Redeemed by the Blood of the Lamb - Lent Mid-week 6 - April 1, 2020 - Text: Ex. 12:1-13; 1 Peter 1:14-21 (esp. v. 18-19)

After the Lord delivered the Children of Israel from their bondage of slavery in Egypt, by the hand of Moses, He instituted the Passover Feast as an annual remembrance of their deliverance. As we have said and as we are continually being reminded during this Lenten season, we human beings have a tendency to forget and one way to remember then is to rehearse, to celebrate, to reenact the event or thing we wish to remember over and over again. Four weeks ago we heard the four questions and their answers as a part of the Passover celebration. Three weeks ago we heard about the first two cups of wine, the cup of Sanctification and the cup of Deliverance. Two weeks ago we talked about the food eaten during the Passover and the meaning of each food eaten. Last week we moved on to the point that the meal has been eaten and we talked about the fourth cup of wine, the cup of blessing. Today we want to talk about the main course of the meal, the lamb.
 

If you have ever been to a petting zoo, or a children’s zoo what you may notice is that there is usually an abundance of lambs, little lambs. I would guess this is because lambs are cute. Lambs are somewhat soft, with all that baby wool and all. And lambs are usually pretty tame, at least tame enough for the little children. Lambs are so cute, who could ever think or imagine a lamb for any other purpose than to be a pet? In Old Testament times and really, even today the importance of a lamb and sheep in general is that they produce wool, milk, and yes, even meat to eat. They are very useful animals.
 

So, while the lamb grows up to be a sheep and a sheep is useful for producing useful items, the symbol of a lamb continues to be that it is helpless and pure. And we have been taught from early on about how sheep are not necessarily the brightest animals in the barnyard. We know that sheep do not see very well and so they are known for following the animal in front of them, and almost following them anywhere. We know that sheep cannot care for themselves and really cannot even defend themselves. And while we are on the subject, we also are reminded of how our Lord refers to us as His sheep and the fact that He is our good shepherd. So, with this as some background, let us move on to the role and purpose of the lamb in the Passover Seder celebration.
 

At the first Passover the children of Israel were instructed to select a lamb, one that was unblemished, without spot or stain, with no health problems, no broken bones. They were to select this lamb and set it aside, away from the rest of the flock. This was to be done on the tenth day and this was to be done until the fourteenth day. As for the why of this setting aside, some have suggested that it was for the sake of allowing time for the Egyptians to see what was happening and to ask why so the people might have some time to offer a defense of their faith, certainly showing the Lord’s patience in not wanting anyone to suffer, yet this explanation seems a bit lacking and contrived. Perhaps the best explanation is so that everyone will be on the same “page” so to speak in getting everything ready, in other words, so that no one, not one of the children of Israel would be lost.
 

On the fourteenth day the lambs were to be killed at twilight. The blood was to be collected and was to be painted, with hyssop, that is by using a branch of the hyssop bush as a paint brush, on the two doorposts and lintel of the house. As we will begin to see and understand as we go along, all of this is a foreshadowing, a type of the one who would come to give His life for all. The lamb is the type of the lamb of God, even Jesus Himself, as John the Baptist so well points Him out and labels Him when he points to Jesus and says, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.” The painting of the blood on the door posts, up and down and on the lintel, across, suggests the making of the sign of the cross, the instrument of death on which the lamb of God would die.
 

The lamb was then cooked, roasted, probably over an open fire, barbecued and eaten. It was eaten completely. There was to be nothing remaining because they would take nothing with them on their exodus.
 

For us Christians, for those Christians who celebrate the Passover Seder today, we understand that Christ is the Passover Lamb. Christ is a firstborn male, born of Mary, conceived of God, without blemish, perfect and holy.
 

Christ was set aside, not on the tenth day, but from the creation of the world. God, in His divine foreknowledge knew what was going to happen with His creation and so, from even before He began His work of creation He set aside His Son for the work of redeeming His people. Jesus was also set aside from birth, acknowledged by the angels, by the shepherds and by the Magi from the east. He was set aside from His baptism as the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove and the voice of God the Father spoke. He was confirmed in His office as Savior at the transfiguration when the voice of God was heard again.
 

Jesus shed His blood. He shed His blood as He was beaten and whipped, “stricken, smitten and afflicted.” He shed His blood as He hung on the cross, on the horizontal (doorpost) and vertical (lintel) cross.
 

At His Holy Supper we eat and drink His true body and His true blood, even as He tells us in His giving of the Passover Seder. He took bread and said, “This is my body.” He took the cup of wine and said, “This is my blood.”
 

Today we are once again reminded that the price for sin is death. What was given as a warning and a promise in the Garden of Eden, that disobedience, that sin will result in death, eternal death and hell and physical death, was happening. The price for sin was set at death. Death is the shedding of blood. All the animal sacrifices of the Old Testament really meant nothing except to point to the one ultimate, once and for all sacrifice of the human man, Jesus on the cross, the Lamb of God.
 

Yes, Jesus paid the price for our sin. What we owed, He paid. What He earned, we are given. The Lamb, the Lamb of God, was slain. His blood was shed. On the cross He was sacrificed. And just as the children of Israel ate the lamb that was sacrificed at the first Passover and just as they continued to eat the many lambs that were offered and sacrificed throughout their history, so we gather to eat His body that was offered on the cross, in, with and under the bread, and drink His blood, in, with and under the wine, uniting us with Him, making His life our life; making His death our death; and making His resurrection our resurrection.
 

And most importantly we have forgiveness of sins. Forgiveness is so important, because without forgiveness we would still be in our sins and if we were still in our sins that would mean eternal death and hell. But because we have forgiveness, we are no longer counted as sinful. We are no long sinners, but in God’s eyes we are seen as perfect, which is what God demands, “Be perfect as my Father in heaven is perfect.” So, because Jesus took our sins, because Jesus suffered and died, paying the price for our sins, we are forgiven, we are perfect, we are holy, we are saved! Thanks be to God, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.