The second mo’edim listed in Leviticus chapter twenty-three, heralds the first of the annual Sabbaths. Celebrated in the spring of the year and beginning with Passover, the first festival included the week of Unleavened Bread.

Starting with the celebration of the Passover Seder on the fourteenth day of Abib/Nissan (the first month of the year on the ancient calendar – which falls in April currently), this spring festival typified the great sacrifice that Christ made upon Calvary.

The week of Unleavened Bread began on the next day after Passover. During this week, all leavening was to be removed from every house. This action symbolized the removal of sin (as we will show Biblically later in this chapter). Then at each meal, unleavened bread was eaten. This was a constant reminder of the necessity of having all sin removed from the heart and home. Of these seven holy days, only the first and last days were kept as Sabbaths of rest (see Leviticus 23:7-8).

Biblical instructions for keeping the annual Sabbaths are identical to the instructions for keeping the weekly Sabbath. They were all listed as days in which "no servile work" was to be done (see Leviticus 23). In addition, the people of Elohim were to gather together in worship.

To be absolutely clear, it is important to state that two of the mo’edim last a whole week. However, not every day of these holy weeks carried with it instructions to be kept as a Sabbath, or day of rest and worship. Thus the total number of annual Sabbath days is seven literal days.

What about keeping the annual Sabbaths today? Because of the controversy surrounding the statutes and the ceremonial law, it is important to be certain that we have classified the annual Sabbaths in the correct category. If the annual Sabbaths are part of the ceremonial law, as some believe them to be, then we needn’t keep them today. However, if the annual Sabbaths are statutes, then they are part of the perpetual Covenant.

We have already listed each part of the Law, which had Biblically "ended" at Christ’s death; and we have discussed how each "ended" portion (of what is sometimes called the ceremonial law) still continues in Spiritual application. Yet, this does not definitively label the feasts under the heading of "statutes." What does the Bible say? Moses, in the Torah labels the feasts as part of the statutes. Ezekiel also, classified the Sabbaths with the statutes, which were to be kept by Elohim’s people in all generations.

We can now say that it is sound Biblical doctrine to believe that the weekly and annual Sabbaths are part of the statutes, which the Bible teaches will be in effect "for ever in your generations," but should we keep the yearly Passover? Are we to celebrate that annual holy day, today? Surely the Passover was ended at the Tree of Calvary, after all, the Bible does say that "Christ, our PASSOVER is sacrificed for us" (1 Corinthians 15:3).

On the other hand, Christ tells us clearly that He will be keeping the Passover with us in the Kingdom of Elohim. How do we reconcile nailing this annual holy day to the Tree of Calvary in light of Christ’s words that we will be keeping it in eternity with Him?

It is evident from Christ’s own words that the Passover celebration was not something He considered to be fulfilled at Calvary. Indeed, it was to be "fulfilled in the Kingdom of Elohim."

The difficulty in understanding these two concepts: one - that Christ as our Passover was sacrificed, and two - that the ceremony will not be fulfilled until we reside in the Kingdom of Elohim; can be traced back to one root. We misunderstand the meaning of the word "Passover." For these two concepts to exist side-by-side in the Scriptures (which never contradicts itself) the word Passover must have more than one meaning.

The idea that "Passover" has more than one meaning is a truth supported by the Bible. "Passover," in Scripture, can actually mean one of three things. It can refer to the annual holy day, the ceremony, or to the lamb itself. To establish this point clearly, let us consider the following texts which use the word "Passover" to mean the lamb:

Quite naturally, we cannot "kill" or "sacrifice" a day. These texts are not referring to the day of Passover. Rather, they refer to the lamb. The lamb was no longer to be sacrificed after the Tree of Calvary because Christ the perfect Lamb had shed His blood.

To continue to sacrifice the "Passover" after Christ, the Lamb to which all other sacrifices pointed, is to imply that His sacrifice wasn’t enough to fulfill the blood debt for our sins. Heaven forbid that we should suggest such a thing! In fact, the Bible is quite emphatic about blood sacrifices being ended at Calvary. Read what Paul writes about it in Hebrews chapter ten.

Thus, the term "Passover," when referring to the lamb, has been fulfilled and finished. Should we then be keeping the ceremony or the annual day in our post-Calvary times?

Christ was referring to the ceremony of the Passover supper, or "Lord’s Supper" as it is often called, when He told His disciples that He wouldn’t eat anymore of it until it was fulfilled in the Kingdom.

Here Christ uses the words "EAT THIS PASSOVER," which might make one think that He is using the word "Passover" to refer to the lamb. However, the fact that He is referring to the ceremony kept by eating YHWH’s supper is made clear by His next statement, "I will not anymore eat thereof till it be fulfilled in the kingdom…" There will not be any killing or death in Elohim’s Kingdom. Once this old sinful world is done away, death also will have an end.

No one, either human or animal will experience death. People will not be eating meat in the Kingdom of Elohim, just as people were not created to eat meat in the garden of Eden. In the original diet, both mankind and creatures (yes modern carnivores included) ate only vegetation.

All creatures and beings of the kingdom will return to this original diet. The prophet Isaiah describes the peaceful, death-free world that Elohim’s people will enjoy in His holy kingdom.

Biblically we see Christ is not going to kill a lamb in the kingdom to eat with us. Thus, in Luke chapter twenty-two, we know that He is referring to the ceremony of Passover, which is commemorated by eating the "Lord’s supper" – minus the lamb. This is the Passover that has not been fulfilled or ended at the Tree of Calvary, as is evidenced by the fact that it will be kept in heaven.

For every true follower of Christ, the fact that He saw in Passover something important enough He wished to keep it with us in the kingdom is enough to pique one’s interest. What valuable lessons, might there be for us in the Passover celebration today?

The Passover seder table is indeed a rich lesson book. The real significance of this annual celebration comes from the message of Christ’s sacrifice for us. The Passover feast, once celebrated as a historical marker commemorating Israel’s freedom from Egyptian bondage, has been given added meaning in light of the Tree of Calvary. Ultimately, YHWH has provided a Deliver for His people. This deliverance is not just from physical Egypt, but from spiritual Egypt, as well.

Regardless of our geographic location, we are all residents of "Egypt." Symbolizing the pleasures of sin and a life filled with idolatry, the world of Egypt will be left behind by the Christian today, just as Moses left it in ancient times.

Thus, we begin to catch a glimpse of the message that Passover may have something to do with the journey from the realm of sin and death to spiritual Canaan.

In the communion service, which was given by Christ as part of the new celebration of the Passover, we find a ceremony saturated with the message of being forgiven and cleansed from all unrighteousness.

Most Christians, who celebrate Communion, believe they are doing as Christ did, thus fulfilling His command to "do this in remembrance of Me." (See Luke 22:19.) But the modern views of communion leave out a great deal of what Christ did and taught that it was to be. When Christ, our Example, kept the Passover with His disciples, showing them how to keep it henceforth, there were several key elements, which are not present in today’s Communion ceremony. Perhaps this is because we have tended to throw out the entire Seder table along with the lamb.

Today, Communion is kept by washing the feet of our brothers and sisters in the faith. In addition, we drink of the fruit of the vine and eat of the unleavened bread. Is this the way Christ and the early Christians kept the Passover supper? Indeed not. The beauty of the Seder table was very much a part of this meaningful and sacred occasion.

We find a connection between the Communion service and the ceremonies of the Seder table in the words of Paul.

As Martyn Barrow explains in his online materials titled, "Discover the Tabernacle," the Seder table includes four cups. Through the names of these cup and the spiritual messages they teach, Christian Passover participants note a rich rehearsal of end-time doctrine and events. In light of the message of these four cups, Passover cannot simply be passed off as a Calvary-fulfilled ceremony without any deep meaning for the modern Christian. In fact through the lesson of the cups, the Passover ceremony begins to take on a great deal of timely significance for the perceptive Christian.

In spite of generations of Passover repetition, to the traditional Jew the rich Messianic truths of the four cups go essentially unnoticed. The full extents of the Seder lessons are only apparent to those who believe in Christ. Almost ironically, the orthodox Jews who keep the Passover cannot appreciate its full message, while the Christians who would be especially blessed by the experience are limited, typically tasting of only one small facet of the Seder. Thus, the full Gospel message contained in the Seder experience has largely lain dormant for centuries.

Of the four Passover cups, the typical Christian Communion service only includes one. This single cup has for generations been referred to as the "Cup of Blessing" or the "Cup of Redemption." It is commonly partaken of during Communion. (This information can be found at the following Internet address: http://www.domini.org/tabern/tabhome.htm.) In the Passover service, the Cup of Redemption is not alone. Rather, it is the third Seder cup. Thus, in the Seder, the message of Redemption is couched in a greater scope of significance.

Clearly, what we call a "communion service" and what the post-Calvary apostles called a "Passover service" is quite different. The communion experience, which most Christians celebrate today, is a considerably reduced version when compared with the original Passover pattern. Could it be that by removing most of the lessons of the Seder table, we have lost the full blessing Christ intended His followers to enjoy?

Considering this possibility, let us take a closer look at the Seder table, and the way Christ and the early Christians kept the Passover. To begin, we must understand the term "Seder table." The Passover table, called the "Seder," is laid out with meaningful items and foods. Each of these Seder provisions is experienced in a meaningful order throughout the meal. Occurring on the evening prior to the first day of Unleavened Bread, a Christian Passover experience affords the participants a uniquely experiential view of the Gospel, through the Seder cuisine as accompanied by Scripture.

The heart of the Seder table is the message of the four cups. In them we find the entire Gospel beautifully exemplified. The teaching of these cups comes from four specific promises, which Elohim made to literal and spiritual Israel.

The first promise Elohim makes is to FREE us. This message is translated into the name of the first cup. It is called the cup of Sanctification. This name makes perfect sense when you consider what sanctification is. Elohim said, "I will free you from the labors of the Egyptians." What are the labors of spiritual Egypt? Sin!

The process of being made free from sin and set apart for holiness is the process of sanctification. While missing a large portion of this cup’s meaning, our Jewish brothers have sat on a tremendous message. They have long called the first cup the Cup of Sanctification. And this is the first process, which will be completed in the heart of every true child of Elohim. Thus, only to the Christian does the full meaning and message of this cup become clear.

For centuries, as the Jewish family lights the candles, prays and then drinks from the first Seder cup, they have recited the now meaningful words, "I, YHWH, will bring you out from under the yoke of slavery" (Exodus 6:6 - paraphrased).

To the Christ-less Jew it might only be tradition, but to Christ and the early Christians, and to those Christians who enjoy this wonderful ceremony today, the sermon the cup preaches is as full of meaning as it is full of juice!

After drinking of the Cup of Sanctification, the Passover service includes a washing. This is the point where Christ stood up and moved to wash His disciples’ feet. After the feet are cleansed, then the hands are washed, as the worshippers recite the Scripture, "Who may stand in His holy place? (The part of the Tabernacle which represents the process of sanctification.) He who has clean hands and a pure heart" (Psalm 24:3-4 paraphrased).

After this cleansing, each person takes some bitter herbs, dips them in salt water, and eats them. When Christ came to this part of the service, he dipped the sop and handed it to Judas.

As Christ handed the sop to Judas, the Bible tells us plainly that Satan entered into Judas (see John 13:27). Judas had rejected the message of the sop. It was the last message that Christ used to try to reach with the light of Salvation into his sin-darkened heart. Just what message did Judas reject before he ran out to betray the One Who could have been His Saviour?

The herbs of the Seder table traditionally teach of the bitterness of physical slavery. But the bitter herbs hold a much more insightful message to the Christian. Our sin, having caused our precious Messiah to suffer, is bitter. These herbs are dipped in salt water to show that sin brings sorrow. But more than this, it also reminds us that allowing Christ to separate us from our cherished sins may be painful.

Salt water represents the tears we may foolishly cry over being called to leave our pet sins behind. But, as we see what these "beloved" sins have done to our Redeemer we are moved to tears for a new reason. Now we cry out with great sorrow that we have loved something, which caused Him such suffering. The heart is brought to repentance. The sin is discarded without remorse, for we desire only to do that which brings our dear Saviour pleasure in us.

As Christ handed Judas the sop, He was giving him a message of redemption. He was calling Judas to renounce his sin. But Judas clung to his greed and pride, rejecting this offer for salvation.

As the informed Christian partakes of the bitter herbs and salt water, he sees symbolized the same offer. We will renounce our hold on sin and allow our Redeemer to cut away from our hearts anything, which will keep us out of His Kingdom.

In conjunction with the bitter herbs and salt water, a small portion of Matzah bread is dipped into horseradish and consumed. If the participant wasn’t teary about sin before, he experientially grasps even further meaning in the depths of bitterness.

But we are not left in bitter bondage to sin. As Isaiah recorded in chapter thirty-eight, we may taste sweet victory over every transgression of YHWH’s holy Law. This victory is gained through the blood and power of Y’shua.

To clearly exemplify the sweetness of this victory, an enjoyable fruit mixture is eaten immediately after the horseradish. The horseradish bite still lingers uncomfortably upon each tongue, when the fruity paste is first consumed. Thus, participants experience how sin’s bitterness is completely swallowed in the sweet triumph we find in Christ. So enjoyable is the victory that the former bitterness is completely taken away.

In 1910, a Presbyterian minister known as J. Wilbur Chapman expressed these concepts beautifully in a poem, which was later set to music by Rowland H. Prichard. It is entitled, Jesus, What a Friend for Sinners! With deepest respect for the writer of these beautiful words, this author will only make one small change. The name of Y’shua, His actual name (see the preface of this book) will be put the place of Jesus.

Y’shua! What a Friend for sinners!

Y’shua! Lover of my soul;

Friends may fail me, foes assail me,

He my Saviour, makes me whole.

Hallelujah! What a Saviour!

Hallelujah! What a Friend!

Saving, helping, keeping, loving,

He is with me to the end.

Y’shua! What a Strength in weakness!

Let me hide myself in Him.

Tempted, tried, and sometimes failing,

He, my Strength, my victory wins.

Y’shua! I do now receive Him,

More than all in Him I find.

He hath granted me forgiveness.

I am His, and He is mine!

The next part of the Passover service further involves the unleavened bread. The message of the unleavened bread is another sermon in itself. On the Seder table are laid three Matzah cakes. These three cakes represent Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. But they also represent Elohim. The double meaning is established in the story of the sacrifice of Isaac. When Abraham, then a type of the heavenly Father, lifted his knife to slay Isaac; the son became a type of Christ.

The head of the family, or host of the Passover, takes the middle of the three flat Matzah bread cakes (this one represents Christ) and breaks it in half. One half of the broken Matzah, represents Christ’s lifeless body wrapped in linen and laid in the bowels of the earth. (See Luke 23:53.) As such, this half is wrapped in white linen and put aside.

Matzah bread is without leaven. This also teaches a deep spiritual lesson. Leaven is a symbol of sin. As Paul explained, "Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy" (Luke 12:1). (See also 1 Corinthians 5:8.)

Elohim is sinless, thus the bread which represents Elohim must be "sinless" or without leaven. But there is more to the Matzah message than just sinlessness. The bread is also pierced and striped which is a message about what sin did to the perfect Lamb and the healing His sacrifice brings to the repentant sinner.

At first, it may seem strange for the Matzah representing the Father and the Holy Spirit to also be pierced and striped when it was Christ Who died. Yet they all three were actively present in the offering which brought salvation to man. Just as Abraham willingly offered up his "only son" (see Genesis 22:2 & 12), so YHWH willingly offered up His "only begotten Son" for our sins.

The story is told of a man who held a job working for a transcontinental railroad. His task was simple. He merely had to work the machinery, which raised and lowered a bridge. As the trains or ships came by the bridge it was raised or lowered to let them pass safely.

Desiring to spend some extra time with his young son, one day the man decided to bring the child with him to work. His station was located in a picturesque spot near the water. It seemed a lovely idea to bring the boy and enjoy a picnic together during the long lulls of waiting for a ship or train to pass.

The father and son enjoyed a delightful afternoon. The father showed his child the fascinating machinery as they toured about the station. They ate their lunch. They explored on the beach. It was a perfect day.

Sadly, it didn’t remain so. As the afternoon drew to a close, the curious child climbed up into the huge gears, which turned together as the bridge was lowered into place. A whistle sounded in the distance. The evening train was approaching. Hurrying to do his duty by lowering the bridge to allow safe passage for the train, the father was horrified to look up and see that his son had climbed into the very gears whose crushing weight must now turn.

For an instant the father was paralyzed. Could he climb up and reach his son in time? Already the tracks were vibrating with the weight and motion of the unstoppable Beast. He could hear its blasting breath. There was no time! Quickly he pressed the button and lowered the bridge into place. The train rushed by. Through his anguished tears the heart-broken father watched the people sitting in the cushioned comfort of the rail cars. They were reading the paper, visiting happily and resting comfortably. In their trivial pursuits, they seemed to belie the importance of the sacrifice that had just been given that they might pass in contented oblivion.

Who made a sacrifice that day? The son? Yes. The father? Absolutely! In a similar way we must not view Christ’s death as being solely His sacrifice on our behalf. All of Elohim suffered in that moment. All of Elohim bore the heart-rending agony, which our transgressions brought.

No wonder Christ instructed us to keep this special celebration. How full would be our understanding of the gospel if we were keeping it! The object lessons and connecting Scriptures presented in this feast are so clear that a small child can grasp their beauty.

Indeed, this is the very reason why Christ instructed His people to keep the Passover "forever." It is to teach young and old of what will happen in each heart so that when the death angel bringing the plagues again comes to earth, he will again pass over those who have heeded the message of separation from sin.

Having mentioned the plagues, which will come upon the world in the end of time, our attention is appropriately drawn to the second cup upon the Seder table. It is the Cup of Deliverance.

All at the Passover table now lift this cup and drink while acknowledging its vital message. Elohim has promised to both deliver us from the bondage of sin, and to preserve us from its price. By spiritually drinking of the Cup of Sanctification, we are prepared to drink of the Cup of Deliverance. And by drinking of this cup, we share the promise of His deliverance when we will be preserved from drinking "of the wine of the wrath of Elohim, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of His indignation being tormented with fire and brimstone" (Revelation 14:10).

In the traditional Jewish ceremony, the ten plagues of Egypt are verbally recounted as the Cup of Deliverance is consumed. (See Exodus 7:14-12:36.) As we have already seen, the meaning is again far greater to the Christian. Passover is not only about the past; it is also about our present and future.

Having learned from and tasted of the bitter herbs and two of the four cups, the Passover meal is now enjoyed.

Christ blessed and broke the bread and passed around the third cup. Yet for most, this single cup is the only cup from which they drink. This is typically the only Passover cup that most Christians ever experience. It is called the Cup of Redemption, or as Paul called it "the Cup of Blessing."

By only drinking of this cup, the majority of the Christian world inadvertently exemplifies a false gospel message. They are demonstrating an untruth. For in singularly drinking of the Redemption cup outside of the context of the preceding cups, it is implied that we may taste of Elohim’s glorious redemption while we have not tasted first of His purifying sanctification. Elohim does not promise to redeem those who refuse His message of sanctification! Only those, who through His power overcome every sin, will sit with Him in the heavenly home of the redeemed.

Christ warned us not to drink of the Cup of Redemption without first having tasted of sanctification.

The belief that we may taste of eternal redemption and live among the redeemed, without first being transformed into holiness is the heart of the false gospel message. Paul recorded the essence of the false gospel in the book of first Timothy, where He lists the characteristics of these unchanged ones. He states plainly that it is not enough to "have a form of godliness" or merely claim to belong to Elohim and appear to be Christians some of the time, while "denying the power thereof." To deny the power is to, like Judas, choose to hold onto the sin rather than accepting salvation from it.

Considering the strong warnings against claiming to partake of redemption without sanctification, Christians are brought to a choice. Either they will cling to their sins and may, never safely partake of communion ever again, or they will accept the Passover message of sanctification and desire to experience all of it.

Should we keep the Passover today? Absolutely! Elohim had a very good reason for commanding us to observe it. If we were keeping the whole Seder, young and old alike would clearly see the gospel message in its entirety. The process of sanctification was never intended to be nebulous. The steps, which we will take to enjoy eternity with YHWH, would be laid before us with brilliant transparency, if we were keeping the Passover; for it was designed to teach us the powerful plan of redemption and our part in being a child of Elohim.

At this point in the Seder meal, three cups have been experienced in their true-Gospel-teaching sequence. The bitter herbs and horseradish have been tasted, the sweet apple has taken away the bitterness, the participants have been cleansed through the foot washing, and the meal of fellowship has been enjoyed. Now there remains only the last cup: the Cup of Completion.

As it says in Exodus chapter six, in the promise after which this cup was named, "I will take you to Me for a people, and I will be to you an Elohim" (Exodus 6:7). This is the completion of the Plan of Salvation. This cup cannot yet be tasted; but its promise to us is as real as the invitingly full glass before the Seder participants.

In the Jewish home at the end of the Passover service, the Cup of Completion is lifted in a toast: "L’shanah haba’ah biYerushalayim," meaning "Next year, grant us to be in Jerusalem." In the Christian service, the cup has far more meaning than merely a trip to the earthly Holy Lands. The Cup of Completion points to THE trip to THE Holy Land, where we will eternally dwell with Elohim. Thus, the Christian toast is this: "Next year, may we drink of this cup with our blessed Redeemer in the Kingdom of Elohim!"

With this wonderful desire, the Passover ceremony is complete. And the participants sing a hymn as they joyfully leave the Seder table with a full understanding of the gospel message. No half gospel is presented to the participants. They are brought to understand the necessity of cutting away every sin from their lives. By faith, they leave this experience cleansed, with renewed energy be victorious Christians.

In effect, the teaching that Passover was ended at the Tree of Calvary has been yet another satanic coup upon the Gospel message. Denying ourselves this blessed service, which our Saviour left for our edification, may well be a large part of why many Christians have fallen prey to the teaching of redemption without sanctification -which is the false gospel.

Christ gave this beautiful festival to His people to last throughout all generations. We were to celebrate the Passover without ever missing one from the time of the death angel in ancient Egypt "till He (Our Redeemer) come" (1 Corinthians 11:26).

One day, for those who accept and embrace the whole Passover message, there will be a heavenly Seder at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. There, we will drink of the Cup of Completion together with great joy!

• The Passover is the first of the annual holy days, but the second mo’ed as listed in Leviticus 23.
• The day after Passover is the first day of the week of Unleavened Bread. Both the first and last days of this week are annual Sabbaths. (First Fruits is the second day of the Week of Unleavened Bread, or two days after Passover.)
• Many Christians believe that the Passover was ended at Calvary. This incorrect belief is largely based upon a misunderstanding of the multiple meanings, which the word "Passover" can have in Scripture.
• The word Passover can mean: the Lamb, the ceremony, or the day.
• The word Passover referring to the Lamb ended at Calvary, as did the sacrificial system.
• The annual day of Passover is still to be kept.
• The Bible instructs us to keep Passover throughout all time until Christ comes again.
• Keeping the Passover is a blessing Elohim intended His followers to enjoy for their edification.
• The Passover is a Christian service, as each symbol partaken of in the Seder experience is a rich lesson revealing Christ and the full plan of redemption.
• Through keeping the Passover, we come to a right understanding of the Gospel of Salvation.