“For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both man and beast: and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt. And this day shall be to you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations: ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever. Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whoever eateth leavened bread, from the first day till the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.” (Exodus 12:12-15, Webster)
The blood on the doorposts in Egypt spoke of faith and trust in the promise of God. It wasn’t the worthiness of the people inside that saved them, but their belief in the blood of the lamb. That blood was only a symbol, a shadow of the One who was to come, the true Lamb of God who would redeem mankind through the shedding of His own life’s blood.
When the Lord said, “When I see the blood, I will pass over you,” He declared that it is not our good works, our efforts, or our personal merit that bring salvation, but faith in the sacrifice already made. Christ took the fatal blow for all humanity, and because He bore our judgment, those who rest under His covering are wholly saved.
There is no such thing as partial justification; those under the blood are completely secure. God does not look at us, our deeds, or our failures; He looks at the blood of His Son that marks our redemption.
The Passover lamb pointed to Christ, and His sacrifice fulfilled every symbol, type, and ceremony of the old covenant. Now, through the Lord’s Supper, we remember not a ritual, but a relationship,our continual communion with the Savior who finished the work once and for all on the Cross.
To return to old festivals or ceremonies as a means of attaining favor with God would be to deny the completeness of His grace, as though Christ’s atonement were not enough. But it is enough,it will always be enough. In Him we live no longer under law, but under grace. Just as the Israelites removed leaven from their homes, symbolizing the perfection and sinlessness of the Lamb, we too are called to live lives purified through His Spirit.
Celebrating feasts, feast days, calendar dates or days, ceremonies, or placing shrines in churches etc, it’s a slap in the face of the Holy Spirit, it’s saying to Christ that His blood wasn’t enough.
Christ was perfect not sometimes, but always, and through the Cross, He gives us the freedom to live above the dominion of sin.
The Holy Spirit works in the heart of every believer who places their faith in the finished work of Christ, transforming, sanctifying, and sustaining. Everything we are, and everything we need, is found in the blood of the Lamb.
When God sees that blood applied to the doorposts of our hearts, His judgment passes over us, and His mercy covers us eternally.