Dear Editor,
On Saturday April 12, at 10 a.m. the second annual silent Walk with The Cross prayer event will be held.
The walk will be from the gazebo at Carol’s Park down the sidewalk to the front of Ingles. There, a brief message will be presented by Pastor Randy Darnell.
Then the Cross will be carried back to Carol’s Park.
Except for the short message, the walk will be a silent one. The Cross itself will speak to the community, to those who see it as it passes down the street. The Cross speaks of sin, of judgment against sin, of salvation through Jesus, of the gift of eternal life, of the love that God has for all of us. As the Cross is followed, people will silently pray for the souls of Jones County, for salvation of the lost and revival of the saved. Put on your walking shoes and come join us for this Easter ceremony. Be a part of carrying the Cross to our community. May Jesus be glorified.
Sincerely, George Sheffield
The 2025 Feast of Passover
Dear Editor,
The 2025 Feast of Passover begins this Saturday, April 12. Often called a Jewish feast, the truth is it is God’s feast that He established thousands of years ago, for the purpose of teaching and reminding the people of His Passover deliverance by the blood of a perfect lamb for the Hebrew slaves in Egypt. Homes with the lamb’s blood on the doorposts were ‘passed over’ by the death angel. In homes without this marking, the death angel claimed the life of the firstborn. It was the tenth, and final, plague that resulted in Pharoah letting the Hebrew nation go into the wilderness to worship the One True God.
That first Passover brought freedom from the cruelties of pharaoh. All of humanity is born into a state of enslavement in this fallen world ruled by the evil one.
Praise God for providing a way for us to have our very own Passover experience.
On Passover around 2000 years ago, is when God’s Son, Jesus Christ, became THE Passover Lamb for you, for me … for everyone! Jesus willingly allowed His body to be sacrificed for our sins, taking upon Himself our sins in His own body, shedding His perfect blood, because His blood is the only thing costly enough to pay the penalty for our sin. Passover is about the Power of Christ’s Blood.
God did not want what He did for the Jews to be forgotten. In Exodus 12:14 He says: “And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance forever.” Forever is a long time. God did not want us to forget what He did for the Jews, knowing that in the future He would provide the Passover Lamb for us too!
According to the Torah, at the time of Passover numerous events had to take place in a specific order, and at very specific times. It is interesting to compare the timetable of Jesus’ crucifixion with the Passover celebration.
The Passover Lamb had to be selected on a specific day, the 10th day of the 1st month. By the time of Jesus, only lambs from Bethlehem were considered eligible to serve as Passover lambs, so a lamb born in Bethlehem was chosen and brought into Jerusalem from the east (down the Mount of Olives) and entered the city through the sheep gate. Likewise, on the 10th day of 1st month, Jesus, the Lamb born in Bethlehem, came down the Mount of Olives and entered Jerusalem through the sheep gate. As He entered, the people waved palm branches and shouted “Blessed is He that comes in the name of the LORD! Save us, Son of David!” The crowds had chosen their Passover Lamb!
The Torah instructed that once the lamb was chosen, it had to be carefully examined for blemishes.
Only a perfect, spotless, and unblemished lamb would suffice for the Passover. After arriving in Jerusalem, Jesus went to the Temple to teach. While there, He was approached by the Pharisees, Sadducees, Herodians and the teachers of the Law. Each group posed difficult questions, trying to trap him. Essentially, they were looking for any blemish which might disqualify Him as Messiah. But no one could find fault with Him. He was without blemish.
Torah instructs that before the feast, all leaven (impurity) must be cast out of every Israelite home.
Every observant Jewish family carefully cleans their house before Passover, taking care to remove every trace of impurity. After Jesus arrived in Jerusalem, He entered the Temple and cast out the moneychangers.
He was following the Biblical instruction to prepare for Passover by cleansing His Father’s house. “Therefore, purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed, Messiah, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” (1 Corinthians 5:7-8) On the morning of the 14th day of the 1st month, when all has been set in order, the lamb was led out to the altar. At 9 a.m. that morning, the lamb was bound to the altar and put on public display for all to see. On the morning of the 14th day of the 1st month, when all had been fulfilled, Jesus was led out to Calvary. At 9 a.m. that morning, just as the lamb was being bound to the altar, Jesus was nailed to the Cross and put on public display at Calvary.
At exactly 3 p.m. the high priest ascended the altar.
As a priest blew a shofar on the temple wall, the high priest cut the throat of the sacrificial Lamb, and declared, “IT IS FINISHED!” At 3 p.m. on that high holy day, as the Passover lamb was killed, Jesus cried with a loud voice, “IT IS FINISHED,” and gave up His spirit. In Greek, “It is finished” is “tetelistai,” meaning “The debt has been paid in full!” Jesus died on purpose to pay the price for my sin debt …and yours. It was no surprise to Jesus. He showed no hesitation or faltering. Jesus came to earth for this very moment.
Passover is All About JESUS! He came as the LAMB of God! His Blood redeems Us! The power of the enemy is broken, we are released from bondage and oppression, and we are set free to enter God’s Promise! It is the blood of Jesus that saves us, not our works. “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes on Him who sent Me has everlasting life and shall not come into condemnation, but has passed from death to life.” (John 5:24) If the doorpost of your heart is stained with Lamb’s blood, have a glorious Passover, knowing that as we celebrate Passover, we are declaring our faith in the Power of His Blood and His Redemption. We are REDEEMED by the BLOOD of the LAMB, out of the hand of the enemy!
Sincerely, Debra Hall
