Passover Lamb

I don't know how many times I have read the story of Jesus' crucifixion and the last supper just before Jesus and the disciples left for the garden of Gethsemane to pray. While in that garden the Jews came to arrest Jesus and so began the road to His death and my life.

Whenever I think about this event, I always think of Easter. But this time I thought about the Passover. Jesus's death could have taken place any time of the year. But God chose to have these events unfold during Passover.

Passover was initiated by God as He was using Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. God told them from now on, this month will "be the first month of the year for you." They were to take a lamb "without blemish, a male a year old" to be sacrificed. After killing the lamb they were to "take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses." God was about to pass through the land of Egypt to strike all the firstborn in the land. But He told His people, "when I see the blood, I will pass over you , and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt."  (Exodus 12:1-20)

John the Baptist called Jesus the Lamb of God. And not just any lamb - but the Lamb "who takes away the sin of the world." (John 1:29) So during the Passover, during this time of celebrating God's goodness, His rescue from death, His salvation from the tyranny of the Egyptians, God sent HIS Lamb. His perfect, sinless Son to be MY Passover lamb.

When God sees the blood of HIS lamb surrounding me, He passes over my sin, my guilt, my shame to rescue me from certain death. How could He love me so much? I don't know. But I do know that I am grateful and humbled and an in awe of my God who would provide for me the Lamb needed to save me.