Jesus Christ
The Passion
Passover: Sacrifice of the Lamb of God
by Rhawn Joseph, Ph.D.
The Crucifixion would occur during Passover, and this too had prophetic significance. Passover is the celebration of salvation, freedom and liberation. Passover commemorates the miracles performed by God and Moses, when the Jews were delivered, by God, from slavery out of Egypt and began their journey to the Promised Land. It was with these people, led by Moses, with whom god established his Convenant and offered salvation.
Thus, it would only be fitting that the Jews would again be offered salvation by a Messiah whose death, during Passover, would establish a New Convenant and cleanse the Jews of their sins.
Jesus refers to himself as "a lamb to be slaughtered," and this too has prophetic significance. The Passover was a bloody event which claimed the lives of all the first born of the Egyptians. However, God instructed the people, through Moses, that to escape death and in order to attain salavation, that they must eat of the passover, and that the blood of a lamb must be sprinkled on their doors.
"And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt saying, Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, they shall
take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, wherein they shall eat it. For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever."
"And the children of Israel went away, and did as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they. And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle. And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead."
Pharaoh and the Egyptian people, had had enough suffering. The children of Israel were now free to go. "And the Egyptians were urgent upon the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste; for they said, We be all dead men." -Exodus 12.
Passover and the slaughter of the lambs, led to the freedom of the Jews who hurried forth, on their way to the Promised Land and the promise of the first convenant of the Lord.
Jesus was a lamb to be slaughtered in order to become a shepherd to his sheep, the people of "Israel"--which means "God's strength." Jesus, the lamb of god, and the good shephered, was to shepherd the children of Israel to salvation, and to redeem them of their sins. But to do so he had to first become "a lamb to be slaughtered," and this too would occur during Passover, and he would be sacrificed at the urgings of his own people. Yet, Jesus was confident that once he arose from the sleep of death, on the third day, that the people and all those who mocked him, would follow and acclaim him the Messiah and the King of Israel. He had to be crucified, and in Jerusalem, there was no other way:
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice." -John 10.
And yet, for this lamb to be slaughtered, required that the very people he was to lead to salavation, should forsake him and try to kill him. The prophecies demanded that once he announced he was Jesus the Christ, the Messiah and King of the Jews, the Jewish people would reject and renounce him:
"Then came the Jews round about him, and said unto him, How long dost thou make us to doubt? If thou be the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye believed not: the works that I do in my Father's name, they bear witness of me. But ye believe not, because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one. Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him" -John 10.
Jesus had now done everything but openly proclaim himself Jesus the Christ, the Messiah, and the King of the Jews. Yet, in accordance with prophecy, it was imperative that the Messiah be crucified, in Jerusalem, by Gentiles, and not the children of Israel. To spare the Jews the guilt and responsibility for killing the Son of God, it would be not Jews who would kill Jesus, but the Gentiles--and this too was prophecied:
"Now as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, "We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!" -Matthew 20
|
