Passover on SermonAudio

Our Lord further prepares his disciples for the redemption he is about to accomplish for his people.

Joshua 5:10-12 – The First Passover in Canaan - The Israelites have moved from temporary shelter and day-to-day wandering and provision to a settled home and abundant blessing in the Promised Land. How do they avoid the temptation to forgetfulness and ungratefulness of God's great salvation for them? How do we avoid the same temptations? - I. Old Passover and remembering salvation (v10) II. New Provisions and nourishment of their inheritance (vv11-12) III. Three Things to Sustain the Israelites IV. Three Things to Sustain Citizens of Christ's Kingdom V. Four Uses

The five recorded Old Testament Passovers highlight their ceremonial limitations and foreshadowing of Christ. They contrast the temporary, external purification of the old covenant with the permanent, internal cleansing provided by Jesus' sacrifice. While ancient rituals required strict physical purity, believers are made clean through faith in the Lamb who takes away sin. This theological shift serves as a rebuke against antinomianism, with Paul urging the church to purge open sin rather than excuse it under grace. Ultimately, the Lord's Table is the fulfillment of Passover, where Christ's death secures true forgiveness and holiness for His people.

The sermon uses the tenth plague and the institution of the Passover in Exodus to illustrate the imminent return of Christ and the need for spiritual readiness. It contrasts the judgment awaiting those outside the blood with the hope and deliverance promised to believers who are prepared for the great exodus into eternity. The preacher emphasizes laying up heavenly treasures rather than earthly wealth, maintaining a vibrant testimony through obedience, and feasting on God's word to sustain faith during trials. Urging the audience to recognize the shortness of time and the terror of eternal separation from God, the message calls for personal salvation and active evangelism. Ultimately, it encourages a life of gratitude and worship in anticipation of meeting the Lord in the air.

Grab your Bible and join us from the Savannah Mission Bible Training Center as we study the Baptist Catechism Question 48. The preface to the Ten Commandments ("I am the LORD your God who brought you out of Egypt, out of the house of slavery," Exodus 20:1-2) shows that grace always precedes and grounds obedience. The Exodus story— bondage, Passover lamb, Red Sea deliverance, wilderness journey, and law given at Sinai—is a living parable of salvation in Christ: the Passover points to Christ our sacrificed Lamb, the Red Sea to baptismal union with Him, the wilderness to our pilgrimage of dependence and sanctification, and Sinai to Pentecost where the Spirit writes the law on hearts of flesh. Redeemed from sin's bondage, we are called to grateful obedience—not to earn salvation, but as those bought with a price—living as thankful servants who having the blood of Christ applied walk by faith in the Spirit.

Pastor Mark Hogan taught from Matthew 27:11-26, emphasizing that Matthew wrote his Gospel to answer two questions: who Jesus is and why He came. Jesus is the King of the Jews, but He came to be the righteous and royal sufferer—the rejected stone, the struck shepherd, the Passover lamb who fulfills Isaiah 53. Hogan highlighted how every witness affirmed Jesus' innocence: Judas declared he betrayed innocent blood, Pilate's wife called Jesus a just man, Pilate himself washed his hands of the matter, and the crowd offered no proof of evil for which Jesus ought to be crucified. Yet the innocent King was condemned while the guilty criminal Barabbas went free. Hogan stressed that this is not a tragedy but the means by which God's justice would be satisfied and the new covenant established. The practical application is to wholeheartedly embrace the canonical Jesus—not a political or cultural figure, but the King who first wore a crown of thorns before receiving glory, who suffered unjustly to justify the many. Hogan called the congregation to answer Pilate's question in faith, confessing Jesus as the true Son of the Father who died for sinners, and to live as disciples who imitate His path of suffering leading to glory.

This sermon explores the theological significance of Jesus declaring that 'the hour has come' in John chapter 17, tracing its progression from moments when his time was not yet full to the decisive moment of his crucifixion. It highlights how Jesus transitions from performing miracles quietly to openly accepting his role as the perfect Passover lamb who takes away the sin of the world. The central focus is on the High Priestly Prayer, where Jesus intercedes for his disciples and all future believers, emphasizing unity among Christians as a witness to the world. Through this prayer, Jesus demonstrates his love by sanctifying himself so that others might be sanctified through the truth. Ultimately, the message conveys that Jesus' impending death is not merely a tragedy but the necessary glorification of God and the foundation for eternal life for those who believe.