Jesus and Passover

[ssheet]

Until reading chapter thirteen's section on The passion and the Passover lamb, I had not thought much about the close ties between Jesus and the Passover. John's emphasis on how the passover elements [pg 219] tie with the Jesus actions point out that there is a great deal we must learn from the Passover and that it is not just a Jewish holiday that is irrelevant to Christians. In reflection upon the Passover lamb, we see the lambs blood marks the homes of God's people so the angel of death passes over and God's people can live. The lamb also is the animal that is given as a sin offering. Jesus takes the role of the Lamb of God who saves mankind from the consequences of sin so they can live. If for no other reason, this is why we should reflect on passover. It gives us a better understanding of how God saves his people and the great sacrifice of Jesus. But Jesus is also the Good Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep and so in the Book of John you have Jesus presented as both the final and all-sufficient passover lamb as well as the Greatest Shepherd who lays his life down for the sheep and takes it up again. In my opinion, the closest approximation to the Passover celebration in Christianity is Easter. We reflect on the death and resurrection of Jesus and how that enables us to be saved. We remember how Jesus marks us as God's people. As with any holiday or ritual, Passover and Easter can just become another day off with religious events, but with a renewed reading of John's gospel, we can point out the Passover connections so people will be encouraged to re-examine passover, and re-examine it's connection to Jesus so they can appreciate both Passover and Easter as reminder of God's salvation and his relationship with His people.