Exodus 12:51 concludes, “And it came to pass the selfsame day, that Jehovah did bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their armies” (Heb.). This verse indicates that God’s complete redemption produces an army. After applying the Passover according to all the principles given by God, we need to continue our enjoyment of the Passover by making an exodus from Egypt to become God’s army to fight for His interests on earth. We need to continue our enjoyment of salvation by getting out of the world and becoming part of the army of the Lord. This is the meaning of the term exodus. What a complete picture of God’s salvation is given in the book of Exodus! When we apply Christ as our Passover today, we need all the principles given in the account of the Passover in Exodus.
Exodus 12:12 says, “I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast.” Some may wonder why God killed only the firstborn. When I was young, I was troubled by this. I wondered if it meant that the firstborn were evil and that the others were good. At the time, I was not familiar with spiritual principles. Later I learned that the firstborn includes everyone in Adam. Adam, the first man, was actually the firstborn (1 Cor. 15:45a). Since Adam was the first man, the firstborn includes all those in Adam. The second born, on the contrary, are all those who are in Christ, for Christ is the second man (1 Cor. 15:47b). In a very real sense, we who believe in Christ are the second born ones. Nevertheless, within us we still have the element of the firstborn. Although we are under the blood of Christ, the blood does not redeem anything of the firstborn. For this reason we must condemn everything within us that is related to the firstborn, that is, to Adam. This means that, once again, we must condemn the natural life.
The terms firstborn and stranger actually describe the same thing. They are synonymous terms that describe the old man and the natural life. We may say that the old man is the firstborn and that our natural man with the natural life is the stranger. But these two are actually one. When we apply Christ as the Passover, we must condemn both the old man and the natural man. We must reject both the firstborn and the stranger. In God’s Passover feast, there is no place for the old man or the natural life.
We need to take this not in a mere doctrinal way, but in the way of practice and experience. If we apply this in an experiential and practical way, we shall realize that we still have a certain amount of the old man and the natural life within us. This keeps us from applying the Passover in a complete and adequate way. We still hold on to the old man and the natural life. This means that the firstborn and the stranger are still within us. Therefore, we cannot apply the Passover in a full way, because God does not allow the old man or the natural life to participate in His Passover. This is the principle with respect to God’s judgment of all the firstborn.
In 12:12 the Lord also said, “And against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment.” This word is very significant. Without this part of 12:12, we would not realize that on the night of the Passover, Satan and all the demons were also judged. The firstborn were the constituents of Egypt, whereas the gods were components of the kingdom of Satan. During the Passover, both were judged.
It is possible to make a list of items that are excluded from participation in the Passover. There could be no leaven, no work, no strangers, no hired servants, no firstborn, and no Egyptian gods. This means that there is to be no place for sin, human doing, the natural life, the old man, the world, or Satan. These items are not only portrayed in the picture of the Passover in Exodus, but they also are clearly revealed in the New Testament. When we keep the Passover according to the detailed principles ordained by God, then we apply the Passover in a proper way. Praise the Lord for this full picture of the Passover, God’s complete redemption!
In addition to this list of negative things, we can make a list of positive things that are included in the Passover: the lamb, the house, the unleavened bread, the bitter herbs, the hyssop, the girdle, the shoes, and the staff. All these are components of the Passover. The issue of these positive things is God’s army. We who enjoy Christ as the Passover eventually become an army fighting for the kingdom of God on earth. As we have pointed out, the Passover ultimately produces an army to fight for God’s interests.