This past Passover (which ended Tuesday, April 6) served to me as further proof that no matter how ancient God's ways are, they are new--or perhaps I should say renewed--daily for those who desire intimacy with Him.
Passover--both in its original form as told to us in Exodus 12, as well as in the customs that have been developed over the centuries--has so many deep meanings. It is, first and foremost, the celebration of the deliverance of the people of God. That should be obvious to almost anyone. But whenever I have a chance to conduct Passover seders (the traditional Passover meal with the re-telling of the Passover story, replete with all the customs and traditions), it never fails that God, through His Ruach HaKodesh, shows me--or perhaps I should say reminds me--of other deep and fundamental truths that this glorious holiday embodies.
This year, I was so impressed--and convicted--by the element of sanctification that is integral to Passover. Yes, Passover is about freedom and deliverance. In order for the ancient Israelites to be delivered from the plagues that befell Egypt, they had to be set apart. They had living apart from the Egyptians. They had to apply the blood of a slain lamb to the doorposts of their home. They had to stay in their homes till morning. If they failed in keeping any of these regulations, they would have likely undergone the same judgements as the Egyptians.
If you cry out to God, He will deliver you. And He will also do the work of sanctification in you that you can't do yourself. But...you have a part to play in the process, and that part is this: obey orders! If He tells you to do something, do it. If He tells you to forgive someone, forgive them.
A week before Passover started, I experienced God's deliverance--and His sanctification. I was dealing with a lot of anger toward our government over a lot of issues--including this administration's shameful treatment of Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu in the days following the Vice President's trip to Israel. Yet in my car on the way to work one morning, I was set free from that anger. I received a reminder--and an anointing (that is, a supernatural ability)--to pray for President Obama and for all our governmental leaders. The anger I was feeling was transformed into compassion as I released these men and women to God and was thus able to see them through His eyes. I was so powerfully reminded that judgement is God's job, and if I try to do His job then He can't and won't.
It is significant that the Passover seder begins with the washing of hands. In my experience, this is one of the more overlooked customs of Passover, but this year it came alive. I was reminded afresh of the biblical prerequisite, found in Psalm 24, of having both clean hands and a pure heart in order to approach God.
Had that not taken place, I would not have been ready for Passover. Oh sure, I could have conducted some seders and done a wonderful job, but no lives would be changed--including mine. After all, isn't that ultimately what Passover is all about?
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