, and we will take special note of the revelation of a dual firstfruits, which are later revealed to be that for which all the creation waits in great anticipation.

Rom 8:19 For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.
Rom 8:20 For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope,
Rom 8:21 Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
Rom 8:22 For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.
Rom 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.

These holy day festivals reveal the necessary sequence of events in the plan of God. These holy days, which Christ Himself gave to Israel, were actually given “Not unto themselves but… for our admonition” as spiritual shadows of the plan and purpose which God the Father is working out through Christ and for Christ.

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

1Pe 1:12 Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

There we are. We are informed that the law of Moses, of which the holy days and their sacrifices and rituals are an integral part, was given to Israel “for our admonition… having a [mere] shadow of good things to come”, and yet most people have no idea what they were really all about, least of all the masses of the Jews and Christians of this world.

Heb 10:1 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.

The holy day festivals given to Israel, “with those sacrifices they offered”, typified “good things [which were] to come” to Christ and His anointed, His Christ. They were not in reality, at that time ministering to the people of the Old Testament, because the faith of Christ was not yet available to any of that era. They were all, at the time those holy day festivals were instituted, still under the “law… for the lawless… [the mere] shadow of good things to come… to whom the promise was [in spiritual reality] made”:

Gal 3:19 Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.

The promise appears to the natural man to have been made only to Abraham and his physical seed, but the festival of Pentecost is also called “the feast… of firstfruits”, and it was on that particular feast that the New Testament church was founded:

Act 2:1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
Act 2:2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
Act 2:3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
Act 2:4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.

Exo 23:16 And the feast of harvest, the first fruit of thy labours, [The feast of Pentecost] which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering [The feast of tabernacles], which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field.

Exo 34:22 And thou shalt observe the feast of weeks, of the first fruits of wheat harvest [Pentecost], and the feast of ingathering at the year’s end.

The reason the holy spirit came on the feast of Pentecost was because those who are in Christ, are also “a kind of firstfruits”:

Jas 1:18 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

This is interesting considering that Christ Himself is called “the firstfruits of them that slept”, and His resurrection is typified by the offering of the wave sheaf of the barley harvest fifty days prior to “the feast of weeks, of the firstfruits of [the summer] wheat harvest”.

Lev 23:10 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your [barley] harvest unto the priest:
Lev 23:11 And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.
Lev 23:12 And ye shall offer that day when ye wave the sheaf an he lamb without blemish [typifying Christ] of the first year for a burnt offering unto the LORD.

The scriptures reveal that the firstfruits of the wheat harvest of the festival of Pentecost typify those in Christ who are now the spiritual ‘firstfruit’ seed of Abraham:

Jas 1:18 Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.

Gal 3:26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
Gal 3:27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
Gal 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.
Gal 3:29 And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

It is believed by most Christians that because Abraham and all the Old Testament saints of Hebrews 11 are said to have had faith, therefore they will all be in that “blessed and holy… first resurrection”. Is that really what the scriptures teach? The answer is absolutely not! That is the equivalent of using Exodus 16:4 to prove that manna was the true bread from heaven while ignoring the fact that Christ tells us that the “bread from heaven”, which Israel called ‘manna’, was nothing more than a type and shadow of Himself as the true bread from heaven.

Exo 16:4 Then said the LORD unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no.

Was that Old Testament manna the real “bread from heaven” or was it just a shadow of this Truth?

Joh 6:31 Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat.
Joh 6:32 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven.
Joh 6:33 For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.
Joh 6:34 Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread.
Joh 6:35 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.

The “bread from heaven” of the Old Testament was “not… the true bread from heaven”. It was nothing more than a spiritual type and shadow of the true bread from heaven, which “true bread” was Christ. Likewise the faith of Abraham was not the true saving faith of Christ, but was a mere type and shadow of that true faith:

Gal 3:22 But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.
Gal 3:23 But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterward be revealed.

Did Abraham’s faith secure for Him the promises? What do the scriptures teach us?

Heb 11:39 And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:
Heb 11:40 God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.

If they obtained a good report “through faith”, why did they “receive not the promise”? The answer is that their Old Testament ‘faith’ was not “the true” faith any more than “the bread from heaven” of the Old Testament” was “the true bread from heaven”. Both were mere spiritual types of the True, which is Christ, and which was available to no one “till the seed [Christ] should come, to whom the promise was made”. Until that time “We were kept under the law shut up onto the faith which should afterwards be revealed”:

Joh 1:17 For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.

Gal 3:19 Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.

Gal 3:23 But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.

Abraham did not have “the faith which should afterward be revealed”. The faith of Christ teaches us to ‘love our enemies, and if they take your goods ask them not again’, while the faith of Abraham told him to destroy the kings who had taken Lot and the plunder of Sodom and take the plundered goods back.

Gen 14:14 And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan.
Gen 14:15 And he divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus.
Gen 14:16 And he brought back all the goods, and also brought again his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people.

Mat 5:44 But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you;

Luk 6:30 Give to every man that asketh of thee; and of him that taketh away thy goods ask them not again.

The holy spirit revealed this same Truth to the apostle Peter who goes so far as to tell us that the Old Testament saints “ministered… not unto themselves, but unto us…”

1Pe 1:10 Of which salvation the prophets have enquired and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you:
1Pe 1:11 Searching what, or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did signify, when it testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow.
1Pe 1:12 Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister the things, which are now reported unto you by them that have preached the gospel unto you with the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven; which things the angels desire to look into.

Did the Old Testament saints receive saving grace? Absolutely not! They “prophesied of the grace that should come unto [us]… not unto themselves, but unto us…” Did the glory that comes with obedience to the faith of Christ come to the Old Testament saints? No, it did not! Rather it was “the glory that should follow… the sufferings of Christ”. Did all those things that happened to the Old Testament saints happen to them for their own admonition? No, absolutely not! “Unto whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us they did minister“.

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

With all of this in mind, let’s go back and consider what is revealed to us about the purpose and plan of God in the annual holy day festivals that were given to Israel “for our admonition”.

The passover

Those festivals begin with the passover, symbolizing the sacrifice of Christ as our sacrificial passover Lamb. That ‘passover’ sacrifice was foreshadowed in the Garden of Eden when Christ Himself killed an animal to cover the nakedness of Adam and Eve after they were made aware of their nakedness by their predestined disobedience to Christ’s commandment that they were not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.

1Co 5:7 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:

The days of unleavened bread

The passover festival is followed immediately with the days of unleavened bread, showing us that when we are granted to accept the sacrifice of Christ’s body and blood for our sins the consequential affect is that we begin immediately to put sin out of our lives. The days of unleavened bread symbolize the same thing the flood of Noah symbolized. They both foreshadow the doctrine of baptisms, the doctrine of having sin burned out of our lives and being washed clean of our sins by the blood of the Lamb:

Rev 7:13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?
Rev 7:14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

The sacrifice of the life of our Savior and the purging of sin from our lives are the first two steps of the plan of God for the lives of all men of all time. Whether our judgment is now or in the great white throne judgment, the lake of fire, the same steps must be taken in the same order as it is laid out in the holy day festivals God gave to ancient Israel.

The feast of Pentecost

What the holy day festivals reveal, and what the New Testament also reveals, is that our initial acceptance of Christ as our Savior at the passover festival, and the purging of sin from our lives which the days of unleavened bread signify at that point are an early baptism which is youthful, immature and outward in nature. Our passover and days of unleavened bread conversion precedes the trials of the wilderness where we all rebel against the trials of obeying our Lord’s commandments. We may well have witnessed all the miracles God has performed on our behalf against our enemies while still in Egypt. We have witnessed the death of the firstborn of Egypt for our sakes. We may have ‘come out of Egypt’, we may even have witnessed the power of God to part the Red Sea on our behalf, but all of those miracles are outward gifts which cannot yet change our hearts to the point that the holy spirit can take up its residence within us.

The fact that our knowledge of God is through His outward works on our behalf and not through the trials of the wilderness, which try our faith, is the significance of the “seven sabbaths until the morrow after the seventh sabbath”, before the festival of Pentecost at which holy day the holy spirit was given to the church.

Lev 23:16 Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the LORD.

1Co 3:1 And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.
1Co 3:2 I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.
1Co 3:3 For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?
1Co 3:4 For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?

Fifty is a multiple of five and indicates the work of chastening grace and faith which begins upon the arrival of the holy spirit within us when we are brought to the day of Pentecost. Until we have been brought to Christ in a more mature stage, having repented of being “carnal… babes in Christ”, we cannot be given the indwelling of the holy spirit. In other words, babes in Christ are indeed “yet carnal” and without the holy spirit dwelling within in a way that begins the chastening and scourging which is experienced by a more mature child who is no longer an immature babe, but has progressed to the point of being capable of receiving the chastening, scourging and tribulations which must be endured by “every [mature] son who [is] received [of the] Lord”.

Heb 12:6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son [G5207, uihos, maturing son] whom he receiveth.
Heb 12:7 If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons [uihos]; for what son [uihos] is he whom the father chasteneth not?
Heb 12:8 But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards [“carnal… babe[s] in Christ”], and not sons [uihos].

No parent chastens a baby, but any good parent does chasten children who are mature enough to benefit from the pain of a scourging which will make them think twice about disobeying their loving parent. It is of utmost importance for us to know that the Greek word for ‘babes’ in 1Co 3:1-4 is nepios, while the word for ‘son’ and ‘sons’ in Heb 12:6-8 is uihos, meaning a son who is now much more mature and is in need of being chastened and scourged for the purpose of giving him loving rebuking and correction.

This is the Pentecost stage of the plan of God within our lives, and within the plan of God for all men. It is the beginning of the day of judgment in the lives of all who will be part of that “firstfuits of [His] harvest”:

1Co 15:22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
1Co 15:23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.

“Christ the firstfruits” is the resurrected Christ, the anti-type of that wave sheaf of the barley harvest during the days of unleavened bread. Christ’s resurrection immediately followed the passover sacrifice of Himself.

Christ’s resurrection was on the morrow after the sabbath during the days of unleavened bread.

“They that are Christ’s at His coming” is speaking of those who have the kingdom of God “within [them]” (Luk 17:19-20), and who have “died in Christ” since His death and resurrection, continuing up to the time of His coming to establish His kingdom over the kingdoms of this world for the symbolic “thousand years”.

Rev 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

The feast of trumpets

The events which lead up to the rulership of “this world” by the elect of God are pictured within and without by the feast of trumpets on the first day of the seventh month, in the Fall.

Lev 23:23 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Lev 23:24 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.
Lev 23:25 Ye shall do no servile work therein: but ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.

Every holy day symbolizes a great work of God within each of us. Outwardly and dispensationally these holy days symbolize a step forward in the plan of God for all men, and yet every holy day is a sabbath because God wants us to know that He is working all things after the counsel of His own plan, purpose, and will, and not because of anything that we do:

Eph 1:11 In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will:

Every step of God’s plan for mankind is to be taken only with “a sacrifice made with fire unto the Lord”. The fire of God’s chastening and scourging does indeed entail torment, but it is a ‘fire’ which burns up and consumes all that can be destroyed by that fire. That which is not consumed and destroyed is purified in that fire. The torment, like the fire itself, has a purpose and an end, and that purpose and end is the cleansing and purifying “every man”. ‘Every man… shall suffer [the] loss” of all the wood, hay and stubble, in his life, “but he himself shall [in the end] be saved, yet so as by fire” (1Co 3:15).

Joseph is a type of Christ, our judge, and the way he dealt with his brothers, who sold him into slavery in Egypt, demonstrates how the fire of the Word of God works in our own lives. It demonstrates how we are judged by the Words of our own mouth and how we reap what we have sown:

Gen 42:21 And they said one to another, We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us.
Gen 42:22 And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also his blood is required.
Gen 42:23 And they knew not that Joseph understood them; for he spake unto them by an interpreter.
Gen 42:24 And he turned himself about from them, and wept; and returned to them again, and communed with them, and took from them Simeon, and bound him before their eyes.

It is an emotional thing to have to witness our own brothers and sisters being brought to true and deep repentance through the torment which their own words bring upon them. But we, too, must endure this very same “godly repentance” in our own lives before we will be granted to cause our brothers and sisters to be brought to that same place and time in their lives. Joseph could easily have said, “Hi boys, it’s me, Joseph, your little brother who you sold into slavery. Hey, don’t worry about anything, I have died for you in a sense by spending thirteen years as a slave in Egypt, and now all you have to do is to accept my generous sacrifice for all you did to me.” But that is not what Joseph did, that is not what Christ did for you and me, and that is not what we will do for those in the lake of fire. That fire is the word of God, and this is what that word teaches us about who we are and what we will do:

Eze 14:4 Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet; I the LORD will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols;

Luk 19:22 And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow:

That is exactly what Joseph’s brothers thought of Him, and it tormented them for many long years. They really believed that when Jacob died, Joseph would get his revenge upon them all for what they had done to him:

Gen 50:15 And when Joseph’s brethren saw that their father was dead, they said, Joseph will peradventure hate us, and will certainly requite us all the evil which we did unto him.

It was their own unforgiving heart that caused them to suffer in fear all those years, and so the scriptures were fulfilled which said:

Gal 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.

1Co 3:12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
1Co 3:13 Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.
1Co 3:14 If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15 If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

Contrary to the smooth teaching of the false doctrine of “the substitutionary death of Christ”, Christ is not in the process of saving us with “coffee and doughnuts”. Rather “he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire”. It is much easier to be forgiven and at the same time refuse to forgive those who have trespassed and sinned against us. It would also have been much easier for Joseph to have revealed Himself to his brothers to begin with than for him to have restrained himself from doing so while he tormented them as he did. But these things happened to them, and they are written for our admonition upon whom these very same “ends of the world have come”. That is right, these events are the events that come upon us all in “the ends of the age”, both inwardly and dispensationally and outwardly.

As the apostle warned us, and as our Lord Himself taught us, “Be not deceived, God is not mocked, whatsoever a man sows that shall he also reap [by] the tormentors… till the debt is paid”:

Mat 18:32 Then his lord, after that he had called him, said unto him, O thou wicked servant, I forgave thee all that debt, because thou desiredst me:
Mat 18:33 Shouldest not thou also have had compassion on thy fellowservant, even as I had pity on thee?
Mat 18:34 And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.
Mat 18:35 So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.

All of these lessons are learned first by those who are pictured as the firstfruits of the feast of Pentecost. From Pentecost to the feast of trumpets is the time from the summer to the fall. It is during this extended time that we are being matured through fiery judgments which “begin at the house of God”. Those fiery words apply to us first, and we are the first to be judged out of our own mouths, according to the idols of our own hearts” (Eze 14:1-9).

1Pe 4:17 For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?

2Th 2:8 And then shall that Wicked [the first man Adam, the beast, the man of sin within all of us] be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

“That wicked… shall [be] consume[d] with the spirit of His mouth”. In other words, “that wicked” is consumed by the fiery words of Christ in the mouths of His firstfruit witnesses.

Exo 34:22 And thou shalt observe the feast of weeks, of the firstfruits of wheat harvest, and the feast of ingathering at the year’s end.

Rev 11:3 And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.
Rev 11:4 These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.
Rev 11:5 And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.

“The feast of weeks, of the firstfruits of wheat harvest” is the feast of Pentecost, and “the feast of ingathering at the year’s end” is the double festival of tabernacles and the last great day.

This festival, “the blowing of trumpets”, is only nine days before the day of atonement, indicating that these two festivals are closely associated with each other. That association is the fact that our sins cannot be covered without first drinking the cup Christ drank and being baptized with the baptism He was baptized with, which are both typified by the trumpet judgments of Revelation 16 within our lives. This judgment is even now taking place within the lives of those who are “the house of God” and are acknowledged as such at the feast of trumpets (1Pe 4:17).

As the seven priests with the seven trumpets circling Jericho demonstrate, the festival of trumpets acknowledges that the day of judgment “begins at the house of God”, and has been taking place since that house was established within us. But judgment is accomplished in all men “each in his own order”. In time God’s trumpet judgments will include “all [who are] in Adam”, but at this time judgment is being administered by the “seven priests” who are also called the seven angels of the seven churches, which angels we are also told blow the seven trumpets and pour out the seven vials of the wrath of God which are essential to “consume [the man of sin} with the spirit of [their] mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of His coming”.

Jos 6:13 And seven priests bearing seven trumpets of rams’ horns before the ark of the LORD went on continually, and blew with the trumpets: and the armed men went before them; but the rereward came after the ark of the LORD, the priests going on, and blowing with the trumpets.

2Th 2:8 And then shall that Wicked [the first man Adam, the beast, the man of sin within all of us] be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

Rev 15:7 And one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever.

Rev 17:1 And there came one of the seven angels which had the seven vials, and talked with me, saying unto me, Come hither; I will shew unto thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters:

Rev 21:9 And there came unto me one of the seven angels which had the seven vials full of the seven last plagues, and talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife.

Who is this angel and this beast? Here is the angel’s own answer to that question:

Rev 19:10 And I fell at his feet to worship him [the angel of Rev 17:1]. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellow servant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

Rev 22:8 And I John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things.
Rev 22:9 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.

It is through the blowing of the seven trumpets by the seven priests that Jericho’s walls, typifying the walls and fortifications of the kingdom of the beast within us, are destroyed. As we showed earlier it all “begins at the house of God”:

1Pe 4:17 For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?

“Begin” does not mean that this is the end of God’s judgments. It is just the beginning, and it begins within His own “house”, His firstfruits, His “body which is His church”. This is how Paul describes this judgment which “begins at the house of God”:

Col 1:24 Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:

This verse reveals a great truth which many who have been deceived by the false doctrine of a “substitutionary death”, will and do consider to be blasphemy. Nevertheless Paul very clearly states here that his own sufferings are for “[Christ’s] body’s sake, which is the church”. He even states that this suffering in his body is “the afflictions of Christ in my body… which are behind [Greek: lacking] of the afflictions of Christ”. It is all a work of God and not of us, but it is being done through us “for His body’s sake, which is the church” as we will discuss in our study next week, if the Lord wills.

The next holy day is the day of atonement, only nine days after the feast of trumpets. It is followed five days later by the feast of tabernacles and the last great day, which we will get to next week, Lord willing.

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