The Old Covenant also known as the Abrahamic Covenant was made between God and a man named Abraham (Genesis-15). The sign of that covenant was circumcision. And under that Covenant, Abraham and His descendants known as Israelites enjoyed the relationship and blessings of the living God. However the Israelites came under the slavery of Pharaoh of Egypt, and God called a man named Moses to lead Israel out of Egypt. This was actually the beginning of the preparation for the New Covenant. Before I explain, let us read the story of Exodus.
God called Moses to lead Israel out of Egypt, but Pharaoh refused to let the Israelites go, so God did many mighty acts also known as the ten plagues to make Pharaoh let the Israelites go. The final plague was the death of the first born, and in all the land of Egypt, the first born of all people and animals died, except the Israelites. Because God had told Moses to instruct the Israelites to kill a Passover lamb, apply its blood on the door post of their houses and eat the meat along with unleavened bread which is called the Passover meal. And the Israelites obeyed God so that every house on which the bloods of the Passover lamb was applied there was no death. Finally after the tenth plague, Pharaoh let the Israelites go and thus Israel was set free. Every year the Israelites would celebrate the Passover as commanded by God through Moses, to remember what God had done for them. But did they fully understand what God was doing?
Egypt is a type of the world, Pharaoh is a type of Satan and the Israelites are a type of mankind under the slavery of Satan. The Passover lamb is a symbol of Jesus Christ. God initiated the Passover so that we would understand what God’s plan is, which is Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God slain before the foundation of the world (Revelations-13:8). And just like how the blood of the Passover lamb saved the Israelites and set them free from Pharaoh, so also the blood of Jesus would save mankind and set us free from Satan.
For thousands of years the Israelites would celebrate the Passover and every year they would sacrifice a Passover lamb and pour the blood at the altar of God inside the Holiest of the Tabernacle, which is a replica of the one in heaven, and they would eat the meat of the lamb with unleavened bread. And so during the Passover week, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. However this time it would be different, because the real Passover Lamb of God had come, who is Jesus Christ. And Jesus would be the sacrifice once and for all. And then there would no need for any more animal sacrifice. But before that, He arranged to have the Passover meal with His disciples (Luke-22). And then He did something different, He used wine as a symbol of His blood and bread as a symbol of His flesh, and introduced the Passover meal in a new way for the New Covenant to His disciples, which is known as the Lord’s Supper, and He commanded them to continue to do this in remembrance of Him. After which Jesus was arrested and the Lamb of God was sacrificed on the cross, was buried for three days and nights, until He was raised from the dead. After He rose again from the dead Jesus went to heaven and poured out His blood before the altar of God the Father (John-20:17), and that marked the beginning of the New and everlasting Covenant. As we can see Jesus is not only the Lamb of God, but He is also our High Priest and the mediator of the New Covenant.
In the Old Covenant, if the sacrifice was accepted, the worshipper was accepted, how much more in the New Covenant are we accepted because our sacrifice is Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God. Jesus Christ is your representative, a lamb spotless and without fault, what you need to do is to believe in Him from your heart, and confess Him as your Lord with your mouth, and you will be saved (Romans-10:9-10). Wish you all a Blessed Good Friday and Happy Easter.
Pastor Botovi Yepthomi, Dimapur
