Passover. Christ, Our Passover. Christ’s Fervent Desire. “You Also Ought to Wash One Another’s Feet”. Update.

 

For “Scripture Siunday”:

Passover 2017

Passover begins at sunset Monday, April 10, 2017 and ends at nightfall Tuesday, April 18, 2017.

The Festivals of God

‘'”The seven annual festivals are special times of assembly. Given to ancient Israel by God through Moses and kept by Christ, the apostles and the New Testament Church, they are commanded to be observed today. These festivals reveal God’s plan of salvation for mankind. They will continue to be observed during the Millennium.

Scriptural support: Colossians 2:16-17; 1 Peter 1:19-20; 1 Corinthians 5:8; 15:22-26; 16:8; James 1:18; Exodus 23:14-17; Leviticus 23; Luke 2:41-42; 22:14-15; John 7:2, 8, 10, 14; Acts 2:1; 18:21; 20:16; Zechariah 14:16-19.

The Passover

The New Testament Passover service is one of the most personal of all the Christian festivals. It also teaches a great lesson in forgiveness.

The Passover is to be observed in the evening, at the beginning of the 14th of Nisan (Abib) in accordance with the Hebrew calendar as preserved by the Jews. The New Covenant Passover symbols instituted by Jesus Christ on the night before He died—foot-washing, unleavened bread and wine—are part of this service. Christians follow Jesus Christ’s instruction and example by observing the Passover annually as a memorial of His death.”

Scriptural support: Exodus 12; Matthew 26:18-30; John 13:1-15; Luke 22:1-20; John 1:29; 1 Corinthians 5:7.

 

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Passover: First of Seven Annual Festivals

Leviticus 23:4-5    

“These are the feasts of the LORD, holy convocations which you shall proclaim at their appointed times. On the fourteenth day of the first month at twilight is the LORD’s Passover.”

Leviticus 23 lists all of God’s commanded appointments—His annual festivals and Sabbath days. The first of the annual festivals is the Passover, which the New Testament shows is a memorial of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice for our sins.

Learn more about the Passover in “Passover: What Did Jesus Do for You?” Read more about all of the festivals and how they picture God’s plan of salvation in our free booklet From Holidays to Holy Days: God’s Plan for You.

and 1 Corinthians 5:7.

⁷ Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.

Christ, Our Passover

1 Corinthians 5:7

“Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.”

The apostle Paul drew on the lessons of the spring festival season to encourage the Corinthian congregation to remove sin from their lives. Jesus Christ fulfilled the type of the Passover lamb whose blood protected the Israelite firstborn from death. After the Passover festival comes the Feast of Unleavened Bread, where yeast and other leavening become a symbol of sin.

Study more about Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread in our free booklet From Holidays to Holy Days: God’s Plan for You.

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Christ’s Fervent Desire

Luke 22:15

“Then He said to them, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.””

Jesus Christ knew the terrible things He would suffer in the day ahead, but still He focused His mind on His disciples and using this last opportunity to teach them as much as He could. Much of His teaching on that Passover night is recorded for us in each of the Gospels, and especially in John 13 through 17. He set us an incredible example by focusing on God’s festival and God’s plan even when He had every excuse to focus on His trials and Himself. How can we do any less than to “do this in remembrance” of Him (verse 19), with fervent desire?

Study more about Passover in “Why Jesus Had to Die.”

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You Also Ought to Wash One Another’s Feet

John 13:14

“If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.”

Washing feet was a sign of kind hospitality, generally assigned to the lowest slave. It was dirty work considering the dusty roads of the Holy Land. Yet our Creator and Savior was willing to lower Himself yet again as a powerful lesson we are to copy.

Washing feet as part of the New Testament Passover reminds us to always look for ways to serve, whether menial or major. The Christian life is a life of service, with a foot-washing attitude.

Study more about Passover in our article “Passover and Forgiveness”

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Update:

Well, it was a lot easier just having two trash pickups this week, as we are running out of loose trash to sack up at Roni’s place (now mine).  We are picking up the several sheets of broken glass that are propped up around the buildings, hitting them with a hammer in a box to condense them, then sacking it up in tough feed sacks and getting all that dangerous stuff hauled away in the trash. 

When we tried to glue the Formica down on the mini-house (guest house) kitchen countertop it cracked so badly that we couldn’t use it.  It had been stored in the attic since I bought it two years ago and it must have got “old”.  We cut out the bad part and the rest of it might be able to be used elsewhere, but that meant a trip to Houston to buy more Formica.  My helper went with me, just to keep me company, but he slept all the way there and back with the passenger seat in the reclined position.  It didn’t take long to whiz down the freeway to N. Shepherd/Garden Oaks where 3 Formica dealers are located, and then scoot back to Conroe.  It was the stops in Conroe that took the time, so we didn’t get to work that day.

We started to work on the mini-house front door and storm door, that still isn’t quite finished as we still have to rehang the storm door.  Jay had installed them wrong, and so my helper wanted to correct all that.   We made the door frame ready to hang the two little closet doors that pull outwards, and installed the jamb for the bathroom door, and we will hang it next week.  On the days that we go down to Roni’s we don’t like to start a long job in the mini-house in case we can’t get it done before it’s time to quit at lunchtime.  After lunch I have to start my other job online and my helper goes to work at his friend’s place, or they go fishing on their boat.

I have two granddaughters, (the third was killed by a drunk driver), and I don’t know if they have ever even met, but both got new puppies this week.  Kimberley has a little female pug pup, and Michelle got a little female schnauzer.  So I have more great-grands, girls this time, as I already have three human great-grandsons!

For the church potluck I took some spaghetti and meat sauce in one crockpot, and cabbgae cooked in onion sauce in another.  Both had been made a month ago and frozen, so I defosted them because I didn’t have time to cook anything.   Friday was one of those days when everybody interrupted me when I wanted to get ‘a cookin’.  I always have my dishes ready before the Saturday Sabbath.

The pastor’s wife still hasn’t been able to get out of her house with her bad knee, but she assures us that she will be at church for the Passover Bread and Wine on Monday night.  Then Tuesday will be a our Passover Supper (Seder) and Wednesday will be a Holy Day, and no work will be done. Then the Wave Sheath Offering on Sunday the 16th.  The Feast of Unleavened Bread is from the 12th to the 18th, but not all those days are Holy Days.

One of the ladies comes to church with her helper, and they were having trouble with their truck not accelerating properly.  The lady stayed at the church for the service while the helper took the truck into Conroe to have it checked out.  When she returned, she was so happy….. the floor mat had bunched up under the pedal and that was causing the poor performance.   Whatever next ?! She was so sorry that she had missed the service, but got back in time to enjoy the potluck.

The Bible readings were Lev. 1:1-6:17, Isa. 43:21-44:23 and Heb. 9:23-10:10.  The Teaching was about “The New Passover, Our Christ”, but I couldn’t really hear it while I was in the kitchen getting the frozen veggies ready, as the lady who was helping me was talking so much.

Another great day, and I thank God for each and every day.