Welcome back friends!  We have spent several days examining one of the great Jewish feasts, Pesach (Passover).  Jesus is the fulfillment of Passover, and as Christians, we certainly recognize Him as our Passover Lamb…the Lamb of God, sacrificed for our sins.

However, we have not touched on the two other feasts that accompany Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread and the Feast of Firstfruits.  Today, we’ll take a brief look at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and will follow up with the Feast of Firstfruits tomorrow.

In Exodus 12:15-20, God commanded the Israelites (still in the wilderness) to eat no unleavened bread for 7 days, beginning on the day of Passover.  That “holy week” pictures the deliverance from worldly things (leaving Egypt), and redemption of the Lord (rescuing the Jewish people from Egyptian bondage).  For Jews, the most important event in history was their deliverance from Egypt.

Though Passover is an 8-day commemoration, the Feast of Unleavened Bread runs concurrently with the first 7 days.

Unleavened bread, or matzah, is known as “the bread of affliction.” (Deuteronomy 16:3)  “Affliction,” not because it is unleavened, but it is unleavened because it was born out of affliction.  While captives in Egypt, the Israelites had to leave so promptly that the bread did not have time to rise.  Thus, it is a remembrance not of bondage, but of deliverance.  Also, leaven is often symbolic of sin, so matzah also represents purity.

From a Christian perspective, we again see Jesus incredibly fulfilling this important Jewish feast.  1 Corinthians 5:6-7 gives us a glimpse into Jesus’ fulfillment of the Feast of Unleavened Bread:

Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.

Christ the Passover Lamb has been sacrificed.  Sin has been atoned.  However, let’s look carefully at the significance of matzah.  It is pure.  It contains no leaven.  Jesus is pure and contains no sin.  But the sinless one, the spotless Lamb of God, became sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God! (2 Corinthians 5:21)  (This a good place to say “Hallelujah!”)

Now take a close-up look at matzah.  What do you see?  I see a clear representation of our Lord Jesus Christ as described in Isaiah 53:5!  Not only was He sinless (unleavened), but He was:

• pierced and wounded for our transgressions
• bruised and crushed for our sins
• whipped (striped) that we may be healed

Friends, do you see those things pictured in matzah?  Jesus fulfills the Feast of Unleavened Bread!

I am blessed.  At my home church matzah is used in our communion services.  Each time we partake together, we see a very clear representation of what our Lord Jesus did for us…and the very reason that we celebrate communion.

During the season of Passover, we rejoice because the Lamb of God was sacrificed for our sin.  He was pierced, bruised and striped so that we may be freed from transgression and sin.  What a glorious Savior!  Amen?

Check back tomorrow when we’ll finish our series on the Passover and its last accompanying feast: The Feast of Firstfruits.

Happy Lord’s Day!