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March - April 2000 The Sabbath Sentinel
Unleavened Bread - Meaning for Today?
by Royce Mitchell, Jr.
Have you ever looked at some of the things that God has
done and wondered to yourself, "Why did He do that?" As
I have studied and learned more about God's Way of life
over the years, there are a number of things that have
caused me to ask myself this very question. One of those
"wonder-filled' things is His creation of a set of
Sabbaths commonly known as "High Sabbaths" or "Holy
Days"
Whether or not one agrees with the idea that those days
(listed in Leviticus 23) are still to be observed by a
New Testament Christian, we can certainly agree that God
ordained them and that their biblical significance
remains. While scripture plainly states as much,
questions still remain... What was God's purpose for
legislating these Sabbaths and what is their meaning?
We know that God has a purpose for everything that he
does. In the January-February 2000 issue of The
Sabbath Sentinel, the front cover pictured an
impressive galaxy which is not visible with the unaided
eye; yet, this spectacular spiral system of stars
becomes observable with the focused help of the Hubble
Space Telescope. We know that there is a wonderful
raison d'eatre for all of God's creation - whether
distant galaxies or events on planet Earth.
God did not create those majestic "heavenly bodies"
without a purpose. Such is likewise the case with the
"Holy Days" found in Leviticus 23.
Of particular interest at this time of the year would be
the days which directly follow the Passover. We read of
them in Leviticus 23:4-8, where it is stated, "These
are the feasts of the LORD, even holy convocations,
which ye shall proclaim in their seasons. In the
fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD's
passover. 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 seven days: in the seventh day is an holy
convocation: ye shall do no servile work
therein,"(KJV). God made no mystery of His desires
for this day - ALL were to attend a sacred assembly!
We notice that two sacred assemblies were required: one
on the first day and another on the seventh day.... But,
what could God's purpose have been for asking that those
days be kept? Often we will find the meanings of the
symbolism, that is used in the Old Testament, explained
in the New Testament. All scripture is useful for us
today; (2 Tim 3:16, "All scripture is given by
inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for
reproof, for correction, for instruction in
righteousness" ).
1 Corinthians 5:7 states, in part, "... For even
Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:"
(KJV). Indeed, the Passover lamb which was sacrificed
under the Old Testament was merely a symbol of
Christ. But, more importantly, we learn that it was
the blood of the Passover lamb that caused the
Israelites to be spared from the death of the firstborn
by the angel of death. Once we see that Christ is that
lamb, we can see that we, as the coming firstborn, are
also spared from that same angel of death by His blood.
What then is the meaning of the Days of Unleavened
Bread, the next set of Holy Days listed in Leviticus 23?
Turning to the context of the last reference, we find in
1 Corinthians 5:8, "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." (KJV). We now see that these
days of unleavened bread, that is, bread without a
rising agent, relate to that forgiveness that we receive
as a result of our acceptance, of the covering blood of
the sacrifice on our lives. What, then, does the leaven
represent? It is clear from the context that leaven is
related to malice and wickedness.
Wickedness is clearly a condition that is in opposition
to the Way of God. Many verses of scripture tell us of
the unpleasant end of those who practice
wickedness. (What then does this tell us of this day?)
Here in Verse 8, notice the distinct contrast between
bread without leaven - unleavened bread - and bread with
leaven! We see that the unleavened bread is compared to
sincerity and truth.... According to Christ's prayer the
night of His capture, God's Word is truth.
How does that translate to useful information for us:
His called and chosen people? Consider first, that we
are called to repentance. Repentance brings with it a
turning from our own ways to the Ways of God. But, we
can not maintain this new path without help. The
Scriptures and history have taught us that mankind does
not know the way to peace. (Isaiah 59:8, Rom 3:10-18).
Peace is the condition into which God calls us. Because
we are still carnal beings, we need help to continue on
this new-found path. That guidance comes in the form of
the Holy Spirit.
But, again from looking at the Old Testament, we know
that God will not dwell in an unclean situation. So, how
do we get cleaned up? We must be washed in the blood of
the sacrifice that was made for us, the blood of
Christ. That is the meaning of Passover....
Now we get a glimpse of God's reason for having created
that set of Holy Days known as the Days of Unleavened
Bread. Since leaven represents wickedness, and the
Israelites were commanded to put it out of their lives,
we can see that, once cleansed, we too must put leaven
(sin) out of our lives. The physical leaven found in
bread is symbolic of the spiritual leaven found in our
lives.
We should search every corner of our lives for this
leaven. When we find it, we are to get rid of it...While
the wine of Passover represents Jesus Christ's redeeming
sacrificial blood, His broken body is our unleavened
"bread of life."
What is it about leaven that caused God to use it as an
example for us? Notice this: 1 Corinthians 5:6-7 states,
"Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a
little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out
therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as
ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is
sacrificed for us..." Even though we were washed
clean by the Blood of Christ's Sacrifice, we see that
even a little bit of leaven if unchecked, can
work its way through our lives and has the potential to
return us to the soiled state of wickedness from which
we were rescued.
Leaven has the effect of causing bread to rise, giving
it that soft texture that we enjoy. It literally
puffs the bread up. This analogy did not go
unaddressed in scripture. 1 Corinthians 8:1-2 states,
"...we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge
puffeth up, but charity edifieth. And if any man think
that he knoweth anything, he knoweth nothing yet as he
ought to know." We see that even if we know and
understand the things of God, that such wisdom, when not
combined with love, tends to puff us up, as leaven does
bread. That is a stern warning for us to see our
knowledge in proper perspective, as a tool with which to
better understand, serve and love God - but not to raise
ourselves above our brethren. Indeed, we are warned not
to think higher of ourselves than we ought.
Once again, we can look back into the Old Testament for
some insight. Saul was rejected as king of Israel
because he forgot the attitude that he had as a
child. In 1 Samuel 15:17, we are reminded of that
attitude: "And Samuel said, 'When thou wast little
in thine own sight, wast thou not made the head of the
tribes of Israel, and the LORD anointed thee king over
Israel?'" Saul had become puffed up, like a piece
of leavened bread! He forgot that he was nothing without
God. The first king of Israel stands as a lesson to us
that if we forget where we were before He called us and
taught us His Ways, we too will find ourselves rejected
by God.
None of this is to say that we can be saved by anything
we do. Salvation is a free gift of God's grace, which
works in us through His calling and merciful
forgiveness. While the Israelites did pass through the
sea (symbolic of baptism) and were forgiven ~
God still expected them to obey His commandments and
judgments; the same likewise applies to us. We must
repent of our sins, become baptized by water, and start
obeying and living by every Word of God.
Even though we have been forgiven and washed in the
blood of Christ, and have received the gift of His
Spirit, we are still expected to obey His Laws! Failure
to obey His Laws is the slippery slope of sin, which is
degradation into wickedness and lawlessness. This is the
lesson of the leaven that God was trying to teach us
when He instituted the Days of Unleavened Bread.
Whether or not one believes that the keeping of these
days is required of those who are called in these latter
days, it is nevertheless clear that God at least
intended for them to teach us a lesson. That lesson is
easily understood, when viewing all of the scriptures on
the subject. The OT Scriptures regarding the Days of
Unleavened Bread are listed directly after the ones
regarding Passover, which we know to be representative
of the cleansing nature of Christ's sacrifice....
They show us that since we have been cleansed from all
sin, that we must now actively seek to remove sin from
our lives. We might consider the keeping of those days
as optional, but we dare not consider the prevention of
sin through His Spirit as a mere option. If we do, we
will too easily return to the state of being puffed up
that we had once escaped. Having been freed from the
evil which is in the world, we should be actively
seeking to remove and avoid anything that might serve to
return us to that state.
What a glorious lesson that the Days of Unleavened Bread
have to teach us, if we will only learn from them!
TSS
March - April 2000 The Sabbath Sentinel
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