Red Shield

“When the Lord passes through to strike Egypt and sees the blood on the lintel and the two door posts, he will pass over the door and not let the destroyer enter your houses to strike you.” (Exodus 12:23 CSB)

The Passover was a foreshadowing of what is to come.

The Passover meal consisted of the meat of a sacrificial animal, unleavened bread, and bitter herbs. The blood from the sacrificial animal was to be applied to the lintel and the two doorposts of each house, and when the Lord saw the blood, He would not let the destroying angel harm anyone inside. The first Passover occurred the night before Israel’s release from slavery. It marked the culmination of the 10th plague against the Egyptians and against their gods.

The New Testament teaches us that Jesus was our “Passover Lamb.” The blood of Jesus now covers over our sin, so that God no longer sees them. In Romans 5:9 Paul writes, “Much more then, since we have now been declared righteous by His blood, we will be saved through Him from wrath.” The blood of Jesus cleans us from all sin. And we are, therefore, set free from our slavery to sin so that we can live a life fully in relation to God. The final judgment, therefore, has no impact on us.

The key to this is in the application of the blood. It had to be applied to the lintel and to the two doorposts at the outset of that first Passover. That means it was an act of the will to do so. Likewise, for the blood of Christ, shed on the cross for us, to have its effect it must be “applied” to our lives. This means that by faith we receive God’s gracious gift of forgiveness and salvation. It is by His blood we are redeemed.

The sacrifice of the life of Jesus, accepted into our hearts by faith in Him, sets us free and changes us forever. We have entered into eternal life. For that we say, “Hallelujah.”

Lord, We thank You for the cross, and for the plan that You have worked out for our salvation, and for Your plan for our lives. May we live them now in ways that honor You. Amen.