Derek Prince - The New Testament Meaning Of Passover
This is a clip from the full sermon: How To Apply The Blood Of Jesus
Now I’m going to show you just exactly how to do that. But I want to take an example from the Old Testament first. I want to take an example from the Passover ceremonies recorded in the 12th chapter of Exodus. In that ceremony God, through the sacrifice of a Passover lamb, provided total protection for all the people of Israel. But they had to do certain things with the lamb and with its blood to insure that protection. Before we turn to Exodus 12, let me just read a sentence from 1 Corinthians 5. I’m only going to read the last part of the verse. It says this: Christ our passover was sacrificed for us.
In other words, what Paul is saying there is: the Old Testament Passover in Egypt was just a prophetic picture, a preview, of what was to be accomplished by the sacrificial death of Jesus on the cross. Christ is the true Passover. It is His blood, not the blood of the Passover lamb that finally assures us eternal redemption. However, the way Israel was instructed to apply the blood of the lamb is a wonderful pattern for us. Now let’s go to Exodus 12. Exodus 12, and we’ll read from verses 21-23. I’d like to point out to you also ,by the way, that this ordinance of the Passover is one of many illustrations in the Bible of the tremendous responsibility of being a father. Because the only persons in Israel who could obtain safety and salvation for their people, were the fathers of Israel. If the fathers of Israel had been delinquent Israel would have not been protected by the Passover.
And I personally think today, the greatest single social problem that confronts us is delinquent fathers. I’ve said many times in counseling parents who have problem children: There are no delinquent children. There are only delinquent parents. All the problems that we are concerned аbout: abortion, drugs the breakup of the family, and many, many other social evils. I believe if you trace them to their source: delinquent fathers. I point out to you here in this context that if the fathers had failed Israel would never have been redeemed. God didn’t have Plan B. Plan A was His plan. And it depended on the fathers.
Now let’s look. Exodus 12:21: Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said to them: Pick out and take lambs for yourselves according to your families and kill the passover lamb. And you shall take a bunch of hyssop, dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and strike the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. And none of you shall go out of the door of his house until morning. 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. That’s why it’s called the Passover; because the Lord said He would pass over the door that was protected by the blood of the lamb.
Now let’s consider what they had to do: At a certain given moment each father had to choose a lamb of appropriate size for his family. And then they had to sacrifice the lamb and they had to catch its blood in a basin. It’s blood was very precious; none of it was to be spilled on the ground. Now, the lamb was slain, the blood was in the basin. it was the means of protection, but in the basin it didn’t protect a single person. They were required to transfer the blood from the basin to the doors of their homes. And to smear it or sprinkle it on the lentil and on the two sideposts. But never on the threshold; no one was ever to walk over the blood. The whole destiny of Israel depended on getting the blood from the basin to the door. How were they to do it? Very simple: God said, you’ll take a little bunch of hyssop. Hyssop is a kind of a weed that grows everywhere in the Middle East. Pluck this bunch of hyssop.
Dip the hyssop in the blood in the basin. And sprinkle the blood over the door with the hyssop. So hyssop, which was a very humble and, in a sense, unimportant thing nevertheless became essential to the salvation of Israel. And then God required one more thing, He said: When this blood has been sprinkled on the door, you’ve got to stay inside your house. Don’t go outside, because once you go outside the blood you’re not protected. Keep your finger in Exodus 12 if you’re there. Let’s look in 1 Peter for a moment. 1 Peter 1:1-2. This is the greeting of Peter. Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the pilgrims of the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia. Now here’s how he describes them: Elect (or chosen) according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, in sanctification of the Spirit, for obedience and sprinkling of the blood of Jesus Christ.
Notice what comes before sprinkling? Obedience. The blood is not sprinkled on the disobedient. It did not avail anybody who disobeyed and went outside of his house. So bear in mind: Although there’s perfect protection in the blood; it is only for the obedient. Now, let’s go back to the Passover ceremony. The blood was in the basin, it had to be transferred to the house. They plucked a little bunch of hyssop, dipped it in the blood. And then sprinkled it on the door. They were safe. Paul says Christ is our Passover, who was sacrificed for us. In other words, Christ has been slain nineteen centuries ago. To use the terms of the analogy, the blood is in the basin. But the blood in the basin doesn’t protect anybody. We have the same situation as Israel. We’ve got to get the blood from the basin to the place where we live. Then we’re protected, provided we’re obedient.