Passover

The way of life

Jesus concluded his Sermon on the Mount with a statement that has come to be known as the golden rule. He said, “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and Prophets” (Matthew 7:12). What Jesus meant by this is the Law and the Prophets was that the golden rule summed up everything that was written in the Old Testament of the Bible. It was the bottom line so to speak of what you need to know in order to live the kind of life that God wants you to. Jesus went on to say, “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life and those who find it are few” (Matthew 7:13-14). The words destruction and life have to do with what happens to us after we die. Jesus indicated that there are two ways that we can enter into eternity, the narrow gate which leads to life or what we think of as eternal life, life in the absolute sense (G2222); and the wide gate which leads to destruction or what we think of as hell, a place where we suffer the eternal consequences of our sin (G684). Jesus said, “The way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many” (Matthew 7:13). The Greek word that is translated easy, euruchoros (yoo-rooˊ-kho-ros) means “spacious” (G2149). One of the reasons why it is easy for a person to go to hell is because there are no boundaries or you might say limitations to keep you out (G5561). Jesus contrasted the way to destruction with the way of life by stating, “The way is hard that leads to life” (Matthew 7:14). The Greek word that is translated hard, thlibo (thleeˊ-bo) means “to crowd” and “has reference to sufferings due to the pressure of circumstances, or the antagonism of persons” (G2346).

Jesus indicated that there are few who “find” the way of life (Matthew 7:14). This suggests that many people are looking for the way that leads to life, but not all of them are finding it. Jesus told his followers:

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!” (Matthew 7:7-11)

In order to find the way that leads to life, you have to first be seeking it. Seeking God begins with an awareness or an acknowledgment that you don’t know what to do. As a result of that awareness, you either seek a relationship with God if you don’t already know him or if you do have a relationship with Christ; you seek to know God’s will for your particular situation, the goal being to ascertain the meaning of your circumstances and to see things from God’s perspective.

Jesus later explained to his disciples that an exchange needed to occur in order for them to experience life in the absolute sense. Jesus said, “Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 10:39). In this instance the life that Jesus was referring to was not life in the absolute sense, eternal life; but the soul, “the inner self” or “’what one is to oneself’ as opposed to ‘what one appears to be to one’s observers’” (H5315). It says in Genesis 2:7 that God formed Adam out of the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life and he “became a living soul” (KJV). The soul and the spirit of man are sometimes confused with each other. The soul is associated with breath, “the breath of life, that vital force which animates the body and shows itself in breathing” (G5590). The soul can be thought of “as an essence which differs from the body and is not dissolved by death.” In that sense, when Jesus said, “Whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 10:39), he wasn’t talking about death, Jesus was talking about our inner self being changed so that it conforms to God’s way of doing things.

The Israelites that were delivered from slavery in Egypt had the benefit of God telling them directly what he wanted them to do or not do in order to live their lives the way he wanted them to. The Ten Commandments (Deuteronomy 5:7-21) were a comprehensive list of the essential behaviors that God was looking for, but Moses broke the entire law down even further into a single commandment that contained the key to Israelites’ spiritual success. Moses said, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:4-5). Loving God with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our might has to do with focusing our attention on what is going on in the spiritual realm instead of the physical realm. The rituals that the Israelites went through on a regular basis were intended to continuously remind them of God’s presence and his involvement in their lives. In particular, the seven annual feasts that the Israelites were expected to observe shaped their culture and provided a framework for the people of Israel to worship God. These celebrations became a way of life for the Israelites, but not necessarily for the reasons that God intended them.

The sabbatical year, which occurred at the end of every seven years, was designated as a year of release. Moses said, “And this is the manner of the release: every creditor shall release what he has lent to his neighbor. He shall not exact it of his neighbor; his brother, because the LORD’s release has been proclaimed” (Deuteronomy 15:2). The cancellation of debt was intended to eliminate poverty, but from a spiritual perspective the observance of the sabbatical year was meant to remind the Israelites of the moral debt that God had forgiven for them. The Hebrew word that is translated release, shᵉmittah (shem-it-tawˊ) means “remission” (H8059). During the Last Supper, Matthew’s gospel tells us that Jesus took a cup and when he had given thanks, he gave it to his disciples and said, drink of it all of you, ”For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins” (Matthew 26:28 KJV). The Greek word aphesis (afˊ-es-is) “denotes a release from bondage, imprisonment, liberation from captivity and remission of debt…It also means forgiveness or pardon, of sins (letting them go as if they had never been committed), remission of the penalty” (G859). The Mosaic Law was intended to represent the ideal state of mankind’s union with God, but many of its required rituals were misunderstood. The book of Hebrews explains how the process of redemption works and makes it clear that Christ’s sacrifice releases us from the consequences of our sins once and for all. It states:

But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come,then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctifyfor the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify ourconscience from dead works to serve the living God…And every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when Christhad offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet. For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified. (Hebrews 9:11-10:14)

The writer of Hebrews used the phrase “purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God” (Hebrews 9:14) to describe the result of having our sins forgiven. The Greek word that is translated conscience, suneidesis (soon-iˊ-day-sis) means “co-perception, i.e. moral consciousness…that faculty of the soul which distinguishes between right and wrong and prompts one to choose the formal and avoid the latter” (G4893). When we have a clear conscience, we are able to enter into the presence of God and worship him. Therefore, the purification of our conscience, or rather the remission of sin, is one of the things that helps us to find the way of life that Jesus talked about in his Sermon on the Mount.

The annual observance of the Passover feast was intended to remind the Israelites of their deliverance from slavery in Egypt (Deuteronomy 16:3), but it also had a spiritual significance as well in that it represented Christ’s death on the cross. Jesus’ Last Supper with his disciples coincided with a celebration of the Passover feast. Matthew 26:17-19 states, “Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, ‘Where will you have us prepare for you to eat the Passover?’ He said, ‘Go into the city to a certain man and say to him, “The Teacher says, My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples”’ And the disciples did as Jesus directed them, and they prepared the Passover.” It was not accidental that Jesus’ death was associated with Passover. The spiritual meaning of what Jesus was doing was beyond the human comprehension of his disciples, but the Apostle Paul later explained that the Lord’s Supper was intended to provide a means of confessing our sins on a regular basis so that our consciences would remain clear after the initial experience of being born again. Paul said, “Anyone who eats the bread or drinks from the cup, if his spirit is not right with the Lord, will be guilty of sinning against the body and the blood of the Lord. This is why a man should look into his own heart and life before eating the bread and drinking from the cup. Anyone who eats the bread and drinks from the cup, if his spirit is not right with the Lord, will be guilty as he eats and drinks. He does not understand the meaning of the Lord’s body” (1 Corinthians 11:27-29, NLV).

Jesus revealed the meaning of his body to his disciples shortly before his death. Jesus told them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:24). The Greek word that is translated bears, phero (ferˊ-o) signifies being impelled by the Holy Spirit’s power, not acting according to their own wills, or simply expressing their own thoughts, but expressing the mind of God in words provided and ministered by Him” (G5342). There was a great deal of emphasis in the Apostle Paul’s ministry on bearing fruit. Paul used the word fruit in almost all of his letters in reference to the results of preaching the gospel. The feast of weeks (Deuteronomy 16:9-12) was originally called The Feast of Harvest (Exodus 23:16) and in the New Testament times became known as Pentecost (note on Exodus 23:14-17). The connection between The Feast of Harvest and the day of Pentecost, which is recorded in Acts 2:1-4, seems to be the filling that took place as a result of each of these two events. Acts 2:1-4 states:

When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

The Greek word that is translated arrived, sumpleroo (soom-play-roˊ-o) denotes a complete filling that results from a union of individual parts (G4845). It says in Acts 2:1 that “they were all together in one place.” The “they” that is referred to here is all believers. “The Holy Spirit filled every believer on the day of Pentecost, not just a select few” (note on Acts 2:1-4). From a spiritual perspective, the Feast of Harvest resembled the day of Pentecost because it focused on the firstfruits of people’s labor (Exodus 23:16). It’s important that we realize there is expected to be a tangible result when we walk with the Lord. Jesus told his followers, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly” (John 10:10). The Greek word perissos (per-is-sosˊ) refers to abundance in terms of both quantity and quality (G4053). You might think of life being abundant from a quantity perspective when it consists of many years, but perissos has to do with excess or going beyond what is needed. From that standpoint, it seems likely that Jesus’ intention behind giving us an abundant life was so that we could have more than enough time to experience all that life has to offer us within the boundaries of living a godly life.

King Solomon, who is thought to be not only the wisest man to ever live, but also the richest, wrote about his experience of pursuing everything that life had to offer him from a secular perspective. Ecclesiastes 2:1-11 states:

I said in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure; enjoy yourself.” But behold, this also was vanity. I said of laughter, “It is mad,” and of pleasure, “What use is it?” I searched with my heart how to cheer my body with wine—my heart still guiding me with wisdom—and how to lay hold on folly, till I might see what was good for the children of man to do under heaven during the few days of their life. I made great works. I built houses and planted vineyards for myself. I made myself gardens and parks, and planted in them all kinds of fruit trees. I made myself pools from which to water the forest of growing trees. I bought male and female slaves, and had slaves who were born in my house. I had also great possessions of herds and flocks, more than any who had been before me in Jerusalem. I also gathered for myself silver and gold and the treasure of kings and provinces. I got singers, both men and women, and many concubines, the delight of the sons of man. So I became great and surpassed all who were before me in Jerusalem. Also my wisdom remained with me. And whatever my eyes desired I did not keep from them. I kept my heart from no pleasure, for my heart found pleasure in all my toil, and this was my reward for all my toil. Then I considered all that my hands had done and the toil I had expended in doing it, and behold, all was vanity and a striving after wind, and there was nothing to be gained under the sun.

Solomon’s declaration that all was vanity and a striving after the wind after he had indulged himself in every kind of pleasure that was imaginable demonstrated that the way of life and the way of destruction are not necessarily mutually exclusive when it comes to our daily activities. The difference between these two ways if life seems to be dependent on the motive behind your actions.

Solomon stated in Proverbs 6:20-23, “My son, keep your father’s commandment, and forsake not your mother’s teaching. Bind them on your heart always; tie them around your neck. When you walk, they will lead you; when you lie down, they will watch over you; and when you awake, they will talk with you. For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching a light, and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life.” Solomon associated the way of life with the reproofs of discipline and indicated that the commandment and the teaching of scripture would illuminate a believer’s pathway forward. According to Solomon, spiritual life involves discipline (Proverbs 6:23). The Hebrew word that is translated discipline, muwçar (moo-sawrˊ) means “chastisement” as well as “restraint.” Muwçar is usually connected with God’s discipline of his chosen people, but it seems to be applicable to everyone in Job 5:17 where it says, “Behold, blessed is the one whom God reproves; therefore despise not the discipline of the Almighty”

Jesus told his disciples, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12). Jesus described himself as the light of the world or you might say the illuminator of everything we experience in life and said that those who follow him will have the light of life. In other words, when you follow Jesus you will have the ability to see what life is really all about, you will understand life from a spiritual perspective. The reason why that is important is because your soul was designed for eternal life. It is not dissolved when you die like your body is (G5590). Paul talked about the perishable body putting on the imperishable and the believer’s final victory over death in his first letter to the Corinthians. Paul said, “I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the moral puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?’ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:50-57).

A spiritual journey

The nation of Israel began with a single act of obedience that set in motion a mass relocation of millions of people that were descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; who was given the name Israel after he prevailed against God in an all-night wrestling match (Genesis 32:24-30). Like their ancestor Abraham whom God commanded to leave his country (Genesis 12:1), the Israelites were told to leave their homes in Egypt and travel to a land that they had never seen before. Exodus 12:37-38 states, “And the people of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides women and children. A mixed multitude went with them, and very much livestock, both flocks and herds.” The Hebrew word that is translated journeyed, nasa (naw-sehˊ) means “to pull up, especially the tent-pins, i.e. start on a journey” (H5265). One year after the Israelites left Egypt, “the tabernacle was erected” (Exodus 40:17) and Exodus 40:34-38 tells us:

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. And Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Throughout all their journeys, whenever the cloud was taken up from over the tabernacle, the people of Israel would set out. But if the cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out till the day that it was taken up. For the cloud of the Lord was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys.

The Hebrew word that is translated journeys in Exodus 40:38, maççaʿ (mas-sahˊ) is derived from the word nasa and means “a departure (from striking the tents), i.e. march (not necessarily a single day’s travel); by implication a station (or point of departure)” (H4550).

In Exodus 40:38, it says that “the cloud of the LORD was on the tabernacle by day, and fire was in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel throughout all their journeys” (emphasis mine). The Hebrew word that is translated sight, ʿayin (ahˊ-yin) has to do with perception and more specifically with the processing of information through the physical senses. In Exodus 40:38, ʿayin refers to the physical perception of God’s will for the people of Israel. In the Hebrew language, “eyes” were used “figuratively of mental and spiritual abilities, acts and states” (H5869). It is likely that the sight that Moses was referring to was connected to both the physical and spiritual realms. The cloud and the fire were physical manifestations of a spiritual entity, namely the preincarnate Jesus Christ (notes on Exodus 3:2 and 13:21, KJSB).

Jesus associated his body with the temple that was located in Jerusalem during his ministry on earth. John’s gospel tells us that Jesus cleansed the temple and afterward the Jews asked him for a sign of his authority to do such a thing. John recorded:

So the Jews said to him, “What sign do you show us for doing these things?” Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple,and will you raise it up in three days?” But he was speaking about the temple of his body. When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.

The metaphor of the temple being Jesus’ body was meant to illustrate how the indwelling of the Holy Spirit would replicate in the lives of believers the Israelites journey through the wilderness. The Apostle Paul touched on this in his first letter to the Corinthians. Paul asked, “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him. For God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple” (1 Corinthians 3:16-17). Paul went on to explain in his letter to the Hebrews that the correlation between the tent of meeting that the Israelites used to worship God and the believer’s body was that they both foreshadowed the perfect union with God that Jesus made possible through his death, burial, and resurrection. Hebrews 8:1-7 states:

Now the point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, a minister in the holy places, in the true tent that the Lord set up, not man. For every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices; thus it is necessary for this priest also to have something to offer. Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law. They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to erect the tent, he was instructed by God, saying, “See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain.” But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second.

Paul’s reference to the true tent that the Lord set up, not man (Hebrews 8:2) had to do with the eternal nature of believers’ resurrected bodies. Paul indicated that Jesus’ New Covenant was enacted on better promises (Hebrews 8:6), meaning that the power behind the promises was capable of doing more than before i.e. conquering the physical and spiritual death that affects the lives of human beings once and for all.

Stephen, the first martyr of the Christian faith, made a statement in his final speech before he was stoned to death that might be overlooked if you weren’t aware of the details of the Israelites’ journey to the Promised Land. Stephen said, “Our fathers had the tent of witness in the wilderness, just as he who spoke to Moses directed him to make it, according to the pattern that he had seen” (Acts 7:44). The tent of witness is mentioned in Revelation 15:5-8 where it says that John looked, “and the sanctuary of the tent of witness in heaven was opened, and out of the sanctuary came the seven angels with the seven plagues, clothed in pure, bright linen, with golden sashes around their chests. And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever, and the sanctuary was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the sanctuary until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished.” According to Stephen’s testimony, the tent of witness in the wilderness was made according to the pattern of the tent of witness in heaven that was connected with the final judgment of the world. The Greek word that is translated witness, maturion (mar-tooˊ-ree-on) is being used in this instance as a designation of the Mosaic tabernacle being evidence of the existence of the tabernacle in heaven (G3142). In other words, we know that the tent of witness in heaven exists because the Mosiac tabernacle was a replica of it.

In the same way that the tent of witness in the wilderness was evidence that a tent of witness exists in heaven, so was Jesus’ physical presence on earth evidence that God exists and that he is currently residing in heaven. Jesus told his followers that he would go back to heaven after his death and would prepare a place there for them so that they could live with him there. Jesus said:

“Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.”

Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves. (John 14:1-11)

Jesus’ explanation that whoever had seen him had seen the Father was based on the fact that he and his Father were one person and could not be distinguished from each other from a physical perspective. The difference between Jesus and his Father was that they existed in two separate locations and were therefore distinct individuals that were identified as the Father and the Son. One way of understanding the trinity of God is to look at it in the same way that we do substances like water that change or you might say adapt to their environment. When you heat water to a certain temperature, it becomes vapor. When you cool water down to a certain temperature, it becomes ice. In the spiritual realm, God exists in a spiritual form. In the physical realm, God exists in a physical form. The physical form of God is the person we know as Jesus Christ. No other physical form of God exists, but there is a spiritual form of God this is not the same as Jesus because the spiritual form of God does not have human characteristics.

In order for us to connect with God, to have a relationship with him, we must enter into the spiritual realm. In his conversation with a man named Nicodemus, Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God…That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone that is born of the Spirit” (John 3:3). Jesus also told a Samaritan woman, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. But the hour is coming and is now here, when the true worshippers of God will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship him in spirit and truth” (John 4:21-24).

Everything that the Israelites did after they left Egypt was designed to bring them closer to God. The tabernacle in particular was intended to give the Israelites a materialistic view of God’s plan of redemption and Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. Jesus told the Samaritan woman that “salvation is from the Jews” (John 4:22). In other words, there wouldn’t have been a Savior of the World if the Jews hadn’t become God’s chosen people and produced the physical heir to God’s kingdom on earth. The primary connection the Jews had with Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection was the annual Passover celebration that was instituted the night they fled from Egypt (Exodus 12:50). The second Passover celebration occurred just before the Israelites left the wilderness of Sinai. Numbers 9:1-3 states:

And the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, “Let the people of Israel keep the Passover at its appointed time. On the fourteenth day of this month, at twilight, you shall keep it at its appointed time; according to all its statutes and all its rules you shall keep it.”

The Israelites were commanded to “keep the Passover at its appointed time” and “according to all its statutes and all its rules” (Numbers 2-3). The Hebrew words that are translated appointed time and according to all its statutes have to do with the synchronization of physical and spiritual activities and indicate that the Israelites were focusing on God and their relationship with Him (H4150). Numbers 10:11-13 tells us:

In the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth day of the month, the cloud lifted from over the tabernacle of the testimony, and the people of Israel set out by stages from the wilderness of Sinai. And the cloud settled down in the wilderness of Paran. They set out for the first time at the command of the Lord by Moses.

The phrase set out by stages (Numbers 10:12) contains two Hebrew words that specify a journey was about to begin and the phrase they set out for the first time indicates that this was a new experience for the Israelites. What was different about this setting out as opposed to the Israelites’ departure from Egypt (Exodus 12:37) was that the tabernacle of the testimony was with them (Numbers 10:11).

Paul connected the stone tablets containing the Ten Commandments, which were identified as God’s testimony (H5715), with the doctrines of Jesus (G3142). Paul encouraged his spiritual son Timothy not to be ashamed of his testimony about Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. Paul said:

Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God, who saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace, which he gave us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, and which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel, for which I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher, which is why I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that day what has been entrusted to me. (2 Timothy 1:8-12)

Paul talked about the testimony being “manifested through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 1:10). The Greek word that is translated manifested, phaneroo (fan-er-oˊ-o) means “to render apparent…as opposed to what is concealed and invisible…Phaneroo is thought to describe an external manifestation, to the senses hence open to all, single or isolated” (G5319). Epiphaneia (ep-if-anˊ-i-ah), which is translated appearing, refers to “the advent of Christ” (G2015).

Paul told Timothy to “Follow the pattern of the sound words that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you” (2 Timothy 1:13-14). It is important to note that at the time that Paul wrote his second letter to Timothy, Paul’s spiritual journey on earth was coming to a conclusion. The book of 2 Timothy was written by Paul from a prison in Rome. “Some suggest that Paul was writing a more personal letter to Timothy because of the fact that he was expecting to die soon” (Introduction to The Second Letter of Paul to Timothy). Later in his letter, Paul wrote, “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:6-8).

Paul’s instruction to “guard the good deposit entrusted to you” (2 Timothy 1:14) had to do with a spiritual gift that Paul wanted Timothy to “fan into flame” (2 Timothy 1:6). It seems that Paul thought of Timothy’s spiritual gift as being similar to the appearance of fire that guided the Israelites through the wilderness. It says in Numbers 9:15-18:

Now on the day that the tabernacle was raised up, the cloud covered the tabernacle, the tent of the Testimony; from evening until morning it was above the tabernacle like the appearance of fire. So it was always: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night. Whenever the cloud was taken up from above the tabernacle, after that the children of Israel would journey; and in the place where the cloud settled, there the children of Israel would pitch their tents. At the command of the Lord the children of Israel would journey, and at the command of the Lord they would camp; as long as the cloud stayed above the tabernacle they remained encamped. (NKJV)

The Greek word that is translated fan into flame in 2 Timothy 1:6, anazopureo (an-ad-zo-poor-ehˊ-o) “as a verb, denotes ‘to kindle afresh’ or ‘keep in full flame’… (2 Timothy 1:6, where ‘the gift of God’ is regarded as a fire capable of dying out through neglect)” (G329). The message that Paul was trying to get across to Timothy was that you have to keep the Holy Spirit active in your life in order to successfully complete your spiritual journey.

Consecration

The Apostle Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians was a personal note that was intended to set the record straight about his authority as an apostle of Jesus Christ. It’s not surprising that Paul faced conflict about this issue because Jesus himself was questioned about where his authority came from. Matthew’s gospel tells us, “And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes” (Matthew 7:28-29). In other words, Jesus wasn’t just quoting verses from the Old Testament. Jesus understood the word of God and was able to interpret its meaning accurately and effectively so that everyone who listened to him believed what he was saying. Jesus never answered the chief priests and elders’ question about where his authority came from. Instead, he made them realize that they were in no position to challenge his authority. Matthew states:

And when he entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came up to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” Jesus answered them, “I also will ask you one question, and if you tell me the answer, then I also will tell you by what authority I do these things. The baptism of John, from where did it come? From heaven or from man?” And they discussed it among themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘From man,’ we are afraid of the crowd, for they all hold that John was a prophet.” So they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.

One of the reasons the chief priests and elders didn’t respect Jesus’ authority was because they thought of themselves as appointed by God to be the interpreters of the Mosaic Law and were representatives of God to the Jewish people. Shortly after the Israelites were delivered from slavery in Egypt and given the Ten Commandments, Aaron and his sons were consecrated as priests (Exodus 29:1). The process of consecration involved several steps that were meant to ordain individuals into the priesthood.

Moses indicated that the priesthood belonged to Aaron and his descendants forever (Exodus 29:9), but Jesus was inducted into the priesthood under a different order. Paul explained:

So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him,

“You are my Son,
    today I have begotten you”;

as he says also in another place,

“You are a priest forever,
    after the order of Melchizedek.”

In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek. (Hebrews 5:5-10)

Paul went to great lengths to explain that Jesus outranked the chief priests and was able to present a sacrifice that would guarantee salvation. Paul said:

For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness (for the law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God.

And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath, but this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him:

“The Lord has sworn
    and will not change his mind,
‘You are a priest forever.’”

This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant.

The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever. Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them. (Hebrews 7:18-25)

Paul emphasized that the Mosaic Law was not intended to make you perfect, but to make it possible for us to draw near to God. The process of consecration made those who went through it holy or you might say acceptable to God. God told Moses, “You shall take the other ram, and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram, and you shall kill the ram and take part of its blood and put it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron and on the tips of the right ears of his sons, and on the thumbs of their right hands and on the great toes of their right feet, and throw the rest of the blood against the sides of the altar. Then you shall take part of the blood that is on the altar, and of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and his garments, and on his sons and his sons’ garments with him. He and his garments shall be holy, and his sons and his sons’ garments with him” (Exodus 29:19-21).

The Hebrew word that is translated holy in Exodus 29:21, qadash (kaw-dash’) is the same word that is translated consecrate in Exodus 29:1, so consecration and holiness are essentially the same things. Qadash means to be clean as well as to be set apart (H6942). One of the ways of thinking of consecration is that it differentiates between what can and cannot be used by or for God. In his letter to the Esphesians, Paul talked about being set apart to preach the gospel to the Gentiles. Paul said:

For this reason I, Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus on behalf of you Gentiles — assuming that you have heard of the stewardship of God’s grace that was given to me for you, how the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly. When you read this, you can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ, which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit. This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. Of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace, which was given me by the working of his power. To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God, who created all things, so that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places. (Ephesians 3:1-10)

Paul indicated that he had been made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace which was given to him by the working of God’s power (Ephesians 3:7). The Greek word that is translated minister, diakonos (dee-ak’-on-os) refers to someone that waits at a table and is primarily associated with “the servants or attendants of a king (Matthew 22:13; Romans 13:4)” (G1249). Jesus has a dual role in God’s kingdom and serves as both high priest and king over all the earth. His mention of both God’s grace and God’s power in connection with his calling suggests that Paul saw himself in a dual role as well. Paul often referred to Christians as saints (Ephesians 1:1, 2 Corinthians 1:1). In his first letter to the Corinthians, Paul addressed the Christians he was writing to this way:

To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 1:2-3)

Paul said that we are “called to be saints” (1 Corinthians 1:2). The Greek word that is translated saints, hagos (hag’-ee-os) refers to something that is sacred or ceremonially consecrated. It is “spoken of those who are purified and sanctified by the influences of the Spirit, a saint” (G40). Part of the consecration process that Aaron and his sons went through was the anointing of body parts that were supposed to be dedicated to God. Oil, which represented the Holy Spirit, was typically used to anoint things dedicated to God (Exodus 29:7), but the priests’ right ear, right thumb, and right big toe were anointed with blood. Exodus 29:20 states, “And you shall kill the ram and take part of its blood and put it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron and on the tips of the right ear of his sons, and on the thumbs of their right hands, and on the great toes of their right feet, and throw the rest of the blood against the sides of the altar.” The anointing of the right ear symbolized sensitivity to God and His word and the anointing of the right hand and right foot symbolized a life of service to others on God’s behalf (note on Exodus 29:20, KJSB). The fact that these body parts were anointed with blood seems to suggest that Christ’s death on the cross is what makes it possible for these body parts to be consecrated to God and it seems likely that every Christian is consecrated in the same way when they accept Jesus as their Savior.

The altar of incense was located in front of the veil that was above the ark of the testimony, in front of the mercy seat where the LORD met with the high priest (Exodus 30:6). By design, the altar was intended to be used for animal sacrifices, but instead it was used to burn fragrant incense. Exodus 30:7-10 states:

“And Aaron shall burn fragrant incense on it. Every morning when he dresses the lamps he shall burn it, and when Aaron sets up the lamps at twilight, he shall burn it, a regular incense offering before the Lord throughout your generations. You shall not offer unauthorized incense on it, or a burnt offering, or a grain offering, and you shall not pour a drink offering on it. Aaron shall make atonement on its horns once a year. With the blood of the sin offering of atonement he shall make atonement for it once in the year throughout your generations. It is most holy to the Lord.”

The word atonement “is of supreme theological importance in the Old Testament as it is central to an Old Testament understanding of the remission of sin. At its most basic level, the word conveys the notion of covering but not in the sense of merely concealing. Rather, it suggests the imposing of something to change its appearance or nature. It is therefore employed to signify the cancellation or ‘writing over’ of a contract (Isaiah 28:18); the appeasing of anger (Genesis 32:20[21]); Proverbs 16:14); and the overlaying of wood with pitch so as to make it waterproof (Genesis 6:14). The word also communicates God’s covering of sin. Persons made reconciliation with God for their sins by imposing something that would appease the offended party (in this case the Lord) and cover the sinners with righteousness (Exodus 32:30; Ezekiel 45:17; cf. Daniel 9:24). In the Old Testament, the blood of sacrifices was most notably imposed (Exodus 30:10. By this imposition, sin was purged (Psalm 79:9; Isaiah 6:7) and forgiven (Psalm 78:38). The offences were removed, leaving the sinners clothed in righteousness (cf. Zechariah 3:3, 4). Of course the imposition of the blood of bulls and of goats could never fully cover our sin (see Hebrews 10:4), but with the coming of Christ and the imposition of his shed blood, a perfect atonement was made (Romans 5:9-11)” (H3722).

Linked to the atonement for sin was the paying of a ransom for each person that was dedicated to God. Exodus 30:11-16 states: “The Lord said to Moses, ‘When you take the census of the people of Israel, then each shall give a ransom for his life to the Lord when you number them, that there be no plague among them when you number them. Each one who is numbered in the census shall give this: half a shekel according to the shekel of the sanctuary (the shekel is twenty gerahs), half a shekel as an offering to the Lord. Everyone who is numbered in the census, from twenty years old and upward, shall give the Lord’s offering. The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel, when you give the Lord’s offering to make atonement for your lives. You shall take the atonement money from the people of Israel and shall give it for the service of the tent of meeting, that it may bring the people of Israel to remembrance before the Lord, so as to make atonement for your lives.'” The basic meaning of remembrance is that it “indicates a process of mentioning or recalling either silently, verbally, or by means of a memorial sign or symbol. The verb often means to mention, to think about” (H2142). The Hebrew word that is translated remembrance in Exodus 20:16, zikkarown (zik-ka-rone’) means a memento and “conveys the essential quality of remembering something in the past that has a particular significance…a sacrifice calling for explicit retrospection” (H2146).

When Jesus was in the upper room celebrating Passover with his disciples, he instituted what is commonly referred to as the Lords’ supper, a commemoration of his sacrificial death on the cross. It says in Luke 22:14-20:

And when the hour came, he reclined at table, and the apostles with him. And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you I will not eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he said, “Take this, and divide it among yourselves. For I tell you that from now on I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.

In very simple terms, Jesus was telling his disciples to never forget that he had paid the ransom for their lives through his death on the cross so that they could be consecrated to God. Matthew’s gospel placed Christ’s ransom of our souls in the context of having authority over others. Jesus said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:25-28).

Paul sometimes referred to himself as the servant of Jesus Christ (Romans 1:1) and told the Corinthians that the purpose of suffering was so that we can be comforted by God. He said, “For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again” (2 Corinthians 1:8-10). Paul went on to say, “For our boast is this, the testimony of our conscience that we have behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you” (2 Corinthians 1:12). Paul used the phrase “testimony of our conscience” to describe the effects of consecration. Another way of stating what Paul meant might be, I have a clear conscience about my actions toward you. We know that we are consecrated to God if we have a guilty conscience when we violate his laws.

Paul talked about the Holy Spirit being a guarantee of our future bliss in Christ’s kingdom. He said, “And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee” (2 Corinthians 1:21-22). The Greek word that is translated anointed, chrio (khree’-o) means “to consecrate to an office or religious service” and “had the significance of dedication to God” (G5548). The Greek word arrhabon (ar-hrab-ohn’), which is translated guarantee means “a pledge, i.e. part of the purchase money or property given in advance as security for the rest” (G728). When Paul said that God’s Spirit in our hearts is a guarantee, he meant that we don’t get the full benefit of our salvation on earth. It isn’t until we are resurrected that we will experience the full effect of consecration. In the same way that the tabernacle of God was made according to a heavenly pattern (Exodus 25:40), so also, our physical bodies are like our spiritual bodies, but the spiritual ones will have much more capability after they are resurrected as evidenced by Jesus’ ability to go up into heaven. It seems that the greatest difference consecration makes is that it removes physical limitations and makes if possible for us to coexist in the physical and spiritual realms (Exodus 19:14-19; Luke 24:50-51).

God’s presence

God was personally involved in the children of Israel’s deliverance from slavery in Egypt. God instructed Moses to tell the people, “About midnight I will go out in the midst of Egypt, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle” (Exodus 11:4-5). God protected the Israelites by means of a sacrificial lamb that served as a substitute for the firstborn of each of the children of Israel’s families. The blood of the lamb was put on the doorposts and the lintel of their houses and God said, “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” (Exodus 12:13). Moses described the Israelites departure from Egypt as a night of watching and said, “The time that the people of Israel lived in Egypt was 430 years. At the end of 430 years, on that very day, all the hosts of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt. It was a night of watching by the LORD, to bring them out of the land of Egypt, so this same night is a night of watching kept to the LORD by all the people of Israel throughout their generations” (Exodus 12:40-42).

The night of watching that took place when the Israelites left Egypt was a night vigil in which the LORD went through the land of Goshen looking for the blood of the lamb on each individual doorpost and lintel of the children of Israel’s houses. Extreme care was taken to make sure that the destroyer didn’t enter any of the houses that were displaying the lamb’s blood (Exodus 12:23). In the same way that the LORD had carefully watched over the children of Israel the night they left Egypt and protected them from the destroyer, Moses said the Israelites were to observe “a night of watching kept to the LORD by all the people of Israel throughout their generations” (Exodus 12:42). In other words, the annual Passover celebration was intended to be a night vigil in which the Israelites looked for their Savior, the Lamb of God’s arrival. John the Baptist’s announcement, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29) should have triggered the Jews awareness that their Messiah had arrived on the scene, but the Passover celebration that took place the night of Jesus’ death seemed to go unnoticed by those who were supposed to be watching for God’s fulfillment of the Old Testament Covenants (Major Covenants of the Old Testament, KJSB, p. 16).

Psalm 114 focuses on God’s presence among his people. The psalmist stated, “When Israel went out from Egypt, the house of Jacob from a people of strange language, Judah became his sanctuary, Israel his dominion” (Psalm 114:1-2). A dominion is a territory over which one rules or governs. The Hebrew term memshalah (mem-shaw-law’) often “denotes the ruling power which one in authority exercises over his domain or kingdom” (H4475). Another way of looking at a king’s dominion is that it signifies the area over which he can exercise his sovereign authority (H4474). The reason why Israel was the Lord’s dominion was because God redeemed the children of Israel from slavery, making them his personal possession (Deuteronomy 7:6-8). Judah was thought of as the Lord’s sanctuary because Jesus was a direct descendant of Judah and was later referred to as “the Lion of the tribe of Judah” (Revelation 5:5) when he “took the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne” in heaven (Revelation 5:7). Revelation 5:9-10 states:

And they sang a new song, saying,

“Worthy are you to take the scroll
    and to open its seals,
for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God
    from every tribe and language and people and nation,
and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God,
    and they shall reign on the earth.”

Ultimately, Jesus’ dominion will be over the entire earth, but initially, the blood of the lamb only covered the Israelites who were delivered from slavery in Egypt and were specifically chosen by God to be his treasured possession because of the covenant he made with Abraham (Genesis 15:9-21, Deuteronomy 7:8).

It was through his deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt that God’s presence on the earth first began to be felt. Psalm 114:7 states, “Tremble, O earth, at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob.” The Hebrew word that is translated Lord in this verse, ‘adon (aw-done’) when applied to God, signifies His position as the “one who has authority (like a master) over His people to reward the obedient and punish the disobedient…In such contexts God is conceived as a Being who is sovereign ruler and almighty master” (H113). The Hebrew word chuwl (khool), which is translated tremble, conveys two basic ideas: to whirl in motion or writhe in pain. This word is often used to describe the labor pains of giving birth (H2342). The children of Israel’s supernatural deliverance from slavery in Egypt may have been likened to the labor pains of childbirth because in the process of birthing the nation of Israel God overthrew Pharaoh by means of a long agonizing process that included ten plagues and ended with “a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where someone was not dead” (Exodus 12:30). Afterwards, the children of Israel were thrust out and “the Egyptians were urgent with the people to send them out of the land in haste. For they said, ‘We shall all be dead'” (Exodus 12:33).

Like an annual birthday celebration, Moses told the children of Israel, “Remember this day in which you came out of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place” (Exodus 13:3). The strong hand of the LORD was not only a symbol of his personal involvement in a situation but also the exercise of his power to accomplish a specific task. Israel’s deliverance from slavery had to do with their loyalty and devotion to God. The Passover celebration required the children of Israel to follow God’s instructions exactly in order to preserve their lives. What they were asked to do may not have made sense to them, but because the Israelites lives depended on it, it says in Exodus 12:28, “Then the people of Israel went and did so; as the LORD commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.” This was an important turning point in God’s relationship with his chosen people, and therefore, it needed to be remembered. On a national level, it was like being born again. God saved the children of Israel collectively, as a group they became the children of God.

Psalm 114:7 describes the world’s reaction to God’s presence as trembling because there is always an emotional element to God’s involvement in our lives. The Hebrew word that is translated presence, paneh (paw-neh’) means the face. “In a more specific application, the word represents the look on one’s face, or one’s countenance” (H6440). The Bible clearly teaches that God is a spiritual being, but Jesus’ birth changed the way we interact with God and made it possible for us to see God in a physical form. Jesus’ presence in the world evoked different reactions from people depending on their relationship with God. Some people like Zacchaeus, a man described as a chief tax collector, were anxious to meet Jesus in person (Luke 19:3), but others like the ones who witnessed Jesus casting a legion of demons into a herd of pigs, “began to beg him to depart from their region” (Mark 5:17). Jesus’ strength was physically demonstrated when he calmed a storm that threatened his disciples lives (Mark 4:39) and made a fig tree wither (Matthew 21:19) because it failed to provide him with the nourishment he needed. After Jesus’ resurrection, “When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, ‘Truly this was the Son of God'” (Matthew 27:54).

When the children of Israel departed from Egypt, God went with them and his presence was manifested to them in the form of two pillars that were visible at all times. Exodus 13:21-22 states:

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. The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.

The Hebrew word paneh is translated “before” in Exodus 13:21-22 to convey the fact the God was physically present with the Israelites as they traveled. The tall pillars made it possible for everyone to see God’s presence no matter where they were in the camp.

Exodus 13:17-18 tells us, “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.’ But God led the people around by way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle.” God’s decision to lead the people by way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea had to do with their lack of experience with warfare. The people of Israel had been trained to submit to Pharaoh’s authority and to fear his soldiers. When it says that they went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle, it most likely meant that the people of Israel were physically capable of fighting, but were being defended by God’s army. Exodus 14:13-14 states, “And Moses said to the people, ‘Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.”

The phrase “you have only to be silent” (Exodus 14:14) is translated “ye shall hold your peace” in the King James Version of the Bible. The Hebrew word charash (khaw-rash’) means “to scratch, i.e. (by implication) to engrave” (H2790). What this seems to suggest is something being etched in one’s memory. The salvation of the LORD was intended to be a memorable event in which the Israelites played no active part. Moses said they would “see the salvation of the LORD” (Exodus 14:13). The Hebrew word that is translated see, ra’ah (raw-aw’) basically connotes seeing with one’s eyes. “This verb can also mean ‘to observe’…The second primary meaning is ‘to perceive,’ or to be ‘consciously aware of’…It can also mean ‘to realize’ or ‘to get acquainted with’…It can represent mentally recognizing that something is true” (H7200). The Hebrew word that is translated salvation, yeshuw’ah (yesh-oo’-aw) means deliverance. “Many personal names contain a form of the root, such as Joshua (“the Lord is help”), Isaiah (“the Lord is help”), and Jesus (a Greek form of yeshu’ah)” (H3444).

As the people of Israel approached the Red Sea, it says in Exodus 14:19-20, “Then the angel of God who was going before the host of Israel moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel. And there was the cloud and the darkness. And it lit up the night without one coming near the other all night.” Traditional Christian interpretation has held that the angel of God “was a preincarnate manifestation of Christ as God’s Messenger-Servant” (note on Genesis 16:7) and is here associated with the cloud, a visible symbol of God’s presence among his people (notes on Exodus 13:21 and 14:19). The purpose of the angel of God moving behind the host of Israel was likely to separate and to protect them from the Egyptians, but he also may have moved and went behind them to keep the Israelites from running away. During the night, “the LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided” (Exodus 14:21).The strong east wind that divided the waters of the Red Sea might have had similar characteristics to a hurricane. Hurricane Irma, which was described as having unfathomable power and was estimated to have winds of approximately 200 mph, caused an estimated $50 billion in damage. In order to separate the waters of the Red Sea and make the sea dry land, there would have had to have been a supernatural force at work.

The Hebrew word that is translated wind in Exodus 14:21, ruwach (roo’-akh) is more often than not translated as Spirit or spirit. “It is clear that the wind is regarded in Scripture as a fitting emblem of the mighty penetrating power of the invisible God. Moreover, the breath is suppose to symbolize not only the deep feelings that are generated within man, such as sorrow and anger; but also kindred feelings in the Divine nature. It is revealed that God and God alone has the faculty of communicating His Spirit or life to His creatures, who are thus enabled to feel, think, speak, and act in accordance with the Divine will” (H7307). By resemblance breath is associated with the wind , “i.e. a sensible (or even violent) exhalation” and it could be imagined that the parting of the Red Sea was somewhat like God take a deep breath and blowing the waters aside so that his people could cross the land on dry ground. One of the key characteristics of this supernatural feat was that God made the sea dry land. In other words, it was as if the water had completely evaporated. The ground became parched like the desert (H2724). Exodus 14:22-25 states:

And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. The Egyptians pursued and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh’s horses, his chariots, and his horsemen. And in the morning watch the Lord in the pillar of fire and of cloud looked down on the Egyptian forces and threw the Egyptian forces into a panic, clogging their chariot wheels so that they drove heavily. And the Egyptians said, “Let us flee from before Israel, for the Lord fights for them against the Egyptians.”

Moses described the LORD’s deliverance of the people of Israel this way:

At the blast of your nostrils the waters piled up;
    the floods stood up in a heap;
    the deeps congealed in the heart of the sea.
The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake,
    I will divide the spoil, my desire shall have its fill of them.
    I will draw my sword; my hand shall destroy them.’
You blew with your wind; the sea covered them;
    they sank like lead in the mighty waters. (Exodus 15:8-10)

Moses’ tribute to the LORD focused on the visible evidence of God’s overthrow of the Egyptians. He said:

“I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;
    the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea.
The Lord is my strength and my song,
    and he has become my salvation” (Exodus 15:1-2)

Moses indicated that the LORD had become his salvation when he triumphed gloriously over the Egyptian army. The Hebrew word that is translated triumphed gloriously, ga’ah (gaw-aw’) generally means to rise (H1342). This seems to connect the Israelites’ deliverance with Jesus’ resurrection. It could be said that the Israelites’ crossing of the Red Sea was similar to being baptized in that it portrayed the death, burial and resurrection that believers are identified with through baptism. Exodus 14:30-31 states, “Thus the LORD saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Israel saw the great power that the LORD used against the Egyptians, so the people feared the LORD, and they believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses.” The Israelites’ belief was a direct result of their personal experience and was based on what the LORD did to save them. Much like the disciples that witnessed Jesus’ resurrection, Israel saw the great power that the LORD used to defeat their enemy and “came to experience a personal relationship to God rather than an impersonal relationship with His promises” (H539).

God’s protection

The establishment of God’s Royal Grant covenant with Abraham began with a vision in which God stated, “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great” (Genesis 15:1). The shield that God referred to was a small one that was used by a soldier in hand to hand combat (H4043). A buckler was usually made from the scaly hide of a crocodile in order to protect the fighter from jabs and strikes from his enemy, but it could also be used as an offensive weapon to directly attack an opponent by punching with either its flat face or its rim. God’s description of himself as Abraham’s shield was meant to convey the idea of a personal protector that could keep him from physical harm. God told Abraham, “I am the LORD who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land to possess” (Genesis 15:7). God’s unconditional divine promise to give Abraham the land of Canaan involved driving out the previous tenants and possessing it in their place (H3423). In order to do that, the Israelites had to go through a process of suffering that was intended to deliver them from their dependence on material resources. Genesis 15:12-14 states:

As the sun was going down, a deep sleep fell on Abram. And behold, dreadful and great darkness fell upon him. Then the Lord said to Abram, “Know for certain that your offspring will be sojourners in a land that is not theirs and will be servants there, and they will be afflicted for four hundred years. But I will bring judgment on the nation that they serve, and afterward they shall come out with great possessions.”

After Moses killed an Egyptian and hid his body in the sand, he fled to Midian and lived as a shepherd for 40 years. Exodus 2:23-25 tells us that, “During those days the king of Egypt died, and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help. Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God. And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. God saw the people of Israel — and God knew.”

God’s awareness of the situation in Egypt had to do with the fact that he was watching over and protecting the children of Israel even though they were living in a foreign land. God appeared to Moses in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush (Exodus 3:2) “And he said, ‘I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God” (Exodus 3:6). The flame of fire out of the midst of the bush was a type of preincarnate appearance of Jesus Christ (note on Exodus 23:20-23). Moses’ encounter with the Savior of the World caused him to not just be afraid, but to stand in awe of the person who had the ability to rescue God’s people from slavery in Egypt. The LORD told Moses, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey…Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt” (Exodus 3:7-10).

God used signs and wonders to get Pharaoh to give up his control over the Israelites, but Pharaoh’s hardened heart caused him to change his mind each time he agreed to let God’s people go. The tenth and final plague that the LORD caused was intended to permanently sever all ties between the Israelites and the Egyptians. “The LORD said to Moses, ‘Yet one plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he will drive you away completely” (Exodus 11:1). The Hebrew word kalah (kaw-law’) can have both positive and negative connotations (H3617). It is likely that the driving away completely that the LORD was referring to was the right to ownership that Pharaoh thought he had of his Hebrew slaves. Numerous times, Pharaoh was commanded to let the people of Israel go so that the could “serve the LORD their God” (Exodus 10:7). The Hebrew word that is translated serve, ‘abad (aw-bad’) has to do with slavery (H5647). Exodus 13:3 indicates that God redeemed the people Israel from slavery. In other words, God purchased the Israelites from Pharaoh so that they could serve him instead.

The way that God redeemed the people of Israel was through the substitutionary death of a lamb which served as a blood sacrifice to pay the price for their redemption. God described his process of redemption this way:

“Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, 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. 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. They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it…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. 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. 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.

God’s protection of the children of Israel had to do with a distinction he made between his people and the Egyptians. He said, “About midnight I will go out in the midst of Egypt, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl who is behind the handmill, and all the firstborn of the cattle. There shall be a great cry throughout the land of Egypt, such as there has never been, nor ever will be again. But not a dog shall growl against any of the people of Israel, either man or beast, that you may know that the LORD makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel” (Exodus 11:4-7).

God’s redemption of Israel was based on the covenant he made with Abraham and his divine pledge that Abraham’s descendants would be his chosen people (Genesis 17). John the Baptist’s introduction of Jesus indicated that there was a greater significance to the blood that Jesus shed on the cross than the lamb that was killed for the Lord’s Passover. John proclaimed of Jesus, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). “John was saying that Jesus would be the sacrifice that would atone for the sin of the world. There was first a sacrifice for the individual (Genesis 4); then for a family at passover (Exodus 12); and then for the nation on the day of atonement (Leviticus 16); now it is broadened so that Christ is a sacrifice for the entire world” (note on John 1:29, KJSB). Jesus mentioned his atonement for sin in a conversation he had with his disciples about who would be the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. He said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be your slave, even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:25-28).

Jesus put himself in the category of a slave to show that he was taking on himself the lowest position a person could have in order to accomplish his mission of saving the world. The Greek word that is translated ransom, lutron (loo’-tron) stands for a redemption price. In the Old Testament ransom “is always used to signify ‘equivalence.’ Thus it is used of the ‘ransom’ for a life, e.g., Exodus 21:30, of the redemption price of a slave” (G3083). Titus, a convert of the Apostle Paul, indicated that Jesus redeemed us in order to make us a people for his own possession. Titus 2:11-14 states, “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.”

The night before Jesus was crucified, he celebrated the Passover with his disciples. During what is now referred to as the Lord’s Supper, Jesus talked about his blood being shed for the forgiveness of sins and also mentioned the new covenant that was being instituted through his death. Matthew’s gospel states:

Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

The Greek word that Jesus used that is translated body, soma (so’-mah) is derived from the word sozo (sode’-zo) which means “to save, i.e. deliver or protect” (G4982). Sozo is used of the material and temporal deliverance from danger, suffering, etc. and “of the spiritual and eternal salvation granted immediately by God to those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ.”

In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul talked about God’s plan of salvation and said that believers are made holy and blameless through Jesus Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross (Ephesians 1:4). Paul said, “In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth” (Ephesians 1:7-10). Paul indicated that God’s plan of salvation involved the uniting of all things in Christ. The Greek word that is translated united, oikonomia (oy-kon-om-ee’ah) is where the English word economy comes from. Oikonomia has to do with the administration of a household or estate (G3622) and refers to the arrangement God made for Jesus to fulfill both the Old and New Testament requirements for redemption of sins.

The intersection of the Jewish Passover celebration and the Lord’s Supper, which took place on the night of Jesus’ death, symbolically integrated the old and new covenants because the single focus of attention was the shedding of Jesus’ blood which fulfilled both covenants. The mystery that Paul briefly mentioned in Ephesians 1:9 and then, further explained in Ephesians 3:6 was “that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” In other words, John’s declaration that Jesus was “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” was meant to be taken literally. Jesus took upon himself the sin of the entire human race (G2889) and made it possible for everyone that believes in him to have eternal life (Matthew 25:46). Similar to the annual celebration of the Passover, Paul reminded Christians that the Lord’s Supper was to celebrated on a regular basis. Paul stated:

For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Paul’s emphasis of celebrating the Lord’s Supper in remembrance of him was meant to focus the believer’s attention on the purpose of Jesus’ death, to pay the penalty for our sins. The Greek word anamnesis (an-am’-nay-sis) is not just an external bringing to remembrance but an awakening of the mind; a heart-felt conviction (G364) somewhat like an instant replay that is able to recapture the moment when we first gave our hearts to the Lord.

Psalm 91 is “a glowing testimony to the security of those who trust in God” (note on Psalm 91, KJSB) and reminds believers of the protection their salvation provides. It may have been written by one of the Israelites that celebrated the first Passover and was delivered from the plague of death that killed all the firstborn in Egypt. Satan quoted from this psalm when he tempted Jesus in the wilderness (Matthew 4:6). Psalm 91:9-16 states:

Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place—
    the Most High, who is my refuge —
no evil shall be allowed to befall you,
    no plague come near your tent.

For he will command his angels concerning you
    to guard you in all your ways.
On their hands they will bear you up,
    lest you strike your foot against a stone.
You will tread on the lion and the adder;
    the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot.

“Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him;
    I will protect him, because he knows my name.
When he calls to me, I will answer him;
    I will be with him in trouble;
    I will rescue him and honor him.
With long life I will satisfy him
    and show him my salvation.”

When we make the Lord our dwelling place we are essentially moving in with him; we are making his home ours. That is how we receive God’s protection, by being under his roof so to speak, a member of his household. God said, “Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name” (Psalm 91:14). The phrase holds fast in love means to “cling to” (H2836) and may refer to the act of making love. The last sentence of Psalm 91, “With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation” (v. 16) seems to suggest that salvation is a process that takes place throughout one’s lifetime. You might say that we aren’t saved as if it happens in a single moment, but continually being saved by God until our life is over. That might be why Jesus instructed his disciples to “Do this in remembrance of me” (1 Corinthians 11:24-25) with regards to celebrating the Lord’s Supper. It is through the mental process of searching our hearts for unconfessed sin and reminding ourselves of our need for forgiveness that we experience God’s salvation on a daily basis and and are protected from the consequences of our sins.

Exempted

A key component of the Israelites’ sacrificial system was the Passover. The Passover was instituted on the eve of the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt. Prior to that night, the Egyptians had experienced nine plagues because Pharaoh refused to let the Israelites go into the wilderness and worship their God. The plagues were intended to demonstrate God’s miraculous power. The LORD told Moses, “the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I stretch forth my hand upon Egypt, and bring out the children of Israel from among them” (Exodus 7:5).

During the plagues, God made a distinction between the  Israelites and the Egyptians. God told Pharaoh, “I will put a division between my people and thy people” (Exodus 8:23). The Hebrew word translated division, peduth is derived from the word padah. “Padah indicates that some intervening or substitutionary action effects a release from an undesirable condition” (6299). Padah is usually translated as redeem or ransom. God was letting Pharaoh know that his people were no longer subject to Pharaoh’s command and would be exempted from the rest of his plagues.

The last plague God brought upon the Egyptians was the death of all their firstborn. Even though the Israelites were exempted from this plague, they had to sacrifice a lamb and sprinkle its blood on the doorposts of their home as a sign to God that he should pass over that household (Exodus 12:7). The lamb was later referred to as the Passover (Exodus 12:27) and the Israelites were expected to celebrate this event annually in remembrance of God’s deliverance. After the Israelites settled in the Promised Land, the Passover celebration was for the most part ignored or forgotten. It wasn’t until king Hezekiah ordered the people to observe it, that the Passover was kept as it was originally intended to be (2 Chronicles 30:5).

In 622 B.C., after the book of the law was found and read to all the people, king Josiah kept the Passover exactly as it was prescribed by Moses. Every person that was living in Judah and Jerusalem participated in the celebration (2 Chronicles 35:17). This may have been the only complete observance of the sacrifice since it was celebrated in Egypt. Josiah  himself provided 33,000 animals for the sacrifice, indicating there were probably only 100,000 – 200,000 people residing in the nation at that time. Around 800 B.C, there were 300,000 men alone in Judah, 20 years old and above that were able to go to war, suggesting the total population was over one million.

The significance of king Josiah’s Passover celebration was that it occurred within a generation of when Judah went into captivity. There were three kings that followed Josiah; all of whom were his sons. It seems as if the first Passover and this last Passover celebration served somewhat as bookends to the Israelites’ freedom. The only way God could get the people to celebrate it was through the threat of death. Given that the Passover exempted the Israelites from all punishment of their sins, you would think they would have been more diligent about its observance.