The Messiah and the Covenants of Israel (Continued)

The Mosaic Covenant

From such small beginnings, the purposes of God grew. There was no great sweeping movement of the Spirit of God at that time, just the Omnipotent dealing with one man. From this individual Abram, and his wife Sarai, was to be brought a nation whose number could not be counted. It did not matter that Sarai was barren or that Abram was allowed to grow old, God’s promise would hold. And not only was the Lord prepared to deal with just one man, but was prepared to let him proceed at his own pace.  Oh! The grace of God. But thereafter the pace quickened. Not only was a nation to be produced from Abraham, as his new name indicated, but it would now be done with some urgency. “Be fruitful”, is the command of the Lord. In the same way as He commanded Adam and Eve, and later Noah, to “be fruitful”; He commanded Jacob “be fruitful”.  And for the family to grow into a nation, that would be without number (as the stars of heaven, the dust of the earth or the sand on the seashore) the seed would need to be planted in fertile soil, where it would bear fruit a hundredfold. Furthermore, not only were they to be innumerable but also separate, that is, holy unto the Lord.

 The Lord had already indicated to Abraham that the land in which they would dwell was to be Canaan.  This was not some territory picked at random, but a strategically placed geographical location.  It was the crossroads where the three main streams of humanity meet. It was the junction of the three main continents, Asia, Africa and Europe; those territories where the sons of Noah settled, Shem in Asia; Ham in Africa; and Japheth in Europe.  Therefore, the soil for the incubation of the seed of Abraham had to be within a reasonable distance of Canaan. 

 The solution was to plant the seed in the hothouse climate of Egypt. In preparation for the move of Jacob’s family to Egypt, the Lord incorporated into His plan the actions of Jacob’s sons when they sold their brother into slavery. Joseph referred to it when he was reunited with his family. He said, “God sent me before you to preserve a posterity for you in the earth”. (Gen. 45:7) Thus, the plan of God became evident, for there they would know protection (the protection of Joseph to begin with; and afterward the dynasty that Joseph served).  There they could multiply while remaining separate. They would not be absorbed because their separation would be both physical and cultural. Physical, because they would live in a region apart from the main population – that of Goshen; and cultural, because shepherds and sheep farming were tolerated but not embraced by the Egyptian population. However, Egypt could not be their home – they would have to be transplanted in Canaan. But how would you get the new-born nation to leave Egypt? And when they left, they all had to leave – none to remain.  So how would you get a nation of more than two million people to leave Egypt of their own accord?  Alas, you could not. The only way to extract them from their life in Goshen was to get the Egyptians to drive them out, and the only way the Egyptians would drive them out, is if they became totally odious to them. Such was the background to the nation’s Egyptian bondage and their exodus. This does not imply that the Lord orchestrated the period of oppression, only that, in his wisdom, He was able to predict and incorporate the actions of the Egyptian leadership into His plans for the infant nation. His ways are higher than our ways.

Before they could enjoy liberty away from Egypt there would be commands to be obeyed, blood to be shed, and claims to be met.  The final break from the oppressive regime came because they obeyed the commands, shed the blood and acknowledged God’s claims. The requirements imposed on Israelite households at the time they began their escape from their Egyptian prison, are given in Exodus chapter twelve. God’s instructions through Moses were very particular.   Each household was to kill, roast and eat a lamb or kid as their last meal in Egypt. The animal had to be a male, one year old, in good health, with no visible defects – only a healthy animal would be suitable as a sacrifice to the Lord and only such an animal could be the substitute for someone who was to be consecrated to God. Though they did not know it at the time, only such an animal could foreshadow the Messiah, the true Lamb of God, who is holy, harmless, undefiled and separate from sinners. 

The animal, chosen on the 10^th of the month Abib or Nisan as it was later known, was to be slain on the 14^th. The head of each household was to slay the lamb at twilight. These men would occupy the office of priest, and thereby constitute Israel as a nation of priests. The concept ‘kingdom of priests’ would be a foundational aspect of the covenant between the Lord and Israel that would be agreed at Mount Sinai. They were to daub the blood of the animal on the door surround, as evidence that the household had obeyed God’s instructions and fulfilled the necessary conditions for salvation.  Then when God visited Egypt with judgment, the blood of the substitute protected the Israelite homes, while Egyptian homes, that had no such protection, suffered the death of their firstborn.  The Hebrew word for Passover (Pesach) comes from a verb meaning ‘to pass over’, and clearly refers to the means by which they escaped the judgment that fell on Egypt. They were to eat the meal dressed for their journey, and be prepared to leave at a moment’s notice.

 Their deliverance was so momentous that the calendar was re-ordered. “This month shall be your beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year to you.” (Exod. 12:2) Their religious year was to begin with the month of Abib. Under the general name of ‘Passover’, this festival was incorporated into the life of the nation as a great educational tool in the hands of the Lord. It would be the first event of their religious year. This festival, that immortalized the birth of the nation, established for all future generations, the principles of substitution and consecration. And in light of the loss of the firstborn of Egypt and the deliverance of the firstborn of Israel, God claimed Israel’s firstborn for His own. Thus, the Egyptian Passover began the process of making Israel a unique and separate nation. A key feature of the ordering of the festival was that only those covered by the Abrahamic covenant could be admitted to the Passover meal.

In addition to the re-ordering of the calendar, the Lord memorialized the deliverance of the nation with a festival, “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them …these are My feasts. On the fourteenth day of the first month at twilight is the Lord’s Passover”, (Lev.23.2,5) a festival that was to commemorate Israel’s birth as a nation, and celebrate their subsequent new life in His care. And as birth is followed by growth, so the nation would grow in the knowledge of Him and His purposes. In practical terms, separation from Egypt was to be followed by a separation to God. A consecrated walk with the Lord, in an ever increasing understanding of His character and will, was to be the process, and a covenant between the Lord and Israel would set out details of the behavior expected of the nation chosen by God to be His special treasure.

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