Let us turn to God's Word in
the book of Leviticus. Leviticus chapter 23, and I'll read from verse 6. And on the fifteenth day of the
same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the Lord. Seven days
ye must eat unleavened bread. In the first day ye shall have
an holy convocation, Ye shall do no servile work therein, but
ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord. In the seventh day is a holy
convocation. Ye shall do no servile work therein. Here then we have something of
the Feast of the Lord spoken of in verse 4. Holy Convocations
it says. which ye shall proclaim in their
season." And then in verse 5, the 14th day of the first month
at evening is the Lord's Passover. And then associated with that
in verse 6, on the 15th day of the same month is the feast of
unleavened bread unto the Lord. Seven days ye must eat unleavened
bread. And it's really those words in
verse 6 that I want to take for a tax this evening. Leviticus
23 6 on the 15th day of the same month is the feast
of unleavened bread unto the Lord. Seven days ye must eat
unleavened bread. Now mention is also made of this
feast of course in that portion or that chapter I should say
that we were taking our text from this morning in Exodus chapter
23 and there at verse 15 we read these words thou shalt keep the
feast of unleavened bread thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven
days as I commanded thee in the time appointed of the month Abib,
for in it thou camest out from Egypt, and none shall appear
before me empty." So the month is that month of Abib, the first
month of the ceremonial year in Israel. But before we come
to consider the words of the text, let me just make some general
remarks with regards to this book of Leviticus. It is of course
full of ceremonial laws, full of types, figures, shadows, all
pointing forward to that time when God would send his only
begotten son. In many ways it's a gospel book
in the Old Testament because it's full. of many remarkable
types and figures of the Lord Jesus. And we have the setting really from
what we're told at the end of the book of Exodus. There at
the end of Exodus we read of the setting up of the tabernacle
after Moses had received all that instruction in the 40 days
that he was there in the mount, all God's directions concerning
the furnishings, the various curtains and so forth and they
set up the tabernacle there at the end of Exodus and the glory
of God then fills the tabernacle. The cloud comes, as it were,
from heaven. The verse 34, Then a cloud covered
the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled
the tabernacle. In Exodus 14. And then, when
we come to the opening words of Leviticus, We're told the
Lord called unto Moses, and spake unto him out of the tabernacle
of the congregation, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel,
and say unto them. And then all this instruction
follows. It's God, as it were, the first
words that God speaks out of the tabernacle. are the words
that we have in Exodus and it's as I said it's the first day
of the first month in the second year it was a year previously
that they had been brought out of the bondage that was Egypt We're told there in verse 17
of Exodus 40, he came to pass in the first month, in the second
year, on the first day of the month that the tabernacle was
reared up. And as we said, God himself comes
and makes his dwelling in the tabernacle and calls unto Moses
and speaks unto him out of the tabernacle. Now, The month is
Abib and Abib literally means green ears of corn. Green ears of corn. It's the time of spring. It would
be equivalent, Abib really, to this month of March that we've
just entered into. Now interestingly after they
were taken into captivity again into exile in Babylon later in
their history after that experience of the Babylonian captivity the
name of the month is changed and afterwards it's referred
to not as Abed but as Nisan and That's the name, really, of the
Babylonian god of spring. So they use this Babylonian name,
Nisan. And for a whole month, really, it
seems that God, during this period, the spring, is giving them all
these instructions and directions with regards to the sacrifices
and the various feasts that they are to observe. And then when
we come to the end of the book of Leviticus, and we move on
then of course into the book of Numbers, there at the beginning
of Numbers we read, And the LORD spake unto Moses in the wilderness
of Sinai in the tabernacle of the congregation on the first
day of the second month in the second year after they were come
out of the land of Egypt. So, from the beginning of Leviticus
to the beginning of Numbers a whole month has passed. They set up
the tabernacle at the beginning of that first month Habib or
Nisan, and for a whole month God had been speaking words out
of the tabernacle, giving all these various instructions with
regards to the manner of their worship. a month, maybe it was
a lunar month, it may have just been 28 days, may have been a
30-day month, but it's interesting because when we compare that
length of time, in a sense it's 10 times longer than was the
case when God gave the Ten Commandments back in Exodus 19. Remember how
they were to prepare themselves for the giving of the commandments.
They were to sanctify themselves on the first day, and on the
second day, and then God would come and God would speak those
commandments on the third day. If we go back to Exodus 19, you'll
see what I mean from what we read there in verses 10 and 11. The Lord says unto Moses, Go
unto the people, sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them
wash their clothes, and be ready against the third day. For the
third day the Lord will come down in the sight of all the
people upon Mount Sinai. And then verse 16, He came to
pass on the third day in the morning, there were thunders
and lightnings and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice
of the trumpet exceeding loud, so that all the people that was
in the camp trembled. And then chapter 20, God spake
all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God. And then the
Ten Commandments follow. And the people stand afar off.
They're afraid. It's the giving of the law. It's
a period of three days. But when it comes to the Levitical
laws, the ceremonial laws, this gospel book, it's a whole period
of 30 days. How significant then, really,
is the content of this book of Leviticus? Because it's gospel.
Here in the Old Testament, Leviticus is full of great gospel truths
concerning the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. And all the feasts
that they were to observe, and amongst them of course is this
feast of the Passover. Verse 4, These are the feasts
of the Lord, even holy convocations, which he shall proclaim in their
seasons. In the fourteenth day of the
first month and even is the Lord's Passover. And though they were
to religiously follow all that God directed them to do in celebrating
that great deliverance, the feast of the Passover and the partaking
of the Paschal Lamb. And we know and it points to
Christ because we read those words in our readings there in
1 Corinthians 5, 7 even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for
us and we have on previous occasions looked at the significance of
the Passover lamb and all that was associated with the observance
of that particular feast well tonight I want us to consider
more particularly what we have here in verse 6, this Feast of
Unleavened Bread. The Feast of Unleavened Bread. On the 15th day, the day after
the Passover, on the 15th day of the same month is the Feast
of Unleavened Bread unto the Lord. Seven days ye must eat
unleavened bread. And again it's a type What is
it typical of? Well, in some ways, is it not
a type of the life of the Christian? The life of the believer? Does
it not speak to us of the purging out of sin? And again, we see
it quite clearly in that passage that we were reading in the New
Testament, there in 1 Corinthians 5, We've already referred to
the fact that we have mention of Christ, our Passover. But
look at the context there. He says at verse 7 in that chapter,
Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump as
ye are on leaven, for even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for
us. Therefore let us keep the feast,
not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and
wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth."
And he's dealing here with the church as a believing community
and a holy community, and he's dealing with the matter of a
grievous sin that has occurred in the church, even fornication,
and such fornication as is not even named among the Gentiles,
he says. So it's dealing specifically
with that holiness that becomes the Lord's people. Well, as we
come to look at the text for a while this evening, just two
things I want to dwell on really. First of all, this Feast of Unleavened
Bread is a reminder of their hasty departure out of Egypt. It's a reminder in that sense
that they're to live as strangers and as pilgrims in this world. The feast is given there in Exodus
chapter 12. It's associated with the final
plague, the tenth plague that God visits upon the Egyptians. It's associated very much with the Passover as
we've said. and we have the reason of course
why it was that they had unleavened bread because there was some
urgency and some haste with regards to the way in which they prepare
to leave Egypt. What do we read back in Exodus
chapter 12 and there it verses verses 11 and 12 he says thus shall ye
eat it he's speaking of the Passover with your loins girded your shoes
on your feet, your staff in your hand, and you shall eat it in
haste. It is the Lord's Passover, 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 with regards
to the bread of course they have no time to properly knead their
bread. As we see later in that chapter,
verse 33. The Egyptians were urgent upon
the people that they might send them out of the land in haste,
for they said, we'd be all dead men. And the people took their
dough before it was leavened, their kneading troughs being
bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders. And they're
having to eat this unleavened bread. as they departed, how
the Egyptians wanted rid of them. They were glad when they departed,
we read in Psalm 105. The Egyptians were fearful because
God had visited this dreadful judgment upon them, the destruction
of all the firstborn. And so they were urgent to set
them on their way. these Egyptians are not only
aware of that 10th plague but doubtless they would remember
all the plagues all that had gone before plague upon plague
and it's interesting that with regards to this 10th plague God
had said that he would put a difference between Egypt and the Israelites
and it was so of course It was so. Just as God had said, what
came upon the Egyptians did not come upon the Israelites. In verse 4 of Exodus 11, Thus saith the Lord, about midnight
will I go out into the midst of Egypt, and all the firstborn
in the land of Egypt shall die from the firstborn of Pharaoh,
that sitteth upon his throne, even unto the firstborn of the
maidservant that is behind the mill, and all the firstborn of
beasts. And there shall be a great cry
throughout all the land of Egypt, such as there was none like it,
nor shall be like it any more. But against any of the children
of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast
that ye may know. O the Lord doth put a difference
between the Egyptians and Israel. God puts a difference between
these two peoples in. As he sends his judgment, that's
not the only occasion. We see it previously with the
fourth of those plagues, the swarm of flies that was to come
upon them, and there it speaks about God's Buddha division. With the tenth plague there's
a difference. With that fourth plague, in Exodus 8.23, there's
a division. I will put a division between
my people and thy people is the message that Moses is to take
from God to Pharaoh. God says he will put a division.
And it is interesting because The margin indicates that the
word that we have there rendered division in the text is literally
the word redemption. I will put a redemption between
my people and thy people is the literal wording that we should
have there in Exodus 8, 23. God puts a difference. God makes
a division. His people are different people
to the Egyptians. Why are they different people?
Because they are the people whom the Lord is redeeming unto himself. Even when he comes to the observance
of the Passover, we see the same principle of the division, the
difference. because it is stated quite plainly
there shall no stranger eat thereof no stranger is to eat of the
paschal lamb it is that that is for God's Israel and God's
Israel alone and there are different people here in this world there
are people who are strangers and pilgrims in the earth it's
not that they are more holy than any other people There's an interesting
passage in the book of the Prophet Ezekiel concerning Israel and
what they were as a people when they were there in Egypt. All those years of bondage, how
really they were hardly distinguishable from the Egyptians. How they
learned the ways of the Egyptians. In Ezekiel chapter 20, we have these words at verse 5 and
the following verses. Say unto them, Thus saith the
Lord God in the day when I chose Israel, and lifted up mine hand
unto the seed of the house of Jacob, and made myself known
unto them in the land of Egypt, when I lifted up mine hand unto
them, saying, I am the Lord your God. In the day that I lifted
up mine hand unto them to bring them forth of the land of Egypt
into a land that I had espied for them, flowing with milk and
honey, which is the glory of all lands, then said I unto them,
Cast ye away every man the abominations of his eyes. and defile not yourselves
with the idols of Egypt. I am the Lord your God. But they
rebelled against me and would not hearken unto me. They did
not every man cast away the abominations of their eyes, neither did they
forsake the idols of Egypt. Then I said, I will pour out
my fury upon them to accomplish my anger against them in the
midst of the land of Egypt. But I wrote for my name's sake,
that it should not be polluted before the heathen, among whom
they were, in whose sight I made myself known unto them, in bringing
them forth out of the land of Egypt." What is the difference? What is the distinction? What
is the division? It's what God does. It's what
God does. And what has God done? He has
redeemed them. their sins were atoned for and
their sins were atoned for in the death of the Paschal Lamb and because they are the Lord's
people and he has redeemed them to himself they are to be a people
who are different a people who are separate and so they are
to purge out all the old leaven the leaven of sin or they must
quickly come out of Egypt and so they live as pilgrims and
of course when we come to Hebrews chapter 11 we read of the Lord's
people as those who are very much strangers and pilgrims in
the earth in many ways that's a very general statement that
we have concerning the people of God For there in Hebrews 11,
13, these all died in faith, not having received the promises,
but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and
embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and
pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things
declare plainly that they seek a country, and truly if they
had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they
might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire
a better country, that is, an heaven. Wherefore God is not
ashamed to be called their God, for he hath prepared for them
a city. Oh, they are that people then,
who in this world are strangers, pilgrims. They that use this
world as not abusing this world. Paul says, for the fashion of
this world passeth away. that are people who recognize
that the things that are seen are but temporal things and the
unseen things are the eternal things this is the people of God they
are those in who when he comes to the departure from the ways
of the world they They go out in haste. They leave these things
behind. They're not conformed to the
fashion of the world. They're transformed by the renewing
of their mind. They understand something of
what the will of the Lord is. And that's the significance really
of this feast that's associated with their deliverance. The Feast
of the Unleavened Bread. Again look at the language that
we have in the sixth chapter of the book
of Deuteronomy. There in Deuteronomy 6, 3. Hear therefore, O Israel, and
observe to do it, that it may be well with thee, and that it
may increase mightily, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath
promised thee, in the land that floweth with milk and honey. Or what were they to do? They
were to be a people so different, so separated, as they come into
the possession of that that God had promised them. The guy in
the Lord God says to them, Thou shalt eat no leavened bread with
it. Seven days shalt thou eat unleavened
bread therewith, even the bread of affliction, for thou camest
forth out of the land of Egypt in haste. They come out in haste
to go into a land that the Lord God had prepared for them. And
what is this bread? Well, there it's spoken of as
the bread of affliction. It's the bread of affliction.
That means out of people who are going to know much of trials
and troubles, tribulations. In the world, says Christ, you
shall have tribulations. But be of good cheer, I have
overcome the world." And Paul echoes those words when he says,
we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God. The bread of affliction. This feast and of unleavened
bread. It's for the people who are never
settled in this world, they're looking. watching, waiting for
that city that hath foundation, whose builder and maker is God,
they are going forth into a land of promise, that God hath promised
for them that love Him. But then, in the second place,
there is this emphasis really upon the importance of the holiness
of their living. And as I said, that's really
what we have so clearly stated in that 5th chapter of 1st Corinthians,
we've already referred to it, the purging out of the old leaven. And remember that the New Testament
is really the key to open up to us the significance
of the feast, the significance of the type that he set before
us, here in Leviticus 23. We know that all these things
happened unto them for examples, for types, and they're written
for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
The ends of the world being this gospel day, the last days. All
that is written in the Old Testament, all that is written in the book
of Leviticus, is for us, for our learning, that we through
patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. And what do
we see here with regards into this particular type and the
anti-type? The life of the child of God
is to be free from all hypocrisy. Those words of Paul writing to
the Corinthians Therefore let us keep the feast, he says, not
with the old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and
wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth."
There's the mark. There's the mark of those who
are the true Israel of God, who partake of the gospel of the
grace of God. They partake of the unleavened
bread of sincerity and truth." Now, I did also read in the Gospel, in the 16th of Matthew, the words
of the Lord Jesus to his disciples, warning them of the leaven of
the Pharisees. Remember what we read there in
that chapter Matthew 16? Verse 6, Jesus said unto them, Take heed
and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.
And they don't understand. They think he's speaking of the
leaven of bread. Because they were on this journey,
they'd forgotten to take bread. But then he says, well, they've
forgotten the miracles that Christ had performed. He'd fed the 5,000. He'd fed the 4,000, miraculously. He's not talking of bread at
all. No, he tells them plainly. They
understand, we are told in verse 12, Then understood they how
that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of
the doctrine, the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. That's what they had to beware
of, their false teachings, their false doctrine. But interestingly,
In another gospel, in Luke's gospel for example, Luke 12 and
verse 1, there's a particular aspect of the Pharisees' religion
that is specified. Beware ye of the leaven of the
Pharisees, he says, which is hypocrisy. Oh, there's their doctrine. They
are renowned for their hypocrisy. Now the Pharisees were those
who made so much of the letter of the commandments of the Old
Testament and of course Saul of Tarsus who became Paul the
Apostle was one such a Pharisee touching the law he says a Pharisee
when he speaks of his pedigree his great Jewish pedigree there
in Philippians 3. Touching the Lord, a Pharisee,
what did he mean? He goes on to explain himself,
touching the righteousness which is of the Lord blameless. Well,
that's how the Pharisees thought, they were blameless. They were
such good men, such upright men, such righteous and holy men. When those two men go into the
temple at the hour of prayer, the one was a Pharisee, remember? And the other was a despised
publican, a tax-gatherer. And the Pharisee stands so full of himself, so proud,
I am not as other men are. I'm not like this publican. And
then he reels off all the things that he does. the leaven of the
Pharisee. It's hypocrisy. They make so
much of all the externals of religion. They make a show before
men. They want to be seen of men.
They stand... Do you remember how Christ brings
it all out, of course, in the Sermon on the Mount? They want men to see that they're
fasting. they want me to see that they're
praying they stand on corners of streets they make a display
all the time and the Lord speaks of the evils of that religion all those who are the Lord's
people they purge out all that old leaven they don't want a
hypocritical religion like that of the Pharisees. They want something
that is real, something that is wrought of God. That the Christ
speaks of when he says, Behold the kingdom of God is within
you. There's something wrought in the soul of this sinner. He's not just one who is a play
actor and all that he has of religion is simply a pretense.
Something for men to see and admire. There is part then of the holy
living of those who are the Lord's true children, Israel disciples. They live that sort of life.
So different to that of the legalist and the Pharisee and the hypocrite. But what else do they do? Well,
they're constantly feeding really upon the Lord Jesus Christ. He
is all their religion. All their religion centers in
the Lord Jesus Christ. Again the words that we have
there in that 5th chapter of 1st Corinthians. Purge out therefore
the old leaven that ye may be a new lump that ye as ye are
unleavened for even Christ. Our Passover is sacrificed for
us. or they feed upon the Paschal
Lamb, they feed upon the Lord Jesus Christ. It is Christ who
motivates all their holiness of life. They're constantly feeding upon
Him. Isn't that the imagery that we have in that sixth chapter
of John? where Christ speaks of himself,
as you know, as the bread of life, and speaks so plainly there
of the importance of union with Christ. We are familiar with the passage,
"...who so eateth my flesh," he says, "...and drinketh my
blood at eternal life." My flesh is meat indeed. My blood is drink
indeed. He that eateth my flesh and drinketh
my blood dwelleth in me and I in him. Or there is that purging out
of the old leaven that there might be a real feeding upon
Christ, upon Christ alone. He is that one who is the motivation
always to holiness of life and to gain. how Paul brings it out in his
epistles when he comes to the practical aspect of the doctrines
that he's been setting before these various churches. Look at the language that we
have in Ephesians for example. In Ephesians chapter 4 The end of that chapter, verse
31, he says, Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor
and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice. And
be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another. And then
even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. All the exhortation
you see, the commandment as it were, These great imperatives,
let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, evil speaking, be put
away with all malice. Be kind, tender-hearted, forgiving. And here is the motivation, even
as God, for Christ's sake, hath forgiven you. Be ye therefore
followers of God as dear children. Walk in love, as Christ also
hath loved us and hath given himself for us, an offering and
a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savour." Again, he speaks of
that that is to be the motivation, the moving force in the life
of these Christians. It's Christ. It's what Christ
has done. And then he goes on with more
exhortation, fornication, all uncleanness, all covetousness.
Let it not be once named among you as becometh saints, neither
filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor jesting, which are not convenient,
but rather giving of thanks." How Paul is careful always, it's
not legal duties here he's talking about. It's that removal of the old
lever, that there might be a new lump. It's the difference between
the old man and the new man. There's to be that putting off
concerning all the deeds of the flesh that there might be that
putting on of the new man of grace. All that purging that
the Apostle speaks of it. Let us keep the feast, he says,
not with the old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and
wickedness, but with that unleavened bread. of sincerity and truth. There's significance then even
with regards to the Feast of Unleavened Bread. If Christ is
that One who is our Passover, the Paschal Lamb, we'll see the
association with what follows in the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
And our believers are to live them, live their lives as those
who are icing through this world strangers pilgrims on the earth
and seeking to live to the honor and the glory of God there we
have to be such as would constantly look
to ourselves and examine ourselves and prove ourselves and know
ourselves and there we see that to be necessary when it comes
to our observance of the Lord's Supper. Paul says there, doesn't
he, in 1 Corinthians 11, but let a man examine himself, so
let him eat of that bread and drink of that cup. Oh, are we
those who as we come to the table, we're looking to the Lord Jesus.
He is the great motivation in all that we do. When we examine
ourselves, what qualifications do we see? Oh, it's nothing in
ourselves. Here is the one who eats and
drinks with sinners. That's the wonder of it. He comes
not to call the righteous. He comes and calls sinners to
repentance. And he is pleased to come and
to sup with such sinners. And so as we come to that table,
what is our qualification? will sin us, and we feel to need
to know more and more of that grace of God, and we want to
be those who would conform more and more to the image of our
Lord Jesus Christ, being transformed by the renewing of our minds,
understanding what the will of the Lord is. Oh God, be pleased
then to Grant us all needed grace as we come again presently to
observe that Holy Supper, the Lord's Supper, and to see the
fulfillment of all that we have here in the Old Testament, and
particularly in this Book of Leviticus, all fulfilled in Christ
and His Church. In the 14th day of the first
month, that even is the Lord's Passover, And on the 15th day
of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the
Lord. Seven days, it says, ye must
eat unleavened bread. Well, the Lord grant his blessing. Amen.