LESSON 20: Passover (Old Testament and New Testament)

(Exodus- Chapter 12, Matthew 26:26-29, Mark 14:22-25, Luke 22:14-20)

A long time ago, the Israelites were slaves in Egypt after the reign of king Joseph. Pharaoh the king of Egypt did not know Joseph and was afraid of the Israelites because they were growing in number. The Egyptians made the Israelites work very hard, building bricks and working in the fields. The Israelites were very sad and cried out to God for help. God heard their prayers and remembered His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God called Moses to bring the Israelites out of Egypt to a special land called Canaan. But Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, did not want to let them go. God sent many plagues to Egypt to show Pharaoh his power. These plagues included:

• Turning water into blood
• Frogs everywhere
• Lice
• Animals dying
• Painful boils
• Hailstorms
• Locusts
• Complete darkness
• Flies
• The worst plague was the death of the firstborn in every Egyptian home.

But Pharaoh still refused to let the Israelites leave. Finally, God sent the worst plague. He told Moses that every firstborn child and animal in Egypt would die. But God gave special instructions to the Israelites to protect them. On the 10th day of the first month of Abib, they were to take a one-year-old lamb without any defects. On the 14th day, they were to kill the lamb and put some of its blood on the doorframe of their houses. They were also to cook and eat the lamb with bitter herbs and unleavened bread. They were to eat it and not leave any leftovers for the morning. They were told to burn whatever that was leftover. They were to eat it quickly, ready to leave Egypt.

On that night, God passed over Egypt and struck down every first born of both people and animals. The Israelites were saved because they had the blood of the lamb on their door frames. The houses with the blood on the doorframes were kept safe. This is called the “Passover.” On that day the firstborns of all the Egyptians were killed, after this Pharaoh let the Israelites go. God told the Israelites to celebrate the Passover every year to remember how he saved them.

Just like the Israelites were saved from slavery in Egypt, Jesus came to save us from sin. Jesus is called the lamb of God because he sacrificed himself for us. We are saved by Jesus’ blood, which he shed for us when he died on the cross. God established the Holy Qurbana (Eucharist) to give us his body and blood as the New Testament Passover meal. In the New Testament, Jesus celebrated the Passover with his disciples before he died on the cross. He took bread and said, “This is My body.” He also took a cup and said, “This is My blood, which is poured out for the forgiveness of sins.” The New Testament Passover is celebrated on the day before Good Friday. On that day we take the Holy communion. By receiving the Holy communion, we are saved completely from death and have eternal life.