Interesting time of year Easter always is. For me this year it seems to be busier than ever. Maybe that is because for the first time in my life, I am the one preaching the Good Friday and Easter services. In the weeks prior to this coming weekend, I have been somewhat concerned, and apprehensive. Not really sure why. I guess it being my first Easter service, I so desired to correctly present Jesus Christ and the atoning act of his life, death and resurrection that I almost missed him in all the details.
Then this week as I was immersed in my studies seeking to trace the line of God’s redeeming work towards us his creation, from its beginning to the cross where it was completed, God spoke and the immensity of his word caught my attention.
The story of redemption doesn’t necessarily begin in Egypt, however God’s plan unfolds in an incredible way here. And unfortunately it starts with death. Sadly on this day, the first passover, many died, the firstborn of the family regardless of whether you were a human or animal. However, it didn’t just being at death, you see it begins in the heart of man. One man that couldn’t seem to let go of something he so greatly desired to hold on to. One man that chose not to listen to God. One man who thought he could be a god.
Afterward Moses and Aaron went and said to Pharaoh, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘Let my people go, that they may hold a feast to me in the wilderness.’ ” 2 But Pharaoh said, “Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go? I do not know the Lord, and moreover, I will not let Israel go.” Exodus 5:1-2
Pharaoh’s heart was hardened. God begins all this making it clear to Moses that He (God) will harden Pharaoh’s heart–and this is a repeated phrase throughout the plagues–but scripture also says that Pharaoh himself hardened his heart, Exodus 8:15. Nevertheless, Pharaoh by his own words, makes the proud statement, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice.” As a result the final plague on Egypt is what we now know as the passover. A lamb was to be chosen, introduced into the household like a pet and then on the evening of the 14th day, that lamb was to be killed. Blood was to be taken and spread on the door frame of each household, and at midnight when the Angel of death passed by, the blood would be a sign and the Angel would pass over that house. The blood was a sign.
Pharaoh lost his firstborn that night, and the following day, the Israelites were freed. So it begins with a lamb, and a nation was freed from slavery. But that isn’t the end of the story, you see this coming weekend–Easter–is the rest of the story. For Christians, those who put their faith in Jesus Christ, Easter takes the story of the first passover, the first lamb that was slain to redeem a people from slavery and traces its purpose throughout the history of the Old Testament all the way up to the cross two thousand years ago. The lamb throughout the Old Testament is an earthly picture of what Jesus would become for us. It is documented throughout the Bible. Isaiah 53:7 prophesied about “the lamb that is led to the slaughter.” In John 1:29 John the Baptist, the forerunner for Christ said, “Behold the Lamb of God which takes away the sin of the world.” Acts 8:32 repeats the passage in Isaiah reminding us of the lamb that is silent before its shearer. In 1 Corinthians 5:7 Paul reminds us that “Christ, our Passover Lamb has been sacrificed.” And the Book of Revelation tells us in 5:12 that in heaven there will be thousands upon thousands and more saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain…”
So Jesus has become all of this for you and for me. And on the cross he took all the guilt and shame of my sin, and your sin, and Colossians tells us that the father laid it on Jesus, and the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands–death (Romans 6:23)–God set aside, and He nailed it to the cross. (Colossians 2:14) the righteous for the unrighteous. And in doing so, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ bought the final redemption of the entire world. A world born into the slavery of sin, with no hope of freedom or inheritance.
And yet, with all the excitement of being able to think hard about and remember what Jesus did for me this Easter season, my mind is stuck on Pharaoh. Why? Well that is the whole reason for writing. I kept going back to those words of Pharaoh, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey his voice and let Israel go?” And I realize, that after all these thousands of years, God is still calling out to his creation, longing for and desiring a people that will “let go.” For me it was the desire to find perfection in a service that has nothing to do with me, but everything to do with Christ Jesus. And for weeks, I have held on strongly to that prideful desire. So, I broke off the studies, long enough to write to you, and compel you this Easter season, to stop and listen to the voice of God. He is still the same, and he is still calling out to us to let go. Will you harden you heart, and refuse to give in to the Lord of lords, and King of kings, or will you allow Christ to break open your heart and have Lordship over you. The choice is always yours. But as in the beginning, death is on the line. Is eternity worth it, when the price has already been paid for you in full.
Let Go,
Study to know Him,
Posted in Devotions | No Comments »


