04/04/2003 Sabbath Meeting Transcript

Last week, we went over the various scriptures that deal with the question of "What is Passover?" in a literal sense.

This week, let's examine the spiritual meaning of the feast of Passover (Pasach).

As was mentioned last week, Passover is not like the so-called 'holi-days' of the mainstream, for these holy days are found in scripture.

It is also true that the Passover has a very powerful spiritual meaning as we will examine. I personally love this feast because it is so symbolic of what Yahshua has done for us and it applies very much to Yahweh's plan of Salvation.

This week's study may be a little difficult to understand unless one has read of the Passover feast as far as what it is in the literal sense. If you are unfamiliar with the Passover in the literal sense, I would encourage you to read "Introduction to Passover" at http://www.eliyah.com/transcripts/

One of the greatest testimonies to the greatness of Yahweh is how His plan for salvation is found in the literal history of Israel.

Within each of the following events of Passover, we will explore it's symbolic meaning.

First, scripture teaches us that we, as believers, are Israel:

John 8:38 - I speak that which I have seen with my Father: and ye do that which ye have seen with your father.

John 8:39 - They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father. Yahushua saith unto them, If ye were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham.

John 8:40 - But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of YAHWEH: this did not Abraham.

Galatians 3:7 - Therefore know that only those who are of faith are sons of Abraham.

Galatians 3:29 - And if you are the Messiah's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

In the book of Exodus, the children of Israel (Jacob) were dwelling in Egypt and were increasing in number and size.

In fact, there were so many of them that the Pharoah of Egypt began to fear what might take place if they had gotten too large in number

Exodus 1:9 - And he said unto his people, Behold, the people of the children of Israel are more and mightier than we:

Exodus 1:10 - Come on, let us deal wisely with them; lest they multiply, and it come to pass, that, when there falleth out any war, they join also unto our enemies, and fight against us, and so get them up out of the land.

We (like literal Israel) were in bondage, in slavery to satan while in our sins.

Satan is the ruler and prince of this world:

John 16:8 - And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:

John 16:9 - Of sin, because they believe not on me;

John 16:10 - Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more;

John 16:11 - Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.

John 12:31 - Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.

2Corinthians 4:3 - And even if our evangel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing,

2Corinthians 4:4 - in whose case the elohim of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they might not see the light of the evangel of the glory of the Messiah, who is the image of YAHWEH.

Satan also tries to destroy the predestined children of Israel (us) lest we be large in number:

1Peter 5:8 - Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

Pharoah divised and carried out a plan:

Exodus 1:11 - Therefore they did set over them taskmasters to afflict them with their burdens. And they built for Pharaoh treasure cities, Pithom and Raamses.

As we have learned, Yahweh called out Moshe (Moses) to lead the children of Israel out of the land of bondage and slavery and promised to lead them into a beautiful land 'flowing with milk and honey'

Moses' purpose was to show them the way. This way is the way of righteousness through the learning & keeping of Yahweh's commandments!

The land flowing with milk and honey is symbolic of the "promised land", the eternal kingdom of Yahweh.

Hebrews 3:14 - For we have become partakers of the Messiah if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end,

Hebrews 3:15 - while it is said: "Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion."

Hebrews 3:16 - For who, having heard, rebelled? Indeed, was it not all who came out of Egypt, led by Moses?

Hebrews 3:17 - Now with whom was He angry forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness?

Hebrews 3:18 - And to whom did He swear that they would not enter His rest, but to those who did not obey?

Hebrews 4:1 - Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it.

Exodus 3:7 - And YAHWEH said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;

Moshe (Moses) was Yahweh's spokesman. Yahushua was a man 'like Moshe' but the mediator of the new covenant.

Pharoah did not want to let them go out of Egypt. The same is true of satan who does not want us to serve Yahweh but wants us to serve him and advance his works instead. He wants to keep us in sin and in bondage

Pharaoh/Satan tries to prevent people from worshiping Yahweh and would rather us give all the glory to him in our works and service.

Later in Exodus, Yahweh called out Moshe and worked many plagues upon the Egyptians who worshiped idols

Yahweh showed His superiority over dumb idols by sending 10 plagues. With the first plague, the water coming from the Nile river turned into blood for seven days. But the Pharoah would not heed them, as Yahweh had predicted.

In the same way, Yahweh has revealed to us His superiority over the gods of this world whether they be lusts, pride, drugs, money or whatever sins might come between us and Yahweh

Such works are doomed for destruction, just as Yahweh destroyed much of Egypt through His plagues

The last plague given was an important one. Yahweh told Pharaoh through Moshe

Exodus 11:4 - And Moses said, Thus saith YAHWEH, About midnight will I go out into the midst of Egypt:

Exodus 11:5 - And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the maidservant that is behind the mill; and all the firstborn of beasts.

Exodus 11:6 - And there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it, nor shall be like it any more.

Exodus 11:7 - But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that ye may know how that YAHWEH doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel.

Exodus 12:1 - And YAHWEH spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying,

Exodus 12:2 - This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you.

Exodus 12:3 - Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house:

Exodus 12:4 - And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb.

Exodus 12:5 - Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats:

Even before His ministry, He was spiritually called the Lamb of Yahweh

John 1:29 - The next day John seeth Yahushua coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of YAHWEH, which taketh away the sin of the world.

Revelation 5:11 - Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands,

Revelation 5:12 - saying with a loud voice: "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom, and strength and honor and glory and blessing!"

1Corinthians 5:7 - Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even the Messiah our passover is sacrificed for us:

Exodus 12:3 - Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house:

Exodus 12:4 - And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb.

Exodus 12:5 - Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats:

Exodus 12:6 - And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening.

Yahushua the Messiah entered Jerusalem and went into the temple on Abib 10. He was on display until Abib 14, though it was hidden from all that on Abib 14, He would become the Passover Lamb

If one would understand that one day could be equal to 1000 years in prophetic terms:

2Peter 3:8 - But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with YAHWEH one day [is] as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

The Lamb of Yahweh must be without blemish and without spot. Yahushua, our Lamb was totally without sin:

1Peter 1:18 - knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers,

1Peter 1:19 - but with the precious blood of the Messiah, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.

So on the tenth day of Yahweh's first month, the households of Israel were to take for themselves an unblemished male lamb of the first year and set it aside and keep it seperated from the others

As we said last week, it is helpful if we understand that in those days, a person's prosperity was primarily based on their livestock. To take a male lamb of the first year out of their flock would be a real monetary sacrifice.

Today, we nay think of sacrifices as something different. But it truly was a 'sacrifice' for the children of Israel to give up one of their lambs. In fact, not all households had one

Ultimately, it was Yahweh who provided the lambs for the children of Israel through His blessing. And ultimately, it is Yahweh who has provided for us a Lamb to save us from death.

Consider the example of Abraham who was told to offer His own son, Isaac on the altar:

Genesis 22:6 - And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife; and they went both of them together.

Genesis 22:7 - And Isaac spake unto Abraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here am I, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?

Genesis 22:8 - And Abraham said, My son, Elohim will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.

Indeed, Yahweh HAS provided a Lamb to be offered for us.. just as Abraham said

Going back to Exodus..

Exodus 12:6 - And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening.

We, through our own sins have caused the death of Yahushua the Messiah. He died for all sinners.

If it were not for our sins, Yahushua would have no need to die. In this way the whole assembly has killed the Lamb of Yahweh

And it was the crowds that demanded Yahushua's death and desired His blood to be upon them and their children:

Matthew 27:24 - When Pilate saw that he could prevail nothing, but that rather a tumult was made, he took water, and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, I am innocent of the blood of this just person: see ye to it.

Matthew 27:25 - Then answered all the people, and said, His blood be on us, and on our children.

Exodus 12:7 - 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.

We are all the household of Yahweh. The only way into the household of Yahweh, is through the Door

Yahushua said:

John 10:9 - I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.

One of the clearest evidences in scripture that we should be observing the feasts today is in the commanded observance of the memorial supper that Yahushua instituted.

Many churches today practice this every sunday. But most of them do not have the realization of what they are even doing.

When one observes the Passover as instituted by Yahushua the Messiah, we can know exactly what the significance of it all truly is.

Let's examine what Yahushua instituted:

Luke 22:15 - And he said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer:

Luke 22:16 - For I say unto you, I will not any more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of YAHWEH.

Luke 22:17 - And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves:

Luke 22:18 - For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of YAHWEH shall come.

Luke 22:19 - And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.

It was Yahushua's commandment to do this, and we are to do it in remembrance of Him

Scripture indicates that Yahushua died at the time of Passover. Therefore, when we partake of the bread we are breaking it to remember Yahushua's broken body

It was for our sins that He had to come into the world and die. And it was at this time of Yahweh's year that He died for us. He didn't die every Sunday, but on Passover.

1Corinthians 11:26 - For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew Yahushua's death till he come.

Yahushua IS the Word of Yahweh

John 1:14 - And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Therefore we need redemption!

When we partake of Yahushua's body, we are a part of Him:

When we partake of Yahushua's body, we are a part of Him:

John 6:47 - Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.

John 6:48 - I am that bread of life.

John 6:49 - Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.

John 6:50 - This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.

Isaiah 55:1 - Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.

Isaiah 55:2 - Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.

Isaiah 55:3 - Incline your ear, and come unto me: hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David.

Revelation 10:8 - Then the voice which I heard from heaven spoke to me again and said, "Go, take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel who stands on the sea and on the earth."

Revelation 10:9 - So I went to the angel and said to him, "Give me the little book." And he said to me, "Take and eat it; and it will make your stomach bitter, but it will be as sweet as honey in your mouth."

Revelation 10:10 - Then I took the little book out of the angel's hand and ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth. But when I had eaten it, my stomach became bitter.

Revelation 10:11 - And he said to me, "You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, tongues, and kings."

John 6:51 - I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.

His word itself is not sin, but His word reveals to us what sin is:

Romans 7:7 - What shall we say then? Is the law sin? By no means!! Nay, I had not known sin, but by the law: for I had not known lust, except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.

This is why we partake of the fruit of the vine (Yahushua's blood) because now that His word convicted us, it pointed us to the need of Yahushua's blood to cover the sins that His word revealed to us!

Galatians 3:24 - Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to the Messiah, that we might be justified by faith.

Getting back to Exodus 12, we see that they were commanded not to break any of the lamb's bones:

Exodus 12:46 - In one house shall it be eaten; thou shalt not carry forth ought of the flesh abroad out of the house; neither shall ye break a bone thereof.

John 19:32 - Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him.

John 19:33 - But when they came to Yahushua, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs:

Exodus 12:11 - And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is YAHWEH's passover.

Following Passover is the feast of Unleavened bread

During 7 days of Unleavened bread..

Leviticus 23:5 - In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is YAHWEH's passover.

Leviticus 23:6 - And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto YAHWEH: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread.

Leviticus 23:7 - In the first day ye shall have an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein.

Exodus 12:18 - In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even.

Exodus 12:19 - Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eateth that which is leavened, even that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a stranger, or born in the land.

Exodus 12:20 - Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread.

Therefore, let's keep the feast! What is so beautiful about this feast is that it casts a shadow

It is symbolic of our walk with Yahweh. The bondage, the leaven, the mercy of Yahweh with the lamb and its blood on the doorposts, the bitter herbs representing the bitterness we feel when we realize our sin and the need for Messiah's sacrifice, the promised land to come and so many other things all represent a powerful symbology of our own walk with Yahweh

It is well established in scripture that Yahushua died on the day of Passover. Does scripture then say what hour He died?

Matthew 27:46 - And about the ninth hour Yahushua cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My El, my El, why hast thou forsaken me?

Matthew 27:47 - Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for EliYah.

Matthew 27:48 - And straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink.

Matthew 27:49 - The rest said, Let be, let us see whether EliYah will come to save him.

Matthew 27:50 - Yahushua , when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the Spirit.

This is the exact time the Passover lambs were being sacrificed in Jerusalem!

Scripture predicted in the book of Isaiah that Yahushua would indeed be spotless and as a slain lamb:

Isaiah 53:7 - He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.

Isaiah 53:8 - He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken.

Isaiah 53:9 - And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.

Isaiah 53:10 - Yet it pleased YAHWEH to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of YAHWEH shall prosper in his hand.

Sin (Egypt) is bondage. Sin leads to death but we are redeemed from death by the blood of Yahushua.

Therefore what we have here with the feast of Passover and unleavened bread is a powerful symbol of our walk with Yahweh

As we have seen, we ARE Israel!

Galatians 3:29 - And if you are the Messiah's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

This year, we will be observing Passover on 4/16 and Unleavened Bread on 4/17 - 4/23 with the first and last days of Unleavened Bread being Sabbaths unto Yahweh

For those interested, the specifics of our Passover observance can be found at http://www.eliyah.com/passoverservice.html

We should rejoice that just as Israel was delivered our of bondage.. .we are too!

Though the Lamb

Hebrews 2:14 - Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,

Hebrews 2:15 - and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

1Corinthians 5:6 - Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump?

1Corinthians 5:7 - Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even the Messiah our passover is sacrificed for us:

1Corinthians 5:8 - Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Revelation 7:13 - Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, "Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?"

Revelation 7:14 - And I said to him, "Sir, you know." So he said to me, "These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Romans 6:23 - For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of YAHWEH is eternal life through Yahushua the Messiah our Saviour.

Acts 2:38 - Then Kepha said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Yahushua the Messiah for the forgiveness of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The children of Israel were baptized when they came out of Egypt (sin):

1Corinthians 10:1 - Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;

1Corinthians 10:2 - And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;

And just as the children of Israel ate manna, we must find pasture on the word of Yahweh which feeds us with words of everlasting life

1Corinthians 10:3 - And did all eat the same spiritual meat;

1Corinthians 10:4 - And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was the Messiah.

1Corinthians 10:5 - But with many of them YAHWEH was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.

John 6:58 - This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.

Just as the children of Israel learned the law during their time in the wilderness, now we are in the wilderness learning the will of Yahweh

As we learn, we are also in a time of temptation and of trial, just as they

We are headed to the promised land, where Yahweh will reign!

Ultimately, it was not Moses but rather Yahushua (Joshua) the son of Nun who brought the children of Israel into the promised land.

In truth--Moses can show us the way, but we need a man named Yahushua to take us there, HalleluYah!!

Brethren, this imagery could not have happened by accident. It was done for a purpose.

It is to show us all His plan for us.

Will we accept His offer of salvation?

Will we accept His love?

Will we heed the call to follow Yahushua into the promised land?

Yahweh showed us righteousness in written form through Moshe

and He shows us righteousness by example through Yahushua

He wants to place His righteousness in us and give us power to live a sinless and endless life

Will we examine ourselves and purge out the leaven out of our lives for Yahweh this year?

Will we let the 'old man' die?

It's high time brethren

Truly, Yahweh has done a great work to reveal to us that this is what He wants us to do...this year and every year

So let's follow Yahushua and walk as He walked, for where He is we can be also

Though few or none go with us, let us still follow

With Yahushua (His word) before us and the world (Egypt) behind us, let's press on!!

Let's press on toward the promised land.. where righteousness will reign, and Yahweh will be KING

May Yahweh bless you and may He have mercy on us all!