Nissan: a time to passover

We are at a crossroads in America, and our next steps will determine this nation’s destiny. Much innocent blood has been spilt in the name of woman’s rights and that blood has cried out and reached the ears of Yahweh. We desperately need the blood of Jesus to purify our nation. Satan has been busy pillaging and ransacking the children of God under the watch of a sleeping Bride [of Christ]. This is a familiar scene in the earth, because Israel has walked these very same steps before and left us a warning post to alert us to danger. You may be wondering like I was, what caused this bride to fall asleep? And who can wake her? Today, in the Hebrew month of Nissan, the word of God has answers to those important questions. I believe the Lord wants to teach us the importance of Passover, so that we, His Bride, can move out of the modern day Egypt.

Israel Forgot to Remember

The First Passover

Abraham’s family multiplied to astounding numbers after they had moved into Egypt. This terrified the Pharaoh 400 years after the time of Joseph, and it caused him to enslave the Hebrew people. Not only did he oppress them, but he also called for the murder of every baby born during that time. God was aware of everything that happened in Egypt, and He had already put in place a plan of redemption. Moses was saved from this infanticide, and the Lord commissioned him to set the Israelites free from their captivity.

The battle that took place between Moses and Pharaoh was a representation of a spiritual battle between the forces of good and evil. Moses was an attendant at the altar of Yahweh, and Pharaoh was an attendant at the altar of false gods. In the end, God always wins, and that is something we need to remember today. Moses was instructed to command the Pharaoh to let his people go, and Pharaoh did not comply. So the Lord brought plagues to Egypt, while protecting the land where His people lived, a place named Goshen.

Each plague was a sign to Egypt that Yahweh was God, and all other gods were merely idols. The final plague was the last straw for Pharaoh because God took the life of his first born. It is apparent that God holds wicked rulers accountable to their crimes because a former Pharaoh had killed the firstborn of the Israelites, and now Egypt was reaping the consequences of his actions. In the Exodus account we can discern that false gods are unable to protect anyone from death. God is revealing here that salvation can only come through Him.

Passover became Israel’s protection during that final plague, and there is a parallel to the Passover Lamb of our Lord Jesus Christ, who sacrificed Himself on the altar of the cross. The Israelites were instructed to take a spotless lamb and kill it, smearing its blood over the doorpost of their dwellings, and consuming its meat, leaving nothing left over. The blood would protect the inhabitants from death, and the meat that was consumed would bring healing to all their bodies. This is a beautiful picture of who Jesus is for us today.

Moses’ Charge to Israel

In the eighth chapter of Deuteronomy, Moses gives Israel a set of instructions before they enter the promised land.

Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day.  Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.

Deuteronomy 8:11-14 NIV

Moses was warning the people of Israel to not forget the Lord their God. Part of the reason for this is because human memory can be altered by what has their attention. The same is true for us! If we keep God in remembrance, we are less likely to forget His goodness and His mercy to us. The celebration of Passover was instituted by God to keep His goodness and deliverance at the forefront of His children’s memory.

Captivity

Unfortunately, Israel forgot to remember. They stopped celebrating the Passover among other things, and it had a negative impact on the generations to come.

And the Israelites did not remember the Lord their God, who had rescued them from the hand of all their enemies on every side-

Judges 8:34 AMP

This amnesia caused Israel to go into captivity at the hand of various nations such as Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome. God had made a covenant with Israel, and Israel had had not remained faithful.

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
Because you have rejected knowledge,
I also will reject you from being priest for Me;
Because you have forgotten the law of your God,
I also will forget your children.

hosea 4:6 KJV

Even though Israel was disloyal, the Lord remained faithful throughout the generations, and He carried out His promise to Abraham through His son Jesus. When we look at the genealogy of Jesus, we can trace His roots back to Abraham, and are reminded of God’s promise, “all peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 12:3). Jesus was the blessing that came out of the family of Abraham. He became the Passover lamb for Jews and Gentiles. He was the final solution to the problem of sin and death, and it is only through Him that we receive salvation.

The Church Forgot to Remember and She Fell Asleep

There is a parallel of amnesia in regards to Christ’s Church, His Bride. Just like Israel, the Church of Jesus Christ forgot to remember Yahweh. They took their eyes off of Him and focused on other things, ignoring the warning signs along the way. The Church in the book of Acts is the original Church, and the Greek word for “Church” is ekklisía; which is a governmental term. Christ did not come to build upon the religious institution of the priests of Israel. Jesus birthed something known as the Kingdom of God, or the Kingdom of Heaven. This is God’s government in the earth, and it is ruled by Jesus Christ. Jesus is the head, and the Church, or ekklisia, is His body. We were instructed by Jesus to remember Him and what He did for us.

Unfortunately, history tells us that we forgot to remember and got our eyes off of His blood. The Church was persecuted for many years, and it wore on the people of God. They were pleading for reprieve when a Roman Emperor offered them what appeared as liberty. Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity and promoted religious tolerance in 313 AD through the Edict of Milan. Unfortunately, Constantine’s conversion did not produce the fruit of Christ. He hated the Jews and did everything in his power to remove the Jewish background from the Church. Constantine was responsible for removing Jesus from the context of Passover (Council of Nicaea).

Around three-hundred years later, another Emperor, named Justinian, came into power. Roman emperor Justinian enforced a banning on the celebration of the Passover for the Church. The purpose of this ban was to wipe out the “blasphemy” of Passover. He claimed that Passover, an appointed time of God, was heretical. This is interesting, because if Passover was indeed heretical, that would make Jesus a blasphemer, along with His followers in the books of the New Testament.

In the years following Justinian, the Roman Catholic Church pronounced a curse on Christians who celebrate Passover (Council of Antioch).

“If any bishop, presbyter or deacon will dare, after this decree, to celebrate Passover, the council judges them to be anathema [cursed] from the church. This council not only deposes them from ministry, but also any others who dare to communicate with them.”

It is important to note here that God does not permit His Church to curse others. Cursing is a part of rebellion to God’s word, and rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft according to 1 Samuel 15:23. Like the religious leaders in the days of Jesus, the religious leaders in the Roman Catholic Church were making their own rules apart from the word of God. And the hidden motive behind all of this was control. When a people go their own way instead of listening to the voice of their Good Shepherd, they end up perverting the gospel and moving away from the teachings of Jesus.

Twenty years after the curse was spoken, another decree was made regarding the celebration of Passover in the Church (Council of Laodicea).

“It is not permitted to receive festivals which are by Jews.”

The Council continued to lead God’s people astray, placing more rules that forbade God’s people to remember God’s appointed times. This should stir up a righteous anger in God’s people today. We were deceived and put to sleep. Two hundred years later, in the country of France, another council met (Council of Agde). The church in France decided to continue this forbidding of God’s appointed times by making this decree:

“Christians must not take part in Jewish festivals.”

During the Anglo-Saxon age, or the 7th century, there was yet another council that met in what is now as the country of Spain (Council of Toledo X). This was the Roman Catholic Church meeting to discuss rules and regulations. There was a decree made within this meeting that again took God’s people away from celebrating Passover.

“Easter must be celebrated at the time by the decree of Nicaea.”

Who Can Wake the Bride?

America is filled with churches, there is a church on every corner, and yet the culture of America remains unchanged. We have caused this unholy sacred/secular divide and neglected our duty as watchmen on the wall of our nation. Many people in the United States claim to be Christians, but there is no fruit of His Spirit in their life. They are living like the walking dead, unbelieving believers, unresponsive to God’s voice. There are demonic theologies within the church that call evil good and good evil. People have become lovers of themselves, neglecting the poor, widows, and sojourners. I hope you can see the parallel to what happened in Israel before Jesus was born. We are going down the same path, walking away from the truth of the Word. Is there any hope for the Bride of Christ? She forgot to remember the power of the blood of Jesus and adopted religious practices instead of developing a closer connection to Jesus. She has become divided over the last two millennia and put into a coma. Will she remain dormant forever, or is there anyone who can wake her up?

Just as the story of Sleeping Beauty and Snow White, the bride can only be awakened by true love’s kiss. Jesus Christ, the King of the Universe, is coming to wake His Bride from the sleeping death. Only Jesus can do this. There is no other man who can unite the people of God, just Jesus. He already paved the way by the power of His blood, and He wants to infuse His bride with new life! This is more than a revival we are crying out for; we need an outpouring of His Spirit in our lives. We need deliverance from demonic oppression, and we need the power of witchcraft to be broken in our land. Our minds need to be transformed by the Living Word of the Lord. If this is something that your heart is longing for, turn your eyes on Jesus and the power of His redeeming blood.

The Power of Remembering Passover

Jesus Fulfilled the Passover

Chuck Peirce and Robert Heidler share about how Jesus was the fulfillment of Passover in their book A Time to Advance:

Jesus is the Passover Lamb. When John introduced Jesus, He said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29, NKJV). Paul said, “Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed” (1 Cor. 5:7, NIV). In Revelation 4-5, we see all heaven joining together in what is essentially a huge Passover celebration honoring Jesus as the Lamb who was slain!

The Power of the Blood

Passover is all about Jesus. He came to us as the Lamb of God and His blood redeems us from many different things. His blood is the most powerful blood in the entire universe. With so much bloodshed that cries out to the throne of God, Jesus’ blood speaks a better word. Abel’s blood cried out for justice, and Jesus’ blood provides both judgment and mercy. Those who believe in Him and allow Him to be their Lord, His blood cries mercy! However, for those who reject Jesus, the destroyer is allowed to pronounce judgement upon them. We need to understand the power of the blood and come under the redemptive covering of His blood today. Ponder what His blood has done:

• His Blood REDEEMS US!
• His Blood TURNS JUDGEMENT AWAY!
• His Blood BREAKS THE POWER OF THE ENEMY!
• His Blood RELEASES US FROM BONDAGE AND OPPRESSION!
• His Blood BRINGS FREEDOM!
• His Blood CONNECTS US TO THE FATHER!

How We Can Remember Passover

My prayer is that this post has stirred up a passion within you for rediscovering the feast of Passover. It’s important that we remember there is no one right way to celebrate this festival. You can make your Passover celebration as elaborate or as simple as you want. Some people choose to purchase a copy of a Messianic Seder and go through all the elaborate rituals, but this is not a requirement to participating in God’s appointed time of Passover. You can observe Passover by simply sharing a meal and telling the Passover story, and then close the meal by taking Communion to celebrate Jesus, our Passover Lamb. The goal of Passover is to remember God’s deliverance. We do this by thanking God for delivering us from the spiritual bondage of sin and freeing us to come into the land of His Promise. How will you engage with God in this season? I pray that you would come into new dimensions of freedom in the month of Nissan and discover the power of the blood of the Lamb.

Resources

Pierce, Chuck D., and Chuck Pierce. “A Modern Day Plague.” The Passover Prophecies, Charisma House, Lake Mary, FL, 2020, pp. 34–41.

Pierce, Chuck D., et al. “Advancing from Blessing to Blessing.” A Time to Advance: Understanding the Significance of the Hebrew Tribes and Months, Glory of Zion International, Inc., Denton, TX, 2011, pp. 108–109.