This week the Jews will be celebrating the Feast of Passover. At this is very significant event they remember their Exodus from slavery in Egypt so long ago. But did you know that God also viewed this event as momentous – so much so, that He changed the Hebrew calendar! From that point on, the month of Passover (called Nisan) was to be considered as the first month of the religious calendar. This month signaled a whole new beginning.
Now the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, “This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you.”
Exodus 12:1-2 (NKJV)
A new beginning for the Israelites
The book of Exodus tells us the very first thing they were to do in this Passover month, was to make a choice. On the tenth day of Nisan they were instructed to choose a 1-year old male lamb, without blemish, for each household. The choice they made, was important. This lamb would become the Passover lamb, that was to be slaughtered 4 days later (see Exodus 12:3-6). The New Testament clearly shows Jesus is the Passover lamb, and a fulfilment of everything that happened during this first Passover in Egypt (1 Corinthians 5:7b). (More on this in the next post.)
But what is the significance of the tenth day – the day the Israelites had to choose the lamb? This day is clearly associated with making a choice that initiates a new beginning.
The Bible records two other significant events that happened on the tenth day of the first month. Both provide some insight into the significance of the tenth day and the new beginning that is being inaugurated.
A new beginning in a new land
The first event occurs approximately 40 years after this first Passover. Significantly, it was on the tenth day of the first month that the Israelites finally crossed into the Promised Land. Their time in the “wilderness” was over. This was a new beginning, in a new land.
Now the people came up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they camped in Gilgal on the east border of Jericho.
Joshua 4:19 (NKJV)
Notice this was the day the people “came up” (or ascended) from Jordan. The name “Jordan” means “descender,” because it flowed downward, or descended. For the Israelites, the tenth day of the first month was an “arising” or “ascending” into something they had not experienced before – a new land “flowing with milk and honey.”
Interestingly, in the Bible, “Jordan” is also associated with choices. The first mention of “Jordan” in the Bible is when Abraham’s nephew, Lot, chooses “the plain of Jordan” because it looks like a desirable place to live (Genesis 13:10-13). Lot describes the plain of Jordan as “well watered,” “like the garden of the Lord,” “like the land of Egypt.” However, those that lived there “were exceedingly wicked and sinful against the Lord.”
From its very first mention, Jordan becomes a symbol of wickedness and sin, and leaving Jordan (or “ascending” from Jordan) is a symbol of leaving these things behind. As it turns out, Lot’s choice to descend towards the plan of Jordan is not a good choice – for him, or for his family (see Genesis 19).
For Joshua and the Israelite people, the tenth day of the first month was a very significant day. It was the day they “ascended” into the land God had promised them long ago.
Jesus is the Lamb
The second event is in the New Testament. The tenth day of the first month was the day Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. Four days later, at Passover, Jesus died on a cross (Luke 19:28-40). Just as the Israelites of old chose the lamb on the tenth day of Nisan, Jesus now makes the deliberate choice to ride into Jerusalem as the Passover lamb.
Choose the Lamb
Choices and new beginnings often go together. New beginnings frequently involve choices. As we enter this “Passover” season, let’s be aware of our choices. Let’s choose THE Lamb, Jesus Christ, over all other things – even things that might “look” inviting to us. Let’s not align with Lot’s choice to “descend” and live in the plain of Jordan – instead, let’s choose to “ascend” into God’s promised land for us. And let’s be open to every new beginning God inaugurates.
It’s time to move into our “Promised Land.” It’s time to choose Jesus, the Lamb of God.
