Exodus 12:15-20: “Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven out of your houses, for if anyone eats what is leavened, from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. On the first day you shall hold a holy assembly, and on the seventh day a holy assembly. No work shall be done on those days. But what everyone needs to eat, that alone may be prepared by you. And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this day, throughout your generations, as a statute forever. In the first month, from the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. For seven days no leaven is to be found in your houses. If anyone eats what is leavened, that person will be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a sojourner or a native of the land. You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwelling places you shall eat unleavened bread.”
This scripture reveals SIX KEY ACTION points to consider implementing based on what we observe from the scripture.
WHEN DOES THE FEAST START?
Observation 1: The Feast of Unleavened Bread begins on the 15th day of the first month (Aviv) and lasts for seven days.
Action Point: Work out on your calendar what day is the 15th of Aviv. Mark it out in your calendar and the seven days following it.
WHAT DO WE DO WITH THE LEAVEN?
Observation 2: During these seven days, no leavened bread is to be eaten.
Action Point: Remove all leavened bread from one’s household and refrain from eating it during the designated period. We will talk more about this later in the lesson.
WHEN ARE THE HOLY CONVOCATIONS?
Observation 3: On the first day, which is the 15th of Aviv, there shall be a holy convocation and a sacred assembly, and on the seventh day, another holy convocation and a sacred assembly.
Action Point: Gather with your community of believers for communal worship and reflection on the significance of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. These dates would be the 15th and 22nd of Aviv.
CAN WE WORK OVER PASSOVER?
Observation 4: No customary work is to be done on the first and seventh days, except what is necessary for food preparation.
Action Point: Dedicate these two days specifically during the Feast of Unleavened Bread to spiritual reflection, worship, fellowship, time with family rather than focusing on regular work activities.
WHAT DOES LEAVEN REPRESENT?
Observation 5: The command to eat unleavened bread throughout the duration of the feast underscores the symbolic significance of this act where leaven represents sin and the removal represents repentance.
Action Point: Reflect on the symbolism of unleavened bread, which often represents purity, sincerity, and haste in obedience to God’s commandments – make this a daily excersize over the seven days. Why seven days? The number seven, holds very special significance in scripture quite often representing completion. In 6 days God had created the world and on the seventh he rested. Seven pairs or seven sevens of each clean animal were brought onto the ark. The menorah has seven lamps. The Israelites walked around Jericho seven days and on the seventh day, seven trumpets were blasted and the walls crumbled. In the book of revelation, there are seven seals, seven trumpets and seven bowls of judgement. The number seven holds significance in a completed work, and when you engage for seven days, in having removed the leaven or sin from your house and contemplated repentance for a whole week, and your freedom from sin, there is a completeness and wholeness.
DID GOD REALLY SAY WE MUST KEEP THE FEAST?
Observation 6: The consequences of not observing the Feast of Unleavened Bread are severe, with the penalty being separation from the community of believers.
Action Point: Take seriously the command to observe this feast as it signifies obedience to God’s instructions and participation in the covenant community.
