As we continue our series On The Third Day , we are looking at how the entire Bible is a revelation of God’s beautiful plan to redeem and restore us. In the Old Testament, God often used “typology”—physical pictures, symbols, and real-life events—to foreshadow the spiritual reality of what Jesus would accomplish.
Today, we are looking at the Lord’s appointed festivals. In Hebrew, the word for festival is moed , which literally means an “appointment”. God fixed these exact dates as “dress rehearsals” for the real performance: the coming, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Jesus in the Festivals
God is a God of detail and precision, and He orchestrated these events 1,600 years in advance so we would recognize Jesus when He came.
- Jesus is the Selected Lamb: In Exodus, God told the Israelites to select a perfect lamb on the tenth day of the first month (Nissan 10) and inspect it for four days. Exactly on Nissan 10, Jesus rode a donkey into Jerusalem, presenting Himself as the perfect Lamb to be inspected by the religious leaders. They found no blemish in Him.
- Jesus is the Passover Lamb: The Israelites were commanded to slaughter their lamb on Nissan 14 to be spared from God’s judgment. It is no coincidence that Jesus, our true Passover Lamb, was sacrificed on the cross on that exact day (Good Friday).
- The Festival of Unleavened Bread: The day after Passover (Nissan 15), Israel ate bread without yeast, which is a biblical symbol for sin and corruption. On this exact day—a Sabbath—Jesus’ perfect, sinless body rested in the grave.
- Jesus is the Firstfruits: God instructed the priest to wave a sheaf of the first barley harvest “on the day after the Sabbath” so that the rest of the crop would be accepted by God. That day was a Sunday, the third day (Nissan 16). Jesus rose from the dead on this exact day, fulfilling the Festival of the Firstfruits. Because Jesus was raised and accepted by God, we—the rest of the harvest—are now made acceptable and justified before God.
When we look at the empty tomb, it shouldn’t be a surprise; God had been leaving us clues for thousands of years! Because He is a God of absolute detail and precision, we must respond to His redemptive plan in three ways:
- Be Filled With Awe: Let the immeasurable greatness and precise details of God’s perfect plan bring you to a profound reverence and respect.
- Be Filled With Gratitude: Make gratitude the default setting of your soul. Reflect on God’s undeserved grace and let it inspire not just your words, but your daily obedience.
- Be Filled With Expectations: Because Christ was the firstfruits of the resurrection, a greater harvest is coming! Live with the bold, steadfast expectation of Jesus’ glorious return and the promise that we too will one day be resurrected with new bodies.
