Passover and the Holy Eucharist

The night before he was betrayed, Jesus celebrated the Passover with his disciples. At this Passover meal he interpreted the bread and wine of the meal as his body and blood, thereby revealing that he was the Passover lamb sent to deliver his disciples from the power of sin and death. In order to understand this more fully, we will be studying Exodus 11:1-12:30. Before we begin, let us ask God to reveal himself through this study.

O Living God, we give you great thanks that your Son Jesus Christ gave himself up as the Passover Lamb for the sins of the whole world. Empower us, we pray, to mourn our sins that caused his cross, and to receive with joy the deliverance of his passion and mighty resurrection. In his name, we pray. Amen.

First, read Exodus 11:1-12:30 several times, asking the Lord to open your hearts as you read. Also, notice where this text occurs within the Biblical Timeline. The text describes the last of the ten plagues by which God sets his people free from their enslavement in Egypt. After this final plague, the people of God leave Egypt and come to Mount Sinai where God makes a covenant with them.

Before each of the previous nine plagues, Moses asks Pharaoh to let the people of Israel go, but Pharaoh refuses. As a result of this refusal, God judges Pharaoh and the Egyptians for their resistance by afflicting them with a plague. None of the previous nine plagues affect the Israelites. The tenth plague, the death of the first born, is so severe that Pharaoh lets the people go. All of these plagues are judgments against sin, the sin of opposing God's stated purposes. However, in light of the entire biblical revelation to this point, the Egyptians are not the only ones who oppose God's will. Rather, all persons and nations sin against God. One can recall, for example, the sin of Adam and Eve, of Cain, Lamech, Noah's generation, the builders of the Tower of Babel, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and their descendants. Sin infects everyone, and the people of Israel were no exception. They, like the Egyptians, were subject to the divine judgment, and in order to spare them, God authorized a lamb to be slain in their place. From the beginning (Genesis 2:17), the penalty for disobedience was death, and therefore, an atonement for sin must be a death as well. As a result, God accepted the death of the lamb as a substitute for the death of Israel's first born. The judgment that should have fallen upon Israel fell upon the lamb set aside to atone for the sins of the people. In the words of the Lord speaking to Moses, "And 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" (12:1).

Not only does the blood of the lamb avert the judgment of God, but the blood also protects the people from what the text calls "the destroyer." As it says in 12:23, "For the LORD will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you." The "destroyer" is not identified, but it is apparently an avenging angel or demon that destroys and lays waste. The blood of the lamb protects against this danger.

Furthermore, according to 12:12, the death of the firstborn is not only the judgment of God against Egypt, it is also a judgment against the gods of Egypt. "For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the LORD." That is, the people of God were not only enslaved by the Egyptians, but behind Egypt's power, were the gods of Egypt who, according to ancient beliefs, gave the Egyptians their authority and power.

Finally, the Passover was the decisive moment in an historical series of events, the liberation from Egypt, the making of the covenant at Mount Sinai, and finally, the entrance into the land, its conquest, and the establishment of a new life in the land under covenant. These events form one historical narrative, and the Passover was the decisive liberating event within that historical series. Therefore, when Moses spoke God's words to the people, instructing them on the meaning of Passover, Passover was connected to the events that lay ahead, culminating in the gift of the land. "You shall observe this rite as a statute for you and for your sons forever. And when you come to the land that the LORD will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this service" (12:24-5). The Passover was the decisive feast, for without the deliverance from Egypt, there would have been no gift of the land.

Therefore, when the Israelites celebrated the Passover, they celebrated at least four things: their liberation from the Egyptians as a crucial moment on the way to God's gift of the land, deliverance from the gods of the Egyptians, escape from the work of the destroyer, and finally, their deliverance from the judgment of God. All these elements belong together, and had they not been protected by the lamb that was slain, God's judgment would have remained upon them. They would not only have lost their firstborn, but also, they would have been subject to the Egyptians, their gods, and the attacks of the destroyer.

The eucharistic feast celebrated each Sunday is a Passover, a Passover in which Jesus is the lamb of God who died in our place. On the night that Jesus celebrated the Passover with his disciples, he took the bread and broke it, an action that identified the bread with his broken body. Similarly, he identified the wine with his blood, shed for them for the remission of sins. In other words, Jesus was the Passover lamb slain to atone for our sins. That is why, in First Corinthians 5:7, Paul will say that "Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed," or John the Baptist, upon seeing Jesus will exclaim, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). Or Peter will say, "... knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot"(1Peter 1:18-19).

What then, are we celebrating as we celebrate the eucharistic feast? Consider these words from the eucharistic liturgy.

All glory be to you, Almighty God, our heavenly Father, for you, of your tender mercy, gave your only Son Jesus Christ to suffer death upon the cross for our redemption; who made there, by his one oblation of himself once offered, a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and satisfaction, for the sins of the whole world; and did institute, and in his holy Gospel command us to continue, a perpetual memory of that his precious death and sacrifice, until his coming again.

For similar ideas, consider a portion of Article 31 of the Articles of Religion.

The offering of Christ made once is the perfect redemption, propitiation and satisfaction for all the sins of the whole world, both original and actual. There is no other satisfaction for sin but this alone.

In order to understand these passages, we need to investigate the meaning of the words "redemption," "oblation," "sacrifice," "satisfaction," and "propitiation." Theologically, these words are anchored in a biblical perspective that recognizes that God is both merciful and just. These two qualities go together and can never be separated. Since God is just, he punishes sin. Since he is merciful, he chose to send his Son to die in our place, satisfying the demands of justice, delivering us from his just wrath against us as sinners. In doing this, he showed his great love for us, a love that includes both his mercy and his justice. Here is how this saving truth is stated in one of the homilies, the sermons that Anglicans read in their churches when Anglicanism took its characteristic form in the 16th century.

This reason is satisfied by the great wisdom of GOD in this mystery of our redemption, who hath so tempered his justice and mercy together, that he would neither by his justice condemn us unto the everlasting captivity of the devil, and his prison of Hell, remediless for ever without mercy, nor by his mercy deliver us clearly, without justice or payment of a just ransom: but with his endless mercy he joined his most upright and equal justice. His great mercy he showed unto us in delivering us from our former captivity, without requiring of any ransom to be paid, or amends to be made upon our parts, which thing by us had been impossible to be done. And where as it lay not in us that to do, he provided a ransom for us, that was, the most precious body and blood of his own most dear and best beloved Son Jesus Christ, who besides this ransom, fulfilled the law for us perfectly. And so the justice of GOD & his mercy did embrace together, and fulfilled the mystery of our redemption.(1)

The root meaning of the words "ransom," or "redemption," is to buy back a life that has been forfeited. For example, it is a ransom to buy back someone who has been sold into slavery. In a more general sense, redemption means actions that set someone free. For example, prior to delivering his people from Egypt, God spoke these words to his people, "I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment" (Exodus 6:6). When Jesus died on the cross, he redeemed sinful humanity. He paid the price for our sins, and it was a just price. Since God is just, the penalty for sin must fit the crime, and the penalty for sin is death. Why is this? Sin says "No" to God, and by saying "No," sinners reject God and go their own way. God respects this decision, and drives us from his presence (Genesis 3:24). Cut off from God, sinful human beings are powerless against the forces of evil and chaos. Death is the result. That is the penalty for sin. This terrible process is described in Genesis 3. Christ, however, offered himself as a sacrifice for our sin by dying in our place.

The offering of Christ was an oblation, where the word "oblation" means an offering of himself for our sake. As he made oblation for us, he satisfied the requirements of God's justice. He made satisfaction for our sins by fulfilling the just requirements of the God's law. Not only did he die for us, he lived a sinless life. A sinful life cannot atone for sin, but would itself require a further sacrifice. Since he was sinless, his sacrifice was perfect and sufficient. For that reason, the liturgy states that he made a "full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and satisfaction, for the sins of the whole world."

The term "propitiation" means to turn away God's wrath. His wrath is his fierce determination to eradicate sin. Sin not only detracts from God's glory and goodness, it also leaves us helpless before the power of death. As such, sin is not something that is external to us. We are sinners, and God's wrath is directed toward us in our sin. This can be seen throughout Scriptures. For example, in Exodus 12:1, the Lord says, "For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; ..." This is a example of God's wrath. Or, in Isaiah 51:22, the prophet refers to the terrible suffering of the Exile as drinking from the cup of God's wrath. In Jeremiah 25:15, the Lord commands the prophet Jeremiah to take the cup of God's wrath and make the nations drink of it. By this he means that Jeremiah is to prophesy destruction against these nations, and in fulfillment of Jeremiah's prophetic words, "They shall drink and stagger and be crazed because of the sword that I [the Lord] am sending among them" (Jeremiah 25:16). On the night of his betrayal, while praying alone in the garden, Jesus asked that this cup be taken from him, and in light of the Old Testament revelation, he was referring to the cup of God's wrath. "And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, 'My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will'" (Matthew 26:39). The final and most terrible manifestation of God's wrath is complete abandonment. At the ninth hour, hanging on the cross, Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?" which means, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Mark 15:34) Bereft of God's presence, Jesus drank to the full the cup of God's wrath. As he did this, he suffered the full extent of God's wrath in our place.

The term "propitiation" has been intensely debated by theologians and biblical scholars and there is a variety of opinions.(2) In part, the debate concerns how one understands the wrath of God. There are those who do not believe propitiation is a Christian concept, others who think it merely means that God allows normal processes to take effect when we sin against God, and others who believe that God's wrath has immediate and direct effects.

Let us make several observations. First, as described in the previous paragraph, the wrath of God is a heavily attested, biblical concept. God can become angry with us and does. His anger is righteous and just, and if received by repentance, leads us back into a relationship with him. Secondly, his wrath is personal, a personal decision on his part that we suffer under his wrath. Further, Scripture clearly teaches that God loves his creatures, and throughout Scripture God's punishment is not directly at his hands, but rather, God releases the powers of evil and chaos to effect his punishment. For example, in Exodus 12:1, the verb form for "strike" is in the hiphil, meaning that God caused the plague to strike down the Egyptians rather than doing it directly himself. Or, consider the penalties for breaking covenant with God enumerated in Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 28. One can see at once that the judgment of God is carried out by such things as disease, plague, famine, and war. The judgments of God described in Revelation 6 are similar, and according to verse 8, the terrible powers of conquest, war, famine, and death "were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the earth" (Revelation 6:8) That is, God released these awful powers, but even so, as they did their terrible work, those who were afflicted were ultimately coming face to face with God for he and he alone has authority to grant authority. For that reason, the passage in Revelation ends with the wails of those affected by these disasters, "... hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?" (Revelation 6:16-17)

As described in the essay, The Creeds and Biblical Interpretation, the full revelation of God is found in Jesus, and this holds true for understanding God's wrath as for anything else. The New Testament clearly proclaims that the decision to kill Jesus was a terrible act carried out by the devil, Judas, the Jewish authorities, the Romans, and the crowds. It was sin. God does not sin, and therefore, God did not kill Jesus. Jesus did not cry out, "My God, my God, why have you killed me," but rather, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me." Yet, the Scriptures do show that God was intimately involved in the death of Christ. While in the Garden of Gethsemane Jesus prayed, "Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done" (Luke 22:42, Mark 4:36, Matthew 26:39). The cup did not pass from him and he drank the cup of God?s wrath to the full. Evil persons and powers inflicted their terrible scourge upon the Lamb of God, and once these powers had done their worse, God's wrath was forever banished from those who hold to faith in his mighty Son, Jesus Christ the Lord. For that reason, the writer of I John will say, "My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world (1 John 2:1-2). Or Paul, even though he begins his proclamation of the gospel with the statement that "the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men," (Romans 1:18), will end with utter joy, "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:35-39).

The weakness of the position that propitiation is not Christian, or that God simply allows the result of our sins to be our punishment, is that it removes God from intimate involvement in the events of life. God does not directly inflict evil, and yet, his wrath is more than simply allowing sin to have effect. On many occasions, God does not allow sin to have its effects. He protects people from their sin. As Jesus said in Luke 13:4, ?Or those eighteen on whom the tower in Siloam fell and killed them: do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others who lived in Jerusalem?" And when God decides to allow evil powers and sin to have their effects, we are face to face with a decision that God has made, suffering his wrath in specific circumstances. Even this, however, can be a blessing if we repent and turn back to him. The words of the Psalmist are true, "For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning" (Psalm 30:5).

Since Christ died in our place, since he redeemed us, ransomed us, offered himself for us, satisfied the just requirements of God and made propitiation for us, we know that God holds absolutely nothing against us, and even more, he is utterly for us, even to the death of his Son. This must be remembered for all of us are tormented at times by guilt, shame, and regret. These are things of the past. They are not yours. You are cut free of them in the mighty name of the Lord Jesus. God is for you, always. The words the Lord spoke to Jesus at his baptism are yours. Listen to them: "This is my beloved Son (or daughter), with whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17). Stand on that.

Therefore, as you celebrate the Holy Eucharist, as you hear the words, "This is my body ..... this is my blood," as you see the priest take the bread and break it, as you sing the Agnus Dei?, "O Lamb of God, that takes away the sins of the world," and as you come forward to receive the broken body and spilt blood, receive these words and deeds as the words and deeds of God in which God makes you his beloved sons and daughters through the atoning sacrifice of his Son. As you eat the bread, remember it was his body broken for you. As you drink the cup, remember that he drank the cup of God's wrath in your place. As you "go forth into the world, rejoicing in the power of the Spirit," remember that you live because he died and rose again. Humbly ask the Lord to make these events living realities for you, not simply that you recall the events, but that you remember them in the full strength of the biblical word of remember as discussed in the essay, In Remembrance of Me.

Secondly, just as the Passover was the decisive moment in the sequence of escape from Egypt, covenant with Sinai, entrance into the promised land, and life there under the covenant, Jesus' atoning death upon the cross is the decisive moment that enables you to leave your Egypt of sin and sorrow and enter into the Kingdom of God. This Kingdom is a new relationship of love in which believers join with other believers before the throne of God, hearing God's voice, seeing his face, and blessed with the active, living presence of Jesus who reveals the Father by the power of the Spirit as described in previous lessons on the Holy Eucharist. This relationship of love with God and others is based upon the forgiving and being forgiving, won for believers upon the cross. This also is celebrated in the Holy Eucharist.

The nature of this Kingdom can also be seen in ministry of Jesus set forth in the four gospels. As the gospels make clear, Jesus forgave sins, associated with sinners, fed the hungry, cast out demons, healed the sick, revealed the words and deeds of God, established a new social and economic order, and empowered his disciples to do the same. All these blessings, although they occurred before Jesus' atoning death on the cross, had their root in his atoning death and resurrection, for it was there that the atoning and forgiving work of God was fully accomplished. Therefore, when speaking of Jesus' atoning death and resurrection, celebrated in the Holy Eucharist, it is important to recognize that this saving action is intimately connected with the whole of Jesus' ministry, with the cross and resurrection as its foundation and consummation. This was discussed in our study, In Remembrance of Me, where we learned that Jesus, in the whole of his person, his life, death, resurrection, and ascension, is present and active in the Holy Eucharist. His saving words and deeds are make real in the eucharistic action, and further, in the ministry of the church in which believers do the deeds of Jesus as described in the gospels.

Thirdly, within Scripture, we find descriptions of nations and kingdoms, but the greatest of these is the Kingdom of God established by Jesus' cross and resurrection. No other kingdom is founded upon a sacrifice that takes away sin. All earthly kingdoms are established by force, whether arbitrary force as in Egypt, or the force of law backed up by police and armies. No earthly kingdom is founded on sacrificial love. The gods of Egypt still rule the nations and infect our hearts. These gods are the lust for power, for wealth, for acclaim and greatness. All persons are subject to varying degrees to these gods and their kingdoms. Some suffer terribly under the tyranny of oppressive rulers, others are seduced by their wealth and power. The Holy Eucharist signals a new Kingdom, a kingdom of sacrificial love, a love that is not found in this world. As Jesus said to Pilate before he was crucified, "My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world" (John 18:36).

As believers celebrate the Holy Eucharist, they enter into this Kingdom of love. They are invited to enter by Christ himself, and qualified to enter into the presence of a Holy God because their sins have been forgiven and they are clothed with Christ's righteousness. They see and hear the One who died that they might live. They know that their leader is not one who rules by force, but calls them from the cross to follow him. What is revealed in the Eucharist must be lived in the community. The body of Christ must not manifest the lust for power and wealth found in the wider society, but rather, establish a new order where love is revealed in mutual service. Believers are to call to offer themselves to others, sacrificing themselves financially, personally, and spiritually in love. This service, among other things, restores Eden to a lost humanity, making real in their lives the bounty, health, blessing, and peace of God's original creation. More will be said on these vital topics in the essays, Eucharist as a Direction of Service, Eucharist as the Restoration of Eden, and Eucharist as Forgiveness and Healing.

Finally, the Holy Eucharist is a celebration of Christ's victory over the destroyer, the devil and all his angels. In John's gospel, the crucifixion and resurrection are explicitly proclaimed as Christ's decisive victory over the evil one. In the words of Jesus, "Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out" (John 12:31). The defeat of the devil is celebrated in the Holy Eucharist because the devil has no place there. The devil is defeated by love and forgiveness. His lies are cast down. The Eucharist is a manifestation of love, forgiveness, and truth. "Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss each other" (Psalm 85:10). What is realized in the Eucharist is then manifested in the ministry of the Church where believers are given authority to cast out evil spirits, to bless homes inhabited by evil powers, and to conquer the devil in all his manifestations.

At a crucial moment in the Holy Eucharist, the priest proclaims, "Alleluia. Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us," and the people respond, "Therefore let us keep the feast. Alleluia." Christ is not sacrificed again, he died once for all, but at that moment, the power of Christ's atoning death is made manifest. God's great new Kingdom is realized upon earth. By faith, we enter into the Kingdom, receiving the forgiveness of our sins, rejoicing in a fellowship of love, delivered from the tyranny of the gods and their kingdoms, treading upon the evil one crushed by the bloody feet of Christ, and entering into that blessed future in which we and unnumbered multitudes give honor, glory, and power forever and ever to our God and to the Lamb.

After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!" And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, "Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen" (Revelation 7:9-12).

We will end this lesson with a prayer of thanksgiving, followed by some discussion questions.

Heavenly Father, we give you great thanks that you have invited us to the marriage feast of the Lamb. Pour out upon us, we pray, a spirit of thanksgiving that we may by word and deed proclaim this great joy throughout the world you love so much. All this we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.

Questions for Discussion

1. In light of the essay, Trinity and Incarnation, in which we learned that God can speak and appear to us, how do you think God would have us encounter him as the congregation sings the Agnus Dei, "O Lamb of God, that takes away the sins of the world, ..." Have you ever experienced God coming to you through this or other eucharistic events? What was that like?
2. As we have just studied, believers experience the Holy Eucharist as the creation of a community of love where God delivers them from his just judgments, loves them utterly, and empowers them to create a new society of love and service which renews Eden and conquers the devil and all his works. As you consider your life and that of your community, what more needs to be done along these lines? Pray about this and ask God to show you what you need to do next.

Endnotes

1. http://www.anglicanlibrary.org/homilies/bk1hom03.htm
2. See, for example, Jeffery, Ovey, and Sach, Pierced for our Transgressions, (Nottingham: Inter-Varsity Press, 2007), pp. 80-85.

The Rev. Robert J. Sanders, Ph.D.