THE EXODUS NIGHT

WHAT IS EXODUS?

Exodus simple means the escape of the Israelites from Egypt or the cross over or Passover night. The exodus was prophesied to Abraham and fulfilled by Moses (Gen. 15:1-14) “Then He said to Abraham; “Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years. And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they will come out with great possessions.” The Exodus, God’s deliverance of Israel from slavery in Egypt through the leadership of Moses and Aaron his brother, is the salvation event of the Old Testament. This event was rooted in the faithfulness and love of God (Deut. 7:9) “Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments.” The Israelites celebrated it annually in the Passover, the psalmist memorialized the event in their songs, and prophets often drew attention to the gracious God of the exodus (Ps. 66:5-6) “Come and see the works of God; He is awesome in His doings toward the sons of men. He turned the sea into dry land; they went through the river on foot. There we will rejoice in Him.” The New Testament writers used the story to teach important spiritual truths: to bring to mind the absolute power of God, to picture salvation in Christ, to draw an example of faith and to urge God’s redeemed children to live a life of obedient faith (John 6:29-33) “Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.” Then they said to Him, “What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do? Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly I said to you, Moses did not give you bread from heaven, but My Father gives you true bread from heaven. For the bread of God, is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” The reference to Jesus’ death as an exodus and to Jesus as the Passover Lamb links the death and resurrection of Jesus with God’s serving act of the Old Testament (Isa. 53:7) “He was oppressed and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before His shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth.”

THE PASSOVER NIGHT

The Passover lamb was not to have any of its bones broken and without blemish (Exod. 12:5) “Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year. You may take it from the sheep or the goats.” John the Apostle sees this passage as prophetic as Jesus Christ, the only one of the three crucified that day who did not have His bones broken (John 19: 31-36) “Therefore, because it was the Preparation Day, that the bodies should not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who was crucified with Him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs.”  In a more general sense, both Apostles John and Peter consider the Passover lamb of the Old Testament to be a foreshadowing of God’s true Passover lamb, Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 5:7; 1 Pet. 1:19) “Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover was crucified for us.”  And (V. 8) says, “Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”  Christ as our Passover was crucified for us that we may leave our wicked ways and focus and follow the Lamb of God who takes away our sins with a sincere and truthful hearts. Beloved, as we crossover to the New Year 2022, may we embrace it with gratitude hearts leaving behind our malice and evil ways of life and surrendering to the will of God and only His agenda to have its way in our lives, in our nations, in our families, in our places of work and in our businesses. And I truly assure us the best year ever, as we apply. Many are the challenges, uncertainties, afflictions, pandemics, misfortunes, sufferings and lose of loved ones that had been experienced in the year 2020 and 2021 respectively; but beloved, know for sure that God has indeed been so faithful. He is still sited on His throne; He has never changed nor failed and He is ready to bestow His goodness to those who remain to be faithful to Him. Never get weary of doing good nor give up on the race but press on knowing that only those who complete in the race will receive the prize and the crown as well. Let’s receive what Apostle Peter says to us “And if you call the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.” If only we can have an idea of what the precious blood of Christ can do, then all might leave in fear and awe of Christ and of the Father. And because we have no idea, that is why we find many of us leaving carelessly and any howl. It is my prayer that the Almighty God and Father may touch and transform us as we crossover to the new year of 2022.

THE PASSOVER PREPARATION

In life, in celebrations, plans and progress of life; there must be a preparation. There is no one under the sun that sleeps and wakes up the following day to start building a house neither no man nor woman who will wake up and celebrate their marriage in a twinkle of an eye. There must be preparation! So how well are we prepared to crossover tonight?  The Israelites before the Passover or the crossover were prepared thus (Exod. 12:11) “And thus you shall eat it: with a belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff on your hand, so you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord’s Passover.”  Passover or crossover is the Lord’s and should be honored and not taken for granted beloved brethren. (V. 14) “So this day shall be to you a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generation. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting ordinance.” This is the time that we ought to take our time and reflect how God has carried us through from the beginning of the year that is from January to the end of the year i.e. December. To thank God for what He has done, what He is yet to do and for the plans which we believe His intervention in the crossover year. Did we know that when we thank God for the things He has done and those that are pending He acts promptly? (V. 40-42) “Now the sojourn of the children of Israel who lived in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years-on that very same day-it came to pass that all the armies of the Lord went out from the land of Egypt. It is a night of solemn observance to the Lord for bringing them out of the land of Egypt. This is that night of the Lord a solemn observance for all the children of Israel throughout their generations.” God had prophesied to Abraham that his descendants would be mistreated in a foreign country four hundred years (the above Scripture from Gen. 15:13-14 on the first paragraph). This text citing the amount of time between Jacob’s arrival in Egypt and the exodus indicates the accuracy of God’s prediction. (V. 51) “And it came to pass, on that very same day, that the Lord brought the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt according to their armies.” Tonight as we crossover to the New Year, may the Righteous Father deliver us from any Egyptians that has been mistreating us denies us the joy and the happiness that the Almighty God has bestowed upon us in the Mighty name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth Amen.

FINDING FORGIVENESS THROUGH GOD’S LOVE

Though we neglect God’s love and walk through malice and our wicked ways, God will always forgive us when we humble and return to Him in repentance. May we repent of our wicked ways before crossing over to the new year as we await for the new things (Exod. 34:5-7) ”Now the Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name of the Lord. And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abounding in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgressions and sin, by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the father’s upon the children to the third and fourth generations.” This text is found at the center of one of the greatest revelations of the character of God in the Scriptures. The mercy, grace, and forgiveness of God appear as the chief traits of that character. This insight into God’s character follows Moses’ request for wholesale forgiveness of Israel’s sin (Exod. 32:32) “Yet now, if You will forgive their sins- but if not, I pray, blot me out of Your book which You have written.” When this request was not granted, Moses asked for a revelation of the basis upon which God would forgive the sins of Israel. That insight is given here. God is a God of unlimited grace, mercy and forgiveness.  But man is not automatically forgiven. Forgiveness of God is found by those who seek it. The second covenant with Israel (34:10) “And He said: “Behold I make a covenant.  Before all your people I will do marvels such as have not been done in all the earth, or in any nation; and all the people among whom you are shall see the work of the Lord. For it is an awesome thing that I will do with you,” included relief from the judgment of the people’s sins to allow them to be taught their need and seek forgiveness. Those who seek forgiveness found it beloved brethren.

Jesus said to His disciples (John 5:24) “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.” As we crossover tonight beloved to the New Year 2022, I decree and declare that those that the enemy had appointed and numbered their deaths shall not die but crossover to behold the beauty and the agenda of God for us all in the Mighty name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth Amen.

“Grace to you and Favor of our God and Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be with us all in the Year 2022 and beyond.”

“I wish us a Prosperous Year 2022 of God’s Blessings, Grace and Favor, Love, Joy, Peace and Unity.”