Exodus chapter 12v14-28
The Feast of Unleavened Bread
The Passover was instituted as a memorial for all generations in Israel: "And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast for ever."-Ex. 12v14. Such a day was never to be forgotten, it was the beginning of a new order, the nation of Israel. People, today, question the very existence of Israel, but on this day, more than 3500 years ago, the nation was born, whom God described as His "firstborn"-Ex. 4v22.
Likewise the Lord Jesus instituted the memorial of thanksgiving for the Christian church, at the Passover meal on the night before His death. The simple command was "This do in remembrance of me"-Luke 22v19. Paul established this, by revelation, as a memorial for all churches in 1st Cor. 11v23-26.
Closely associated with the Passover is the Feast of Unleavened bread; in fact they are never separated. Reference to Exodus 12, Leviticus 23, and a host of other scriptures verify this. Indeed, in 1st Cor. 5, Paul links the two together. Seven days they were to eat unleavened bread from the 14th to the 21st day of the month. How are we to understand this? It is obviously very important, as they were called to rid their houses of all leaven.
Leaven in scripture is always seen as representing evil, particularly that form of evil emanating from puffed up pride. The action of a small amount of fermented dough has the effect of increasing the size of the lump in an unnatural way. In every case, leaven is that which is introduced into the things of God, having an evil effect, and, potentially, corrupting the whole. Jesus spoke of leaven as evil, referring to the leaven of the Pharisees, of the Sadducees, of the Herodians. We must understand leaven as the flesh which is corrupted by sin.
In v1-13 the Passover separated Israel from the world around; now in v13-28 the Passover separates them from the flesh within. This reflects God's hatred of sin in all its forms, whether of the world of idolatry, or the flesh in man which is corrupt, and corrupting of all with which it comes into contact. In 1st Cor. 5 Paul describes the sins of fornication, covetousness, extortion, idolatry, drunkenness, as "the old leaven" which has no place in the church of God. We should not be worshipping, whilst holding such practices. He extends this to what we might call the new leaven of malice and wickedness-bad attitude and behaviour toward others. In churches, the flesh can rise, the competitive spirit becomes all too evident. Malice is holding a bad attitude to someone; wickedness is bad actions toward them. Both come from the flesh and have a corrupting influence in what should be sacred gatherings. This is what he means by keeping the feast; in fellowship with Christ our Passover, all leaven, all puffing up of pride, issuing in sinful behaviour, must be put away. He says "Purge out the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened...let us keep the feast, not with the old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth." Ye are unleavened means that God, in our conversion, has separated us from our evil inward selves. However, the old nature remains and we have to subdue it in the power of God.
The extent of this propensity to evil is tabulated in Galatians 5, where it says "the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these..,." We need be under no illusions of the evil within, that is contrary to the Spirit, and corrupts ourselves and all associated with us. The leaven needs to be purged out, and put away, for it tarnishes that which God has made clean. The feast of Unleavened bread continued for seven days in association of the Passover. The number seven is the number of completion, as in seven days a week. We are to be purging out leaven for ever, from our lives, from our homes, from our churches. We have, in Christ, been freed from a godless world, and from our inward selves-Romans 6v6-14, and others. We live in the full consciousness of God's hatred of sin in every form, and we live in the power of God to purge all evil. Continuation in leaven, in all that it represents, may result in separation from the congregation of Israel-chapter 12v19. A people associated with the blood of sacrifice must, continually root out evil, when it arises. "Ye shall eat nothing leavened: in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread"-12v20
Leaven may take the form of false doctrine, immorality, hypocrisy, or selfish living. None of it must be allowed to remain in the hearts of a worshipping people, who have been purified at great cost. Next in chapter12v29-51, the Passover separates Israel from the Pharoah who had held them in bondage- typical of the tyrant, the devil, who has held humanity in bondage to sin. Thus the Passover removes God's people from the threefold tyranny of bondage to the world, the flesh, and the devil, to free them to worship the living God under His care. Freedom from Satan will be our theme next time in the will of the Lord.
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