"PROTECTING THE CHILDREN"
Mar. 8, 2019
knowing that you were ransomed ... with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.
~ 1 Peter 1:18-19 (ESV)
An Israelite father (putting blood on the door) ...
What must it have been like to be an Israelite father on that first Passover night? The Passover lamb had just been slaughtered; now each father had to complete the strange job Moses had given them. With the smell of roast lamb in the air, each man dipped a stalk of hyssop into a basin of lamb's blood and used it to smear blood on the doorframe of His house. One smear for the lintel across the top; one for each doorpost, on the left and the right. As night came on, the door was shut; no one would go out till the morning.
It was a strange thing Moses had them do. No doubt their Egyptian neighbors asked them what they were up to, smearing blood all over the place. Maybe they even made fun of them. But no man would dare disobey God's Word, because Moses warned them: "The Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you" (Exodus 12:23).
The blood of the lamb was the safety for their children. Because the lamb's blood was shed, no Israelite child would lose his life in the final plague of Egypt. They would be protected, safe at home. The lamb died, and the children lived.
It's like that for us too, isn't it? Our Lamb is Jesus, the Lamb of God (as John the Baptist called Him). He willingly lay down His life for us so that we would be saved from the power of death and evil. His blood marks us as God's own family. Nothing, not an angel of death, not even the devil himself, can destroy God's children. Jesus' blood marks the door to our hearts.
THE PRAYER: Lord, thank You for saving us through Your blood. Amen.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
- What seemingly odd things do you do to protect yourself and your family?
- When you think of blood, what else do you think of—good or bad?
- The blood of Jesus marks the door to our hearts. Does carrying that thought impact what you let go through that door?
Lenten Devotions were written by Dr. Kari Vo. Use these devotions in your newsletter and bulletin! Used by permission; all rights reserved by the Int'l LLL (LHM).
What must it have been like to be an Israelite father on that first Passover night?
No comments:
Post a Comment