Gospel Reading Plan: Acts 1-2
Paul’s First Letter to
the Corinthians: DAY 8
RE-READ 1 Corinthians
5 & Exodus 12:14-20
In your journal, write
down the things that stick out to you from today’s Bible reading. Respond to
what God shows you as you feel led.
In the middle of chapter 5, Paul seems to go on a bit of
a rabbit trail as he talks about leaven (yeast) and the keeping of the
Passover. But to any Jewish listener this was not a rabbit trail at all! Part
of the instructions God gave to Moses regarding the Passover festival in Exodus
12 was the removal of leaven from the house. No leaven was to be found among
the Israelites during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. One reason was because the
unleavened bread was to be a representation of the haste in which they’d leave
Egypt (no time for bread to rise) and thus a reminder of God’s deliverance. But
as all Old Testament feast and festivals, this removal of leaven found a
connection with Christ as well. As Paul shows in this chapter, leaven
represents sin, and a little bit of sin can spread to the whole church. The
believers were individual Temples (4:16) and, as the Israelites were to remove
all leaven from their homes, the Christian must remove all sin from his body
which is God’s temple! As God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved (Col
3:12), the Corinthians were to remove sin from the church and their personal
lives. Jesus is our Passover Lamb – the perfect unleavened (sinless) Bread of
life! Therefore, we are to keep the Passover – not the sacrifice of animals –
but the removal of unrighteousness because we have been made holy by our great
God. And as all Old Testament festivals are prophetic of God’s new covenant
through Christ Jesus, the practice of communion has taken the place of Passover
for the Christian. We partake of the cup and the bread in remembrance of
Christ, the Passover Lamb.
PRAYER AND MEDITATION
1.
Isn’t it so neat that the things in the
Old Testament that often seem weird to us are actually prophetic pictures of
Jesus and the cross? Thank God for His wisdom and His purposes – that He does
nothing randomly. How can you be personally encouraged by this truth?
2.
What is one sinful attitude or action
God would like to help you fight against today? Commit this to Him, and ask Him
to help you see your obedience as a way to observe the Passover in your heart
today.
