Consecration of the Firstborn and The Feast of Unleavened Bread

Story: Consecration of the Firstborn and The Feast of Unleavened Bread

Passage: Exodus 13:1-16

Characters:  God, Israel

Summary:  The rules were laid out for consecrating the firstborn of Israel to God.  More rules were laid out for the Feast of Unleavened Bread.  The firstborn of man and animal was to be given to God.  Once again, we read that no leavened bread is to be eaten.  Even when they come to the Promised Land, they are to continue celebrating this feast.  The seven days would end with a feast.  This was to remember what God did for them when they left Egypt.  If a donkey was born, a lamb was to be consecrated to redeem the donkey.  Money was used to redeem the firstborn of a man.  This celebration was to be a tangible reminder of what the Lord had done. 

Notes:  I am struck by a few things in this passage.  As a reminder, Christ came to fulfill the law, so I am going to do my best to find the ways in which the law was fulfilled by Christ.  Passover is a great example of this as Christ became our Passover lamb.  Interestingly, God killed the firstborn of Egypt but passed over the Hebrews.  Now they were to continue to sacrifice to the Lord.  They were to consecrate their firstborn to the Lord.  The firstborn son was the son who earned the blessing and birthright.  To give this son to God is significant.  Today, even though we have been saved, we are to present our bodies as living sacrifices, holy to God.  Just like God saved Israel but still demanded sacrifice, Christ has saved us but still demands sacrifice.  The Passover was a time of remembrance of what God did to bring Israel out of Egypt, but it was also a time of joy.  This was a feast after all!  Joy should be a result of our remembering what God did to save us!  Yes it is a serious and heavy thing that the son of God died in our place, but it is also the most remarkable thing worth celebrating in history!  When we remember what Christ did for us, we should respond with joy!  The other thing that strikes me is the command to redeem the firstborn donkey with a lamb.  I believe that donkeys were considered unclean.  The laws of cleanliness had not been given yet, but God was covering for it anyway.  Interestingly, even though the donkey was unclean, it could be redeemed by a lamb.  The comparison of gentiles to unclean animals occurs in Acts.  Even here in Exodus, God has provided a way for the unclean to be redeemed by the clean.  This is huge and shows that while God had chosen Israel as His chosen people, He had chosen humanity as His bride!

Questions:  Why did God require that the firstborn of Israel be consecrated to Him?  Why are animals lumped with humans? 

Lessons:  We need to react with joy to the fact that we have been redeemed!  It is hard to believe how depressed we can get when we get caught up in the details of life.  It is like we completely forget that we have been redeemed by God!  We need to be joyful!  Joy is listed among the fruit of the Spirit and each of us has the Spirit inside of us!