Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Good morning. If you got a Bible, you can turn to Exodus chapter 11. We're actually gonna look at Exodus 11 and 12. And I was doing some middle school math the other day. Not just for fun.
[00:00:13] I don't know anyone that does that just for fun, but I was doing some middle school math the other day, and I was telling my kids that I was helping with this. I was like, you need to set up the problem this way. It's like, why? It's like, because it's going to matter later.
[00:00:31] Sure, you could solve it that way right now, but later it's going to matter. I remember early on, maybe you're a math teacher and you teach addition and subtraction and multiplication and division. And it's like, you're going to need this later. Now, my teachers were wrong. They said that you're never going to have a calculator just in your pocket all the time. And they were wrong about that. We all do. We carry one of those. And so I didn't need to memorize all those facts. But.
[00:00:58] But the thing was that they were setting me up for what would come later.
[00:01:02] That they were giving me a foundation so that then later I would have one of those light bulb moments and go, oh, I see how it works that you set it up this way, because later it matters.
[00:01:18] And so the thing that we're gonna look at in our text is in Exodus, the second book of our Bible, and we see in this story that God is setting the stage that he's actually building into the people of Israel, into their culture, into their calendar, into their very DNA.
[00:01:40] He's building something in so that they wouldn't miss what would come later.
[00:01:45] You see, God is showing them that he saves his people through the blood of a substitute.
[00:01:56] That before there was an empty tomb, before there was a cross in Golgotha, before there was even a manger in Bethlehem, there was actually an unblemished lamb in Egypt.
[00:02:09] That's actually what we're going to look at. That this unblemished lamb in Egypt which would shed his blood was a shadow that was pointing us forward.
[00:02:22] It was pointing us forward to that Easter morning where the lamb would have shed his blood as a substitute, but he wouldn't stay in the tomb. He would rise again, showing that he had defeated death and sin forever.
[00:02:42] That's what we get to celebrate today. But I want us to look at this shadow. I want us to look at what was before in order that we could grasp the truth that's there that we might not miss the truth of Easter. Would you pray with me this morning?
[00:03:05] God, we're so desperately in need a savior who would do what we couldn't do.
[00:03:17] And God, through your word, you have told us that you provided that. And we believe it, Lord, that you provided the atonement. You provided the substitute that we needed in order that you might pass over us in judgment.
[00:03:34] Lord, this morning, would you help us to not miss it?
[00:03:38] Would you help us to see the truth and the shadow that you told so long ago that we wouldn't miss Jesus, Lord, would you stir in our midst this morning? We ask it in Jesus name. Amen.
[00:03:53] Well, let me catch us up just a little bit. If you're joining us. We've been walking through and we've seen that God has promised he's going to rescue his people who have found themselves in slavery. They're in bondage, and they can't rescue themselves. And. And so God has promised. He said, I'm going to rescue you.
[00:04:13] And so he sent these plagues upon Egypt and upon Pharaoh in order to display his power, in order to display his sovereignty over all of creation, in order to show that God is the God, not just in Egypt, but over all of creation.
[00:04:30] And Pharaoh has chosen that in light of who God is, he has rejected him and he has rebelled against him, that he has turned and hardened his heart to who God is. And so God is going to show one last demonstration of his power. He's going to send one final plague. And we see this in chapter 11, beginning in verse 1, it says this that the Lord said to Moses, yet one plague more I will bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. And afterward, he will let you go from here.
[00:05:06] And when he lets you go, he will drive you away completely. It's going to be an absolute flip that Pharaoh won't let them go. And now he's going to turn. Because of God's demonstration of his power, because of his judgment upon sin, Pharaoh is now going to flip completely around and say, get out. I don't want you here.
[00:05:28] God then says, and as he goes, I'm going to provide for you. And so you're going to take the gold and the silver. So ask the people to give you gold and silver. And they're gonna give it to you because they just want you to leave. And so God's going to provide for what he's going to do later in the promised land. They're going to have incredible wealth as they leave, that they will be expelled from Egypt. Jumping down to verse four, it says this. So Moses said, thus says the Lord, at about midnight, I will go out in the midst of Egypt.
[00:06:02] And every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die. From the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits on his throne, even to the firstbor of the slave girl who is behind the hand mill and all the firstborn of the cattle, there shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there has never been nor will be again.
[00:06:21] But not a dog shall growl against any of the people of Israel, either man or beast. That you may know that the Lord makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel.
[00:06:33] And all these your servants shall come down to me and bow down to me, saying, get out, you and all the people who follow you. And after that I will go out.
[00:06:46] And he went out from Pharaoh in hot anger. And then the Lord said to Moses, pharaoh will not listen to you. That my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt. What I want us to see in this first part is that God is confronting sin. In all the other plagues, God has sent Moses and Aaron to be the messengers to communicate on his behalf to to Pharaoh.
[00:07:11] And yet in this final plague, when we see in verse four that the Lord says, about midnight, I will go out in the midst, God himself is the one who will go out in the midst.
[00:07:28] That this is a sobering reality.
[00:07:32] That the Bible doesn't ask the question of will God judge sin?
[00:07:38] The Bible actually asks the question, who can stand when God judges sin?
[00:07:45] Who can last when God judges sin? Because all of us have sinned. Israel and Egypt have sinned.
[00:07:55] That they're actually both in the same boat in the sense that they can't stand before a holy God who will go in their midst.
[00:08:05] And he will judge all those in the land of Egypt. He'll judge in such a way that the firstborn will give its life in judgment.
[00:08:19] That the Bible asks this question, and it's the sobering question that all of us have to ask, that when I stand before a holy God, how will I come out?
[00:08:33] It's a sobering reality that we're all confronted with.
[00:08:39] But in this passage, we actually get to see a glimpse of God's grace and his mercy.
[00:08:44] That in the midst of his judgment, he provides a way of atonement, that God provides a substitute. Look at chapter 12, verse 1.
[00:08:56] Says, the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, in the land of Egypt, this month shall be for you the beginning of months.
[00:09:03] It shall be the first month of the year for you. So he comes out and he says, this is going to. This event is going to reorient your whole calendar.
[00:09:13] That this is of such magnitude that everyone will remember and go, oh, this is when it began.
[00:09:22] This is when it started.
[00:09:25] It shall be this first month, verse three, that you tell all the congregation of Israel that on the 10th day of this month, every man shall take a lamb according to their father's house. A lamb for a household. So on the 10th day they go, they get this lamb.
[00:09:41] Then as it talks through here, it tells us how this lamb should look. That it should be a spotless lamb, it should be unblemished. This isn't a lame lamb that you're like, ah, we were gonna get rid of that one anyway. No, this is a.
[00:09:54] It can come from the sheep or the goats. That this lamb, you're to bring it in your house, and it's supposed to stay there for four days. So from the 10th day to the 14th day, this lamb is in your midst, dwelling among you that you know this lamb. You see this lamb.
[00:10:13] Then on the 14th day, what you shall do is you shall take this lamb at twilight and this lamb will be killed.
[00:10:23] That the blood of the lamb would be collected and it would then be put on the doorposts of the house.
[00:10:31] The lamb would then be eaten by the family. None of it was to be left. None of it was to be boiled. It was to be roasted. There were specific details in chapter 12 as to how this is supposed to happen.
[00:10:48] As they put it on the doorpost, they were told what they were to put it on there with. With these bitter herbs.
[00:10:54] And then they were to wait.
[00:10:56] They were to wait expectantly.
[00:10:59] They were to have eaten this meal with their shoes on, dressed with their belt on, ready to go, because God was moving, ready to act when God told them what to do.
[00:11:14] That we see this picture is actually a glimpse of God's promise that through this Lamb.
[00:11:24] Verse 13 of chapter 11.
[00:11:27] That through this lamb the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are.
[00:11:35] And when I see the blood, this is God speaking, that I will pass over you and no plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.
[00:11:48] That because of the blood of the lamb, that when God sees the blood of the lamb, then he would pass over that house because the lamb was the substitute for God's judgment.
[00:12:05] You see, it's interesting God didn't say in here that when I see your effort, I'll credit it to you. You're really trying your best.
[00:12:17] It doesn't say when I see your sincerity, that you're really sincere.
[00:12:23] It doesn't say when I see your church attendance. It doesn't say when I see your goodness or the good things which you've done. It doesn't say when I see your past or your lack of past. It doesn't say any of that. It says, when I see the blood of the lamb, I'll pass over.
[00:12:44] You see, the difference between each house in Egypt that night between life and death was not ethnicity.
[00:12:54] It was not morality. It was not intentional. It was whether or not you were covered by the blood of the lamb.
[00:13:05] Imagine with me that there's two houses, that there's one house that pretty confident people.
[00:13:15] We're pretty good people. We're pretty successful people.
[00:13:19] Everybody likes us pretty sincere.
[00:13:24] They're like, but we don't really like that blood stuff.
[00:13:28] They're like, surely God will credit us based off of all these other things.
[00:13:35] I mean, we do good stuff.
[00:13:37] We're kind to people.
[00:13:40] So they ignore God's instruction and go, we're not going to do that lamb stuff.
[00:13:47] There's another house over here.
[00:13:50] Fearful, trembling, doubt riddling their heart and their lives. And they go, is it going to be enough?
[00:14:02] God said it would. I don't understand it all, but I know that God said this. And so we're just going to trust him.
[00:14:14] They put the blood on the doorposts.
[00:14:17] You can just imagine them like, is that enough? Is it enough blood?
[00:14:22] Did we do it right?
[00:14:24] Fear, doubt, trembling.
[00:14:28] Not really a whole lot of confidence.
[00:14:33] And yet that night, which one would the Lord pass over?
[00:14:40] He would see the blood of the Lamb and He would pass over.
[00:14:46] You see, God is providing the means of atonement. From his judgment, he will judge sin. We know he will. He's a holy and a just God, and yet he provides the means of atonement for us that we might be passed over in judgment. It's his grace and his mercy to us.
[00:15:09] Maybe you've battled with this and you look at God's judgment of sin and it turns your stomach and you don't see a whole lot of love in God's judgment and in his wrath being poured out on sin.
[00:15:30] And yet he's holy, and so he can't just turn a blind eye to sin.
[00:15:36] But have you reflected deeply on the fact that God, in His love and in his kindness, provides the means of atonement?
[00:15:45] No one has to face his judgment. God made a way. Even if you were poor, even if you couldn't have a lamb of your own, you could share a lamb with your neighbors. God made a way for everyone to be passed over in judgment if they just believed and obeyed you see, it was his love and his grace and his mercy and his kindness that made that way.
[00:16:12] See, But God gave Israel this symbol and he told them to orient their calendar and to remember this. He actually even tells them that verse 25 of chapter 12.
[00:16:24] He says, when you come into the land, that the Lord will give you that he's going to keep his promise. He's going to rescue them out of Egypt, he's going to bring them into the this land.
[00:16:34] Then you shall continue to keep this service. You shall keep doing this thing.
[00:16:41] Verse 26 says, and when your children say to you, what do you mean by this service?
[00:16:47] Maybe there's some kids in here. Why do we get up on Easter? Why do we go to a sunrise service? Why do we go to church on Easter? When your kids ask this question, God knew the kids were going to ask a lot of questions.
[00:17:03] That two to three range. Why, why, why?
[00:17:07] Why do we do this?
[00:17:10] Look at verse 27. Then you shall say, it's the sacrifice of the Lord's Passover.
[00:17:16] For he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt when he struck the Egyptians, but he spared our houses.
[00:17:26] And the people bowed their heads and they worshiped because God had provided a substitute for his judgment that God gave Israel this symbol. And he told them to remember this, to order their calendar to celebrate this day so that they wouldn't miss the reason when he showed up in Bethlehem, so that they wouldn't miss the reality of what the shadow represented.
[00:17:58] See, the New Testament doesn't leave the Passover as a symbol.
[00:18:03] It names Jesus as that lamb in John 1, verse 29. Then John the Baptist sees Jesus coming. And the first thing that he says is, behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.
[00:18:19] He doesn't call him a prophet, he doesn't call him a deity.
[00:18:23] He calls him a lamb.
[00:18:26] Behold the lamb.
[00:18:28] Paul, in First Corinthians 5:7, he says it this way, that Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.
[00:18:41] That the Lamb of God the the substitute that God has provided the means of atonement that God has provided. He has been sacrificed, and he's our sacrifice.
[00:18:55] First Peter 1, 18 and 19 says it this way, that you were ransomed with the precious blood of Christ like that of a lamb, without spot or blemish.
[00:19:10] See, the New Testament writers, they understand clearly that this Passover lamb, that when God sees the blood of the Lamb, that he will pass over because the Lamb has paid the price.
[00:19:25] John, in Revelation 5:12, he says it this way in this vision of the throne room.
[00:19:34] Then all of creation has gathered around and they say this. Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, that the Lamb that was unblemished, that dwelt among us, that was slain, and his blood has sprinkled us clean, worthy is the Lamb.
[00:20:00] And then we see again in Revelation, chapter 12, verse 11, in making this application for those who would trust in the blood.
[00:20:09] Revelation 12:11 says that they overcame him, that they conquered Satan because of the blood of the Lamb, that there was power in the blood, that the accuser, which stands night and day making accusation against God's elect, against God's people and says, look at their sin.
[00:20:32] Look, you need to judge them.
[00:20:35] Look at how much they've messed up. Look at their past.
[00:20:40] And they overcame him.
[00:20:44] Because Jesus goes, see the blood?
[00:20:48] It's already been paid.
[00:20:50] And God passes over in judgment that if you're in Christ, then there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ because he sees the blood of the Lamb and he passes over.
[00:21:07] If you're here today, or maybe you're listening online, it's for a reason.
[00:21:16] The same truth that we see in Exodus is true for you and me today.
[00:21:25] It's not your background, it's not your morality, it's not your ethnicity, it's not your church attendance. It's not your sincerity.
[00:21:37] None of that can save you.
[00:21:40] It's the blood of Jesus, the substitute the Lamb applied to our life by faith.
[00:21:51] Because God still says, when I see the blood of the Lamb, I'll pass over.
[00:22:00] So there's three questions I just want to ask you to just consider in your life. Maybe you could jot these down or take a note.
[00:22:11] The question is, are you trusting in the blood, or are you trusting in something else?
[00:22:19] Just like there's two families at night in Egypt, you get two choices.
[00:22:29] Are you trusting in your own efforts? Are you trusting in something of your own doing to save you?
[00:22:38] Or are you trusting in the blood of the Lamb that God has provided?
[00:22:44] The second question that I would ask is, have you applied the blood?
[00:22:51] I mean, just imagine that a family brings the lamb into their home.
[00:22:58] They butcher the lamb, and they don't apply the blood to the door.
[00:23:09] They know about Jesus.
[00:23:12] You think he's a pretty good guy. You think he's a historical figure. You got no problem with Jesus, but you just haven't put your hope and your trust in him.
[00:23:23] You haven't surrendered to him. You haven't asked him to be Lord of your life. You haven't applied the blood in your life. You haven't exchanged your judgment for what he did on the cross.
[00:23:40] You haven't applied the blood.
[00:23:43] You see, it's not enough to know about Jesus.
[00:23:46] You must put your faith in him. That that's what the Scriptures would tell us is how do we apply the blood? That by faith. We put our faith in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sins.
[00:24:01] That the gospel is simply this. That Jesus came and dwelt among us and endured the judgment of a holy God in order that you and I by faith might have his blood sprinkle us clean, that God would pass over us in judgment.
[00:24:25] The last thing is I just ask the question. What do these truths affect in your life?
[00:24:35] What do these truths affect in us? See, God told them to remember this day.
[00:24:42] He told them to orient their calendar. He told them to put something in place so that they could teach their children and their grandchildren. So that generation after generation after generation would know this truth. That God provided a sacrifice.
[00:25:00] You see, Jesus came and he was beaten and his blood flowed.
[00:25:08] And he hung on the cross and he cried out, it's finished.
[00:25:16] As he took on the full wrath of God.
[00:25:20] He was buried, but he didn't stay buried.
[00:25:26] Listen, we don't worship or gather this morning or live every day of our life because our Savior died.
[00:25:38] We gather. We worship. We live because our Savior lives.
[00:25:46] He rose from the grave.
[00:25:48] He paid the penalty and defeated it.
[00:25:51] Sin and death. No more sting because he rose.
[00:25:56] And those who have put their faith in Christ and had the blood applied will live as he lives.
[00:26:06] Does it affect you?
[00:26:08] Does it change the way you live?
[00:26:12] It should.
[00:26:14] Jesus defeated it.
[00:26:16] He paid the penalty so that no one would have to.
[00:26:21] Don't walk out of here today, still under the judgment of God, when Jesus has offered it and already taken it for you. If you just trust in him.
[00:26:34] Let's pray.
[00:26:41] God, what a picture.
[00:26:44] What a symbol.
[00:26:48] That we wouldn't miss it.
[00:26:51] God help us to not miss it.
[00:26:56] That you are the Passover lamb who was slain on our behalf. That we would not have to face the judgment, but that we might live as you live, fully alive.
[00:27:10] No more fear, no more condemnation, no more guilt, no more shame.
[00:27:16] That you have made us holy and righteous because of the blood of the Lamb.
[00:27:22] That you sit on the throne right now, making intercession, pleading your blood on our behalf, saying, I paid for it.
[00:27:33] Not guilty.
[00:27:36] See the blood God, I pray that that would impact us, that we'd never get past that, that we would tell our friends and our family, our children, or that we would orient our life in such a way that people would ask why?
[00:27:54] And we'd be able to tell about the lamb who took our place in order that we could live.
[00:28:01] We ask it in Jesus name, amen.
