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1 The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, 2 “This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year. 3 Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man is to take a lamb for his family, one for each household. 4 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. You are to determine the amount of lamb needed in accordance with what each person will eat. 5 The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect, and you may take them from the sheep or the goats. 6 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. 7 Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs. 8 That same night they are to eat the meat roasted over the fire, along with bitter herbs, and bread made without yeast. 9 Do not eat the meat raw or boiled in water, but roast it over a fire—with the head, legs and internal organs. 10 Do not leave any of it till morning; if some is left till morning, you must burn it. 11 This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak 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. 12 “On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn of both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD. 13 The blood will be a sign 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. 14 “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. (Exodus 12:1-14)
Meals are special. Some meals are sacred, even outside the church. All meals where God is invited are blessed occasions for fellowship, feasting, and focusing on His actions and blessings for those gathered. I have shared about two of manu sacred meals that God has provided for me. In my heart these have become feasts because God was involved and God blessed me in wonderful ways. The first one was when I was about 13 and a recent arrival to Houston and our usual Friday routine had been interrupted by a thing unbeknowst to me called "overtime." My Dad had to work late that day and our usual trip to Kroger's to buy groceries was delayed. And like Old Mother Hubbard, our cupboards were bare. We lived in a fourplex apartment building and only two families lived in it at the time. Our downstairs neighbor knew that something was wrong and came in to offer us a can of Spaghetti-O's. To feed four kids and herself, the can was emptied into the pan and about three cans of water made our feast. Years later, my scholarship check had been mistakenly mailed to Hawaii and the person there cashed it, signing his own name; meanwhile I had no money and no food in my cupboard in my dorm. I went to class and as I'm walking home a classmate asked if I would join him for lunch. "I don't have much; two eggs, two slices of whole wheat bread, and some chunky peanut butter." Another feast and I was blessed yet again.
This passage is all about the original Passover. This is the Eyewtiness News edition. God declares that the time would be the first month of the year, for the entire community of Israel that on the tenth day of that month they are to celebrate the great action of God who got them out of slavery and on the road to becoming the nation God intended for them. They were to use the perfect specimen of a sacrificial animal, preferably a lamb, and sacrifice it and using its blood were to mark the sides and tops of the doorframes of the home where the lamb was to be eaten. And God describes the meal and what was to happen during and after the meal. The meat was to be well done, no blood or raw meat allowed. It was to be consumed at that seating; any leftovers must, in the morning, be burned. The meal was to be eaten in haste, with everyone wearing their sandals on, cloaks tucked in, and traveling staff in hand. As they eat, God sent the angel to kill the firstborn of those whose houses did not have the blood. This event was not be forgotten; it was to be celebrated every year as a festival to the Lord.
Every meal should be received with gratitude to God Who provides us with that which blesses us and especially those which bless our loved ones, are occasions for celebration. It was this meal that set forth the birth of the new nation of Israel in thei Promised Land and set in motion that which brought about the entire history of God and God's people that led Him to send Jesus. It was this event that Jesus celebrated with His disciples and made what we call The Last Supper, now called Holy Communion. We learn that God is present at each table; His presence is more important than the food, as we learned through fasting during Lent, and giving God thanks for all that is on the table, and more importantly what is in our hearts. The next meal we have, let us truly invite God to give Him thanks and our love.
PRAYER: Awesome God, for all You have done, we thank You. For all meals we have eaten, we also thank You. We pray that we might do something to help those who have nothing to eat, and praise You for all will be done. You truly do give us our daily bread; may we be a part of Your will on the earth as it is in heaven. In Christ Jesus we pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! YOUR CALL TO ACTION: Bless someone with food today; of any kind - may it remind people of God and God's love for them.
Receive my blessings of joy and love,
Pastor Eradio Valverde, Jr.
