We observe the Feast of Passover—not in a literal sense of the Old Testament fulfillment, but in its New Testament application: Christ our Passover, crucified for us. We keep the Feast, not with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
The Passover, one of the greatest miracles of the Old Testament, has been observed by the Jewish people down through the centuries. Christians also observe it in its true application every time they partake of the body and the blood of the Lord in the Communion. Some of the precious Passover truths have been greatly neglected.
And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, And I, behold, I have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of all the first-born that openeth the womb among the children of Israel; and the Levites shall be mine: for all the first-born are mine; on the day that I smote all the first-born in the land of Egypt I hallowed unto me all the first-born in Israel, both man and beast; mine they shall be: I am the Lord. Numbers 3:11–13. God killed the first-born of Egypt and He hallowed the first-born of Israel.
We find this great truth repeated in Exodus 13:1–16: And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Sanctify unto me all the first-born, whatsoever openeth the womb among the children of Israel, both of man and of beast: it is mine. And Moses said unto the people, Remember this day, in which ye came out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the Lord brought you out from this place: there shall no leavened bread be eaten. This day ye go forth in the month Abib.
And it shall be, when the Lord shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, which he sware unto thy fathers to give thee, a land flowing with milk and honey, that thou shalt keep this service in this month. Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, and in the seventh day shall be a feast to the Lord. Unleavened bread shall be eaten throughout the seven days; and there shall no leavened bread be seen with thee, neither shall there be leaven seen with thee, in all thy borders.
And thou shalt tell thy son in that day, saying, It is because of that which the Lord did for me when I came forth out of Egypt. And it shall be for a sign unto thee upon thy hand, and for a memorial between thine eyes, that the law of the Lord may be in thy mouth: for with a strong hand hath the Lord brought thee out of Egypt. Thou shalt therefore keep this ordinance in its season from year to year.
And it shall be, when the Lord shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanite, as he sware unto thee and to thy fathers, and shall give it thee, that thou shalt set apart unto the Lord all that openeth the womb, and every firstling which thou hast that cometh of a beast; the males shall be the Lord’s. And every firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a lamb; and if thou wilt not redeem it, then thou shalt break its neck: and all the first-born of man among thy sons shalt thou redeem.
And it shall be, when thy son asketh thee in time to come, saying, What is this? that thou shalt say unto him, By strength of hand the Lord brought us out from Egypt, from the house of bondage: and it came to pass, when Pharaoh would hardly let us go, that the Lord slew all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both the first-born of man, and the first-born of beast: therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all that openeth the womb, being males: but all the first-born of my sons I redeem. And it shall be for a sign upon thy hand, and for frontlets between thine eyes: for by strength of hand the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt.
The twenty-third chapter of Leviticus gives an account of the seven feasts of the Lord. After the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread they gathered enough stalks of barley grain to make a little sheaf which they waved to the Lord. Seven weeks later, on the fiftieth day, they kept the Feast of Pentecost. Then they baked two fresh loaves of bread and waved them before the Lord. Christ, the First-Fruit, came forth as the First Sheaf. According to James 1:18, we come forth at the Feast of Pentecost as the first-fruits of all the things that God will bring forth in the ages to come: Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures. Here we see another beautiful principle which is even greater than the tithing principle. The principle of the first-born was part of the Passover; every mother had to redeem her first-born son to the Lord, for He belonged to God, but all the first-born of Egypt had to die.
This is a symbol of a great truth. What would happen if we followed that principle of first-fruits and the first-born? A blessing would rest upon us beyond anything we could imagine. Proverbs 3:9, 10 gives us a beautiful promise: Honor the Lord with thy substance, And with the first-fruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, And thy vats shall overflow with new wine. This is the key of prosperity: acknowledge God’s claims first and He’ll see that the abundance flows to you. Don’t hold back that first-born son, the light of your life. Don’t hold back the first grapes on the vine, the first money when you cash your check. Always give God the first for He has an abhorrence of the leftovers. Remember this principle: if a man will first give God a portion of all that He lays in his hands, God will bless abundantly what he has left.
Rarely do we fully understand the Bible stories when we read them. The seventeenth chapter of I Kings contains an interesting episode of Elijah’s life. There had been no rain on the earth for over three years; everyone was starving, the famine was severe. Elijah had been cared for at the brook by the ravens who brought his food. Finally the brook dried up too. Then God directed Elijah, “Go down to this place, where I have commanded a widow to feed you.” God had directed the widow to feed Elijah, but when he arrived she didn’t know about it. God often directs people in what they are to do without their being aware of it. They will do what the Lord commands, without realizing or understanding it.
The widow was gathering some sticks. She didn’t know what the Lord had commanded her to do. Elijah came to her and said, “Bake me a little cake.” And she said, “I have only enough flour and oil to bake a cake for my son and myself before we die.” Elijah said again, “Bake me a cake first.” Wasn’t that a selfish request? taking a cake right out of the mouth of a poor starving widow and her son?
Elijah knew the principle. He understood the ways of God. He knew that God’s demands on the widow were first and if she would respond and give God the first-fruits, she would be blessed. That same principle was operative in the Passover. God said, “I’ll slay the first-born in Egypt, and the first-born of Israel will be Mine. I’ve put a claim on them forever. Whatever opens the womb first is Mine. You give Me the first, and I’ll bless the rest.”
The widow did as Elijah asked. She baked a little cake and gave it to the prophet and God did bless her. The small portion of meal and the cruse of oil didn’t fail all through the famine.
God didn’t bring the Israelites out of Egypt to pamper them. He brought them out so He could make demands on them. He was to be first in their life.
Psalms 37:4 is a beautiful promise: Delight thyself also in the Lord; And he will give thee the desires of thy heart. We find a similar promise in Matthew 6:33: But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
So much that we’re ready for in this walk is involved with this principle: give God His portion first. Church after church has sprung up because of your faithfulness in obeying the first-fruits principle. Give God His portion first; do what He wants you to do and He’ll bless your portion. You will be surprised to see one thing after another come your way. This was one of the keys of God’s blessing us early in our marriage. We were young and impressionable, and we listened to what the Lord told us. When He would say, “I want you to sell all of this and give it to Me,” we did it. Because the Lord made a covenant of plenty with us we’ve never seemed to lack. Money doesn’t disappear with us. We send it out and it keeps coming back. God keeps blessing.
This is not a message on giving. The issue is that you give the Lord the first-fruits, the best. His portion comes first of everything He gives you: your time, your energy, your money—everything. This is a principle by which you live. Then He will bless everything else in your life. You will receive the desires of your heart because you are delighting in the Lord. Whatever He wants, He gets; and you are not to grumble about it if it doesn’t please you.
I was the first-born son. My dad tells me that before I was one hour old he knelt down behind the barn and gave me wholly to the Lord, promising to raise me to be a minister. Sometimes an act like that will reverberate and rebound back again and again because it is sincere.
Never be afraid of giving God the very best you have. Don’t look after your own interests. Be concerned about the things of the Kingdom of God first, and God will continually look after you. This wonderful account in Exodus teaches us some truths. Too many people have the wrong motivation, wanting something for themselves, looking for their plans to work out, instead of saying, “Lord, Thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory forever. It’s all Yours, I’m going to seek You, Your will and Your kingdom.”
Paul wrote to the Philippians, “I’m sending Timothy to you, for I have no man like him.” All the other ministers were seeking after their place, their ministry. But what a minister of the Word Timothy must have been, only concerned that the interests of Jesus would be met, that everyone would be drawn into His will. He wasn’t looking for anything for himself.
The Passover principles of priority include several important truths, one of which has just been voiced: give the Kingdom of God priority and God takes care of you. Here is another: authority has priority over all power. This will work for us when we realize that the Lord has given us authority to move in His name and it doesn’t matter whether or not we have a lot of power or money. God will bless us if we recognize that in the name of Jesus all oppressions can be broken—authority is greater than power.
Another priority, is that authority is greater than revelation and wisdom. Sometimes you feel, “I must understand; I must have the wisdom to know what it’s all about.” No, you don’t. Put God first and let Him give you His authority. Then it won’t make any difference whether or not you receive great revelation. Authority is greater than wisdom and revelation.
People with great mystical insight may be seen as future prophets and prophetesses; but if they become arrogant against authority, they are soon gone. When God raises up a submissive man and gives him a commission and authority to preach His word, don’t gainsay that man because he’ll still be there when you’re gone. Authority is greater than revelation. I never worry about someone who is not moving in great revelation if I see that he is submissive and moving in authority. When God commissions a man and gives him authority, that commission is worth more than all the talent, ability and resources in the world.
Moses, who led the Israelites into the miracle of the Passover, was a man meek above all men on the face of the earth. He was a man of slow speech and Aaron was his mouthpiece. Moses learned the importance of obedience. When he came down to lead the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, the Lord met him and was going to slay him because he hadn’t brought his family under that authority by having his son circumcised. So he circumcised his children and went on his way. By putting God first, doing absolutely what God wanted, obediently moving under authority, he was able to loose a nation.
The children of Israel didn’t just leave Egypt: they were thrust out. They didn’t go out like slaves whining, “We’re glad to get out of here”; they were bedecked with all the finery and jewels of Egypt. They spoiled and plundered Egypt, for the Egyptians were glad to see them leave.
God doesn’t intend for us just to get by in this walk. Let’s deal with God, based on this principle: if we give Him the first in everything, we will receive everything we desire. If we find out what He wants, and give it to Him first, we’ll be not only a winner, but more than a conqueror; not only enjoying the blessing of the Lord, but rejoicing, “My cup runneth over.”
When God does things that are really good, there’s no limit. The one miracle recorded in all four gospels is the feeding of the five thousand. Which principle did Jesus use to work that miracle? First, He took the food the little boy had: five loaves and two fish. Wasn’t that selfish, taking a lunch from a hungry little boy? (It reminds us of the story of the widow and Elijah.) The Lord blessed it in a fantastic way: twelve baskets of untouched fragments remained because the Lord made too much. When you pray for rain in the time of latter rain He will make floods on the dry ground and streams in the desert.
What does Ephesians 3:20 tell us, “Now unto Him that is able—to get me out of this mess at least”? No. “To do all that I think”? No. “Above all that we ask or think”? Abundantly above—exceeding abundantly: He’s able to do exceeding abundantly above all we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us. Unto Him be glory in the church. That’s the secret: give Him the glory. No apostle or saint in the New Testament did the mighty signs and wonders for his own glory. One man wanted to buy a gift enabling him to lay hands on people to receive the Holy Spirit. The apostles said, “Your money perish with you.” Freely they received, freely they gave. They received an abundance because they were seeking God first.
It’s significant that Peter and John were going to the temple at the hour of prayer when the lame man was healed and thousands converted. They were putting God first, doing the will of the Lord—then a miracle happened. The signs followed them as they were pursuing the will of God, giving Him first place. God isn’t just getting you out of a mess—He’s opening the door for you to voluntarily enter into a covenant with Him whereby the best that you have, the first fruits of all your increase will be His. The first-born will not be the darling who becomes a spoiled brat; he belongs to the Lord. No good thing will you withhold from the Lord. You’ll not give Him the lame of the flock, but the best of the flock. And He will see that you get the best, too. It will be a mutual benefit society. Lord, I give You the best I have. And the Lord says, “I’ll match you; I’ll give you the best I have, too.” Lord, I delight in You with all my heart. “You will be My peculiar possession in all the earth.” Lord, I’m going to bless You and glorify You. “You will be a people for a praise and a glory in the name of the Lord.”
Don’t think “me”; think “Jesus.” Think His Kingdom—think of it, seek it, put it first, go after it with interest, everything in your heart set to do the will of the Lord.
We don’t understand many of the principles of the miracles, and often those who performed the miracles didn’t understand what they were doing either. When they saw a man who had a great need, they extracted from him the best he had, that which would bankrupt him. He had to love God more than his very own life, and give it to God. Then a floodgate of blessing would be opened upon him. Give God the best, not the second best. And you will have His best, too.
This is the day that the Lord hath brought forth His people to praise His name and to prepare their hearts for all that He would teach them. Doth not the Spirit say unto thee, “I will lead thee into all the truth. I shall bring thee forth into the revelation of things that have been hidden for many centuries. I shall cause the keys of wisdom and understanding to be given again unto the people of God that they may walk in the ways of the Lord. The dark mysteries and the hidden things shall come to light. Every hidden thing shall be unveiled.” And what the Lord shall reveal unto thee in the closet thou shalt shout it from the housetops. The mighty things that the world has not walked in, thou shalt clearly see and understand and walk in.
Behold, the wisdom of the Lord shall not be understood. Many shall turn away from thee because of the word God giveth unto thee. But if thou shalt cherish it in your heart and hide it there, shall it not be a safety unto thee in the days in which the Lord bringeth thee forth? Shall it not be the key of immunity? the key of prevailing? the key of speaking forth the word of the Lord? The key of the power of judgment shall be given once again to the house of the Lord. It shall not be a vain thing of stumbling in darkness, of groping to find the way. But the Lord shall cause thy path to receive the light of His revelation that you may walk therein. Yea, He shall continually guide thee with His eye. He shall direct thee lest thou should stumble in thy way and be turned out of thy way by the deception. For many deceivers are in the world. Many antichrists are coming forth. Behold, even Satan himself goes forth to deceive the whole world. And is not the world lying in darkness under the power of the deceiver? But thy heart shall walk in the light of His revelation. The Lord shall give thee understanding that ye may walk therein and perceive the way to go.
It is a day of intense battle, for Satan perceiveth that by the wisdom and understanding with great authority, the principalities and powers will be brought down by a Remnant of people that have believed. Yea, the multitudes shall walk in darkness. Gross darkness shall cover the peoples. But there shall be a people come forth that shall walk in the revelation of the Lord. And unto them shall the secrets and the mysteries be known. Yea, even those things spoken by all the prophets since the world began. And it shall be that thou shalt see them, thou shalt perceive them. Thou shalt be able to discern him who is a false prophet and a false apostle, those that are deceivers and workers of iniquity. You shall perceive them and loathe them and turn away from them. Yea, from day unto day it shall be more clear unto thee. For the Lord shall set a sign upon His people. Yea, He shall write His name upon their foreheads. And there shall be an understanding spirit within thee to perceive that which is of the Lord’s and that which is not. And you shall not go by that which cometh forth in sheep’s clothing. But thou shalt perceive inwardly is it a ravening wolf or is it that which the Lord hath brought forth in the heart of His people? Yea, the Lord shall give thee discerning and understanding. He shall teach thee the ways of the Lord that ye may walk therein. Yea, He shall make known His ways unto thee and thou shalt walk in them. Thou shalt be His emissaries. Thou shalt be His instruments. Thou shalt be His voice to speak things into existence and to see them come to pass because thou hast declared them in the name of the Lord.