The Passsover

I've been asked by a few to go through this topic again. We went through this a little over a year ago. I changed it up for any of you that were here over a year ago and would remember. I can't remember what happened yesterday, much less. I'll meet someone that spoke or something. I'll say, that was a really good message.

And I'm thinking, I can't remember what it was about. But I know it was really good. I'll have to check my notes. Because we are coming up on the Passover. We're going to ask, just go through a few fundamental questions.

We're going to spend a lot more time on the first than the second. Why do we do what we do? Why do we observe the Passover the way we do? There are those here that we're in different areas of our participation in Passover. I know some of the other congregations will be observing for the first time or learning about the Passover for the first time. So it's a really good study to see why we do what we do.

And again, as I mentioned earlier, we want to honor this relationship with following the relationship guidelines. I say this, this is a common phrase, it's not mine. But if I'm in a relationship with my wife, and I know she hates chocolate, let's say. That's not true, she loves chocolate. But she hates chocolate, but every anniversary I come to her and I give her the chocolates here and I say, I love you, honey.

Here's chocolate. And she's thinking in her mind, well, I appreciate the gesture, but you know I don't like chocolate. I would really appreciate if you got to know me, and then you could give me a gift that I would appreciate. So if you apply that to God, that's why we look at a study like this. And that's why we look at Scripture. He reached out to us for this relationship in many ways through the nation of Israel. He showed us what the relationship rules are and the guidelines, and this is how you love me. This is how I want you to honor this relationship. This is how I want you to worship me.

So we look at Scripture, and we're going to look at a Bible study like today, just to better hone ourselves to make sure we're honoring this relationship in the proper way in how we conduct it. Passover. If you say that phrase to some, they would either not know anything about it or they've heard about it. Maybe it's a Jewish thing in their mind. Many have neglected it because they think it's all bound up in the Old Testament.

Ah, that's just Passover. That's just Old Testament stuff. So it is ignored. Mainstream Christianity considers Passover just to be an Old Covenant observance. So we want to combat that idea today, better equip ourselves to have a defense. Passover. And all the Holy Days coming up, but Passover, our topic today, is every bit as relevant and commanded for all Christians today, all true Christians. And if anybody has a thought during this Bible study, you should stop me and you'll have to talk a little bit louder. We don't have a microphone, but I do love your participation if you have a thought or anything that comes up.

But essentially, three times in history, we have instructions for the Passover observance. The first instructions are given to us in Exodus. That might be a familiar one with us. Exodus. The next is in Deuteronomy. The final instructions are given in the New Testament, given by Jesus Christ Himself. We'll see. So we're going to review these three Passover instructions to see how we observe and why we observe the Passover.

And then we're going to spend a little bit less time on who can observe the Passover. Who can participate in the Passover? Is it just anyone? Or is there particular guidelines to that? So let's get started. In Genesis, we are given details of the lives of Abraham's descendants, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. Those were Abraham's descendants. They migrated to Egypt. So the Book of Exodus begins hundreds of years later when Abraham's descendants are enslaved.

And that enslavement time is where the first Passover is revealed. So this will title the Exodus Passover. So turn with me to Exodus 12, if you will. Exodus 12, verses 1 through 11. Exodus 12, verses 1 through 11. Exodus 12, as we read this, you're going to see that it does sound familiar, where we're picking up here. It's the first place that we find the Hebrew word Pesach, P-E-S-A-C-H. P-E-S-A-C-H. It simply means to skip over, to leap, or to pass over. Pesach. It simply means to pass over. So here God's going to reveal this first, in this first Passover to Israel while they're enslaved in Egypt. And we're going to look at what these people were literally commanded to do just before their Exodus, just before they were delivered from the Egyptians. So if you would have lived at that time, and you would have been God's people, this is what you would have done. This is the first observance of Passover. Exodus 12, let's read what they were instructed to do, verses 1 through 11. Exodus 12, beginning in verses 1 through 11.

Verse 5, your lamb shall be without blemish, a male in the first year, without blemish. And we're beginning in... because we know Jesus Christ came, you can see the parallel here. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats. Now you shall keep it until the fourteenth day. So on the tenth day, take it themselves, keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. And they shall take some of its blood and put it on the two-door posts, and on the lentil of the house where they eat. Then they shall eat the flesh on that night, roasted in fire, with unleavened bread, with bitter herbs. They shall eat it. Verse 9, do not eat it raw, nor bold with water, but roasted in fire, its head with its legs and its intrals. You shall let none of it remain until morning, and what remains of it until morning you shall burn with fire. And thus you shall eat it with a belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. So you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord's Passover. So you notice it's not Israel's Passover. There's a small indication there. This is God's Passover. So the instructions here are very specific. I've reached out to you. I am bringing you out of slavery. I've reached out to you for a relationship. Here's my instructions to you so we can live in this relationship in love and peace. So the instructions are here. The first Passover, it's the Lord's Passover. Individual households select the lamb without blemish, amelan the first year, take it from the sheep or the goat. Do that on the tenth day. Set it there to set aside a lamb. Keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month.

Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight. Take its blood, put it on the two-door posts of the lentil where they eat. Look at verse 12-13. 12-13, For I will pass to the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike the firstborn of the land of Egypt, both male, man and beast. And against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment. I am the Lord. Now the blood shall be assigned for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood I will pass over you, and the plague, the death of the firstborn, shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. So the Lord passed through them, and passed over it. So verse 14. So this day shall be to you a memorial, and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations.

Listen to these words. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting ordinance. This is the Lord's Passover, everlasting ordinance. Is it just for Israel? Now go down to verse 23. Verse 23. For the Lord will pass through and strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lentil and on the two-door posts, the Lord will pass over the door and not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike you.

So at midnight the Lord passed over, sent the destroyer to kill the firstborn of Egypt, man and beast. But where the blood was present, he passed over, did not send the destroyer to kill the firstborn. This is an incredible rescue and deliverance here. Verse 24 through 28. Now pick up some of these key words. Is this relevant to us today?

Verse 24 through 28. And you shall observe this thing as an ordinance for you and your sons for a little bit. Now, forever, forever. And it shall come to pass when you come to the land which your Lord will give you, just as he had promised, that you shall keep this service. And it shall be to your children, and when your children say to you, what do you mean by this service? That you shall say, it's a Passover sacrifice of the Lord who passed over the houses of the children of Israel and Egypt when he struck the Egyptians and delivered our households. You know, are his mainstream Christians teaching this to their children? So the people bowed their heads and worshipped. Verse 28. And the children of Israel went away and did so just as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron. So they did. So a memorial. Keep the feast throughout your generations. Everlasting, it says.

Few Christians understand this today.

But, so is a Christian today supposed to do this on the 14th of the month? You know, every year. Are we supposed to go kill lamb, put, you know, blood and stay in the house, don't leave? You know, eat the lamb in this way?

Well, what we're going to see in the next two, in the next Passover observance, instructions, we'll see how the instructions change. We don't put blood on the doorposts. We don't eat with a belt on our way, sandals on our feet, staff in hand. But the concepts and the significance and the meaning of the Passover remain just as important today. We will see.

So, from here, out of Egypt, the Israelites would walk, they're rescued from death, they experience the symbolic baptism. When they go through the Red Sea, it's like a symbolic baptism going through that, indicating a new life. They were in slavery. Think of all these parallels. We could go on forever. There's so many studies in this. Going through a new life, through the Red Sea, freed from the slavery, to live a new way of life, without the bondage of slavery. We could make an analogy to sin. We have the power to overcome that. So, that's the Exodus Passover. So, it brings us to the Deuteronomy Passover. Let's turn to Deuteronomy 16. Going through this kind of quick. That's okay. You can spend more time on these passages later. Deuteronomy 16. So, here we are months later. Israel camped before Mount Sinai. God instituted a covenant with them. So, they were under the Abrahamic covenant. Now, we're going to be under the Sinai covenant. Does a new covenant totally do away with the old covenant? Every time there's a new covenant, does it do away with the old? No. We'll see that this Sinai covenant that was developed, it builds upon the Abrahamic covenant. With the Sinai covenant that we're coming to, there's now going to be a formalized priesthood. There's going to be a tabernacle. You know, they're no longer coming out of Egypt. So, the instructions need to change. That makes perfect sense. So, are they to put blood on the doorpost? Again, no. Are they to eat in that certain way? No. Deuteronomy 16, verse 1 and 2. How are they supposed to observe it now? Here's the instructions, the new instructions under the Sinai covenant. Deuteronomy 16, verse 1 and 2. Observe the month of Abib and keep the Passover to the Lord your God. For in the month of Abib, the Lord your God brought you out of Egypt by night. So, we're building on that, but the instructions are going to change. Therefore, you shall sacrifice the Passover to the Lord your God from the flock and from the herd, in the place where the Lord chooses to put His name. So, we're seeing some differences here before they were to stay in the house. Now, He's saying, you need to do this in the place that the Lord chooses to put His name. Let's go down to verse 5 and 7. 5 through 7. Here's the changes here. New instructions. Verse 5 through 7. You may not sacrifice the Passover within any of your gates. So, that's different. That's the way it was before. You may not sacrifice the Passover within any of your gates, which the Lord your God gives you, but at the place where the Lord your God chooses to make His name abide. There, you shall sacrifice the Passover at twilight, at the going down of the sun, at the time you came out of Egypt. It's the same time. You shall roast and eat it in the place in which your God chooses. In the morning, you shall turn and go to your tent. So, go back home. Go out, do this at the place I choose. In the morning, go home. Verse 5 through 7. They're under this new Deuteronomy instruction. The Passover Lamb is to be slain at a central place. That became Jerusalem, the site of the temple. This is the place where God put His name. The lit, vertical priesthood is now there. The temple's built. This is where the God put His name. Different than the Exodus Passover. They, where they had to eat in their home, now they're told not to eat in their homes. But go there. Then go back home afterwards. Again, there was no physical, lit, vertical priesthood back in Exodus, like there is in Deuteronomy here, 16.

This is different with a priesthood and a temple. But the foundational aspects are still the same. Again, they weren't just supposed to do that once. When they were exiting out of Egypt, they weren't just supposed to just do it then. It is not relevant to any of God's people from that point on. Because they're to keep it throughout the generations. It's a memorial, an everlasting ordinance. So, Sinai covenant here, sacrifices by the Levitical priesthood. We know these animals' sacrifices. They could not remove the guilt. It could point them to the need of a Savior, but it truly couldn't satisfy fully. Let's turn to Hebrews 9.

Now is the time to deal with that. The arrival of the perfect Lamb is coming now, and with a new covenant. We're going to see the final instructions for us are instituted here. Let's first turn to Hebrews 9. Just to remind ourselves that those animal sacrifices, or the Levitical sacrifices, that they went to the temple, they just reminded them of their sinfulness.

They were types of a future sacrifice that would come. A total sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Hebrews 9, let's read verses 9 through 15 regarding the Deuteronomy, priesthood, passover sacrifices. Hebrews 9 verses 9 through 15. This is the bridge to move into the new covenant.

That it was symbolic for a present time in which both gifts and sacrifices are offered, which cannot make him who performed the service perfect in regards to conscience, those animal sacrifices, concerned only with food and drinks, various washings, fleshly ordinances, and posed until the time of Reformation. You remember the priests had all these different aspects and procedures that they had to do, different washings.

But here it is, here's the bridge.

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, not with the blood of goats or calves, but with his own blood. He entered the most holy place once and for all, having obtained eternal redemption. For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies the purifying of the flesh, think of how much more, verse 14, shall the blood of Christ, through his eternal spirit, offer to himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works, to serve the living God. And for this reason he is the mediator of a new covenant, by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions under the first covenant, that those who are called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.

This was the time, this is the bridge. Those sacrificed could not remove the guilt of mankind. They could only be a reminder of the seriousness of sin. God needed to deal with the removing of guilt so that that individual could then go on to serve, or truly serve, have the power and the capability with God's Spirit to serve from the heart. So Jesus Christ would come with a new covenant passover. So let's get to that. So we've been through two. Here's the new and final instructions here that we're about to read. Luke 22. Luke 22.

We're going to see the new and final instructions, why we do what we do today, why we're going to come in about a month on the 14th of Abib and deal with the blood and the body. We'll be talking about the symbols here. Did we just make that up? Or are we following Scripture so we can honor this relationship? Luke 22. So we want to remember how they ate a Passover lamb, sacrificed for them so that the Lord would pass over them. That was in Egypt, I mean the Exodus. They would eat in their house, staff in hands, shoot sandals on their feet, be ready to go. They didn't do that anymore at this point because the disciples at this point in history kept the Passover like the Deuteronomy Passover with a priesthood and temple. But now, up to this point, Jesus is about to change that. So they kept it at this point like the Deuteronomy instructions in Jerusalem. And so now he's going to say, don't do it that way anymore. I'm not doing away with the Passover. I'm going to give you new instructions. Luke 22, verse 7 through 20, and we'll stop at certain points here. Luke 22, verse 7 through 20. Luke 22, verse 7, then came the day of unleavened bread, when Passover must be killed. So the spring days are here, kind of like where we are now and coming up. And he, as Jesus Christ, sent Peter and John, saying, Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat. So they said to him, Where do you want us to prepare it? Now, as a note, again, this is the Passover was killed on the 14th of Abib, just like those instructions. So this would be the 13th, leading up to the beginning, when the sun would go down on the 14th. So this is the 13th. We observe the Passover in this way, on the date. We follow Jesus Christ's instructions here. We keep the Passover at the beginning of the 14th, as they always have. So continuing in verse 8 here. Verse 8, And he sent Peter and John, saying, Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat. Not an odd thing. At this time, there would have been all the people coming to worship on the Passover. So there have been so many droves at this time. It may have been difficult to find a guest room. So many people making so many sacrifices. You can think of this scene. So here it is, verse 9 through 20. So they said to him, Where do you want us to prepare? He said to them, Behold, when you have entered the city, a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water. Follow him into the house which he enters. Then you shall say to the master of the house, The teacher says to you, Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples. Christ is giving an example here. He's doing it. Then he will show you a large furnished upper room. There, make ready. Verse 13. They went and found it just as he had said to them, and they prepared the Passover. When the hour had come, he sat down with the twelve apostles with him. And 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. Verse 17. Then he took a cup and gave thanks, and said, Take this, divide it amongst yourself. For I say to you, I will not drink the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes. Verse 19. And he took bread, gave thanks, broke it, gave it to them, saying, This is my body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me. Verse 20. Likewise, he took the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant of my blood, which is shed for you. So Jesus institutes the new Passover observance here. The administrative elements of the Passover. They were taken on new meaning. It's a new covenant. This is how we keep it today with the wine and the bread symbols. And as verse 14 through 16 said, The hour had come, he sat down with the twelve apostles with him. He said to them, With fervent desire, I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I say to you, Thou will no longer eat of it until it's fulfilled in the kingdom of God. He eats a meal with them. Very important because these things haven't changed yet. Why did he eat a meal with them? Well, if you remember, the Deuteronomy instructions instructed that. They were to go where the Lord put his name. They were to eat a meal. He was fulfilling what the lamb pointed to. But he's about to die as the lamb. He's the Passover. So it's interesting. If you look at verse 17 and 18, He takes the cup, gives thanks, Take this, divide it amongst yourselves, for I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine until the kingdom comes. So this is during the meal. They pass this wine around. This is probably close to what they call, what the Jews call, a traditional Seder meal. Has anybody heard of a Seder meal? They had this big meal, instructions like the Deuteronomy instructions. And wine is very similar to that, I'm sure. Seder customs that the Jews do during their meal. They eat. They tell the story of the Exodus. Drinking four cups of wine, eating unleavened bread, partaking of symbolic foods, placed at the Passover Seder plate. So it's celebration to them, to this day, of freedom. We don't have a meal at our observance. We don't have a meal at our observance. Why? What's important to note here, Christ-specific instructions to go forward in the New Covenant Passover. And we're going to bring this out now. Verse 19, we see that now there's something different and specific. The other looked like the Deuteronomy instructions. But verse 19, He took bread, gave thanks, and broke it. And He gave it to them, saying, This is my body which is given to you. Do this in remembrance of me. So that other cup of wine they had in verse 17, that was a meal thing. It was a personal thing. But this is different. He says, Do this, this, in remembrance of me.

You do this now.

But what do we remember? He's still here. He's telling him that he's not gone yet. Verse 19, He took the bread, gave thanks, and broke it. He gave it to them, saying, This is my body which I give to you. Do this in remembrance of me. I'm doing something new here. Do this in remembrance of me. And then it says likewise, verse 20. Likewise. He took the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant. We're in a new covenant now in my blood which is shed for you, a new covenant. They knew what the new covenant was. The Messiah was going to come and bring a new covenant. So you're not going to put blood on the doorposts. They understood that by now. You're going to drink wine which represents my blood. New symbol for the Lamb. There's still a Lamb, by the way, but it's the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ. Take the wine, represent it in my blood. You take it. You internalize it. He's beginning to take the observance and say, This Lamb is here. I am the Lamb. So we don't have to attempt to do the Exodus or Deuteronomy instructions. This is a new covenant instructions here.

So you might look at this and say, Well, okay, why don't we eat the meal? Is this very specific? Is this specific enough? I see the symbols. I see, do this. You take the wine, represent it in my blood. The bread is my broken body. Get that.

What about the meal? Well, we're giving further clarification on the meal, further support of our conclusion where Christ says, Do this. Not the meal. Do this. We're actually giving further support in a different place in Scripture because there are some that sit down and eat a meal on this night. Then at the end, they take in the bread and the wine, and they're feeling like they're doing exactly what Jesus Christ did. But again, no, Jesus didn't say, Eat this lamb in remembrance of me. He didn't say, Eat this lamb in remembrance of me. Because remember, He was going to be the lamb. So He said, Eat this bread, drink this wine in remembrance of me. He pictures the lamb. He is the lamb. So our further support of this conclusion comes from 1 Corinthians 11, verse 17. Let's turn there. 1 Corinthians 11, verse 17. So when we come to a Passover, if you've ever been to a Passover, we will read Scripture. We'll break the bread. Each of us will take in a small piece of bread. We'll talk about the body, the broken body. Then we take in the wine, symbolic of His blood, and we talk about that. We don't have a meal. It's because we feel like not only those Scriptures, but this really indicates and supports our belief that the meal is not as Christ intended. 1 Corinthians 11, verse 17. 1 Corinthians 11, beginning in verse 17. Paul says, Paul was given the responsibility to pass these things on. Now, when given these instructions, speaking of the Passover, I do not praise you since you come together not for the better, but for the worse. Verse 18 through 20. For first of all, when you come together as a church, I hear that there are divisions among you, and I in part believe it. They weren't in the right heart and right mind with the Passover.

For there must also be factions among you that those who are approved may be recognized among you. Therefore, when you come together in one place, it is not to eat the Lord's Supper. So they were mimicked the Supper that Christ had with the disciples. But this Church of Corinth, when they were trying to do that, they would come together for the Passover, have this big meal, but they were a spiritually troubled church on so many levels. The Passover had degenerated. So verse 21. Look at verse 21. For in eating, each one takes his own supper ahead of the others. One is hungry and the other is drunk. Can you imagine a Passover service? Those hungry and those drunk. So as bad as our congregation might get, you just compare it a little bit. It's whatever troubles we have. It could be worse. This is what the Passover was like. So continuing here in verse 22. What? Paul says. Can you imagine this? They're hungry, leaving people hungry, and some are drunk. Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the Church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you in this? I do not praise you. For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed. So Paul goes on. Let's go back to these instructions here. What does he say? Verse 23. For I received from the Lord which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread. Look at this. So that's verse 23, verse 24. So this is what he received, that he's delivering to them. Receive from the Lord. For I received from the Lord that which I delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread. And when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, Take, eat. This is my body which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of me. Verse 25. In the same manner He took the cup after supper, saying, This cup is a new covenant in my blood. This dew as often as you drink it in remembrance of me. Where as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes. So, in the eating of the Lamb, the eating of the Lamb is not in the instructions from Jesus Christ. It's not what Paul passed on, just passed on these symbols.

You know, there in verse 22, Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Observe its instruction here. Again, verse 23, For this I received from the Lord, and I delivered to you. And He gives the symbols there. Very specific. So, this is our observance here. And when we come in about a month from now, this is what we'll be doing in remembrance of His sacrifice.

Okay. So, again, look to Scripture. It's a memorial. Some churches do this every Sabbath. It's a memorial. Once a year. Once a year. There's no indication anywhere in these instructions that we're to do it more often. It's a memorial for your generations everlasting. Come together on this sacred night, on the 14th of Obib. It's the way it's always been. And Jesus Christ continued it. This is what we try to hold ourselves to as well. Okay. That's why we do what we do. So, can anyone just come and do the Passover? We're going to spend very little time on this. I'm going to have you out of here. I may have heard someone's stomach growl. I may not. I may be somewhere in this area. Okay. Can anyone... I'm lacking a little sleep today, so forgive me. Okay. Can anyone come to the Passover observance? If you think of all the magnitude that we talked about in the main message, can anyone come? Look at what Paul says next. This is going to lead us to our understanding of who should come and participate in the Passover. This is one of the most sober sacred nights of the whole year. Look at 1 Corinthians 11, but verses 27-32. Think of how sobering this is. 1 Corinthians 11, verses 27-32.

Continue in verse 30.

Excuse me. We'll stop there. I wanted to read that portion because this is directly speaking to those contemplating the observance of the Passover. There is a stipulation for those who attend. In participating in these symbols, our heart, our relationship with God must be elevated. We must be able to discern the body of the Lord properly. Elevated relationship, first, when we come to these symbols. This is how it's been since the beginning. What's the elevation that is the criteria? From the very beginning, let's go back to Exodus 12. This is going to speak about who can participate in the Passover observance. It's going to speak about the relationship with God, the elevation of the hearts. We're going to be wrapping up very soon.

Exodus 12, verse 43. This is the initial Passover observance. There's an elevation again here. Exodus 12, let's begin in verse 43. Listen to these scriptures here. They have questions surrounding the Passover observance. Who can attend? Exodus 12, verse 43.

All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. Verse 48 and 49.

Let's stop there. Back then, if anyone came to participate in the Passover, the question here is, when a stranger comes, they want to keep the Passover, can they? That's the question there. Now, you will find in the history of Israel, there were a large number of non-Israelites, living among them, servants, sojourners, passing through. They believed in God. They worshiped God. They would say, I've given up all other gods. Can they keep the Passover with us? It was the question back then. The answer is no. Unless there's been an elevation that takes place, there must be an elevation of an individual's relationship with God before they can participate. What's the requirement to keep Passover?

Stay with me. Well, if you believe in me, God says, first of all, whether you're an Israelite, you must be circumcised, or you can't keep the Passover. Same for the non-Israelite. If you believe in me, you must be circumcised, or you can't keep the Passover. Again, verse 48 and verse 39, if a stranger dwells with you, wants to keep the Passover, let all the males be circumcised, and then let them come near and keep it. And if there's a native of the land, no uncircumcised person shall eat of it. One law shall be for the native born, and for the stranger who dwells among you. This is the law. This is the requirement.

So we see... do you see what's elevated here to keep the Passover? To keep the Passover, you must have entered into a covenant with God. Not just anyone can keep it. To keep the Passover, you had to be part of a covenant with God. Abraham was told by God, I made a covenant with you.

The sign that you're in a covenant is that... that sign that everyone will know that you're in a covenant with me is that all your males are circumcised. There's a required elevation of relationship with God required in order to keep the Passover. Higher level of relationship. Must be established with God before you come to me and keep this most solemn Passover observance. I must have entered into a covenant with you. God is saying, must have established that relationship with you.

So, how does this relate to us today? Well, in Deuteronomy, right from the beginning, before Israel ever got into the Promised Land, God told them, there's a time coming in which I will circumcise your heart. Your heart. That's Deuteronomy 30, verse 6. We won't take the time to turn there. But you can look that up.

Deuteronomy 30, verse 6. There's a time coming. He told them back then. There's a time coming in which I will circumcise your heart. The Promised Land from the very beginning. Something greater is coming than the physical circumcision. And what was coming was the circumcision of the heart. Let's turn to Colossians 2, verse 11-13. This is going to tell us very clearly that very thing. The ultimate elevation of the heart. Colossians 2, 11-13. So now you see the connection here.

Those today coming to the Passover. There has to be an elevation of the heart. There has to be an entering into a covenant with God. That must take place so that you can have proper discernment. You can have an understanding. You're going to not come in an unworthy manner. This must take place. This covenant. Now I want you to read these words carefully. Colossians 2, verse 11-13. In Him, Jesus Christ, God the Father, in Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands by putting off the body of sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ.

Okay? So this is the elevation. Verse 12. Buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead, and you being dead in your trespasses, and the unconcir...circumcision of your flesh, He has made you alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses. We'll just stop there for time. So it's not a physical circumcision.

Circumcision of the heart, a circumcision made without hands, of putting off of the body of sins, of forgiveness. How did Christ circumcise us? Verse 12 again. Buried with Him in baptism, in which you were raised...buried down with Him in baptism, which you were raised through faith in the working of God, who raised you from the dead. When we are baptized, we die symbolically to an old man, an old woman, and we're raised, and we ask God to provide the Holy Spirit to that individual, who has a proper discernment.

They've made a commitment to God. They know why they need this sacrifice. They've broken God's law, and they've repented, and they say, I want to live as a new man or new woman. At baptism, they receive the Holy Spirit. The Spirit gives them the ability to accomplish proper discernment. It gives them the ability to fulfill the relationship rules, the elevated heart in participating in the Passover.

That's why, if we have new members that come, I take Paul's words to heart. I don't want an individual, a man or woman, to come in an unworthy manner. Those are very harsh words if you read back in there. Don't come in an unworthy manner. So, we counsel individuals. Many individuals, maybe, were baptized as a baby. Did they, at that time, have a proper understanding of all we've talked about today? No. We believe that baptism is something you enter into in that relationship with a proper maturity to understand the Lord's body and the Lord's spilled blood.

So, often, individuals will come, and they'll say, I want to enter into that covenant now, and we'll conduct the baptism. Some who have been baptized in other churches, other faiths, maybe that don't teach the law, teach repentance, teach the things that we talked about today, they feel convicted. They feel like they have a better understanding now, and they feel like they didn't know what to turn from.

So, often, they'll get baptized again. But, honestly, I really appreciate those that come with an open heart, and they want to... I'm nobody. I'm just a vehicle to help someone come to an understanding to make the best decision for themselves in that decision. Some don't get re-baptized. Some say, I truly understood what I was repenting with, even though I wasn't keeping the Sabbath, or even though I wasn't keeping these things.

It's between them and God, but I really appreciate those that come, and they want to make sure, and they want to seek counseling. We can edify one another. So, if you have questions on those things, we can certainly talk more about it. But I think the Scripture is clear. We do need an elevation of heart through baptism, in that way, a circumcision of the heart, so that we can come in the proper way and honor all that we have read about today. All right. Well, I guess we can conclude with a quick prayer, and then we'll go. So, if you'll just stay seated, and we'll just bow your heads. Our dear Heavenly Father, we come before you with bowed heads as imperfect people.

We are not able to accomplish all the admonition that you've given us today, but we want to have perfect effort, perfect desire. That's what we want. We want to make progress to honor your son's sacrifice. We want to make progress to living more righteously, putting away the sins, to give us the ability, give us the desire, give us the ability to do those things, and help us to support one another, and to be open and just share our weaknesses, and to be a real support for one another as we journey and grow and walk together, looking forward to your son's return. We just pray all this. Be with us this week, and we ask all this by your son, Jesus Christ's name. Amen.