Exodus 12:12-13 For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.
As our family prepared and led a Passover Seder a few years ago, the Lord reminded me of a truth which I had understood, but never had seen so clearly applied from the Passover story.
Of course, the celebration of Passover for believers normally emphasizes the revelation of our Passover Lamb -- the Lamb of God, Yeshua, who was delivered up, a Lamb without blemish, and sacrificed in our place as an offering for our sins. As Israel celebrates deliverance from slavery, we celebrate deliverance from the bondage of sin. We celebrate knowing that death no longer has power over us since we pass from this temporal world into the eternal when we die.
Furthermore, when the children of Israel were passed over, while each of the firstborn of Egypt died, Israel did not depart as penniless slaves. They left carrying with them the riches of Egypt! Likewise, we who were spiritually "penniless" when we came to the Lamb, instantaneously inherited riches beyond our imagination. These are two of the wonderful lessons from the Passover event.
As I studied in preparation for our Seder another truth has struck me powerfully-- the blood needed to be applied! If the children of Israel had merely believed in the power of the lamb's blood, and the word of Moses, but never applied it to their doorposts, the angel of death would still have killed their firstborn! A passive belief in the blood would not have saved them -- action was required -- the blood needed to be applied to their doorpost. Once the blood was applied, a line was drawn across which the angel of death could not pass!
Most of us have an understanding of the power of the blood. But are we actively applying the blood to our lives and circumstances as a hedge of protection around us? No, not as a magic formula, but prayerfully in the spirit, as a cleansing and protective reality over our lives, families, loved ones, homes, cities, and nations.
Assume your authority as a child of God this Passover season, and apply the blood over any area of your life that needs His supernatural protection and provision. Don't take a passive approach in these last days, but be actively walking in the power of the blood, this Passover, and in the coming days....for truly, if there was ever a time we needed to be walking in His power, protection and victory, it's Today!
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]I happened (on rare occasion) the other day to see a CNN headline, “Health Officials Brace for Three Major Viruses this Fall”. Immediately, I thought, “Not again!” Yet, scouring the headlines, it now appears that several colleges are instituting mask mandates even though there isn’t a case of illness yet. While the world is being prepared for an “outbreak” of disease, I’m hoping we may learn a lesson from history so that, perhaps, we’ll see an “outbreak” of revival!
As we enter this season of Teshuva (Repentance) during the month of Elul, we enter a unique season approaching the Fall Feasts. This month initiates a 40-day countdown to Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement), and is traditionally known as the time the King would visit His people.
As we continue our study of the men who followed David, another characteristic was their ability to war.They learned how to battle with both the right hand and the left hand for hurling stones. If you have ever thrown a ball, you know that you can aim effectively with your dominant hand — but try it with the opposite hand — it’s far more difficult to throw accurately. But the men that followed David learned to throw with both arms effectively! It must have taken months of training to develop such skill.
When David was a fugitive from Saul, the men who followed him recognized his rightful place as King of Israel, and they developed a deep loyalty to him, this little band. As we read yesterday, these men were transformed from distress, debt, and discontentment [1 Sam. 22:1-2] into becoming mighty men of war. Having joined David, they quickly realized that they were joining a conflict.
Last night, Jewish people around the world will mourn Tisha B’Av, the ninth day of the fifth month of the Hebrew calendar year. Some of you may know that a lot of bad things have happened to the Jewish people on this date, the first of which was when the spies returned with an evil report of Canaan, the Promised Land, recounted in Numbers 13 and 14. Both the first and the second Temple were destroyed on this exact date, hundreds of years apart. The Crusades began on this day in 1095. The Jews were expelled out of England on this day in 1290, and again were expelled from Spain and Portugal on Tisha B’Av in 1492. And there are many more examples of this infamous day in Jewish history!
An ancient legend tells of a king who walked into his garden one day to find almost everything withered and dying. After speaking to an oak near the gate, the king learned that he was troubled because he was not tall and beautiful like the pine. The pine overheard their conversation and added that she, too, was upset, for she could not bear delicious fruit like the pear tree. The pear tree heard his name and began to complain that he did not have the lovely odor of the spruce. And so it went throughout the entire garden.
In the midst of a serious heat wave, wildfires are spreading across Europe causing thousands to evacuate. This reminded me of a story I once read.