Last Day of Unleavened Bread

Thank you, Greg. That was very nicely done. El Shaddai is one of God's name. It means Almighty, God Almighty. So we praise Him today. And as you know, we have been eating unleavened bread all of this week. This is the last day that we will be eating this unleavened bread according to God's commandment. And it's a reminder of avoiding sin, which is symbolized by leaven during this seven-day process. But it isn't just not eating leavening. It's also putting something in, which is the righteousness through Christ by faith and obedience. So there's a perfect substitute. One thing you eliminate, and the other one you are taking in. And these days of unleavened bread with leavening and also with not partaking of leavening, but yet taking unleavened bread, reminds me of what we play with the kids sometimes. And that is with some magnets that I have here, two magnets. And this is the way after 50 years of being in the church, just pay attention, right? This is a simple, this is what I've learned after 50 years. This is what happens when you get too close to sin. It just gets stuck. It's so easy. The only way to avoid it is not getting close enough. Now, right here, you could have this for a million years, and you wouldn't have any of them getting any closer. But then about five inches in, you start feeling the tug. And three inches gets stronger, stronger, and one inch, it just wants to go. It wants to be together. And this is the way sin is an attraction, which you have to keep your distance. You think sometimes, oh, I can, I'm just fine here at two inches. I can still, I can get a little closer. And before you know it, you know, you're stuck. And so it's like leavening. It's all around us. And God wants us to just realize we have to keep our distance. We can't get too close. We can't get overconfident and say, oh, that power, I can overcome it. I can resist it. I can resist the pull. And you know, it's just, it flies into it. You don't have to worry about it. It just comes in. And unfortunately, that's the way our lower human nature works. Now, God has many different ways to teach us. And for the Israelites, leavening and unleavened bread meant more to them than it means to us. God showed them that they were to eat seven days of unleavened bread and not eat leavening. And when they left Egypt, the way they would leaven the bread is they take some of that sour bread that had already been contaminated by the yeast in it, which is kind of a fungus. And it just gets into the bread and it begins permeating and it becomes sour. And what they do is they take a little piece and just stick it into the bread and put it on the window sill. And during the night, all these yeast cells would multiply there and the dough would rise. But of course, they didn't have the time. And so they took all the bread as it was unleavened. Notice in Leviticus chapter 2 verses 1 through 3 because there was one more meaning to leavening and to unleavened bread. And that was when they offered the grain offering before God. Now again, Israelites did this all the time. We don't do it. So we've sort of forgotten this meaning. But when you offered this thank offering to God, God stipulated how to do it. In Leviticus 2 verses 1 through 3 it says, when anyone offers a grain offering to the Lord, so this is something that you did out of your free will. This wasn't an obligation.

It shows gratitude and thanks. His offering shall be of fine flour, and he shall pour oil on it and put frankincense on it. He shall bring it to Aaron's sons, the priests, one of whom shall take from it his handful of fine flour and oil with all the frankincense. And the priests shall burn it as a memorial on the altar. An offering made by fire a sweet aroma to the Lord. The rest of the grain offering shall be Aaron's and his sons. It is most holy of the offerings to the Lord made by fire. Now this wasn't something that Moses came up with. It was something that God instructed. God from heaven, the God who created everything, and yet he was concerned with a grain offering that would be brought to him. Now why all the detail? Why all of these instructions? There are five things that we should remember about God's offerings and sacrifices that the Christian world generally ignores. They don't place any importance. But God's people know that God put this in the Bible for a reason. He doesn't do things randomly. He doesn't do things haphazardly. He has a purpose behind it, and he took a lot of time in the Bible to give us these instructions.

So there are five reasons that we should remember of this grain offering. First, everything related to the tabernacle down to the offerings and sacrifices were given as a copy of the model which is up in heaven. In other words, there was a blueprint, and God made these physical copies down here on earth of spiritual realities that are up in heaven. Nothing was left to chance. All was given by God El Shaddai, Almighty.

All is filled with spiritual meaning. Notice in Hebrews chapter 8 in verse 1. Hebrews chapter 8 in verse 1.

It says, It says, It says, Also have something to offer.

He wasn't from the tribe of Levi or the descendants of Aaron. He was from the descendants of Judah, who served the copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle. For he said, See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the mountain. But now, talking about Christ, he has obtained a more excellent ministry inasmuch as he is also mediator of a better covenant which was established on better promises. In chapter 9 in verse 7, it says about the tabernacle that was here on the earth, it says, But into the second part of the the high priest went alone once a year, not without blood which he offered for himself and for the people's sins committed in ignorance. The Holy Spirit, which is a synonym for God and his inspiration, indicating this, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest while the first tabernacle was still standing, that first copy of what was heavenly. It was symbolic, this tabernacle, the sacrifices, the offerings. They're all one whole package, this blueprint that God established a copy of here on the earth.

It says, It was symbolic for the present time in which both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make him who performed the service perfect in regard to the conscience. So if you transgressed, if you broke God's law, because you offered an animal, didn't mean that your spiritual sin had been forgiven by the death of an animal. The death of an animal was a reminder of what had to be paid with blood, with life, for the transgression. It goes on to say, which these all concerned only with foods, well that includes the grain offering, and drinks, various washings, and fleshly ordinances, which talk about flesh means animal flesh, fleshly ordinances, imposed until the time of Reformation. So all of this was a copy of what God was going to reveal, and it would get better when Christ came down. But it's very important to realize these things were not given as an afterthought. God said, oh what have I done? I gave all of these things, it didn't work out, well maybe I'll go to Plan B. Many times in Protestantism they say, oh God made a big mistake with the ritual law. You know, you never should have had that. Oh it was horrible. I'm glad it was put on the cross, and all of this thing. God is not man to make mistakes, and He knew exactly what He was doing, and everything is in its place up to the present time. It goes on to say in verse 11, But Christ came as high priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands that is not of this creation. What was that tabernacle? Himself. He would be both the sacrifice, He would be the offer, and He would also be the high priest. He completed all of this fulfillment that we saw in the physical way as a tabernacle. Notice what it says. He offered this not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all. No need for a second sacrifice. He completed what was the forgiveness of sin, and also He completed all the symbols of the different offerings. And I'm just going to focus on the grain offering because that was with unleavened bread. And God said you not to bring any leavening into the tabernacle. You are not to offer anything with leavening which symbolizes contamination. He says, verse 13, well, He says He came not with the blood of goats or calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. Here's where you can really have forgiveness of sins. This isn't based on animals. Now, spiritual sin can be forgiven if repented of. It goes on to say, for if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God.

So, we understand. God gave us these copies as lessons for us to understand the spiritual content later on, as we can. So, I have here one of the remnants of what Cottie makes, which is very good, unleavened bread. And this would be the last day. I'll use it tomorrow. I need to hammer some nails in and put a little stick on it. Makes a good hammer. No, I always kid about that. But the point is that these are leavened cakes, and something similar to this was offered to God on the altar. But this is not complete. This is only unleavened bread. You're going to see every one of the ingredients on that meal offering has a spiritual meaning, and that's what we're going to cover today. So, let me continue, because I've got a lot to cover, and just got about 35 minutes to do everything. Five things to remember. We talked about they were a copy of the model, right? There was a spiritual plane. There's a physical plane. Secondly, all aspects of the sacrifices and offerings symbolize different facets of Christ's life and sacrifice. So, again, the Bible tells us all of these different offerings and sacrifices were pointing to that perfect offering and sacrifice, which was Jesus Christ. Let's go to Galatians chapter 3. I love the book of Galatians. I spent years studying the subject, and I even wrote a booklet on the subject. In Galatians chapter 3 and verse 16, it's mentioning here, it says, Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He does not say, And to the seeds as of many, but as one, and to the seed, who is Christ. So, okay, it identifies that promise of the seed that would come through Abraham, would be the Messiah, and he would arrive. And I'd like to read this now in the Farrar-Fenton translation. And of all the different translators, I consider Farrar-Fenton, who was a great British scholar in Hebrew and Greek, who got the message about Galatians. And although he was a Protestant, he realized Galatians is not about the entire law of God, including the commandments. It is basically talking about the ritual law that is also symbolized by circumcision, and that if the Galatians became circumcised, then they would become under all of the ritual law. They would have to begin going to the tabernacle, or the temple, and do all the offerings and purifications. He did not want that for the Galatian brethren. Notice in verse 9, and I'm going to read it from the Farrar-Fenton. You can follow along. It says, So those from a faith are blessed with the faith of Abraham, for whoever are dependent on a law of rituals are under a curse. And then it says in verse 12, But the ritual did not come from faith.

It goes on to say, and that was verse 12. In verse 17, it says, And I assert this, the rituals, beginning 430 years after, could not cancel a settlement previously established by God, so as to abolish the promise. For if the inheritance comes from a ritual, it is no longer a promise. Verse 19, Why then the law? Talking about why was the ritual law added? 430 years. It was established because of sins until the air should come in. Verse 23, it says, But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law. This is back to the New King James.

In verse 23, But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith, which would afterward be revealed. Therefore, the law, and again, talking about the ritual law, was our tutor, our guide, to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. And so all of these laws were pointing to Christ as the perfect sacrifice, as the high priest, as the offer. But once Christ came as that perfect offer and sacrifice, see, we don't have to go back now to sacrificing lambs and bulls because He fulfilled this. And so it says, verse 25, But after faith has come, talking about through Christ, we are no longer under a tutor.

We don't need all of that ritual law. We don't need to be circumcised. We don't need to offer physical sacrifices. He says, For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, for you are all in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

And then chapter 5, in verse 1, it says, Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free. Free from what? And do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. Indeed, I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised, that he is a debtor to keep the whole law. Because there are aspects of the law that are different.

Ten commandments are different than the ritual law. Ten commandments was actually a way of living back in the time of Adam and Eve. That's why when Abel was murdered by Cain, God says sin is there. And without God's law, then sin is not known. So the point is that this ritual law was temporary for the time being. But, as we're going to learn, it wasn't going to be permanently suspended. Just for the time being, it is suspended. The third thing we should learn about the grain offering is that it was a free will offering expressing thanks to God, but it wasn't about sin.

There's a sin offering. There is what they call the transgression offering. But the grain offering was something that you voluntarily did. Just like we, in that sense, give an offering to God today. And we gave Him in thanks. It's not to be forgiven of sins or something that we transgress. No, it's a way of expressing thanks to God. Then the fourth reason is that grain offerings will be offered again in the millennium, when Christ comes back. When He has a physical Jerusalem, the temple set up there, there are going to be sacrifices with Jesus there, where as the Gentiles and the people that are not converted come, they will point and say, this is what it meant.

And now, this is what God meant it to be, with Christ there. And so we can appreciate so much more His sacrifice. Just as the sacrifices pointed toward Christ in the future, in the millennium, they're going to point back to what He did. And so it's a very graphic. It's a very illustrative way of showing people. Sometimes I've thought, many have thought, boy, if people, for instance, if you say a dirty word, and then you had to go and offer a sacrifice, and maybe you had to take a lamb, and you said this dirty word out there.

You offended people. Your children heard that. And okay, you just broke God's law. And now you've got to take a lamb, you've got to go purchase a lamb, go to the temple, and have it sacrificed, and spend all that money, maybe $100, for a lamb. Watch the blood, and then the person comes back. You think he's going to say dirty words again? I don't think so. It's just that sin now is so easy. It's almost, you don't have any consequences.

You don't have any penalties to do it. And when the new Jerusalem is established there, and of course I'm talking about in the millennium, there is going to be a type of a new Jerusalem with Christ at the temple, but then the greater new Jerusalem is when God the Father comes. But don't underestimate what is going to happen at the millennial level.

That there is going to be a new Jerusalem. Christ is going to be there. And I'd like to go to Ezekiel 42. It's part of the scripture of a description of that new temple in Jerusalem. In Ezekiel 42, in verse 13, see, God never finishes being a master teacher. And a master teacher teaches through illustrations. Christ was a master teacher with the parables. And here with this system in place, people are going to realize the price of sin, not like today.

They don't pay hardly anything for that. In Ezekiel 42, in verse 13, it says, Then he said to me, the North Chambers, talking here an angel, and the South Chambers, which are opposite the separating courtyard, are the holy chambers where the priests who approach the Lord shall eat the most holy offerings. There they shall lay the most holy offerings, the grain offering, the sin offering, and the trespass offering, for the place is holy.

So don't ever underestimate the importance of this, because it's going to be repeated. The scriptures teach us the symbols. We are understanding this now. The people will understand it later in the millennium and then in the Second Resurrection. All of these are perfect symbols of the lessons, the spiritual lessons God wants us to learn.

In Ezekiel 43, verse 5, just to give you a little bit of the context, you know, what time are we talking about? What place are we talking about? This is a continuation of chapter 42, and it says 43 in verse 5, it says, the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court, and behold, the glory of the Lord filled the temple. Then I heard him speaking to me from the temple, while a man stood beside me, and he said to me, Son of man, this is the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever. No more shall the house of Israel defile my holy name. They know their kings by their harlotry, or with the carcasses of their kings on their high places. So it's talking about when Christ comes. He's going to establish himself there, and he is going to have physical priests, the sons of Zadok, who were the ones who were faithful, and they will offer these things. Now, what happens to all the ones who are part of the first resurrection? Well, they're going to be there as well. They're going to be spirit beings that can materialize. And what is going to be their chief duties? He said you will be priests and kings in God's kingdom. You will be there taking care of the different cities, the different nations that will be spread out, and you will be teaching people God's ways, God's laws, and beautifying the earth. So there's a lot to do in the future. Let's go to the fifth and last principle we should learn. Notice the four ingredients of the grain offering. It had four ingredients, and they are all symbols of Jesus Christ's offering to God, and also our offering to God as well. Let's go to Leviticus chapter 2 again. Leviticus chapter 2 in verses 3 and 4.

It says, The rest of the grain offering shall be Aaron's and his sons. It is most holy of the offerings to the Lord made by fire, and if you bring an offering, a grain offering baked in the oven, it shall be of unleavened cakes, a fine flour mixed with oil, or unleavened wafers, anointed with oil. But if your offering is a grain offering baked in a pan, it shall be a fine flour, unleavened, mixed with oil. So going to verse 1, it says, When anyone offers a grain offering to the Lord, his offering shall be... Here are the three ingredients, and then there's an added fourth ingredient later. The first is fine flour. Secondly, oil will be poured on it, and third is frankincense, which is sprinkled on the sacrifice. And the final one, it says, verse 13, And every offering of your grain offering you shall season with salt. You shall not allow the salt of the covenant of your Lord, or God, to be lacking from your grain offering. With all your offerings you shall offer salt. So those are the four ingredients. Let's break them down. Let's look at the first one. It says, fine flour. What does that mean? It means it's not just any flour. It had to be very finely crushed. And one of the things that people had such a hard time there with wheat and barley is that if you've ever tried crushing the wheat seed or the barley, it's very hard. They had to take a mortar and a pestle, and they had to crush it, crush it. But actually there's only a very small amount. You needed a lot to be able to make a pretty good size wafer or loaf. So they had to have a grinding mill. They had to use this large wheel, and they would put it on the stone, and then with this grindstone, they would have to grind it down to a fine flour.

God was very specific. He said, you can't just bring some crushed flour that is rough, that is lumpy, and women that now you've got flour that you can buy. And it's wonderful, isn't it, when you can do it? But centuries ago, it was hard. People could almost break their tooth trying to eat some of that bread. It was so hard and uneven. God did not want that for this sacrifice, this offering to Him. It had to be smooth. It couldn't be lumped or uneven, because it symbolized Jesus Christ's offering to mankind the way He would serve others. So Christ presented that offering to God as a constant service. There was no unevenness in His whole life. He served people. It didn't matter how tired He was. In Mark, in two occasions, people thronged so much that they didn't even have time to eat. They were hungry. They were exhausted. Jesus still served them because everything was even. It was fine flour. He offered His life of service to God. Notice in John chapter 6 verse 33, John chapter 6 verse 33.

Jesus said, For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world. You know how important bread was in those days. That was the staple food. They called it the staff of life, because meat was very hard to get a hold of. It was very expensive. He goes on to say in verse 48, I am the bread of life. Verse 53, Jesus said to them, Most assuredly I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. So that's what we're doing on the Passover. We're taking some of that unleavened bread, which was His body being beaten, which was part of the offering that He was giving. From the beginning to the very end of His life, it was always smooth. It was a consistent offering that He gave, something that's very hard for human beings. Sometimes they can go through a good spell and then start seeing lumps in the dough. Yeah, that's just not consistent, is it? Just not reliable. And we are following His example. First, preparing the fine flour. A good way to serve God in a consistent way, not just for some short amount of time. We've had people come into church and they're all zealous and enthusiastic and ready to go and helpful. Sometimes they flame out. They don't last very long. This isn't a 100-yard dash. This is a marathon. It has to be with patience, with constancy, not getting weary of well-doing, giving a consistent spirit of service.

In John 8, verse 29, one of my favorite scriptures now is this. And He, talking Jesus here, He who sent me is with me. The Father has not left me alone, for I always do those things that please Him. What an offering! Yes, fine flour. Flour that feeds, nourishes, and is consistent and constant. Now we come to the second ingredient, which is oil.

It says, but if, verse 5 and 6 of Leviticus 2, says, but if your offering is a grain offering baked in a pan, it shall be a fine flour, unleavened, mixed with oil. You shall break it in pieces and pour oil on it. It is a grain offering. What is oil a symbol of in the Bible? Oil. It's a symbol of receiving God's Spirit, being anointed with God's Spirit. Jesus Christ, that perfect fine flour, also was anointed since birth by God's Spirit. That was part of the agent. That was God using the Holy Spirit to create Jesus Christ. Notice in Luke 4, verse 18, what Jesus Christ describes here. Luke 4, verse 18, he was handed the book of the prophet Isaiah, and then he read this, The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord. Then he closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down, and the eyes of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing. Can you imagine the excitement? Realizing a fulfillment of prophecy was there in front of them? So Jesus Christ not only had that consistency, but it came through God's Spirit. All those fruits of God's Spirit flowed out of him.

Acts chapter 10, another scripture along this line, Acts chapter 10, verse 37.

It says here, The word you know, which was proclaimed throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee, after the baptism which John preached, how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth, with the Holy Spirit, and with power, who went about doing good, and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him. So of course, if it's something that's offered to God, a reminder of that service, it has to recognize God's Spirit. It's not by our Spirit that we are doing what we do. It is God's oil, that Holy Spirit, working in us, renewing us day by day to carry out His will. And we need to recognize our need for God's oil in our service to God and man, and give God the glory. The third ingredient was the frankincense. This was a plant that had these petals that gave off an aromatic fragrance.

It was a type of a spice, and you just had to give it a little pinch on top of that unleavened bread before you could offer it to God. Frankincense was very expensive, because basically it was only in southern Arabia where you could find it. And it gave off that very fragrant aroma only after it was burned. I like what the book The Law of the Offerings by Jukes writes about that. He says, the bearing on this on the offering of Jesus is too obvious to require comment. It says, the fire of God's holiness tried him, but all that was produced was precious fragrance. The holiness of God only brought out the graces, the attributes, which would have escaped our notice had he never suffered. So again, it's just consistency and good works to the very end. In Philippians chapter 4, Paul uses this analogy of the fine fragrance of service. Philippians 4, verse 18.

It says, indeed I have all and abound, because they provided the Philippians, they provided, let's see, wait a second, Philippians 4.

I want to get the right scripture here. Verse 18. It says, indeed I have all and abound. I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice well pleasing to God. So they manifested that spirit of service with what they sent the apostle Paul. So we need to have frankincense in our spirit of service. It's a sweet-smelling aroma. I think it was Homer Moore who brought up that it has to be in the right spirit of humility, where God accepts it as something sweet and positive, not out of pride, not out of vanity or any type of presumptuousness. No, it has to be with a humble spirit. That's what God enjoys. In Hebrews chapter 13, another scripture along that line, Hebrews 13 and verse 15. See, Paul had a lot of understanding about these sacrifices and offerings and what they meant. Verse 15, it says, therefore by him, talking about Christ, let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God that is the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to his name. But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices, God is well pleased. He loves to see an attitude of service, a defined flower, consistency. Oil comes from God's spirit. Frankincense. It's a sweet aroma with the right attitude. That's how the offering can be wholly accepted by him. And then we have the last ingredient. I read it before, verse Leviticus 2 13, and every offering of your grain offering you shall season with salt. You shall not allow the salt of the covenant of your God to be lacking from your grain offering. With all your offerings you shall offer salt. A covenant of the salt is something that is in perpetuity. It continues through time. Because salt was something that preserved things. It also was purity that it brought and also no contamination.

And flavor was another ingredient. It's a symbol of preserving and improving what it touches, our spirit of service. First of all, of course, Jesus Christ being the salt of the earth. The perfect representation. But we are to follow him in Matthew chapter 5. Matthew chapter 5 in verse 13.

Jesus Christ in his Sermon on the Mount said, You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled under foot by men. This has to do a lot with the salt that was used in that area. It wasn't very pure. Many times came from these salt mines and it had a lot of impurities. So if you use the salt with impurities, it would instead of preserve, it would smell bad, it didn't have the effects. And so it's the same way. It says, You are the light of the world and the salt of the earth.

So we have a covenant with God. It should be a lasting relationship with him. Our service to God should be a lasting relationship.

So the last day of unleavened bread is one symbol here. The unleavened bread, what Jesus was, a perfect offering, his perfect service to us all. It was symbolized by fine unleavened flour filled with oil, which is symbolic of God's spirit, having frankincense, a sweet aroma before God, and sprinkled with salt, a perpetual covenant, uncorrupted, lasting forever with God and his people. So the grain offering is a symbol of Christ's perfect service and sacrifice for us. And also, it is an offering to God of our service to him and to our brethren and fellow man. So let's remember those four ingredients. Fine flour, oil, frankincense, and salt, all reminders of our service to God and man. So I'd like to finish in Ephesians chapter 5, verses 1 and 2. It's a good summary of what we have been talking about. Ephesians chapter 5, verses 1 and 2, it says, Therefore be imitators of God as dear children, and walk in love as Christ also has loved us and given himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.