Highlights:
Cleansing of the Levites; the second Passover; the Lord's guiding by the cloud and the fire over the Tabernacle.
Verses for Today:
The Lord spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year . . . Let the children of Israel also keep the Passover. . . . In the fourteenth day of this month, at even (evening), ye shall keep it in his appointed season . . . according to all the ceremonies . . . shall ye keep it (Num. 9:1-3).After they observed the first Passover, the Israelites were freed from Egypt and the cruel slavery of Pharaoh. The Israelites were now free to follow the leadership of the One True God through His chosen leader Moses.
Thus the Passover Feast and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were symbolic of Jesus, our true Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world (John 1:29). Christ was also the true Bread from Heaven (6:32). On that eventful night, the blood was placed on the doorpost of every home, symbolic of the blood of Jesus Christ His Son (which) cleanseth us from all sin (I John 1:7). Inside the home on that night the Israelites were also required to roast and then eat that same lamb. They shall leave none of it unto the morning, nor break any bone of it (Num. 9:12). Christ is our Passover Lamb and no bone was broken at His crucifixion (John 19:36; see Ex. 12:46; Ps. 34:20). The Feast of Unleavened Bread also foreshadowed Christ as the Bread of Life.
Today the Christian observance of the Lord's Supper is an acknowledgment of our sins forgiven and His Word becoming our Way of Life. Jesus said: Whoso eateth My flesh, and drinketh My blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day (John 6:54). As we accept his Word as our way of life, Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us (I Cor. 5:7). Paul bears witness to Jesus' words that . . . the same night in which He was betrayed (He) took bread: And when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is My Body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of Me. And the same manner also He took the cup, when He had supped, saying, This cup is the New Testament in My blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of Me (I Cor. 11:23-25).
God has provided a reliable threefold Guide to give us direction throughout life — His perfect Word, the indwelling Holy Spirit, and the power of prayer.
Thought for Today:
It is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure (Phil. 2:13).
Christ Revealed:
The Passover serves as a beautiful illustration of the redemption Christ accomplished at Calvary as the Lamb of God (Numbers 9:2; compare John 1:29; I Corinthians 5:7).
Word Studies:
8:2 over against =in front of; 8:11 execute =perform; 8:18 for =instead of; 8:26 keep the charge =assist in the duties; 9:13 forbeareth =neglects.
Prayer Needs:
Pray for International Broadcasts in memory of Henry Rogers • Staff: Benjamin Wallace • Country: Zaire, Democratic Republic of the Congo (63 million) in south-central Africa • Major languages: French and Lingala • Limited religious freedom • 42% Roman Catholic; 28% Protestant; 12% magical practices, ancestor worship, and witchcraft; 1% Muslim • Prayer Suggestion: Pray with great faith and the Lord will answer (Matt.. 21:22).
Optional Reading: Luke 3
Memory Verse for the Week: Exodus 20:12