Why Passover is significant for all believers

It is the time of year that Jews are readying themselves for Passover and Christians are looking forward to Easter. Many Christians may not realise that Passover foreshadows what their easter celebrates – the death and resurrection of Yeshua (Jesus). Here are some things that may surprise you about Passover

Passover is not just for Jews

You may have read or heard that we should stand with and bless Israel. (Numbers 24:9), but you may not know that if you have accepted Yeshua (Jesus) as your Messiah, then you are ‘grafted in’ to Israel, (Romans 11: 17 – 21). The term “grafted in” would have been understood by an agricultural society such as the first century church. They were intimately acquainted with the process of a branch being fused into a different tree, in order to help propagate fruit trees.

“ If some of the branches have been broken off, and you, though a wild olive shoot, have been grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing sap from the olive root, do not consider yourself to be superior to those other branches. If you do, consider this: You do not support the root, but the root supports you. You will say then, “Branches were broken off so that I could be grafted in.” Granted. But they were broken off because of unbelief, and you stand by faith. Do not be arrogant, but tremble. For if God did not spare the natural branches, he will not spare you either.” Romans 11: 17-21

This basically means that even though we may be from a different genetic family tree than Jews, once we accept and believe in Messiah Yeshua, we get 'adopted' or 'grafted' in to Israel and now have the right to be called God’s “Chosen People” and receive all the benefits of God’s covenant with his Chosen People.

This means that our identity is now completely interwoven with our Jewish Messiah and we have the right to partake in the beautiful feasts of the Lord set out in Leviticus 23. (See disclaimers at end of article*)

Passover means Protection

The translation of the Hebrew word “Pesach”, which is commonly referred to as “Passover” , means "He passed over" but one translation holds that it can also mean "He had pity/sympathy". This implies that out of compassion, God provided protection. In Exodus 12, God gave his people specific instructions, two of which were to paint the door with the blood of the lamb and to stay inside. He did this because He knew what was coming. Specific instructions from God are always for our good. Here’s a little tip: He ALWAYS knows what’s coming and that’s why He provides guidelines to keep us safe. He sees what we cannot even fathom. As such, one of the many benefits of being in covenant with God (see point below) is that He gives his people a head’s up or forewarning of things to come to keep them safe. The consequences of not being in covenant and living opposed to God is that you are not guaranteed this safety.

Passover personifies Covenant relationship

Many people glance over the Passover passage and assume that God just passed over the houses that had blood on the doorposts. On closer examination you will see in verse 23 that it says

“For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you.”

God didn’t just fly over the door or the roof of the house. God passed over – or crossed over – the threshold of the door, into the house! That’s how He was able to prevent the destroyer from entering the houses of His people. This clears up a common misconception that God himself was the destroyer or just ‘passed over’, to the contrary we can clearly see that God is an active protector in this scenario.

We have to understand middle eastern principles of covenant to see why we may have missed this very significant point with our western understanding. Here’s a quick video that clearly articulates how God sees covenant by Craig Hill Passover means salvation

It is important to note all the symbology in these verses and how they allude to Yeshua being our Passover lamb. God knew which house to enter because of the blood of the lamb on the doorposts of the house. The door is the entrance to the house. If you think of the house as our bodies, the ‘door’ or entrance would be our soul (mind, will and emotions and sometimes called our ‘heart’) as the place our faith lives. There had to be a sacrifice made for there to be blood available to paint on the doorposts, which the lamb the Israelites were instructed to cook that night provided. Over and over in scripture Yeshua is described as ‘the lamb of God’, the “a lamb who was led to the slaughter”.

Yeshua says multiple times in scripture: “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture” John 10: 9-11 “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” John 14:6 Only when we paint our door with the blood (accept Yeshua’s sacrifice by faith) can God come into our ‘house’ to live and protect us from the inside out. God can only enter into relationship with us through the door of Yeshua.

Passover means faith over fear

Passover represents the incredible faith you have when you know you are protected by God.

Remember at the time the Israelites received these instructions they were in slavery for 400 years! Imagine having your freedom curtailed with no end in sight for four generations, being mistreated and worked to the bone every year of your life and still having the faith to obey God when He gives you specific instructions. The scriptures say that not one Jewish child was hurt during the Passover, so this was evidence that the entire nation obeyed the instructions. When you understand the power of a blood covenant, it is easier to face death head on, knowing that we are never alone and will not have to defend yourself against your enemies or any death and destruction, even if it threatens the entire globe.

In times of crisis, you will be able to have a deeper understanding and be able to stand under the covenant protection found in following scriptures:

“You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.” Psalm 91:5 “For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways” Psalm 91:11

“ No weapon formed against you shall prosper…” Isaiah 57:17

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Psalm 46:1 “For I Know The Plans I Have For You' Declares the Lord, 'Plans to Prosper You and Not to Harm You, Plans to Give You Hope and a Future. '" Jeremiah 29:11

“ For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7

Most believers have a deep understanding that “in all things God works for the good of those who love him” and will also usually hold the perspective that “If I live, it will be for Christ, and if I die, I will gain even more”. They know that eternal life means that we truly never die, we just change forms (see 1 Corinthians 15: 51 – 55).

Passover means a fresh start

Passover is representative of salvation on several levels. The Israelites were physically saved from death and destruction first, while the first born of every Egyptian was taken. Then they were finally set free from 400 years of slavery. This is symbolic of us leaving a life of slavery to sin and our old lives and into the promised land of our new lives.

I Corinthians 5:17 says: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”

Every Passover is a great opportunity to look back and recognize the supernatural transformation that has taken place in our life. The beauty of being a new creation is that we are always being refined and our character made more like God's over the years. It is also a good time to rejoice over how many trials and tribulations that God has taken us through. He has been there guiding us and protecting us through it all, even when it doesn’t feel like it. Think about some circumstances you didn’t think you were going to be able to make it through, yet here you are! Reflecting on God’s previous goodness will give you strength to endure other trials set before you because He has proven His faithfulness over and over and this time will be no different. He WILL carry you through.

Hopefully this short article gives you a better understanding of how beautifully prophetic and significant Passover is for anyone who claims to believe in Yeshua. It (Covenant) is the basis of how we entered relationship with God in the first place. Why wouldn’t we want to commemorate this important occasion every year with our Messianic and Jewish brethren the world over, especially when we now personally know the Passover Lamb who lived, died and was raised from the dead for us to have eternal life.

Here is a great page to visit if you're interested in taking part in a Passover Seder (meal) as a believer in Yeshua Jesus.

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*Disclaimers: There are several disclaimers that need to be noted here: 1) We know that keeping the laws and feasts of God does not save us. It is a blessing to be able to observe God's Ways because we are saved by his grace and see the beauty and benefits of setting ourselves apart as He instructed Israel, of whom we are now a part of. 2) Christians have by no means ‘replaced’ the Jews (read the strict warning in Romans 11:17 – 21 to not look down on the root just because we’ve been grafted in) even if Jews haven’t yet accepted Yeshua as Messiah. 3) Most Jews do not accept that Christians are allowed to partake in God’s feasts (there are 7 of them) as they still consider Christians to be Goyim (or Gentiles) and do not acknowledge the concept of being grafted in by virtue of Yeshua. They will usually only accept those who convert to Judaism following their strict protocols but this is not necessary as believers in Yeshua 4) Jews and Messianic believers today can only commemorate Passover with the understanding that without the Temple in Jerusalem, it is simply a celebration of remembrance and not a true observance of Passover that will happen when the Temple is reinstated.