Get Rid of the Leaven

So this morning, we're going to go back and continue on in our study of the book of Exodus.

We're looking at different life lessons that we learn from the book of Exodus.

And this morning, we're going to be looking at Exodus chapter 12, verses 1 through 20.

Exodus 12:1–20

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, This month, now he's speaking about

the month that they left Egypt.

This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year.

Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of the month,

each man is to take a lamb for his family, one for each household.

If any household is too small for a whole lamb, they must share one with their

nearest neighbor, having taken into account the number of people there are.

They are to determine the amount of lamb needed in accordance with what each person will eat.

The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect,

and you may take them from the sheep or the goats.

Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month when all the members

of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight.

Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of

the door frames of the houses where they eat the lambs.

That same night they are to eat the meat roasted over the fire along with bitter

herbs and bread made without yeast.

Do not eat the meat raw or boiled in water, but roasted over a fire with the

head, legs, and internal organs.

Do not leave any of it till morning. If some is left till morning, you must burn it.

This is how you are to eat it. With your cloak tucked into your belt,

they would wear their cloaks would be, you know, long.

And so they could walk and run.

They would take the front of them and they would tuck it into their belt so

they They had room for their legs to be.

So your cloak would be tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet,

and your staff in your hand.

Eat it in haste. It is the Lord's Passover.

On that same night, I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn

of both people and animals and will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt.

Remember, we talked about the plagues, that they were basically a judgment against

all of the gods of Egypt at that time. And there were hundreds, actually.

He says, I am the Lord, the blood will be assigned for you on the houses where

you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you.

No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.

This is a day you are to commemorate. For the generations to come,

you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord, a lasting ordinance.

For seven days you are to eat bread made without yeast.

On the first day, remove the yeast from your houses. For whoever eats anything

with yeast in it from the first day through the seventh must be cut off from Israel.

On the first day hold a sacred assembly, and another one on the seventh day.

Do no work at all in these days except to prepare food for everyone to eat. That is all you may do.

Celebrate the feast of unleavened bread, because it is on this very day that

I brought your divisions out of Egypt.

Celebrate this day as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come.

In the first month, you are to eat bread made without yeast from the evening

of the 14th day until the evening of the 21st day.

For seven days, yeast is not to be found in your houses.

And anyone, whether foreign or native-born, who eats anything with yeast in

it must be cut off from the community of Israel. Eat nothing made with yeast.

Wherever you live, you must eat unleavened bread.

And then 1 Corinthians 5, verses 7 and 8, get rid of the old yeast so that you

1 Corinthians 5:7

may be a new unleavened batch, as you really are.

For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.

Therefore, let us keep the festival not with the old bread leavened with malice

and wickedness, but the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

May God add his blessing to the reading of this word.

Understanding the Hebrew holy days of the Old Testament are very important for

you to, in order to understand the concepts of salvation,

everything in the Old Testament was leading up to the New Testament,

the deliverance of Christ, the Christ child then become the Savior and Redeemer of this world.

One of Israel's major feasts was that of the Passover, and they would have what's

now called the Seder meal on Passover night.

Actually, Actually, the Passover celebration is made up of three different and

separate holy days during this time.

The Feast of the Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and then the Feast

Day of the Sheaf of Firstfruits, bringing in the firstfruits.

But it is the way that Israel came to honor that feast that I want to preach about this morning.

So it was a night that nobody in the land of Goshen was supposed to be sleeping.

The children of Israel had watched the power of God expressed in the first nine

plagues, but now the power of God and horror of the tenth and final plague was

to free them from the land of Egypt.

430 years is a long time. That's how long the Israelite people had been in Egypt.

More than 10 generations, as a generation biblically is about 35 to 40 years.

During this period of time, a pharaoh had gained the throne of Egypt who did not know Joseph.

Through his great ambitions and desire to build his kingdom,

he had placed the children of Israel under severe hardship.

They built the pyramids, the sphinxes, and other great wonders in the land of

Egypt, and yet they were an afflicted people.

Now, it was time to leave the land of slavery and hardship. stewardship,

Moses had boldly walked into the courts of Pharaoh and demanded,

now an Israelite demanding from the king of Egypt, that the people be set free.

Having to endure plagues and hardship of comfort and rule, the Pharaoh still

refused them their freedom, but God had a plan to set his people free.

However, as with God's plan, there are always some stipulations and guidelines. guidelines.

Obedience to God is imperative, and it must be followed exactly as the Lord

tells us what we are to do.

Exodus chapter 12 covers the Passover and the Exodus from Egypt.

Exodus 12 · chapter mention

One would expect that after 430 years of struggle and hardship,

that a long portion of Scripture would be dedicated to informing us of the details

of organizing and mobilizing two million Jews.

Jews, one would expect to read something of the almost military-style coordination

that had to take place and the logistics that must be necessary to move two

million-plus people out of one nation into the wilderness in one group,

along with their livestock.

You know, I've often wondered when they are going out in the wilderness—this

is just an aside, it's an extra little bit—wondering often as they were going

out into the wilderness, and they had their flocks and stuff with them.

I wonder how many people say, you know, God, could you let me walk in front of the cows?

Just a thought, but you know, they had all those people with them.

Yet we really read nothing about the coming out of Egypt and the difficulties

they had, except for when they faced the Red Sea and things like that.

The only words of preparation that we are given seems to be a preparation of

the homes and the hearts of the Hebrews.

God wanted his people to be ready for his presence and his power.

So let's look at what they were told to do.

Moses instructed that the heads of each household were to take a male lamb or

male kid goat that was a yearling and without defect or discoloration.

It had to be pure white. On the evening of the 14th day of that first month,

the lamb or the goat was to be slain.

Once the animal was slain, the blood was to be sprinkled on the doorposts of

every Hebrew home. The household was to eat the lamb roasted with fire and bitter

herbs along with unleavened bread.

It was to be eaten quickly while they were fully clothed with their shoes and coats on.

The Israelites were to be dressed and ready to scat and get out as soon as God says they could.

They were to be prepared to move out at a moment's notice, similar to a military

troop that is in conflict, is ready at all times to pick up everything and go into battle.

So when the cry came at midnight, they were not to be fumbling around trying

to gather up belongings and articles of clothing.

They didn't need to stuff a dozen suitcases.

They simply need to take the clothing that they had on their back and a few essentials.

At midnight, when the death angel came, if the token of blood was not left on

the doorpost, judgment came upon

that household and the firstborn son was killed by the angel of death.

It seems like a hard thing for God to do. Thank you.

But yet God demands full obedience. Whether one looks in the Old Testament or in the New Testament,

man has a responsibility to do something to prepare his heart for the presence

of God and to be ready for God to make himself manifest.

When the coming of the Passover came, the head of the house was to cleanse his

house of all leaven or yeast.

For seven days, no leaven was to be seen in his house. All in the house must

eat of the unleavened bread from the first day until the seventh day.

Anyone found with leavened bread in their house must be cut off from the congregation of Israel.

The importance of unleavened bread in Israel may be seen in various occasions

when the Lord commanded it to be used.

The spiritual truth becomes more evident as the settings of these scriptures

were observed and were noted. it.

First, unleavened bread was used in the consecration of the priest to their office and ministry.

Second, unleavened bread was to be used in the vow of separation of the Nazarite unto the Lord.

Third, unleavened bread was to be used in the food of the priest,

especially in the meal offering, as well as the peace offering.

Fourth, unleavened bread was used when the angel of the the Lord appeared to

Gideon in his call to service.

And then here in Exodus, we see that unleavened bread was to be used in the

Passover meal, as Israel is about to be separated from Egypt's life of slavery and bondage.

Therefore, one would note that the symbolic truth of getting rid of the leaven,

we have the need for consecration and separation unto the Lord.

These speak of the doctrine of sanctification, which simply means,

which is a Latin root word, simply means making holy.

Sanctification where the believer is separated from all that would corrupt and

set apart or consecrated solely and unconditionally for the service of the Lord.

So every house must put away all leaven.

It was a time of great cleansing. In fact, they would sweep the houses completely,

all the corners, and get everything out that might have leaven or yeast in it.

It was a time of great cleansing, of separating from yeast's influence.

But leaven is yeast, as I said, and when yeast is placed in a batch of dough,

it has a certain action, almost a fermentation.

Yeast puffs up. it works silently secretly and gradually until the whole batch

is affected all of the dough is affected by the mysterious operation and fermentation

it causes the dough to rise those that you have made bread and baked your own

bread you understand this,

its influence permeates the whole until all is leavened, until all of it becomes like itself.

The principle of leaven is used in Scripture to symbolize that which is evil

or sin, either be it in doctrine or in practice.

In the Old Testament, the literal leaven was a type for us.

In the New Testament, one notes that the literal leaven of the Old Testament

points to a spiritual leaven of the New Testament, as we read in 1 Corinthians.

When looking at the biblical command to get rid of the leaven,

it might be helpful to visualize what leaven is and how it works and how that

might be compared with sin.

First of all, and of primary importance to note, is that leaven or yeast is

quite simply a foreign subject, a foreign substance,

and it's actually an impurity that acts upon the pure ingredients ingredients

of israel and of bread so i've got a couple pieces of bread,

this is unleavened bread and this is leavened bread see the difference.

We look at this loaf of leavened bread that is made with yeast.

That's why it rises and is all puffed up. It's airy.

The sin of pride causes us to be puffed up, to be full of ourselves.

The large, well, it almost looks like a pita bread, but it doesn't have the pocket in it.

But this matzah bread, this Israelite or this Hebrew unleavened bread is simply

to be used in Passover meal.

It does not contain yeast and it's not puffed up.

Sin acts in our lives in the same way that yeast works on a loaf of bread.

First, bread with yeast seems to taste good, doesn't it?

If you've ever had unleavened bread, and I'm not going to share this with you

guys, But if you've ever had unleavened bread, there's not much taste to it.

It's simply flour and water mixed together and baked.

And so, but leavened bread or bread with yeast, made with yeast,

has an extra little flavor in it.

This is somewhat like a soft cracker or a tortilla even. There's not a whole lot of taste to it.

That's why we make bread with yeast in it. Leavened bread seems to taste better

than unleavened bread. It has a sort of a tangy sweetness to it as we eat it.

Again, I'm not going to share it with you. In the same way, sin tastes good,

or at least for the moment.

If we look at our lives and we see what's gone in our lives in the past,

we would understand and know the statement that sin seems to taste good.

If sin didn't taste good or didn't seem fun or enjoyable or whatever,

it wouldn't be it wouldn't be temptation to us would it i mean we've always

looked at that idea that thoughts proceed produce actions action produce consequences and consequences have.

Produce feelings. Feelings produce actions. Actions have consequences.

So when we think our mind is something of sin or good as well,

our mind begins to conjure up an emotion that says, hey, that's going to be fun and pleasurable.

And that emotion is going to lead us to act on that emotion, whether good or bad.

And when we act on those emotions, whether good or bad, we know that the consequences

are going to be good or bad as well.

So second, it doesn't take much yeast to change the shape of the flour.

It warps the shape of the dough.

It redesigns the makeup of the bread similar to what sin does in us.

It redesigns the makeup in us.

Similar, when a sin enters into an area of life, it doesn't take too long for

it to change who you are. are.

Third, this yeast makes the bread look like it contains more flour than it actually does.

You know, this is a smaller loaf, but this looks like it has more flour than

this does because it looks like it's bigger.

You know, it's kind of deceiving, don't you think?

So next time you want to make a loaf of bread for your family,

don't put any yeast in it because you don't want to deceive them. I'm just kidding.

The larger loaf may not contain that much more flour than the cracker,

but because of the yeast in it, it looks like it has more.

I read the story of one man who worked for his dad in their donut shop when he was a young child.

One day, he was rebuked by his father because his donuts were larger than they should have been.

The dad accused his son of using more dough, more flour, and thus costing him more money.

Son replied that he hadn't used any more dough than normal, but would instead

let the donuts rise longer before he fried them.

And thus, the donuts appeared to have more dough in them, but in reality, they didn't.

Likewise, sin can make us believe that we have more in our lives than we really do.

Sin, like bitterness and hatred, can make us feel like we have more power over others.

Sins, like hypocrisy and bigotry, can can make us feel more important than we actually are.

Sins of pride and jealousy can make us feel that we are better than others.

Sin can make us believe that we've gained more of something in our life,

but in reality, all we've gained is more decay and rot, because lastly,

yeast causes bread to mold and decay from the inside out.

In fact, yeast is actually a form of fungus. Now, don't tell your kids that,

because they might not want to eat it after that.

And I've told you that many of you might even swear off eating bread.

It's the fungus of the yeast that grows and causes a reaction within the bread

that releases bubbles of gas that causes the bread to rise and deceive us into

thinking that the bread has more pure bread ingredients.

Instead, we're receiving more fake ingredients.

If I break this unleavened bread, you see it's very dense and very thin,

and you would look at that and think there's not much in there.

If I break this loaf of bread, you say, wow, there's got much more ingredients

to it, but actually it's just filled more with air.

So yeast causes bread to form a gas in it, which causes it to puff up in there. That's the way sin is.

It makes us feel like we're getting more out of life when in reality we're getting less.

You might say that the yeast of sin makes us think we have more of the substance

of life when in reality, we just have more gas.

And think of this. If you leave a loaf of bread out for very long,

what happens to that loaf of bread that you leave out of the refrigerator?

Gets this little green fuzzy stuff on it, doesn't it?

It gets moldy. Crackers will last practically forever.

Even though they might get a little damp or stale, they're not going to mold

like a regular bread does.

In the same way sin has the power to cause our

lives and our homes to decay and to rot in

fact if you read the old testament the book of

numbers and all of that there's a whole section in there

what to do when you've got mold and mildew in your house so if you've got mold

and mildew in a house read the old testament anyway no there was an issue at

that time because it would continue mold and mildew if it got into the plastering

of the homes it would fill everything it would would spread and fill everything.

And it was an uncleanness that God wanted them to get rid of.

So there are three distinct types of leaven that are mentioned in the early ministry of Christ.

When Jesus spoke of it, there was no doubt about it pointing to sinful practices,

human weakness, and false doctrine.

The scripture we read in Matthew chapter 16, verses 6 through 12,

Matthew 16:6–12

says this, Be careful, Jesus said to them, be on your guard against the yeast of the.

Pharisees and the Sadducees, they discussed this among themselves,

being the disciples, among themselves, and said, it is because we didn't bring

any bread that Jesus is saying this.

Aware of their discussion, Jesus said, you of little faith, why are you talking

among yourself about having no bread?

Do you still not understand? Don't you remember the five loaves for the 5,000

and how many baskets full you gathered?

How is it you don't understand that I was not talking to to you about bread,

but be on guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

Then they understood that he was not telling them to guard against the yeast

used in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and the Sadducees.

And so we see in this, Jesus warned his disciples to beware of the leaven of the Sadducees.

There was no mistaking what the leaven of the Sadducees were,

or was, it was their false doctrine.

The Sadducees at that time, by the way, an easy way to remember what Pharisees

and Sadducees are, is Pharisees believed in a physical resurrection of our bodies,

and so they were fair, I see.

The Sadducees didn't believe in a resurrection from the dead,

so they were sad, you see.

Anyway, just kind of remembering that. But it was their false doctrine.

They did not believe in a supernatural.

They didn't believe in angels. They didn't believe in a Holy Spirit.

The Sadducees didn't, nor did they believe in a bodily resurrection.

The doctrine of the Sadducees works like leaven.

Recent surveys among those in in America reveal an astonishing and disheartening statistic.

The majority of American Christians.

Who identify themselves as Christian, do not believe that the Bible is the infallible Word of God.

Some of them don't even believe it's the Word of God at all.

Many believe that it is a guideline for the past and is not relevant to our times.

In fact, I've heard of one preacher who's been speaking about an interfaith

movement where all faiths are one, including Muslim, Islam, Islam, Hindu,

all of that are one, and we need to agree with each other.

Jesus is not the only way to the Father. This is a Christian pastor.

Unfortunately, that type of thing is happening in our church.

Friends, the core concepts of the truth of Scripture are as relevant to us today

as they were to those who first read them.

The Bible is the revelation of God's interaction with his people.

His greatest and most precious creation.

It reveals the central truth that when man who was created to be like God rebelled,

God set out on a mission to form a plan, and he already had it in his mind,

to buy man back to a full relationship as his child.

Friends, our convictions must be formed, and then we must stand strongly committed

and convinced of the truth.

Truth, a commitment to Scripture as the final authority, a construction of beliefs

built on that Word of God, a courageous spirit to act on those convictions.

In fact, I heard of, read of somebody, just read it yesterday,

somebody who's going around this nation basically saying that the Bible is just

a book of fiction, it's a novel.

I mean, there are parts of it that read like a novel.

But the woman speaks that there's absolutely no truth in it at all.

Well, I think she needs to look at some of the archaeological records.

Even if I had to stand alone, I will continue to preach and model what is in the book.

The doctrines of the early church may be old, but they are and will never be outdated.

Jesus warned his disciples to be aware of the leaven of the Pharisees.

There is no mistake about what Jesus was alluding to them. He was talking about hypocrisy.

The Pharisees had the look.

They believed in the Holy Spirit. They believed in angels. They believed in bodily resurrection.

They had the look. They had the talk, but they didn't have the walk.

Everything about them looked holy from the outside, and they wanted everybody

to know that they were holy and righteous.

But there was nothing holy on the inside. Matthew chapter 23 verse 25 through

Matthew 23:25–28

28 Woe to you teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!

You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.

Blind Pharisees, first clean the inside of the cup and dish,

and then clean the outside, and you will also be cleaned.

Woe to you teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites!

You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside,

but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean.

In the same way, on the outside, you appear to people as righteous,

but on the inside, you're full of hypocrisy and wickedness.

I've been to New Orleans a few times and down south like that.

And in New Orleans, or as they say it on there, New Orleans,

they have sepulchers where the people are buried. Because the water level is

so high, they don't bury people underground.

They put them in sepulchers. And each family tomb has many drawers on it. Okay?

So when one family member dies, they would bury that person,

and they would fill up the drawers.

And then when another one dies and is full, they would scrape the bones from

the first one back off into the back of this and lay another one in there,

so they would decay in that. So they look beautiful because they're all whitewashed.

Really, they are whitewashed, but they were full of dead men's bones on the inside.

The outside looked great, but the inside was writhing in evil.

I'm fearful that some in our world have put a limit on the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

We put on the appearance of holiness by our ritualistic actions and dress.

We want to look good enough to keep the preacher off our back.

We look just good enough to keep people from wondering about our spiritual status.

We have just a bit of knowledge of the Scripture, of the Word of God,

to keep God at a safe distance, but inside we've got a deceitful heart.

Heart. The heart is a cauldron of emotions.

Mark chapter 15 says this, and he, being Jesus, charged them,

Mark 15 · chapter mention

saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.

Jesus warned his disciples of the false worship and to beware of the leaven of Herod.

Jesus was was looting the fact that Herod had killed John the Baptist because

John had exposed his deceit and his worldly lifestyle.

Living in obvious morality, Herod got rid of John for exposing the fact that

he took his brother's wife as his own.

Herod was a very sinful man. He feared the word of God in John's mouth,

but was not prepared to repent.

He was as sly as a fox, sensual, proud, out and murder us.

He was controlled by the spirit of this world. The spirit of this world will

tell you to destroy the voice of the preacher and live as you want.

When worldliness gets into the church and into the pulpit, it has massive destruction,

not only for this generation, but on the generations that follow.

Pastors have a huge responsibility.

If we don't live right, how can we expect the people in our congregations to live right?

If we aren't pointing the way to of the truth? How can we expect the people

in our congregations to live in the light of the truth?

If you've ever made that consecration of your life and now you're backing up

on it, I would urge you to repent and come back to the consecration and anointing.

Look at all the loopholes that you might want to look for. For one,

one may ask, what's the penalty if I don't?

Well, let me tell you to ask Achan.

Remember the story of Achan in in the Old Testament, he and his entire family were consumed by fire.

And we look at this and we see what is God doing in our days.

What is he really wanting to teach to us?

In the Passover, the Jews were to remove the leaven and all hints of uncleanness from their lives.

So they would be ready for God's intervention in the lives.

They were to be made holy in preparation for God's deliverance.

What made them holy?

It was and always will be the presence of God.

There is nothing in us, the scripture tells us, that our righteousness is like

filthy rags. There is nothing in us that is clean on its own.

We have to be purified and cleansed by the power and the Holy Spirit of God.

It is only God that makes us righteous and holy.

Whatever God comes into contact with becomes holy. Therefore,

when we are filled with the Spirit, we are filled with His holiness.

We have an obligation to protect that which is holy from being profane and wicked.

Too often we see and teach holiness as something of a conduct code.

And the Free Methodist Church has been guilty of this over the years.

Thou shalt not drink, thou shalt not smoke, thou shalt not dance,

and thou shalt not go with any women that do.

Something like that. we had a lot of thou shalt nots

but why did we have those thou shalt not

the reason was is we believe there were certain attitudes

of the heart that produce actions that are

more becoming to god so if we would think of it more as

lord how much can i be like you

instead of lord how

much can i get away with we would

understand the holiness and righteousness of god to become

a holy vessel is something that is to be desired

more than anything else holiness is an invasion of the

holy spirit into our lives that changes the very

makeup of our being like yeast does in

bread if we have the holy spirit that becomes the leaven of our lives not as

an impurity but as a purity that leaven comes in and transform the entire part

of our lives romans 12 verse 1 and 2 be Be you therefore transformed by the renewing of your minds,

Romans 12:1

that you may test and approve the perfect will of God in your life.

We need to be willing to be obedient and trustworthy in God's eyes.

The second use of the word holy speaks of a consecration-like sanctification,

which not only requires us to be cleansed and set apart, but includes God's

identification of us as his kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Exodus 19, verse 6.

Exodus 19:6

You will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words

you are to speak to the Israelites.

The words there, kingdom of priests and a holy nation, do you recognize those

as something else in the New Testament? Can anybody tell me?

And Peter said, we are a kingdom of priests, a holy nation, a royal people,

a royal nation, a holy people unto the Lord our God.

So Peter is actually referring to this testimony. Testimony.

Frequently, God reminds people they are to be holy.

Leviticus 20 says, sanctify yourselves, therefore, and be holy,

for I, the Lord your God, am holy. Go back to creation.

What was one of the desires of God in creation? It was that man would be like God.

Let us make man in our own image.

Genesis 1, verse 26, 27,

Genesis 1:26

then God said, let us make mankind in our own image in our likeness,

so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds of the air,

over the livestock and all the wild animals and over all the creatures that move along the ground.

So God created mankind in his own image. In the image of God, he created them.

Male and female, he created them.

There are people in this room, and those listening, who may have allowed their

lives to become far too common.

The holiness that God instills in us is something that is to make us rare.

And Peter says this, we are a peculiar people. Now, some may look at Pastor

Tim and say, yeah, he's more peculiar than anybody I've ever seen.

But we are to be a peculiar people, a people known by God.

And so, whether it's happened overnight or gradual occurrence,

a subtle decay or indescribable correction, oftentimes people,

even though they have tasted of the good of God, fall away and walk away.

So tell me, friends, are you ready to get rid of the leaven of sinfulness in

your lives and around you?

The answer is simple, yes or no. No, Philippians chapter 4, verse 8 tells us

Philippians 4:8

that whatsoever things are pure, holy, righteous, noble, trustworthy,

says think on these things.

If we dwell in our minds on everything that is righteous and holy,

and we allow the Holy Spirit to lead in us, he will remove that leaven from

our lives and make us holy like he's holy.

Please stand with me and receive the benediction. Heavenly Father,

we thank you that we have these lessons that tell us all about these things.

And Father, we don't understand all of these workings yet, but we do understand

that you gave instructions for the Israelites.

And what's really cool, Father, is that even some of the foreigners chose to

do what the Israelites did and observe the Passover and go with them out of the nation of Egypt.

Father, we thank you that we are those foreigners, those Gentiles who have accepted

the word of God and the faith in Christ to be our only way of salvation. In Jesus' name, amen.