I’m a Cracked Egg

Ever since I was a child, Easter has held much confusion for me. Since I was raised with conflicting religious messages (being raised by a Jewish grand father who was married to my Catholic grand mother) – I couldn’t figure out the whole Passover/Jesus/Easter thing….  For me, it was like this: on one hand there is Passover, a somber day, which only my Jewish loved ones recognized. On the other hand is Easter, a strange holiday with bunnies and colored eggs and fancy dresses and everyone goes to church. My Christian loved ones told me to ignore my Jewish loved one’s beliefs on top of all this. This was very odd and confusing for a child to deal with.

Being all grown up now, I understand the significance of why Christians celebrate Easter. It stands for Resurrection Sunday, the day Jesus came back to life after He died on the cross for the sins of mankind. However, with my limited Jewish background, knowing Jesus walked this earth AS a Jew, I have always wondered about the seemingly opposing holidays that hovered around each other every year and now and then landing on the same day.

However, did you know that Jesus’ Last Supper wasn’t just a last supper, but a PASSOVER supper, before He went out and died on a cross for our sins? That was never taught to me in Sunday School. It is significant to me, knowing as little as I do of the Jewish religion my grand father loved.

Luke 22:7-20 – The day of unleavened bread came, on which the Passover must be sacrificed. 8 He sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and prepare the Passover for us, that we may eat.” 9 They said to him, “Where do you want us to prepare?” 10 He said to them, “Behold, when you have entered into the city, a man carrying a pitcher of water will meet you. Follow him into the house which he enters. 11 Tell the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says to you, “Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?”‘ 12 He will show you a large, furnished upper room. Make preparations there.” 13 They went, found things as he had told them, and they prepared the Passover. 14 When the hour had come, he sat down with the twelve apostles. 15 He said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer, 16 for I tell you, I will no longer by any means eat of it until it is fulfilled in the Kingdom of God.” 17 He received a cup, and when he had given thanks, he said, “Take this, and share it among yourselves, 18 for I tell you, I will not drink at all again from the fruit of the vine, until the Kingdom of God comes.” 19 He took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and gave to them, saying, “This is my body which is given for you. Do this in memory of me.” 20 Likewise, he took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

Passover is a huge deal. It’s when God’s people were ‘passed over’ by God’s death angel in Egypt during the time Moses was helping his people get away from Pharaoh after 400 years of slavery. The Israelites had to…. Here, you read it for yourself:

Exodus 12:1-14 – Yahweh spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, 2 “This month shall be to you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year to you. 3 Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying, ‘On the tenth day of this month, they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household; 4 and if the household be too little for a lamb, then he and his neighbor next to his house shall take one according to the number of the souls; according to what everyone can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. 5 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You shall take it from the sheep, or from the goats: 6 and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month; and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at evening. 7 They shall take some of the blood, and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel, on the houses in which they shall eat it. 8 They shall eat the flesh in that night, roasted with fire, and unleavened bread. They shall eat it with bitter herbs. 9 Don’t eat it raw, nor boiled at all with water, but roasted with fire; with its head, its legs and its inner parts. 10 You shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; but that which remains of it until the morning you shall burn with fire. 11 This is how you shall eat it: with your waist girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it in haste: it is Yahweh’s Passover. 12 For I will go through the land of Egypt in that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and animal. Against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am Yahweh. 13 The blood shall be to you for a token on the houses where you are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and there shall no plague be on you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt. 14 This day shall be to you for a memorial, and you shall keep it a feast to Yahweh: throughout your generations you shall keep it a feast by an ordinance forever.”

Do you see the significance of the Passover Lamb’s blood on the door posts and claiming Jesus’ blood in our hearts to save us?  This is why Paul wrote in 1Corinthians 5:7 “… For indeed Christ, our Passover, has been sacrificed in our place.”

Why have we not been taught this in church before?

So how does Easter come into play when it was never mentioned in the Bible?

Yes, Dear Readers, these questions keep me up at night! Come back tomorrow as I dig deeper into the mystery of Easter/Jesus/Passover.

P.S. March 3 – Here is a cartoon tract about this very thing I wrote about yesterday. I was saved by these tracts and am thrilled to find one that talks about this very subject – “Poor Little Lamb“