Many years ago, a man named Moses was on a walk one day when he came across a bush that was on fire but didn't burn up. To make matters even more peculiar, this fiery shrub actually began to talk... speaking words directly to Moses! Turns out, this bush was quite articulate, and Moses soon came to realize that it was, in fact, God Himself somehow inside of this burning bush (Exodus 3).

To Moses that day, the LORD said,

"I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land into a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey” (Exodus 3:7:8a, NIV).

There is remarkable significance in...

• What the LORD would say to Moses in this occurrence (this personal compassion and grace alongside of His power and might that it would trigger),

• What powerful events would ensue next (the plagues),

• Finishing with the 10^th Plague, in which “the destroyer” would come and kill all of the firstborn sons in Egypt, but would pass over the Israelite living quarters, which were clearly marked on their front doors with the blood of a perfect lamb

So many years later, John the Baptist would see his cousin, Jesus, approaching and he would declare, “"Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29) And later, Paul would tell the Corinthian church that Jesus Christ was, in fact, the “Passover Lamb,” sacrificed for all of mankind's sins as a once and for all payment (1 Corinthians 5:7).

Passover in 2010 will start on Tuesday, the 30th of March and will continue for 7 days until Monday, the 5th of April. (Note that in the Jewish calendar, a holiday begins on the sunset of the previous day, so observing Jews will celebrate Passover on the sunset of Monday, the 29th of March.)