Passover and Eternal Life
The Passover of the new covenant contains many promises of God. First, it promises the forgiveness of the sins people committed in heaven as angels as I have shown in the previous article, titled “God’s promise in the Passover: Forgiveness of sins”.
Today, we are going to another important promise of God contained in the Passover, that is, the promise of “eternal life”.
Christ Coming for Eternal Life
According to the bible Christ came down to this earth to free us from the slavery of sin and death and to give us eternal life in heaven. This is the essence of the teachings of God in the bible. Then how does God grant eternal life to his people?
Passover and Freedom from Slavery
The answer can be found in the Old Testament through the work of God’s salvation for the physical Jews in the time of Moses. In those days, God’s people were under the slavery of Egypt going through many hardships and sufferings. They constantly prayed to God for the freedom. And God listened to their prayers and he sent his Prophet Moses to lead his people from the slavery.
Exodus 7:4 4 he will not listen to you. Then I will lay my hand on Egypt and with mighty acts of judgment I will bring out my divisions, my people the Israelites. 5 And the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out of it.
According to these words of God, God sent Egyptians ten plagues and finally the people of Israel could be set free from the slavery. Before the last and greatest plague, that is, the plague of the first-borns, God commanded the Israelites to keep the Passover so that they could be saved from the last disaster. God promised that the blood of the Passover Lamb would be the sign between God and his people so that they would be recognized as people who belonged to God. Through this blood of the Passover Lamb they could be protected from the plague and finally receive the freedom from the slavery.
The Jews: Inward and Outward
The bible teaches that the work of Moses and the Israel people were given as copy and shadow to teach us what is going to be done in the last days for God’s people who are under the spiritual slavery of sin and death.
Hebrews 10:1 The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves.
According to the bible, all the people on earth are the people of God or Israelites in the spiritual sense.
Romans 2:28 A person is not a Jew who is one only outwardly, nor is circumcision merely outward and physical. 29 No, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code.
Spiritual Slavery of Sin and Death
In this sense, all the people are the Jews, that is, God’s people. They once lived in heaven as angels in the presence of God as Job and King Solomon testifies. (Proverbs 8:30) However, because of their sins of rebellion against God in heaven, they were driven out and cast down to this earth which is a spiritual prison. And they are living in this prison as slaves of sin and death.
Jesus teaches us that we all are under the slavery of sin and death through the sins.
John 8:32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?” 34 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.
All Men Are Sinners
The bible teaches us that we all are sinners (Psalms 14:3), and because of the sins the wages of sins—death—came to all men. (Romans 5:12) In short, we are all under the slavery of sin and death.
As Paul says, we all want to do what is righteous but because of the sin living in us we cannot do what we intend to do. All men are living as slaves to sin and destined to go through the agony of death.
Romans 7:21 So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; 23 but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? 25 Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!
Freedom From Sin and Death Through the Passover
Then how can we set free from this spiritual slavery of sin and death? The bible shows us the answer through the work and life of Moses and the Israelites. The Israel people who were living as slaves of Egypt could be set free by keeping the Passover.
Likewise, the freedom from the spiritual slavery of sin and death is also in keeping the Passover. As we have already seen in the verse above (John 8:32), Jesus said that we can be set free through “the truth”. Also in another verse Jesus teaches that the Son would set them free. (John 8:36) Therefore, we can conclude that we can be set free from the slavery of sin and death through the truth or the words of God which comes from the Son that is Jesus himself. Then what was teaching of Jesus given to us for the freedom from the sin?
Passover, Truth of Spiritual Freedom
Freedom From Sins Through the Passover
Jesus teaches that we can be set free from the slavery of sins and death through the Passover, the new covenant. On the night of the Passover, while eating the Passover Supper, Jesus sealed the Passover with a promise, that is, the promise of the forgiveness of sins.
Matthew 26:26 While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.” 27 Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. 28 This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
Through this promise of Jesus, we can understand that the truth that gives us freedom is the Passover. Through the Passover we can be set free from the slavery of sins through the forgiveness promised in the Passover.
Freedom From Death Through the Passover
Since our sins are cancelled through the Passover, naturally the sentence of death caused by sins would be removed from us too through the Passover. Jesus taught about this freedom from death through the Passover in the Book of John.
John 6:53 Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.
Jesus teaches us that we can receive the eternal life or the freedom from death by eating his flesh and blood.. Then what was the way we could eat his flesh and blood? It is through the Passover. The Passover bread signifies his flesh or body and the Passover wine his blood.
Conclusion
Now we can know how to be set free from the slavery of sin and death. It is through the Passover. Through the Promise of God sealed in the Passover, we can receive the forgiveness of sins and be set free from the slavery of sins and death.
In the next article, I would like to talk about another promise of God in the Passover, the inheritance of Canaan, or the Kingdom of Heaven. I hope that everybody realize the blessings contained in the Passover and keep it so that we can receive the promise of God through the Passover.