metro calvary

In it’s essence, Christianity is reduced to simple faith and obedience in the person of Jesus Christ. It begins that way, and is lived that way. Here are a few thoughts on the One who alone can save, drawn from the Book of Exodus. I hope they will encourage you to exercise simple faith and obedience in Him.

Ex. 12:1 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt,  2 This month shall be for you the beginning of months.  It shall be the first month of the year for you.

KEY INSIGHT: Something so POWERFUL, so WONDERFUL, was going to happen that they would measure time by it – set their calendars by it!

NOTE WELL: Something so POWERFUL, and so WONDERFUL happens when the blood of Jesus is applied to your life – (deliverance from the power and penalty of sin) – that it brings about a NEW BEGINNING.

2Cor. 5.17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

I’m 57 years old – but life BEGAN for me on Dec. 31, 1973.
The term BORN AGAIN takes on wonderful and fresh light for us in Exodus 12.We should be SO THANKFUL for that BECAUSE we NEED a NEW BEGINNING.

3 Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb

From the 10th of Nisan until the 14th of Nisan they would inspect the lamb to make sure that it was without spot or blemish.

according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household. 4 And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor next unto his house shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for THE lamb. 5 YOUR lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats,

KEY OBSERVATION: Notice the PROGRESSION

v.3 – a lamb
v.4 – the lamb
v.5 – your lamb

KEY INSIGHT: This is a great picture of OUR perception of Jesus as the Holy Spirit progressively draws us to Christ.
FIRST we see Jesus as a lamb -

pure, a special teacher – one of many great religious figures

THEN He becomes the lamb -

We realize that He is MORE than just a prophet or teacher
We come to see Him as THE Only Begotten Son of God, as THE lamb of God

FINALLY, you make Jesus your lamb

He becomes YOUR PERSONAL Savior; YOUR Lord.

I pray that each and every one of you will leave here tonight knowing Jesus as your lamb.

EXAMPLE: Mary Magdalene in the Garden on the first Easter morning – Where have you taken MY Lord?
Is Jesus YOUR Lamb / YOUR Lord?
He wants to be!
He will be!

4 And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor next unto his house shall take according to the number of persons

A house might be too little for the lamb – but the lamb is NEVER too little for a household.
There is more of Jesus than my home or yours can ever appreciate.
There is plenty of Jesus to go around for this lost world.

5 YOUR lamb shall be without blemish, a male

Jesus is the Only Begotten SON of God

a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats,

That is the peak year of a lamb – That is the point of it’s greatest value -

Jesus was in His PRIME when He was slain!

6 and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month,

KEY OBSERVATION: Even as THE LAMB of the first Passover was to be observed from the 10th -14th of Nissan, Jesus was observed and scrutinized from the 10th of Nisan until He was crucified on the 14th of Nisan

when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel (1st use of this term) shall kill their lambs at twilight.

KEY OBSERVATION: Thousands of lambs were slain – yet the Lord speaks of the Passover Lamb as ONE

That is BECAUSE in the mind and heart of the Father there is only ONE lamb

Rev. 13.8 speaks of Jesus as THE Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

John the Baptist would say “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! John 1.29

7 Then they shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it.

KEY INSIGHT: Here is an awesome PICTURE of Golgotha

Verse 22 tells us that they they were to slay the lamb in the basin – the little ditch at the threshold of the door.
They were to put the blood on the two door posts – the uprights. And then on the lentil – over the door.
And in so doing you have a beautiful picture of 2 crosses with THE LAMB SLAIN in the center.

John 19.18 There they crucified Him, and with Him two others, one on either side, and Jesus between them.

MINDBLOWING MINUTE DETAILS in Scripture that point to Jesus!

Pascal – one of the greatest thinkers in the history of the world.
Saved at 31. Devoted the next 8 years of his life (died at age of 39) to the study of the Scriptures.

“I am amazed at how the Lord ingeniously detailed the work of the coming Christ, and yet obscures it to those who would not want to see it.”

How true that is.
He ingeniously opens understanding to us as we desire to know Him AND obscures from those who refuse to see.

8 They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it.

NOTE WELL: Not only slain – but eaten!

This teaches us that it is NOT enough to merely acknowledge Jesus intellectually.
We must APPROPRIATE Him – We must PARTAKE of His life.

John 6.53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.

The multitudes left Jesus – This is too hard for us!
Listen – This is where the rubber meets the road.
Jesus must make an impact upon the INSIDE – our hearts.

8 roasted on the fire

NOTE WELL: Not enough to be sacrificed – but ROASTED ON THE FIRE
Fire speaks of judgment.

EXAMPLE: Elijah on Carmel.
Fire came down from heaven and consumed Elijah’s sacrifice.

There on Calvary God FIRED down on Jesus ALL of His wrath – the wrath that WE DESERVED.

KEY INSIGHT: The sufferings of Christ were far greater than the 6 hours of crucifixion.

He endured the wrath of God. IN those 6 hours the eternal judgment of hell (that we deserved) was fired down upon Jesus.

My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?

The wages of sin is death – separation from God
Jesus tasted death for YOU and for ME.
He endured the WRATH of God in my place.

Luke 22.42 saying, “Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me. Nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done.”

John 18.11 So Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword into its sheath; shall I not drink the cup that the Father has given Me?”

KEY POINT: As we think of the Passover lamb – roasted on the fire – may we see in a fresh and radical way the price paid for our salvation.

In Exodus 11:7 God said that He would put a difference between Egypt and the Israelites.
And the WAY He put the difference between them is BY THE BLOOD OF THE LAMB.

ANY house that had the blood was spared. It wasn’t that they UNDERSTOOD or APPRECIATED the blood -
They had NO theology of it.They hadn’t read the chapter – they hadn’t seen the movie.

If they applied the blood in simple obedience they were spared!
Those who did not were not spared.

CRUCIAL POINT: It is the same way that God puts a difference between mankind today.

The ONLY way that God differentiates between one man and another man – one woman and another woman – is by which of them have applied the blood of the Lamb.

So they are asked to participate in this – and they do it by faith (Heb 11).

The FIRST time that the Israelites celebrated the Passover was BEFORE they were Passed Over – BEFORE they were spared and delivered!! They had never done it before. God asked them for a SIMPLE act of obedience.

It is a humbling thing for man to look at a Man brutally executed on a cross and bow before Him as Savior, Lord and King. But that act of simple faith and obedience is MAKES THE DIFFERENCE between life and death, heaven and hell.

Blessings
pastor richard