Newsletter: 2006-05 The Christian Passover

Happy Passover Greetings from Homeworship 101™

“This do… in remembrance of me” – Yahshua/Jesus

The Passover event reveals a spiritual mystery that has been wondered about for thousands of years. In ancient times it was known as the “Blood of the Covenant,” going back to Abraham and Melchizedek (Gen.14:18), and before. The spiritual symbolism of bread as the body, and wine as symbolic of the blood sacrifice to seal the promise were ancient Holy Rites associated to YHWH. From Adam on, the faithful knew about them, but only as Divine symbols, as shadows of things to come. The real meaning was a mystery that only YHWH knew how it was to be fulfilled. In the living example of Yahshua, his last 24 hours on earth reveled the true miraculous meaning of the “Blood of the Covenant” for all the universe to see. (For a deeper study on the spiritual symbolism of The Blood of the Covenant see the Mystery of the Bride. See also: http://www.gracegems.org/19/r37.htm )

Passover is the oldest continually observed Holy Day on the planet. Passover (Hebrew: Pesach, Greek: Pascha) had its public début when YHWH freed the Hebrew people from the Egyptians, so you might wonder what I mean by a Christian Passover? Isn’t Passover a Jewish thing? The above verse doesn’t say, “only the Jews do this…,” He means all His followers. Language can be maddening. Technically speaking the proper name for Passover is “YAHWEH’S Passover” (Exo:12:11; Lev23:5, Num. 28:16; 2Chr.35:1).

There is only one Passover, but it has some different traditions. In the beginning, after Israel was freed from Egyptian bondage, YHWH ruled Israel for the next few hundred years (apx.450yrs). All the 12 tribes of Israel were united, and they held the Passover as described in Numbers 9:10, and Exodus ch.12. I’m not sure if this original version has a name, but we’ll call it the Hebrew Passover. Sometime later Israel was conquered and the Northern Kingdom of 10 tribes went lost into the world’s population. The southern tribes we know today as the Judeans or Jews, held on longer but were eventually conquered and carted off to Babylon. Only the remnants of the southern tribes of Israelites returned to settle Jerusalem after their Babylonian captivity. After their return from Babylon new Jewish religious laws were instituted and the Passover Seder we know today comes from this time. It is problematic because it is not totally Biblical, and it has some Babylonian influences, such as the egg on the Seder plate, and it is usually held on the 15^th of the month instead of the 14^th. The Seder is a Jewish tradition on how to observe their Jewish Passover, and “The Haggada” is the instruction book for how to perform the Seder.

Keep YHWH’s Passover the way YHWH wants it kept.

Make-no-mistake, Passover is very important to YHWH. So important that it is the only Holy Day that has a provision or observing it exactly one moth later (Num.9:6-13). We are commanded to be wary, because we have to worship in the sprit of the right attitude, in truth the way YHWH tells it – not man, and on the proper day (John 4:24, ICor.11:23-35, Heb.10:22; Rev.22:18-19). Yahshua, and the religious group He visited with, the Essenes, held to the original Hebrew Passover observance on the 14^th day. At the end of His last Passover meal Yahshua added a simple ceremony symbolizing a wedding proposal for his Bride (a special promise to His followers), this should be called the Messianic Passover but it is more commonly known as the Christian Passover. Calling it the Christian Passover isn’t the best term for it, the Sunday keeping Christian world does not hold to Passover, they call it the Last Supper, and the bread & wine ceremony they call communion – unfortunately they miss much of the wondrous spiritual history. It really should be called the Messianic Passover but today’s Messianic Passover is held by Jews who believe in Jesus but it is based on their Jewish tradition of the Seder. Maybe it should be called the Nazarene or Essene Passover because they were the first to witness and follow Yahshua.

There is some debate on how to properly observe the Passover, our example, as always, is Yahshua. He and John the Baptist had ties to the religious order called the Essenes. They were the serious Bible scholars, the true Believers, and the faithful watchers of the day. They were wise to the prophecies and they were making preparations. To the Essenes, righteousness meant a person also had to be right in his heart, he had to be right with his brother, and lastly he had to be right with GOD.

The Essenes felt that the rabbinical Sadducees and the Pharisees had become more like political parties then a religious order. They considered the priesthood was corrupt, and the Temple worship was not pure in YHWH’s Spirit and Truth - it had become ritualistic. It suffered from many of the same problems we have today in our worship centers; it had become ritualistic and overblown with pomp and ceremony. It had become corrupted by the leaders using the heresy of Nicolaitanism (putting a religious leader between YAHWEH and the people Rev.2:15). They felt that the people were misled and lost, that the rabbis were condemned for their corruption, and righteousness has been reduced to mere ceremonialism. They saw a corrupted Sanhedrin which totality conquered the common people, keeping them on a tight leash, while the rich were treated with favors. The Essenes would have nothing to do with it. Seeing all this around 200 B.C.E. they decided to remove themselves from the mainstream religious society and prepare themselves for the “great event,” the arrival of the long awaited Messiah. They built a settlement in the wilderness, outside of Jerusalem in Qumran, on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea.

Now here is something to get you thinking, as in critical thinking, do you see what happened? The Essenes rejected rabbinical Judaism and returned to the roots of their faith. One might wonder what did they turn to. I’m not sure of any specific name, but it was how the Hebrew faith was practiced when YHWH ruled Israel, beginning in the time of Moses for about 450 years, until the Israelites rejected HIS rule and began a government based on earthly kings (1Sam.8:11-18). If one wants to be spiritually honest then we must rediscover how the Hebrew faith was practiced when YHWH ruled because that is how Yahshua, YHWH's the perfect sacrifice, did it, and when He returns He will rule the way His FATHER did.

The Fulfillment of the Blood of the Covenant

"For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
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.
And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed,
and heirs according to the promise." – Galatians 3:26-29

It was the 14th day of the first month (Abib/Nisan), at dusk or twilight, it was the beginning of the Biblically correct Passover, “the night to be much observed” (Exo.12:42). It was the beginning of the Roman Wednesday evening (but considered the beginning of Thursday in the Biblical calendar).

All week Yahshua was deliberately arranging His activities around the events associated with the selection, testing and death of the Passover lamb. The Essences, and His Disciples knew the spiritual symbolism of the coming Holy Days - they were getting a bad feeling. Yahshua even warned them two days before, that He was to be crucified - they were not happy (Mat.26:2).

They knew the writings of the Prophets all too well, they had heard Isaiah’s prophecy of the suffering Messiah (ch.53) many times - “. . . He is despised and rejected by men . . ., He was wounded . . ., He was bruised . . ., He opened not His mouth . . ., He was led as a lamb to slaughter . . ., He was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgressions of My people He was stricken . . ., His grave with the wicked . . .,” - they were worried.

In an effort to save space I will take it for granted that almost everyone has seen the movie classic King of Kings, The Passion of Christ, or something similar. It was late that evening, and after sharing His last Passover meal with His Disciples, Yahshua was praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. There by the kiss of death, He was betrayed by Judas, His own Disciple, (he committed suicide a short time later Act.1:15-26). Yahshua was arrested by the Temple police, and immediately taken to trial at the Sanhedrin. He was subjected to false accusations before the high priest and the Bible tells the story in Matthew ch.26, Mark ch.14, John ch.18.

The curious prophetic words of John the Baptist when he first greeted Yahshua are about to be realized: “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” John 1:29. True to the symbolism of a sacrificial lamb, which makes no noise when being led to slaughter, Yahshua, the innocent victim, gave no defense at his trial. The religious ruling establishment had already raised public opinion against Yahshua, the Jews and Romans quickly held an illegal night trial, and convicted Him for crimes against the Roman State, in the morning around 9:00 a.m. He was crucified.

Yahshua of Nazareth not only fulfilled the mystery of the Blood of the Covenant, he was also the only man to fulfill to the letter over 200 Scriptural prophecies, and many were predicted some 1,000 years in advance. Every single messianic prophecy of the Hebrew Bible was precisely fulfilled by the life of Yahshua, in a literal, common sense way – and that is why we do this in remembrance of Him. We also do it in hope of Him, there are over 300 prophecies in the New Testament of Yahshua's second coming as the conquering-redeeming Messiah – and that is why His Bride is watching and waiting.

The true meaning of the mystery of YHWH’s Passover,
fulfilled by Yahshua.
.
“Behold! The Lamb of God
who takes away the sins of the world” - John 1:29

In ancient times, on the first Passover night YHWH showed the faithful that the pagan rulers and their evil world have no future. Surviving the Passover night means one has been found 'justified and redeemed' (Exo.ch.12-13). Redeemed means that something has been bought back from the marketplace. Sacrificing a perfect human being was the price needed to buy back humanity from the Curse of Sin – Yahshua was that person. Justification means that someone has been judged and found not-guilty. In other words, humanities sins washed away in the sea of forgetfulness, and that is a good thing for the spiritual bank account. Your position before YAHWEH now changes - for the better!

This also is important to the Christian church, as there are many New Testament references teaching justification, Romans 3:24-28, 4:25, 5:1-9, 8:30; Galatians 2:16-17. If we accept the ruling, than we must respect YHWH’s position of authority. We are justified, found not guilty - for the time being. Now we have to stay that way, and we do that by accepting YHWH'S guidance and “putting on” a new person to insure our freedom and await our Covenant rewards.

The Passover Meal

“When the hour had come, He sat down,
and the twelve apostles with Him.
Then He said to them,
With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you
before I suffer; for I say to you,
I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the Kingdom of GOD.”
- Luke 22:14-16

Yahshua and His Disciples did not keep the Jewish Passover as the Pharisees did. They kept it as the Holy Scriptures command in the original Hebrew version, on the evening of the 14^th (the Pharisees kept it on the 15^th). They commemorated it based on directives given in Exodus ch.12, by eating three main items: roasted lamb - symbolizing redemption; unleavened bread - which pictures sanctification; and bitter herbs - which is the reminder of the bitterness of slavery to evil.

YHWH’s Passover is a family homeWorship event. The family is the keystone of the faith and there is no better illustration then in the Passover observance. For the Passover, all the leavened (yeast) products are removed from the home, white linen - the symbol of righteousness - decorates the table and the best dishes are used. Small white linen cloth covers the plate of bread and cup of wine used in the service. The woman of the house kindles the two candles and says “Blessed art thou YAHWEH who sanctifies us by your Passover.” The head of the house can lead an opening personal prayer, and then Psalms 113-114 were traditionally sung. After the meal, the head of the house would reenact Yahshua’s ceremony as a yearly renewal of the marriage contract.

Passover meeting size can be 1 or 2 people, or larger like-minded groups (sorry no strangers to the faith Exo.12:43, this is a more spiritual intimate meeting). If meeting with larger groups or children you can dress up the Passover a little. For example, I think the idea of having children participate in asking about the Passover is still a good idea and should be done at the beginning of the meal before the lady of the house kindles the candles (Exo.12:26-27). Or a more adult group could make the evening last longer by watching for the Death Angel or the Hour of Temptation.

The Order of Messianic Rites instituted for Passover

"Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life;
and I will raise him up at the last day” – John 6:54
"He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood,
dwelleth in me, and I in him." – vs.56

After the meal was finished Yahshua added a small three-step memorial observance to the Passover meal. Through it we celebrate His freedom and His message of hope for the future. This Holy Day teaches the New Covenant congregation a very special personal one-on-one spiritual message. It is an everlasting commitment of a future Heavenly wedding ceremony of the faithful earthly church to the Messiah (Rev.19:7-10), witnessed by the FATHER, HIS faithful Angels and the Old Testament Saints.

1) BLESSING THE BREAD: Take whole piece of unleavened bread in hand and hold it in front of you around shoulder height, close eyes and say the Blessing for Bread. Blessed are you YAHWEH our FATHER, King of the Universe who brings forth bread of the earth. Then Yahshua’s words, (breaking the bread), “take, eat, for this is my body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” Then pass the pieces around, eat last.

Yahshua was not quoting a Bible verse; He was declaring the purchase price for the redemption of humanity – His life! Today the perfect Passover/Communion bread is the Matzoh. The symbolism is marvelous, it is unleavened, as our Messiah was - sinless. It has stripes - as by his stripes are we healed (Isa.53:5). It is pierced with holes - someday everyone will know whom they have pierced (Zec.12:10).

For those who like to get their hands into the dough, baking unleavened bread is easy. My wife Denise will relay the recipe: "The ingredients are 3 tablespoons of honey, 1 cup of oil, 1½ cups of milk, 7 cups of flour and 2 teaspoons of salt. Blend the honey, oil and milk together. Then stir in the remaining ingredients. Knead the dough lightly. Roll out on a floured board. Pick-up the dough by placing it over the rolling pin and position it on a cookie sheet. I like to use parchment paper on the cookie sheet since it makes clean up easy. Cut into squares and make a few holes in each piece with a fork. You can brush the top with an egg wash for a golden brown color and sea-salt lightly if desired. Bake in a 325-degree oven for 20 to 30 minutes. It’s great when it’s still warm!"

2) BLESSING THE WINE: Take wine cup and then say the Blessing for Wine. Blessed are you YAHWEH our FATHER, King of the Universe who creates the fruit of the vine. Then Yahshua’s words, (holding hand over the top of the cup) “Drink, for this is my blood of the New Covenant shed for you and for the many; for the remission of sins.” Then pass the cup and drink last.

We have seen YHWH’s power and authority, and we heard HIS teachings or proposal; the next step is ratification of the Covenant. Ratification means to publicly swear allegiance or commitment to it. And that is accomplished by drinking of the cup of the covenant, or the cup of wine in the Passover ceremony, in Christianity it is called communion.

Humanities redemption began with the ancient Israelites by the blood of Passover. The blood of Passover that saved them was the blood of the lamb that the ancient Israelites were told to put on their doorposts. And some centuries later, humanities redemption was fulfilled when Yahshua, the innocent “lamb of GOD,” was sacrificed on Passover. The faithful symbolize this by drinking red wine during the Passover, or communion rite, by doing so one is symbolically ratifying the Covenant with YHWH. To learn more log on to: http://www.homeworship101.com/bb-c10_mystery_of_the_bride.htm

The content of the Cup of the Covenant is not without its controversy, some purists today say it was grape juice - not wine. The Bible does not condemn wine or strong drink. What it condemns is drunkenness, or losing control of yourself. In the Bible, wine was a symbol of joy, and no one would have a wedding or thanksgiving feast without it.

It is also one of the finest symbols of our CREATOR’S cleverness. The organic technology behind grapes is one of our CREATOR’S most ingenious inventions, because the fermentation yeast is included on the outside skin of the grape. All one has to do is crush the grape and the juice goes on its Heavenly design to become wine. As a matter of fact, something underhanded has to be done, like complicated pasteurization, to prevent it from becoming wine.

It is true that there were some exotic methods to produce only grape juice in ancient times, but it was scarce, and the cost was beyond the means of the normal Hebrew family. Besides, many forget, that the tradition of the Jewish wedding proposal of ancient times requires that the bride-to-be has to drink from a wine cup, if she accepts the marriage proposal!

Warning: Drinking from the cup of the Covenant means you are protected and you have responsibilities to fulfill your part of the Covenant by walking a righteous path in your life (Rom.8:38-39). The Apostle Paul cautions us: “You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons” I Corinthians 10:21. Meaning, be careful not to stray from the path. If you partake in Passover or communion observance then do not betray the Covenant you have agreed to or you will be considered untrustworthy in the eyes of YHWH and Yahshua (1Cor.11:26-32).

3) FOOTWASHING: After the meal Yahshua instituted footwashing (John 13:1-30): Yahshua washed the feet of His Disciples to symbolize love for His followers, humble service to one another, and that one is greater the Messiah yet He can wash ones feet – He lives by example.

When to wash the feet during the Passover observance has some different viewpoints. Some people say the foot washing should begin before the meal, or after the meal but before Yahshua’s instituted the new ordinances at the end of the meal. I see it as at the end of the meal. John 13:2 clearly states after the meal ended Yahshua got up to wash His Disciples feet, and then he left the room. It doesn’t say anything about having the bread and wine after the foot washing.

CLOSING PRAYER: Traditionally Psalms 115 –118 were sung at end of the service. The Messiah’s prayer can be recited, Matthew 6:9-13. And / or, Blessing of Grace, 1Corinthian 1:3-4. And /or, Closing Blessing, Numbers 6:26.

The Bible says many will look but few will see, and Passover is a good example. While Yahshua was being crucified, only a few hundred yards away on the Temple, the Jews were killing their Passover lambs. The Jews kept Passover on the after sundown on the 15^th night, so they were killing and preparing their lambs for that evening meal during the daylight hours of the 14^th day. They killed about 300,000 lambs for a normal Passover and they started early. It went on all day and it was not a pretty sight. At exactly the same time, Yahshua, the innocent lamb of GOD, was slowly dying from His crucifixion - the spiritual symmetry could not have been more perfect. Sadly many did not, and still do not, see.

Suggested Bible readings: Exodus ch.12-13; Isaiah ch.53; John ch.13-19; Matthew ch.26-27; Mark 14-15; Luke 22:7-53; John 13:1-20, 6:30-60, 13:1-17; 1Corinthians 5:7-8, 11:1-2, 17-34.

Enjoy the journey of learning...
> Spring Holy Day Observance: http://www.homeworship101.com/holy_days_spring_observance.htm
> Holy Day Observance: http://www.homeworship101.com/holy_day_observance.htm
> Order of Rites: http://www.homeworship101.com/sp-t8_order_of_rites.htm

Other Sources:
>Biblestudy.org: http://www.biblestudy.org (Search: Passover)
>Stewarton Bible School: http://www.sbs777.org.uk
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Take care. Peace & Blessings, Errol.
**********************************************
Errol Mueller, chronicler extraordinaire
e-mail: errol@homeworship101.com
website: www.homeworship101.com
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Scripture quotations are from the New King James Version of the Holy Bible.
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#WSC 2006-05, posted 04/12/0, revised 08/19/08
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