Passover (Pastor Jeremiah Shipley)

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Now I want you to pay attention. It wasn't anything in Israel. It wasn't their military size.
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It wasn't the type of people. Good morning everybody.
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If y 'all could please turn your Bibles to Exodus chapter 12. We good?
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Alright sweet. Alright good morning.
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Are we doing alright today? Excellent. I love when we do this. If you don't know the passage you need to go read it.
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Jesus is preaching. And all of the children and the infants were running up to Christ.
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And the mothers were bringing their children up to Christ. And the disciples in this most revered and holy moment told the kids to go away.
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And tried to shoo them away. And in a very very beautiful way Christ says stop.
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Let the children come. For if you do not have faith like that of a child you will not be into the kingdom of God.
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So it is beautiful to me to have the kids in here. And I do love it. Exodus chapter 12 will be our passage today.
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Starting in verse 5. This is the context of the
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Passover. Let us read it and then I'll give you the background. Your lambs shall be without blemish.
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A male of a year old. You can take it from the sheets or from the goats.
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And you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month. When the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight.
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Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two door posts and the lentil.
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And the houses in which they eat it. They shall eat the flesh that night. Roasted on the fire.
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With unleavened bread. And bitter herbs they shall eat. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water.
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But roasted its head with its legs and its inner parts. And you shall let none of it remain until the morning.
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Anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. In this manner you will eat it.
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With your belt fastened. Your sandals on your feet. And your staff in hand. And you shall eat it in haste.
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It is the Lord's Passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night.
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And I will strike all the first born in the land of Egypt. Both man and beast.
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And on all the gods of Egypt. I will execute judgment. I am
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Yahweh. The blood shall be a sign for you. On the houses where you are.
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And when I see the blood. I will pass over you. And no plague will befall you.
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To destroy you. When I strike the land of Egypt. Let us pray. Father the beloved comes to you this morning.
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In honor and respect of your name. God let us.
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Focus on you. Let us learn from your word today. And let us remember what you paid.
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And the blood that you gave. In your name I pray. Amen. Alright.
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So what's the context here? The context is the plagues of Egypt. If any of you have ever seen
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VeggieTales. Or the Prince of Egypt. You should have some kind of context. Of what we're talking about here.
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Israel. Was not a real nation yet. It was a people. In slavery.
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In captivity. And God got a guy named Moses. Who was a nobody.
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Nomad out in the land. And said you're going to go up to Pharaoh. And tell them free my people.
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Let us leave. And that's all a really cool story as well. But that's a different sermon. So Moses goes and he tells
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Pharaoh. Hey. God said it's time to let these Israelites go. All these Jews and Hebrews out here.
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You've got to let them go. He said no. And then he said yes. Then he said no.
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Every time he said no. God would lay a plague upon Egypt.
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He would turn the Nile into blood. He would send darkness. And locusts.
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And gnats. And frogs. And he would send all these plagues upon Egypt. And the last one.
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The final one. The tenth one. Was the killing of the firstborn.
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Now when we say firstborn. In most cases. We're not talking about babies here. We're talking about the firstborn son.
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Of both. Every person. And every animal. Now. This is something called.
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A prophecy. Not in the same way. That we would normally see.
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When we see in Isaiah. When Cyrus is prophesied. In 400 years.
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King Cyrus will come and be king. And free the people. We're not talking about a direct prophecy.
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This is something called a type. In English class you learned it's called foreshadowing. A foreshadow.
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A shadow to come. There is an image here. The fancy term is called typology.
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That there are types within Scripture. To show us something. That's to come.
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That's not exactly clear. Passover. What we're about to read.
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What you just read. Is a actual. Historical event. That actually took place.
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But also had. A metaphorical. Future meaning. For the coming of Christ Jesus.
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Now. The casual reader. Of the Bible. Completely misses this. If you are a casual reader.
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Of the Bible. You read it to check the box. That you're a good little Christian.
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You completely miss this. And if you don't. Actually take seriously.
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The studying of the word of God. Like okay. What did we do?
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We ate with our staff in hand. No idea what that means. Why are we putting blood on the door post?
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You miss all of the imagery. And all of the importance here. So we're going to talk about three things today.
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We're going to talk about one. The Passover itself. We're talking about two. Some. Some of the ways that Christ.
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Fulfilled the Passover. And then we're going to talk about the Lord's Supper. And how we remember the
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Passover. Of Christ himself. So. Number one.
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We got to understand the context. Like I said. It was Egypt. It was the Israel coming out of the land of Egypt.
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Pharaoh had just doubled their work. Pharaoh had said. Your labor will be increased.
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Twice fold. We will raise the quota. That you have to produce. And refuse you the supplies.
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Mike. If you had to go get all of your own supplies. And get three times the amount of work done. That's not an easy job.
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Is it? You're supposed to have all your stuff right there. You have what you need right there at hand. You get it done.
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You go. Pharaoh said I will provide you no supplies. And you have to double the amount of work.
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You have to double your production. This labored. Upon the people.
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And the pain. And the suffering of the people of Israel. Is important here.
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They were supposed to take a lamb. The way that God had said this.
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Is you're going to take a lamb. A perfect lamb. One year old. You kill it.
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You sprinkle the blood on the door post. And the lentils. And then you eat it. And God sent the destroying angel.
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Over the land of Egypt. And if he saw the blood on the post. He would pass over.
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And not kill that son. This was a judgment.
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Of the wrath of God. On Egypt. Now one part. That's very important here.
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Is it was not on Egypt alone. It was on everybody. Just like the wrath of God.
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Today is on you. It is on everybody. And this day the wrath of God.
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Was falling on everybody. If you did not have. The blood. You were to be dead.
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And judged. The correlation here is obvious. If there is not the blood.
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Of Jesus Christ. Marking your forehead. Then the judgment.
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Still lies on you. The judgment lies. The judgment remains.
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If there is not. The blood of the lamb. On your door post. This is something.
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That we are to remember. This was a feast. This was a feast.
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Celebrated by the Jewish people. Every single year. Similar to the feast.
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We have. That we are supposed to remember. It's the exact same.
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The Jewish people. Were saved by the lamb of God. And they were to remember it.
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Every single year. We are saved by the lamb of God. And we are to remember this.
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Every time we do it. The idea of this.
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Is not a new testament idea. If you don't understand the old testament.
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You do not understand the new testament. This wrath of God. Is the same as that of the cross.
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The cross is the ultimate example. Of where the wrath of God.
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And the justice of God. Come to meet with the grace of God. And the mercy of God.
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God is a just God. He cannot just look over sin.
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I've said this to you all before. If a judge. Is looking over the case of a murderer.
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And decides that. He had a nice hair day today. I'll let you go free. That is what we call a bad judge.
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Nobody would look in here. And say justice was served. God is not an unjust judge.
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So he cannot just pass over. Your sin. That doesn't exist with God.
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So the cross is the time. When his justice. Is served.
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And his mercy. Is delivered. If somebody is just let go.
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Justice was not served. Mercy was given. But justice was not served.
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And if justice is hammered down. We say amen that's good.
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But there was still no mercy. The judge that puts the life sentence on.
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Was a just judge. But he was not a merciful one. The cross. Is that ultimate example.
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Of where the two come together. And this is so important.
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For us to understand. Because the question of. What are you saved from. What are you saved from.
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The answer is not your sin. And it is not hell. We are saved from God. Lena you're okay baby.
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Thank you Lucy. Sorry May Dee Dee.
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You know. So often. We ask the question. What are we saved from.
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But we don't want to say God. Because that's mean. A loving
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God wouldn't do that. But we're missing the whole point. The problem is.
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That we don't understand. How sinful sin is. We think that sin.
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Is a little white lie. We don't see. Sin. As the disgusting.
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Abhorrent nature. That it is. You know what the ultimate sin is y 'all.
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The ultimate sin. Is not sexual sin. It's not cursing.
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The ultimate sin is rejecting. The sacrifice of Christ. How to great a sacrifice was made.
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How great a price was given. And for us to casually.
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And in our arrogance. Flippantly. Push that to the side.
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What greater sin is there. Than that. So when you say.
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Well I've never murdered somebody. I'm not a pedophile. I'm not these things. Okay.
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But understand the greatest sin. Is not those. It is the rejecting.
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The sacrifice of Christ. Christ fulfilled.
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The Passover. Christ fulfilled the Passover. The blood was supposed to be put.
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On the door post. And on the lentil. And in John 10 Christ says. I am the door.
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Anyone who comes to me. Will be saved. Christ is the door.
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Of salvation. You have to walk through him. He says I am the way.
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I am the truth. I am the life. If you do not go through Christ. You don't have salvation. You have to understand the
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Old Testament. In order to understand the New Testament guys. The two. There were seven feasts.
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In the Old Testament. Seven feasts. The two biggest ones were Passover.
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And the Day of Atonement. Called Yom Kippur. Now Pastor Jeff has talked about Yom Kippur many times.
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He doesn't use the name. But Yom Kippur was the one where. They would take two goats. And they would kill one.
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Representing the slaying of the sacrifice. And they would take the blood of that. Put it on the forehead of the other goat.
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And send it out into utter darkness. Send it out of the city. Out of the presence of the people of God. Out of the presence of God.
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Never to be seen again. And that would so represent. Atonement. And expiation.
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Now. For thousands of years. They had the Day of Atonement. For thousands of years.
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They would honor and focus on the Day of Atonement. On Yom Kippur. Thousands of years.
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Again and again and again. Year after year after year after year after year. But in all of Jewish history.
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You know how many days of Atonement there were? One. There was only ever.
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One actual Day of Atonement. Because those blood. Of bulls and goats.
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Never actually did anything. It was a type. A shadow.
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Of the single Day of Atonement. Of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ dying.
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Was the only atoning. Of sins that ever happened. It was the only time.
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Any sin. Was ever actually. Paid for. See we say the foreshadowing.
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What's casting the shadow? The thing casting the shadow. Is Christ. When we say the foreshadowing.
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That something. Christ is the thing to come. He is the image.
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That the light of God. Is casting the shadow forward. There's only ever actually.
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One Day of Atonement. All the others. Were nothing but a type.
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It was nothing but a shadow. To come. For since the law of God.
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Was but a shadow of the good things. To come. Instead of the true form of these realities. It can never by the same sacrifice.
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That are continually offered. Every single year. For those who draw near. This is Hebrews 10.
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But in these sacrifices. There is a reminder of sins. Every year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats.
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To take away sins. Let me remind you of something. We are to remember this. But we are never to repeat it.
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The death of Christ is never repeated. This is where the Catholics get it so wrong.
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That in the Eucharist. The Catholic form. They believe that the blood.
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That the juice. Or the wine and the bread. Actually turn into the blood and flesh of Christ.
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And so every time they do that. They believe that Christ is actually being. Re -crucified again.
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And dying again for your sins. That is so incorrect.
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Christ died once for all. He is never put back on the cross.
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But. It's never repeated. But it is remembered. That is what we are here to do today.
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Now let me take just a second. On the importance of remembering. We do not remember.
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Just for the sake of our educational purposes. And to know what happened.
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We remember. Where we came from. How many of us have come from dark places?
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Addicts. People who have been in abusive situations. People who have come from such high levels.
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Of arrogance and pride. And stubbornness. And the Lord has had to humble you. That one might be worse than any of them.
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How far have you come? We need to have the attitude.
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I heard someone say this one time. It was so beautiful. I will never forget my sin. I will never forget.
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How far I have come. The depths and the darkness of your depression. Of your addiction.
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Of your despair. Of your loss. Of your loneliness. Of your heartbreak.
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Hold on to those memories. Some people say let them go.
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Forget about it. I say no. Hold on to it. Because if you forget how far you have come.
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That's when you start taking what Christ did. For granted. You will start taking this for granted.
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You will start having a. Nonchalant attitude.
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It's not a big deal to go to church. It's not a big deal to read the word. It's not a big deal. As long as I live a decent life.
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I'm fine. You hear the laziness. In those words.
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You have forgotten. My friend. How far you came. And you have forgotten.
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How far you can fall again. Paul the great apostle said.
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Take heed of yourself. Lest you fall. He was talking to Christians. He was talking to the church.
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And so I say to you. My friends. This morning. Check yourself.
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Because you are not an exception. To the rule. You can fall again.
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And let me tell you. Listen. As a Christian. If you fall.
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You will go deeper and darker. Than you ever were before. That pit.
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Will be so much more lonely. It will be so much more lonely.
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For the believer. Than the non -believer. Take heed this morning.
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Check your arrogance. Check your pride. Refuse to fall.
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Reach into. Accountability. And pull it in. Doesn't matter that they make you mad.
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Hold on to that. Because it keeps you in check. Don't be.
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In a sound vacuum. In a way. You just hear what you want to hear. If you aren't told.
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If no one around you disagrees with you. You have a problem. If there's no one around you.
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Telling you where you're wrong. Because you're wrong often. There's a problem. In the
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Passover. We see substitutionary atonement. The whole thing of Jesus Christ.
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That a son was to be killed. But the lamb took it's place. My friends. You are the son.
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And the child to be killed. Is Christ going to take your place or not? It is key.
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In the story. Of the Passover. Jesus Christ. Partook of the
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Passover. Three. Four times with his disciples. Three.
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Four times with his disciples. It happened every year. They celebrated it every year. And the day.
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The week he was killed. Was Passover week. If you don't know that. That is vitally important.
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It is not a coincidence. That the day they were to kill the lamb.
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Was the day that Christ was killed. Next Sunday is Palm Sunday. And as Jesus Christ.
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Is coming to Jerusalem. And they sing Hosanna Hosanna. Hosanna in the highest. They think they were choosing their king.
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They were not. They were choosing their lamb. They thought they were choosing. The one to be on the throne.
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They were choosing the one to be slain. The day that he came into Jerusalem.
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Was the day in Jewish history. That they were to choose the lamb. It is the same day.
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On the calendar. The month of Nisan. The month of Nisan. It was the same day.
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And then the following four days. Within the Jewish tradition of Passover.
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They were to examine the lamb. And see if it had any blemish. What did
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Jesus Christ go through. That same week. The following days. He went from court to court to court.
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And what did they say. We find no fault in him. He was examined.
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Again and again. And they said we find no fault. We find no blemish. There is nothing wrong with him.
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He fulfilled the Passover lamb. He was the right age.
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Selected on the right day. He was examined just like the lamb was. And they said we find no fault.
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Four thousand years ago. This was established. Jesus fulfilled it.
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Perfectly. For Christ.
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Our Passover lamb. Corinthians chapter 5. Christ. Our Passover lamb.
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Has been sacrificed. Let us therefore celebrate the festival.
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Not with old leaven. The leaven of malice and evil. But with the unleavened bread. Of sincerity and truth.
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That is what we are doing today. We are fulfilling.
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What 1 Corinthians tells us. To now celebrate. The final
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Passover lamb. Of Jesus Christ. To celebrate the lamb of God.
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Who was slain. When you see this. When you understand.
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What happened here. Of Yom Kippur. And Passover. And then you see John the
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Baptist. Look over and says. Behold. The lamb of God. That takes away the sins of the world.
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John the Baptist knew what he was saying. He was saying. This is not a lamb.
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That will be on a throne. But he will be killed. Jesus.
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Looks at his disciples and says. I have earnestly desired.
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To eat this Passover. With you. He tells his disciples. Go find the room.
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Go prepare the Passover supper. Get everything ready. Because I.
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Have earnestly desired. To have this with you. He knew.
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The disciples still didn't get it. He knew this was going to be their last time. The last hurrah.
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They have had this holiday. If you will. For years together.
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It's been something they have looked forward to. Every year like Christmas. And imagine for a second if you will.
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That your loved one. Your spouse. Your child. Your whoever. Had a terminal illness. And you knew it was going to be your last
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Christmas with them. That's what Jesus is feeling here. This is the last Christmas together.
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Before you pass. We know that. They are not going to make it any longer.
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That level of emotional. Kind of seriousness. Is what Christ is feeling here.
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And in Jewish tradition. It was the responsibility. Of the head of the household. To recount.
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The story of the Passover. So everyone would sit down. And for dinner. The father.
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The figure. The head. Would say well you know. The Pharaoh was doing this.
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And lamb. And they were brought out of Egypt. That would do that. Jesus had done that for three years. But this time he didn't do that.
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Being the only one with the authority to. He changed the Passover festival. He said.
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This bread. This bread is my body. And it's broken.
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For you. This cup. Is the cup of my blood.
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Drink it. In remembrance of me. He fulfilled
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Passover. And changed it. In a sense. We are doing the
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Passover festival. Today. Which by the way. Passover was at the end of March.
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Beginning of April. So this is even the same exact month.
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That they were celebrating this. Which is why we celebrate. The resurrection day of Easter. At the end of March.
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Beginning of April. It's the same days. Christ.
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Fulfilled it. And even at that time period. There was an understanding.
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That you have to do something. You are not. An inactive participant.
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You are an active participant. Today. Why did it say in Exodus. That you had to eat the food.
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Because you couldn't just kill the lamb. You had to partake of it. It's not enough for Jesus to die for you.
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You have to partake of Christ. You have to have Christ within you. If Christ is not within you.
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You are not a Christian. Why did it say. That you are to eat.
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With your staff in hand. And clothes on and ready to go. Because at any moment.
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They were to be called out of the land of Egypt. And at any moment. You can be called home. You are to be ready.
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For the coming of Christ. At any day. They had to be ready. Any day. Any hour.
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To leave Egypt. You have to be ready. Any day. Any hour. To leave this world. So the question for you again today.
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Is are you ready. To meet your maker. You have to be ready.
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Staff in hand. Ready to roll. The same idea is throughout all of the scriptures.
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All of the scriptures. Of the watchman on the wall. Is he falling asleep during the night shift.
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Or does he stay awake. And stand his guard. Ready to fight the fight. That is what we are called to do.
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As Christians. I cannot tell you when Christ will come back. But I can tell you.
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You better be ready. You better be ready. For when Christ calls you.
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We are to be 24 7. Ready. For Christ.
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It says in Numbers chapter 9. If anyone who is clean. Is not on a journey. Fails to keep the
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Passover. That person shall be cut off from his people. Because he did not bring the
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Lord's offering. At it's appointed time. That man shall bear. His own sin.
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Even. 4000 years ago. In Numbers 9. The idea that your devotion to Christ.
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Was vital. If you did not keep Passover. Your sin was on you. I tell you today.
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If you do not accept Christ. If you are not his son.
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If he is not your Lord. Your sin.
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Is on you. You will bear the weight of your sin. You will bear the guilt.