PRAYER + PRAISE
Unleavened Bread
- Adam Cole // February 20, 0109
6 Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.[c] 8 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. - 1 Cor. 5:6-8 —1 Corinthians 5:6-8
Much of Corinthians addresses the sinful lifestyle choices of the city of Corinth and how the church of Corinth was engaging in activities of and conforming to that lifestyle, despite Christ’s work in the believers there. Paul encourages righteousness of those believers and encourages the church body to lovingly confront (and ultimately send out, if need be), as Jesus calls us to correct sin amongst our brethren, those who want to continue in sin despite knowing that they are committing wrongs against God.
The set of verses above is directed at the call and that pursuit of not only building our lives on righteous but unifying as a body to ensure that we as whole stay pure. Paul likens the process to bread, equating sin to yeast – and that we should leave out the yeast when baking bread, for as noted in above and in Galatians 5:9 as well, a little leaven leavens the whole lump. Even a little sin can create the process of leavening…which may lead to the soft, doughy character of bread as we know it, but in this context, can spoil ruin righteousness in the whole body (both individual and of the church).
The passage above refers to Jesus as the Passover (lamb), referring to the Old Testament exodus process of the Jews fleeing Egypt (with God’s hand upon them); in that time, when God delivered the 10 plagues, the final being the death of the first born son, He ‘passed over’ the doors which were marked by lamb’s blood (which the Jews had been instructed to put on their doors). Thus, Jesus became that Passover lamb, a sacrifice to us, to spare us of His wrath, and to make us whole and reconciled to God. Equally, after the Jews left Egypt, God instructed Moses on a very specific method to maintain Passover, which included not eating leavened bread for a week, for when the Jews fled Egypt they did not have time to let their bread rise and ate unleavened bread. During Passover to this day, Jews actually clear their entire house of anything that is leavened.
I’ve personally observed the seven-day period of no bread eating…one where Matzot is substituted for bread…and it is quite a challenge, especially as you see others eating leavened delicacies like pastries, pizza, and sandwiches.
Thus, this is why Paul, encourages us to keep the ‘feast,’ the feast of Passover, to go without leavened bread, to hold off when tasting the delights of the leaven (sinful behaviors), not only for a seven-day period but for a lifetime. Let us eat instead the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth, which is Jesus Christ. And let us do this as a unified body, so that we as a body can come closer to Him in worship.
Thus, this is why Paul, encourages us to keep the ‘feast,’ the feast of Passover, to go without leavened bread, to hold off when tasting the delights of the leaven (sinful behaviors), not only for a seven-day period but for a lifetime. Let us eat instead the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth, which is Jesus Christ. And let us do this as a unified body, so that we as a body can come closer to Him in worship.
Praise: That Christ was indeed the Passover Lamb in order for us to live pure lives.
Prayer: That we seek deep in ourselves and be truthful with each other to uphold His righteous standards.
Prayer for Today: Dear Lord, we thank You for this day. We thank You for this life. We praise You for what You do through us and in us. Make us holy. Let us partake in the Passover feast with You, one of unleavened bread; work within us to rid ourselves of the yeast in our bodies and souls. We just want to be nearer to You. We praise You and love You. In Jesus Name, Amen.