Saved From a Life of Slavery

“Celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread, because it was on this very day that I brought your divisions out of Egypt.” Exodus 12:17

The Passover Celebration was begun as a celebration of the freedom from slavery. God had ‘drilled down’ through all of the Egyptian resistance to finally taking their firstborn from among them in order to free the Israelites from bondage to the Egyptians. There is much significance to the firstborn. The firstborn was the one who would inherit the estate of the father. The firstborn was a sign of life and the family name going on. The future was all tied up in the firstborn. It was a crushing blow to the Egyptians and finally brought about the freedom of the Israelites.

Jesus was the First and Only Son of God. The future was all tied up in him. When he was celebrating his last Passover before going to the cross, he taught the disciples that he, Jesus, was the Passover lamb that was going to die in order to free them from the slavery of sin.

In this world, we often become confused about freedom. We believe that we are free if we have no rules, no constraints of any kind, no one telling us what to do, etc. But this freedom that Christ offers is way deeper than that. It frees us to say no to things that are harmful, to say no to having our own way at the expense of others, to approach our daily lives with faith instead of fear. It frees us to love others as we are loved by God.

Communion is often a sober event as we contemplate the life that Christ gave for us. Yet, I believe it is a time to celebrate! We celebrate because we are set free from the slavery of our selfish will and we are free to enjoy a life full of God’s grace and love. We are free to let go of something we’ve been holding on to in order to receive something so much better from our Father. Communion is a celebration, not a wake. It is a reminder of what Christ did for us – he set us free!

When a parent does something for their child at a sacrifice of themselves, they appreciate a thank you from the child. But what they want more than anything is for the child to take that ‘gift’ – whatever it is- and make the most of it – to enjoy it and use it well.

I am so grateful for this great act of love from my Father in Heaven – this freedom from slavery to sin. I want to enjoy what Christ did for me and use it well. While it is sobering, it is also cause to celebrate.