THE HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

  The Lord's Passover begins at twilight on the fourteenth day   of the First month. On the Fifteenth day of that month the
  Lord's Feast of Unleavened Bread begins for seven days you   must eat bread made without yeast. On the first day hold a
  sacred assembly and do no regular work. For seven days   present an offering made to the Lord by Fire. And on the
  seventh day hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work   (Leviticus 23:5-8).

The holy day, Pesach (Passover), announces the arrival of spring on the Jewish calendar. Its importance to the biblical plan can be seen in the timing of the festival. As one looks at the major holy days in Scripture, a striking parallel can be seen. Major days are bunched in two groups in two different times of the year. The spring holy days of Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread, First Fruits and Pentecost occur within a fifty-day time span from March to June. A long summer intervenes until the fall holydays of Rosh HaShanah,Yom Kippur and Sukkot, usually in September and/or October. The chronology of these days perfectly fits the salvation plan of God through his Messiah, Yeshua of Nazareth as you will see.

  The meaning of Passover is found in Leviticus 23. The Hebrew word "pesach" means "to spring, jump or pass over" something; hence the English name, Passover. This is a historical reference to God's deliverance of Israel from the bondage of Egypt as recorded in Exodus.

  Because of the increasing hardness of Pharoah's heart, God had to send ten plagues to persuade the blinded leader to let Israel go. As devastating as the first nine plagues were,
it wasn't until the tenth and final plague that Pharoah acquiesced to the God of Israel. In this judgment, God said he would send the Angel of Death over the land of Egypt to take the firstborn boy of every household.

  With every judgment of God there is also a way of escape. Any household that put the blood of the sacrificial lamb on its doorpost was given a special promise: "...when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you..." (Exodus 12: 13).

  Passover clearly typifies redemption in a dramatic way. It is a holy day commemorating God' s deliverance of Israel from the slavery of Egypt. Yet Pesach also holds a greater prophetic picture of God's plan for world redemption….
 

NEW TESTAMENT OBSERVANCE

Most of this tradition was fully developed before the first century. It is not surprising to see numerous references to Passover in the New Covenant. Passover is mentioned in the Gospel accounts (see Luke 2:4 1 and John 5: 1,6:4), as well as the book of Acts (see Acts 12:3-4). By far the most famous account is the last Passover celebrated by Yeshua and his Jewish disciples in an upper room (Matthew 26 and Luke 22). In these passages one sees the traditions of the first century, and some spiritual lessons taught by the Messiah.

  Among the traditional items mentioned are the lamb   (Luke 22:8), bitter herbs (Matthew 26:23), the washings (John 13: 1-15),the four cups of wine (Matthew 26 and Luke 22) and matzah (Matthew 26:26). The lamb reminds one of the means of redemption, the blood of the sacrifice. In the is case, Messiah became our Pesach (John 1:29). The bitter herbs speak of terrible bondage to an oppressor. Not surprisingly, it was in the bowl of bitter herbs that Judas, a man who came to a bitter end, dipped his matzah. The hand and foot washings typify the need for cleansing before approaching a holy God.

  Each of the four cups of wine teaches an important lesson.  According to ancient rabbis, these four cups are based on the four promises given to the children of Israel in Exodus 6:67:

Therefore, say to the Israelites, "I am the Lord and I will bring you
out from under the yoke of the Egyptians. I will free you from being
 slaves to them and will redeem you with an outstretched arm and
with mighty acts of judgment. I will take you as my own people,
 and I will be your God...

 The Cup of Acceptance, or Praise, is the fourth cup, and a fitting close to the Seder service. After Sanctification, Praise or Plagues, and Redemption, this cup reveals the wonderful symbolic truth of God accepting his people. It is around this cup that some of the Hallel psalms are sung.

THE PROPHETIC FULFILLMENT

After exploring the background of Pesach, the prophetic fulfillment of this holy day is clear. It can best be summed up by the word "redemption." Rabbi Saul of Tarsus (the apostle Paul) states this theme beautifully and succinctly in his letter to the Corinthian believers. They were told to deal with moral problems within their members. To make his point, Paul draws upon the well understood analogy of Pesach:

  Your boasting is not good. Don't you know the saying, "it takes
  only a little chametz to leaven a whole batch of dough? Get rid
  of the old chametz, so that you can be a new batch of dough,
  because in reality you are unleavened. For our Pesach lamb, the
  Messiah, has been sacrificed. So let us celebrate the seder, not with
left over chametz, the chametz of wickedness and evil, but with
the matzah of purity and truth (I Corinthians 5:6-8).

A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR BELIEVERS IN MESSIAH

  Many previously described customs can be meaningful when observed by followers of Yeshua. Those who desire to enter into the full celebration of the holy day begin before the arrival of the seder by cleansing all leaven from the house. Floors are swept, vacuumed and mopped. Cupboards are cleared of leavened products and cleaned. Pots and dishes are thoroughly washed to remove any possible fragments of leaven. The spirit of the law is to remove all leaven from our houses (Exodus 12. 19-20). This is also symbolic of the spiritual cleansing of our hearts (I Corinthians 5:6-8).

  My suggestion, in that spirit of freedom, is to adapt the preparation to a comfortable degree. For some, this may mean all of the above cleaning. For others, it may mean a cursory cleaning to merely symbolize the truth of Passover. Let every person be convinced in his own mind (Romans 14).

  After a general cleaning in the first weeks of Nisan, the attention becomes more focused as the day of Pesach approaches.  After sundown on the fourteenth of Nisan, a special ceremony called bedikat khameytz (the search for the leaven) takes place in the home. The last little bits of leaven are found and removed from the premises.   The details of this process are intriguing. Since the house has previously been cleaned, the leader of the house must purposely hide some leaven (bits of cookie or bread) in various places. Then the leader takes a feather, a wooden spoon and a lighted candle, and the family begins searching for the final leaven. This can be a great time to get children involved because it is like a game of hide-and-seek.

  The spiritual lessons are quite striking, however. The leaven (sin) must be cleansed from our dwellings (and hearts). The method itself is informative. The light of the candle (the Word of God) illumines our sin (Psalm 1 19: 1 I ). The leaven is scooped onto the wooden spoon for removal (like the wooden cross of the Messiah). The following morning, this last bit of collected leaven is burnt outside the home (in a can or bag) to symbolize its final destruction. This symbolizes Messiah's destroying sin "outside the camp," and making freedom from the power of sin available for all who believe.

  These customs may seem strange to the uninitiated, but the deep spiritual truth will be evident to discerning believers in Yeshua. Even something as unusual as bedikat khameytz can become a meaningful ceremony for those whose hearts have been cleansed by the Messiah.

  On the day of 14 Nisan, as the first day of Passover approaches, final preparations for the seder must be made. By now, the preliminary arrangements, such as shopping for "Kosher For Passover" products (matzah , wine or grapejuice, and any other unleavened food substitutes) should be completed.

  A traditional seder plate and ceremonial items will also be needed. The zeroah is a lamb shankbone representing, the lamb sacrifice, if no lamb shankbone is available, a turkey or chicken bone that has been roasted by fire may be substituted.

  The baytzah is a roasted, hardboiled egg representing the burnt offerings of the Temple period. The maror (bitter herbs) is usually horseradish, which is a reminder of the bitterness of slavery to sin. Kharoset (the sweet apple/nut mix) is a wonderful reminder of the sweetness of our redemption. The karpas (parsley), a green vegetable, speaks of life.

  A kiddush cup (goblet) for each person plus the cup of Elijah with its own placesetting is also needed to prepare the seder table. A matzah tash and ceremonial washing bowl of water are also essential items.

  Each reading participant will need a haggadah If the leader feels comfortable, it is possible to use a traditional haggadah available through any Jewish bookstore. Many believers prefer to use a messianic Jewish haggadah. These contain most of the traditional readings, but are also accompanied by relevant New Covenant passages and explanations.

  One resource I recommend to messianic believers is The Messianic Passover Haggadah by Lederer Messianic Ministries. It is a quality messianic haggadah. Lederer also has a very helpful preparation guide for the seder meal.

  Pesach officially arrives as the sun sets on the 15th of Nisan. Since most Jewish communities outside Israel celberate the first two nights of Passover with a traditional seder, many messianic believers have different types of seders each night.

  Our congregational custom is to have a large community seder the first night of pesach for our members, and to reach out to those who need to hear the message of redemption. The second night is usually spent at a smaller, home seder with family and close friends. Whatever your options, I encourage you to make plans to celebrate this wonderful holiday.