I invite you to take your Bibles today and turn to the Old Testament, to Exodus. Exodus chapter 11 and 12. We have a longer reading today because of the context that's needed for this, the final plague which God sent upon Egypt and the institution of the Passover. It's at a Passover meal that Jesus instituted the Lord's Supper, which we now observe rather than Passover. because our Passover lamb has been sacrificed for us. Listen carefully, I think you'll hear the images that we've just sung about in this last hymn of Christ the Passover lamb who was without blemish sacrificed for us. Exodus chapter 11 verse one. The Lord said to Moses, yet one more plague will I bring upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward, he will let you go from here. When he lets you go, he'll drive you away completely. Speak now in the hearing of the people that they ask every man of his neighbor and every woman of her neighbor for silver and gold and jewelry. And the Lord gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians. Moreover, the man Moses was very great in the land of Egypt, in the sight of Pharaoh's servants and in the sight of the people. So Moses said, thus says the Lord. About midnight I will go out in the midst of Egypt, and every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the slave girl, who is behind the hand mill, and all the firstborn of the cattle. There shall be a great cry throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there has never been nor ever will be again. but not a dog shall growl against any of the people of Israel, either man or beast, that you may know that the Lord makes a distinction between Egypt and Israel. And all these your servants shall come down to me and bow down to me saying, get out, you and all the people who follow you. And after that, I will go out. And he went out from Pharaoh in hot anger. Then the Lord said to Moses, Pharaoh will not listen to you that my wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt. Moses and Aaron did all these wonders before Pharaoh and the Lord hardened Pharaoh's heart and he did not let the people of Israel go out of his land. Chapter 12, the Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, this month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the 10th day of this month, every man shall take a lamb according to their father's houses, a lamb for his household. And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons, according to what each of you can eat. you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male, a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, and you shall keep it until the 14th day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight. Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. They shall eat the flesh that night roasted on the fire with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. They shall eat it. Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted. its head with its legs and its inner parts. And you shall let none of it remain until morning. Anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. In this manner you shall eat it, with your belt fastened and your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand, and you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord's Passover, for I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast, and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments. I am the Lord. The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you. And no plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt. This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations, as a statute forever. You shall keep it as a feast. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven out of your houses. For if anyone eats what is leavened from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. On the first day you shall hold a holy assembly, and on the seventh day a holy assembly. No work shall be done on those days, but what everyone needs to eat, that alone may be prepared for you. And you shall observe the feast of unleavened bread, for on this very day I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt. Therefore, you shall observe this day throughout your generations as a statute forever. In the first month from the 14th day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread until the 21st day of the month at evening. For seven days, no leaven is to be found in your houses. If anyone eats what is leavened, that person will be cut off from the congregation of Israel. Whether he is a sojourner or a native of the land, you shall eat nothing leavened. In all your dwelling places, you shall eat unleavened bread. Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, go and select lambs for yourselves according to your clans and kill the Passover lamb. Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until morning. For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians. And when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you. You shall observe this right as a statute for you and for your sons forever. And when you come to the land that the Lord will give you, as he has promised, you shall keep this service. And when your children say to you, What do you mean by this service you shall say it is the sacrifice of the Lord's Passover for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel and Egypt when he struck the Egyptians but spared our houses and the people bowed their heads and worship. Then the people of Israel went and did so as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron. So they did. At midnight the Lord struck down all the firstborn of the land of Egypt from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon and all the firstborn of the livestock. And Pharaoh rose up in the night he and all his servants and all the Egyptians. And there was a great cry in Egypt. For there was not a house where someone was not dead. Thus ends the reading of God's Word. The grass withers and the flowers of the field fade away, but this is the Word of God. God's Word stands forever. Praise the Lord. Will you join me as we pray and ask God's blessing upon the ministry of the Word today? Our glorious Heavenly Father, we do bow before you and call on the name of the Lord today. We worship you just as your people did, whom we read about this morning in the text from Exodus, as they bowed before the God of all power and glory, holiness, judgment, the God of grace, the God of love, who offers us a wide open door of salvation. to hear the gospel, the good news, that there is a way to be rescued from the coming judgment. We thank you for the Lord Jesus Christ who gave his life for us. We pray you would stir up our hearts to love him more today, to follow him with thanksgiving and joy. Bless all who hear your word today. Draw near to every family, every person represented here. You know what each one needs most of all, and you're able to provide this out of the riches of your grace. And help me, your servant, to rightly divide your word today. We make our prayer with thanksgiving in Jesus' name. Amen. So the greatest of the 10 plagues is about to come upon Egypt. There have been nine plagues, nine blows. That's what the word in Hebrew means. Nine blows, nine strikes against Pharaoh and the Egyptians. Nine times God has come supernaturally. They're called wonders, mighty acts of judgment. Every step of the way, the God of mercy was calling the Egyptians to believe, to seek mercy, and particularly Pharaoh, the king. Through these plagues, God was calling people to repentance. There's a steady progress in the plagues, in their severity. The divine judgments become greater. even giving probationary time here and earlier on. With the plague of hail, give an order now to bring your livestock into shelter. Chapter 9, verse 19. Pharaoh was already warned what the end would be. He was already warned, your firstborn will die. With the first three plagues, the comfort of the Egyptians was affected. With the second three plagues, the possessions of the Egyptians were affected. and the last three brought desolation and death. Giving Pharaoh this unambiguous picture, this is of the Lord, this is above you, Pharaoh. This is above all your gods. This is of Yahweh, the one who is the source of life, the source of being, the God of life. This is no accident. Again, every step of the way, the God of mercy was calling the Egyptians to believe, to seek mercy. And through these plagues, God was calling his own people. to believe. As they saw what happened, they needed grace too. And the point for us today, this God who rules the heavens and the earth, even over Egypt, even over every nation of the world today, is patient and gentle, calling people to repentance and faith while there's still time to bow down and worship Him. So even today, every affliction Every trial, every earthquake, every storm, every hurricane, every tornado, every accident, every tragedy, every difficulty in this fallen sinful world is a call from heaven to turn back to God. It's a reminder that this world is not heaven. That we need to come now to repentance and faith to the Lord Jesus Christ. It's so very important for us to understand because we can start thinking when we see things happening in other places, we can start thinking that we don't deserve what comes our way or that when a hurricane hits part of the country or an earthquake hits a region of the world that they must be worse sinners than us and God is bringing this judgment upon them. God wouldn't let that happen here because we're better than them. Or when an accident happens to someone who seems so good, we might tend to think, well, why them? Were they secretly worse sinners than they appeared? The Lord Jesus addressed that point directly in Luke chapter 13. Remember in Luke chapter 13, some people heard Jesus preaching. They came and asked him a question about a terrible tragedy that had happened. And the implied question was, What was going on with them? Was there something secret going on with them? This is when Pilate had killed some Galileans and mixed their blood with their temple sacrifices, desecrating the temple. It was a horrible tragedy. Jesus said, do you really think the Galileans, these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? I tell you, no. But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those 18 who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them. Do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? I tell you, no. But unless you repent, you too will all perish. You see, instead of looking at these kinds of things that happen around us and say, why did God do this to them? We should be looking inside us saying, that could have been me. My life could have been snuffed out. I could just as easily have something like that happen to me. Am I right with God today? I need a Savior today. I need the Lord Jesus today. The Lord brought these plagues upon Egypt with this great purpose in mind. so that you may know that I am the Lord. That's what he kept repeating to Pharaoh. By this you will know that I am the Lord, with each one, so that you may know there is no one like me, so that you will know that I am the Lord, that you may know there is none like me, to show you my power, that my name might be proclaimed, so that you may know that I am the Lord. In other words, so that you may know I am God, I am in charge, I call the shots, and you must yield to me, Pharaoh. Those first plagues were warning shots, you might say, across the bow of Pharaoh's ship. And they became more and more severe and gradually beginning to strike closer to home. They didn't come haphazardly. They came with a steady hand, pressing closer and closer, becoming more and more severe, increasing the pressure. Even by the third plague, his own priests said, this is the finger of God. And after the seventh plague, with the warning of the eighth plague coming, Pharaoh's own officials said in so many words, how long are you going to let this man do this? Let the people go to worship the Lord. Can't you see that Egypt is on its last leg here? Egypt is ruined. And then with this last plague, the death of the firstborn, as with all the plagues, the purposes of the Lord, the reasons the Lord did this were numerous. God's revealing himself. Yahweh is demonstrating his sovereignty. He had the authority to say, let my people go. And Pharaoh needed to obey that voice. And the Lord is bringing judgment on their gods. He's demonstrating his superiority over all of them. They were false gods. And he's declaring that he alone is to be worshiped and served. For the majority of the portion of the text that we read before this message, the last plague has not yet come. There's this long lead up to the plague, this significant pause in the flow of the narrative. Instead of announcing the plague and the plague coming, there's this long text of Scripture. I think the break, this intermission, heightens the tension so that the leader, the hearers would have been saying, the listeners, so what's gonna happen? Tell me. But it also gives a time of preparation. For the Lord to give his own people adequate instructions. Here's how you will survive this plague. Here's how you will be spared. Here's how you can be saved. When the spirit of death comes over Egypt, it will pass over you if you follow these instructions. So the Passover was instituted, the most important yearly observance of the Israelites, the most mentioned feast in the New Testament. There are more references to Passover than any other festival. I'd like to get at this text this morning with these three questions. There's a bulletin outline in your bulletin if you'd like to follow along. First of all, number one, what were the instructions given to the Israelites? And then secondly, what were the reasons given for the people to follow these instructions and what was their response? So first of all, what were the instructions given to the Israelite as this last plague approached? The Lord gave the instructions to Moses and Aaron and then they were to in turn give these to the people. They were the messengers of the Lord. First of all, the Lord says, you need to totally reorient your lives from this day forward. What's about to happen with this final plague upon Egypt and Israel's deliverance from bondage to slavery was such a profound event that nothing would ever be the same again. It's so important, you even need a new calendar. This month is to be the first month, the beginning of months. See, before the Israelites started their calendar in the fall, Now there would be a new beginning. It was at that time in the springtime. A time which many of you who've ever lived up north know is wonderful when winter is over. Because new life begins. So this new calendar was to be a continual reminder of the grace of God to them, delivering them from the hand of the enemy. Your bondage is over. All things are made new now. You're gonna start counting days differently because of this. See, what God was about to do with this last plague was so momentous, it would be as if they had new life. A new day had come. You can see what this is all about, can't you? The shadow this is, this whole event. It's like they're being born again. Like their lives are starting all over. The old is gone, the new has come. It's all a shadow of Christ who makes all things new. And so the Lord instructs his people, you'll have a new calendar. You'll be remembering this event for generations to come. This is what you will do now and every year at this time to consider again what God has done. Never forget. Now, the first thing the Israelites were to do, verse three, on the 10th day of the month, they were to take a lamb for his family, one for each household. And if your household's too small, combine with other neighbors. And if you've got big eaters in your family, take into account, it says, how much they'll eat. So if Juwan were staying with you, you would have more food. If you've got teenagers who eat a lot of food, you're gonna need more lamb. That's exactly what the Lord is saying here. If you've got little ones who don't eat much, consider that, because you gotta eat all of it. Family life hasn't changed. Some of these families surely had high school aged boys with big appetites. Some surely had children who ate like birds and didn't eat much. And not only, not any old lamb would do, it had to be a spotless lamb, verse five, without defect and perfect in every way. And they were to take care of that lamb from the 10th day of the month to the 14th day of the month for the Lord appointed on that night that each family was to take a lamb and they were to kill it and eat it together. But before they cooked it, before they roasted it, verse 7, they were to take the flesh of the lamb, the blood of the lamb, and sprinkle the doorposts with the blood of the lamb of the houses where they would be gathering to eat. None of the Egyptians knew about this. Their houses would not have lamb's blood sprinkled on the frame of the house. This is what would separate the Israelites from the Egyptians. And after they sprinkled their doors with the blood of the lamb, there was a particular way they were instructed to eat it. They were to roast it over the fire, over the flames. They were to eat it with unleavened bread not waiting for the yeast or leaven to make the bread rise because they were to be ready to go to make haste and they were to eat with traveling clothes on. They were to eat it with bitter herbs the first time and every time to remind themselves of the bitter life they were leaving so that they didn't forget. Exodus 1, the Israelites living in Egypt became fruitful and multiplied and it says that the Egyptians made their lives bitter with hard labor. They were to eat all of it. They were not to leave any leftovers for the next day. Why? They needed to trust the Lord. Don't put anything in a little doggy bag for tomorrow. Eat it all. I'll take care of you. He would provide. Well, secondly, this morning, what were the reasons given to the people to follow this instruction? Verses 12 to 20 in chapter 12. Why did the people have to do this? Well, it's really quite simple. The main reason was not complicated. You don't have to spend time weighing the pros and cons. You don't have to analyze the risk and benefit ratio. The reason given is this is how you'll live. On that night, that same night, as you do these things, I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn, both men and animals, and I'll bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord. This is why they do it. This blood will be a sign on the houses where you are. When I see the blood, I'll pass over you. That's where we get the word Passover. I'll pass over you. and the destructive plague will not touch you. Sounds pretty clear, doesn't it? I don't know, that's a pretty convincing argument. Do you see the choice given? Do this and live. Either your firstborn will die or a substitute will die, the lamb in your place. Now if you had been there, say you are a Hebrew parent, a dad or a mom, I don't think you would have said, well, you know, I want my children to decide for themselves. I want them to grow up and choose for themselves which way to go. I don't think you would have said that. And if you had heard these instructions from Moses, I don't think you would have said, you know, this sounds so restrictive. This sounds so narrow-minded. It doesn't sound very fair. And besides, what if I don't want to have lamb? What if I want pizza tonight? I don't think you would have said that. And if you had been there, I don't think you would have said, you know, this can wait. I got plans for now. I got some living to do. I don't want to be stuck home all night. And I don't think you would have said, I don't know, this is too much trouble. This is too much trouble. Taking care of a lamb and roasting it and spreading his blood. I'll just lock the door. And if you'd been there, I don't think you would have said, I know Moses says what we should do and I believe it's right. I believe it's the only way. I've seen the results of the previous plagues. I know Yahweh is holy and righteous. But I don't deserve it. I'm just as bad as the Egyptians. Probably worse. So I'll get everything ready and make sure my family is safe inside and then I'll just wait outside the door. I don't deserve to be safe. You know, the same promise is given today, and the same warnings are given today, and people make all the same excuses given here. These instructions given to Israel summarize the gospel. God says today, the Lord Jesus Christ is our Passover lamb. He's been sacrificed. 1 Corinthians chapter five, Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Just as there was only one way for the Israelites to be spared, there's only one way to be spared today from the coming judgment at the end of time. We need the Lamb of God who was spotless and without sin. Peter describes him in 1 Peter chapter 1, you've been redeemed with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect. We need the Lamb of God that was slain, roasted by the wrath of God on the cross, by the flames of hell. We need to look back to our former way of life and sin and remember how bitter it was, how sin was a bitter taskmaster. We need the application of blood over the doorposts, so to speak, of our own lives, over our souls. We need to look by faith and believe that His shed blood will protect us from death as a substitute and there is no other. There is no other option. We need to not just look at the Lamb. We need to feast upon the Lamb. by faith. We need to feed our souls upon Christ to taste of His mercy, to eat His flesh, so to speak, spiritually. That is, we need to receive Him and partake all of Him and His promises and His commands, to appropriate for ourselves what He offers us, to believe and receive Him. Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God who delivers us from death. Only in Him are we saved. Only in Him are we protected. The main reason that they were given to follow the Lord's instructions is the same reason you should believe the gospel. This is the way of life. This is the truth. Well, lastly, this morning, what was their response? Well, Moses called all the elders of Israel together and he gave them the instructions the Lord had given him. He gave them the details. He gave them the reason. He gave them the pattern for the future, the Passover feasts. He told them that in the future when you enter the land, you're to observe this as a teachable moment. Teach your children this so you can recount the Lord's mercy to you. And then did you see the response from the people of God? Chapter 12, verse 37. The people bowed down and they worshipped and they did what the Lord commanded. They bowed down, that is they revered the word of the Lord, they humbled themselves. There was none of this grumbling and complaining that had come out of their mouths early on. Exodus 5, may the Lord look upon you, Moses, and judge you. You've made a stench to Pharaoh and his officials and put a sword in their hand to kill us. Oh, there's no more complaining anymore. They bowed down in worship. They believed. They worshiped God. They saw that God was a God of mercy even before his deliverance came. They saw the deliverance on the horizon. They saw their deliverance coming and they worshiped God just as we worship today. We worship God for what he's promised to us in heaven even before we get there. And the last thing, verse 38, what was their response? They did what the Lord commanded. They obeyed. They believed. They believed in the substitute, that this lamb would be sacrificed instead of me. This lamb's blood will save me. That was their response. So simple question today for you. What's your response? What's your response? The Lamb of God has been sacrificed. Come today and believe what God has provided to spare you from the judgment that is to come. God so loved the world He gave His only begotten Son so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life. God so loved Israel that he gave this promise, a sacrifice of a lamb, that whoever believes and spreads the blood on the doorposts of their home would be spared. They would not perish. You see the connection? It's so clear. It's the same author from beginning of Genesis to the very end of Revelation. It's one God, one Savior, one plan come to Christ. What excuses hold up against what you know to be clear and true? Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. Praise the Lord. And this meal before us today is to remind our senses, our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength to remind us of the promise of God in Jesus Christ. Amen. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we bow before you and pray that you would take this word of God and apply it to our hearts and now speak to us through this visible sermon of the Lord's Supper. Come and bless your people richly today, Lord. We make our prayer in Jesus' name. Amen.