Copyright © 2011 For It Is Written Ministries. All rights reserved.
Unleavened Bread (Chag HaMatzot) – A Time of Abstinence Resulting in renewed Sanctification
– Lev 23:6-
The seven days of Unleavened Bread begin with the Passover meal. By the time the
seder (dinner) begins, we are already prepared to cleanse our inner lives and leave
Egypt behind. The rituals of the dinner meal provide specific visual reminders of
the burden of sin (Egypt-
During the seven days of Unleavened Bread, we are not to eat
or possess leaven. Leaven is used in the Scriptures to represent sin because leaven
causes breads to rise or "puff up" (like pride does in our hearts) even when just
a little is added, and it is impossible to know if it is in the batter until its
effects are seen in the rising of the bread itself. In the same way sin can go undetected
in our hearts until we are tested and it rises to the surface as pride. The commandment
itself provides a specific and unique physical reality for us today and this process
expresses our inner transformation.
It is amazing how each year that I have obeyed
the Lord to remove physical leaven from my home, He has always opened my eyes in
a new and clearer way as to how sin can get hidden in my heart. Taking the time to
obey in the external physical aspects of this Appointed Time of Yahweh allowed me
time to reflect on that which the symbolic acts represented. This process of self
reflection and searching my heart for any hidden leaven allowed me to truly and deliberately
offer it up to God and allow Him to help me break free from these remaining areas
of sin in my life.
The themes associated with Unleavened Bread and Passover are so
intertwined that their meaning and significance overlap. At Passover we remember
the redemption of our lives through the blood of the Lamb; and through the seven
days of Unleavened Bread we experience the removal of all sin (leaven) from our being
both on a spiritual and a physical level. The physical aspects are specifically used
by God to reinforce and assist in our spiritual development.
The combination of Passover
and the seven days of Unleavened Bread create both physical and spiritual realities
in our lives as well as important teaching opportunities for our children. We experience
again the reality of our freedom in Christ, and our walk of faith through the wilderness
purifies us from all sin (leaven) that remains in our lives, preparing us to enter
the ‘Promised Land,’ a day which we all look forward to at Christ's return in the
second and greater Exodus. And before the seven days of Unleavened Bread are complete,
the countdown to the next appointment on the calendar has already begun.
My family
and I have found that the act of fulfilling the commandments related to the spring
appointments is most effective when we select one particular sin or area of the flesh
to prayerfully bring before God and allow the Master to free us from that bondage.
This observance has given us many opportunities to teach our children about the realities
of sin, the process of redemption, and the disciplines of self-
First Fruits – He Is Risen! – Lev 23:10 -
Lev 23:10-
1 Corinthians 15:20, “But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the First Fruits of those who are asleep.”
Matt 27:52-
In these verses, and by the fact that Yeshua waited to ascend to the Father (see
John 20:17) until the time of the First Fruits wave offering, indicate that the Resurrection
of Matthew 27:52-
This time is significant for us as believers because it allows us a specific time
to connect the redemption we received at Passover with the Resurrection of Messiah
3 days later. Since we do not inherit any significant memorial events for this day
from non-
Passover (Pesach) – A Moment of Redemption – Lev 23:4-
Passover (Pesach in Hebrew) is the name of the lamb sacrifice. Our observance of
this Appointed Time marks the anniversary of the atoning sacrifice of our Passover
Lamb, Jesus the Christ, (or Yeshua in Hebrew). The sacrifice offered at Passover
during Temple times provides a vivid picture of the necessity of blood in the atonement
for sin. It reminds us that mankind cannot come to the Father without this offering
from His Son.
Passover is intimately connected to Unleavened Bread, which mandates
a time for casting out spiritual leaven (always used as a symbol of sin in the Bible)
from our lives. At the Last Supper on the eve of Passover, Yeshua (Jesus) revealed
to the disciples God’s ultimate fulfillment of what this Appointed Time had, since
Israel's Exodus from Egypt, foreshadowed. He further explained that He had yet to
face the execution stake (cross) as John had foretold: “Behold, the Lamb of God who
takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29).
Our participation in a memorial “seder” (i.e. memorial dinner) (and, if it were possible, the partaking of the Passover sacrifice) celebrates and forever memorializes the atoning work of Christ, our redemption from sin, and the bondage we once had under Pharaoh (i.e. satan).
As we enter this first Appointed Time of the Spring Appointed Times, we recognize
the fact that we have been redeemed and are now free to serve God. Not only is this
an eternal reality in our lives having been purchased by the blood of our Passover
lamb (Jesus the Christ or in Hebrew Yeshua the Messiah) but each year we have the
opportunity to focus on and bring a specific area of sin that is still lingering
in our lives and allow the Father to purge us of that sin, enabling us to continually
grow and mature in our faith as each year God strips away another layer of ourselves
(our flesh) and reveals the true picture of what we look like in Christ.
The Passover
dinner (seder) service ushers in the entire week of Unleavened Bread-
Passover , Unleavened Bread, & First Fruits
Passover-