TEXT: "And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people."-Acts 12:4

Easter is a time when Christians remember the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And his soon return!

In the book of Exodus, before the last plague in the land of Egypt, that is, the killing of the first born. God said to Moses, " This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you." Exodus 12:2. And that month God was referring to, according to the Scripture, is the month of June. Refer to my message titled, "The Beginning".

God went further to instruct the Israelites to take a lamb for a household, on the tenth day of the first month, and if the lamb is too big for a household, two or more households may join together for a lamb. They shall keep the lamb until the fourteenth day of the first month: and all the Israelites shall kill the lamb in the evening. And they shall take the blood, and apply it on the two side posts and on the lintel of their houses. And they shall eat the flesh roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and bitter herbs.

Also, nothing shall remain until the morning; and that whatever remains in the morning shall be burnt with fire. They shall eat it in haste, ready for departure. This is the Lord's passover. For God will pass through the land of Egypt, and shall kill all the first born in the land, both of man and of beast. The blood shall be a token upon the houses that have it: and when God sees the blood he will pass over the house, and the plague will not affect any body in the house.

In addition, God told the Israelites, that the day should be a memorial for them; and that they should keep it as a feast throughout their generations. Seven days they shall eat unleavened bread, and on the first day they shall have an holy assembly; and on the seventh day they shall have another holy assembly, Exodus 12:1-20. The fourteenth day of the first month, in the evening, is the feast of passover. And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread, Leviticus 23:4-6. This feast continued until the time of Jesus Christ, the real lamb of God, John 1:29.

In like manner, the night Jesus was betrayed was the fourteenth day of the first month. Jesus sent Peter and John to go and prepare for the passover, Luke 22:7-13. And after they had prepared the place for the feast. And when it was time for the feast, he sat down with his disciples. Jesus took bread, broke it, and gave to them to eat, telling them, it is his body. He also took the cup, gave thanks, and gave them to drink, telling them, it is his blood.

Subsequently, they are to do as often as possible in remembrance of him, Luke 22:19. This was the beginning of his suffering and death. He was later arrested, and the following day, being the fifteenth day of the first month, he was tried by Pontius Pilate, and was sentenced to death. He was tortured, and was finally crucified in the evening of the same day, Matthew 27:27-50.

Consequently, the passover feast Jesus had with his disciples replaced the passover feast of Exodus 12, because Jesus is our Passover, 1 Corinthians 5:7, 8. The passover feast has undergone an amazing metamorphosis: from the feast of passover or unleavened bread to the Last Supper in the time of Jesus Christ, Luke 22:16. And during the time of the disciples, and unto this day, it further changed to the Lord's Supper or Easter or the Holy Communion, Acts 12:3, 4; 1 Corinthians 10:16; 11:20-26. The Holy Communion that is observed today is to remember the death of Jesus Christ till he comes. This is Easter! 1 Corinthians 11:26. And just as the feast of harvest was later called the Pentecost, Acts 2:1. The feast of passover was also later called Easter, Acts 12:3, 4.

And if a date is to be taken for the observance of Easter, the date would have been the fourteenth and the fifteenth days of the first month, which is June 29 and 30. However, just as there is no specific date for the day of Pentecost, there is also no specific date for the day of Easter. For as often as you observe the Holy Communion, you remember his death and resurrection, and his return.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen.

Pastor K. C.