Morris Passover to Pentecost Study Guide

50 Days that Changed the World
1. Auflage 2023
ISBN: 978-1-951227-85-2
Verlag: Gateway Publishing
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 160 Seiten

THE RESURRECTION WAS JUST THE BEGINNING. Jesus died on the cross and rose again three days later, but what happened next? Many people don't think about the events that transpired between Jesus' death on Passover and the Holy Spirit's arrival on Pentecost. But those 50 days were filled with miracles and revelation for believers across the ages! Join Pastor Robert in this series as he walks through the Scriptures and explains the significance of Passover, Pentecost, and the days in between. You will learn: - The benefits of the Resurrection - The keys to strengthening your faith - The perfect timing of God's promises - The life-giving gift of the Holy Spirit - And more! This study guide is a companion to the DVD/digital download and is designed for individual and group study. Jesus' story doesn't end with the Resurrection. Discover the 50 days that changed the world!

Autoren/Hrsg.

Morris, Robert

Leseproben

SESSION 1

Passover

Passover reminds us of when the angel of death passed over the homes marked with the blood of the lamb. The Feast of Passover included unleavened bread and firstfruits, and Jesus fulfilled both at Passover. Jesus is the unleavened bread and firstfruits offering.

Engage

What holidays have special or spiritual significance for you?

Watch

Watch “Passover.” Think about how the early church celebrated Passover. Consider what Passover means for believers today.

If you’re unable to watch this message, skip to the Read section.

Notes

Read

In Passover to Pentecost: 50 Days that Changed the World, I share about the 50 days between Passover (when Jesus died on the cross) and Pentecost (when the Holy Spirit was given to the early believers). After Jesus rose from death, He spent 40 days on the earth. Then He ascended into heaven, and the disciples spent 10 days fasting and seeking God until Pentecost. The first four messages in this series address the 40 days, and the final two messages address the 10 days leading up to Pentecost.

When we think of “Passover,” we often think of a single day on the Jewish calendar—the 14th or 15th day of Nisan, which is pronounced ‘Nye-San.’ Similar to a birthday or Christmas, though, Passover is more than the celebration of a certain calendar day. It’s a celebration of what the day represents. Passover was implemented almost 3,500 years ago and was fulfilled by Jesus almost 2,000 years ago. (I will explain more about this in my first point.)

There were three major feasts in Israel: Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. You may have heard that there are seven feasts, which is true. Three feasts are included in Passover (Passover, Unleavened Bread, and Firstfruits). Then there is the Feast of Pentecost. Finally, three feasts are in included in Tabernacles (Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and Tabernacles).

The three feasts of Passover happened the weekend of Passover 2,000 years ago, and Jesus fulfilled all three. Fifty days later on Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came and fulfilled Pentecost. Tabernacles will be fulfilled someday. Trumpets represents the Second Coming, the Day of Atonement represents the Judgment Seat, and Tabernacles represents when God “tabernacles” (lives) with us for all eternity in heaven.

Even though you were not alive when Jesus was on this earth and fulfilled Passover, you can partake in the fulfillment of Passover, Unleavened Bread, and Firstfruits by receiving Jesus as your Savior. Even though you weren’t alive at the time of Acts 2 when the Holy Spirit came, you can partake in the fulfillment of Pentecost by allowing the Holy Spirit to take control of your life. Even though you may not be alive when Jesus returns, if you believe in Him, you will partake in the Feasts of Trumpets, Atonement, and Tabernacles.

By the way, I don’t often preach about the end times, because there are many different views. I do know two things for sure, though. First, Jesus will return. Second, no one knows when (see Matthew 24:36). I once heard Pastor Jack Hayford jokingly say, “I’ve thought many times, I wonder if some people have figured it out, and the Lord had to move it.” We know Jesus will return, but we are not meant to live focused only on that. Many people get so caught up on this topic, like the disciples did, but Jesus said, “It’s not for you to know” (see Acts 1:7). Instead, we should be concerned about winning people to Jesus.

Three times each year, God brought Israel together for planting, firstfruits, and harvest. So what does the word Passover mean? Passover comes from two words put together: “pass” and “over.” We see this combination in Exodus 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 not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike you (bold added).

Do you realize what good news this is? The Lord will not allow the destroyer to come into your house! That’s what we’re celebrating when we celebrate Passover—the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Exodus 12:23 refers to the 10th and final plague God brought against Egypt. Every plague was a judgment on the 10 major gods and goddesses of Egypt. This is explained in Numbers 33:4: “On their gods the Lord had executed judgments.” In every plague, it was as if God was saying, “No, you aren’t the god of water. I’m the God of water, and I can turn water into blood. No, you aren’t the god of animals or light and darkness. I control those things! And no, you aren’t the god of life. I control life.”

Now the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt (Exodus 12:13, bold added).

Notice that God said the blood would be a sign to “you”—the people. I would have thought that the blood was a sign for God to pass over their houses. However, God doesn’t need an outward sign, because He knows the heart. It took faith to kill the lamb and put its blood on the doorposts. It took faith to do a lot of things God told Israel to do. Again, God knows what’s in your heart. The blood of Jesus is a sign to us that the destroyer cannot come into our houses! The plague cannot come into our homes!

When the word Passover is used in Scripture, it is referring to one of three subjects: the Festival, the Meal, or the Lamb.

THE FESTIVAL

So this day shall be to you a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting ordinance (Exodus 12:14).

Feast is the root word of festival. Passover is the Jewish festival that begins at sundown on the fifteenth day of Nisan. It lasts for seven days in Israel (or eight days outside Israel). The Passover celebration begins on the first evening (or first two evenings outside Israel) with the meal known as the seder. The Exodus story is read during the meal, and special foods represent elements of the story. No work is permitted on the first and last days of the Passover Festival.

In Matthew 26:2, Jesus says, “You know that after two days is the Passover, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.” Here, Jesus is referring to the festival. God wanted His people to come together to celebrate and feast. There is a lot of preaching on fasting, and while this is good and important, feasting is also good and important.

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When you come into the land which I give to you, and reap its harvest, then you shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest. He shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted on your behalf; on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it’” (Leviticus 23:9–11).

The Israelites were to bring their firstfruits (Festival of Firstfruits), which the priest would wave on the day after the Sabbath. Jesus was crucified on Passover, laid in the tomb on the Sabbath, and resurrected on the day after the Sabbath.

The New Testament fulfillment of these first three feasts is shown in 1 Corinthians:

Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us (5:7).

But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep (15:20).

On Passover, the father of the house takes three pieces of unleavened bread (think of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). Then he takes the middle piece, breaks it, wraps it in a cloth (like Jesus’ body after He was crucified), and hides it. Early in the morning on the day after the Sabbath, the children go looking for the middle piece of bread. When they find it, they unwrap it and wave it before the Lord as a firstfruits offering. Jesus was sacrificed on Passover, wrapped in a cloth, and brought out at sunrise the day after the Sabbath. He fulfilled every Scripture about Passover! Jesus is our Passover, our Unleavened Bread, and our Firstfruits.

THE MEAL

And thus you shall eat it: with a belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. So you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover (Exodus 12:11).

Then He said to them, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer” (Luke 22:15).

These Scriptures refer to eating the meal, not the day. As I mentioned before, the Passover meal (seder) involves unique foods that represent elements of the Exodus story. Bitter herbs (usually horseradish) represent the bitterness of slavery. Unleavened bread (matzo) is also eaten because the people didn’t have time to prepare regular bread as they fled. During the Last Supper, Jesus speaks about His body and blood:

And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all...