Word@Work 167 - Mark 14:12
Published: Wed, 07/16/08
Word@Work from BeaconLight
Read Mark 14:12 On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, when it was customary to sacrifice the Passover lamb, Jesus' disciples asked him, "Where do you want us to go and make preparations for you to eat the Passover?" (NIV)
Special meals are still a way in which we mark the beginning of new relationships (like weddings) or celebrate anniversaries (like birthdays). The Feast of Unleavened Bread was a week long holiday (our word derives from holy-day) to celebrate God's provision for the Israelites as they fled from Egypt through the Red Sea - eating only the specially prepared unleavened bread (a dense bread made without yeast that would not 'go off' on the hot journey). That feast was preceded by the one-day Feast of Passover, which celebrated the night when the angel of death killed the firstborn in every household in Egypt, but 'passed over' the houses marked by the blood of a sacrificed lamb. Those who did not sacrifice the lamb experienced God's judgement, while those who did were saved. Read the whole story in Exodus 12:1-42!
The timing of this passage, on the Thursday of (what we now call) Holy Week was not coincidental. The Passover meal was not just to be a remembrance, but a prophetic pre-enactment of the death of Christ - the ultimate Passover Lamb. The disciples rightly assumed, despite all the plotting against Jesus that He would want to celebrate the feast. Luke 22:14-15 shows His great eagerness. But what the disciples thought was a tradition to remember 1500 years previously, was really to prepare them for its prophetic fulfilment the following day - salvation day for all who will believe!
Today, when spiritual belief seems to be resurging, it is interesting to find such little certainly about who God is or how to become acceptable to Him. So it is a great relief to know that Jesus is not just our model for behaviour and ethics, but our sacrifice for sin. And to know that we please God by choosing the Lamb of God as our sacrifice - so that God's wrath will pass over us. When doubts come, it is the cross alone that provides objective evidence of God's mercy to sinners. We need that reassurance and our friends need to know why it is that we (and they) can be so sure!
Prayer: Father God. Thank You for providing Jesus as my Passover Lamb, so that I can be confident of Your acceptance despite all my sin. Help me to grow in that confidence each day and not be afraid to speak of Jesus as my personal Saviour so that my friends and colleagues also may find salvation through trusting in His shed blood. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
You can read more of this Bible passage online - in English and other languages - share the Bible with your friends!
Special meals are still a way in which we mark the beginning of new relationships (like weddings) or celebrate anniversaries (like birthdays). The Feast of Unleavened Bread was a week long holiday (our word derives from holy-day) to celebrate God's provision for the Israelites as they fled from Egypt through the Red Sea - eating only the specially prepared unleavened bread (a dense bread made without yeast that would not 'go off' on the hot journey). That feast was preceded by the one-day Feast of Passover, which celebrated the night when the angel of death killed the firstborn in every household in Egypt, but 'passed over' the houses marked by the blood of a sacrificed lamb. Those who did not sacrifice the lamb experienced God's judgement, while those who did were saved. Read the whole story in Exodus 12:1-42!
The timing of this passage, on the Thursday of (what we now call) Holy Week was not coincidental. The Passover meal was not just to be a remembrance, but a prophetic pre-enactment of the death of Christ - the ultimate Passover Lamb. The disciples rightly assumed, despite all the plotting against Jesus that He would want to celebrate the feast. Luke 22:14-15 shows His great eagerness. But what the disciples thought was a tradition to remember 1500 years previously, was really to prepare them for its prophetic fulfilment the following day - salvation day for all who will believe!
Today, when spiritual belief seems to be resurging, it is interesting to find such little certainly about who God is or how to become acceptable to Him. So it is a great relief to know that Jesus is not just our model for behaviour and ethics, but our sacrifice for sin. And to know that we please God by choosing the Lamb of God as our sacrifice - so that God's wrath will pass over us. When doubts come, it is the cross alone that provides objective evidence of God's mercy to sinners. We need that reassurance and our friends need to know why it is that we (and they) can be so sure!
Prayer: Father God. Thank You for providing Jesus as my Passover Lamb, so that I can be confident of Your acceptance despite all my sin. Help me to grow in that confidence each day and not be afraid to speak of Jesus as my personal Saviour so that my friends and colleagues also may find salvation through trusting in His shed blood. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
You can read more of this Bible passage online - in English and other languages - share the Bible with your friends!
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