As we joyfully step into the Passover season, let us remember that it is not just the Seder; it is also about celebrating First Fruits (Resurrection), counting the omer, and receiving the Word and the Spirit at Pentecost (Shavuot).

Passover is a time in which God highlights deliverance and healing for us. In Exodus 12:21-23 we see a deliverance before the exodus out of Egypt. “Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go and select lambs for yourselves according to your clans, and kill the Passover lamb.22 Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning.23 For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you.” (ESV).

Israel had to stay in the house for death to pass over them. We can’t just say we believe the Word; we must abide in it. Psalm 91:1-10 ESV “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” 3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. 4 He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. 5 You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, 6 nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday. 7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. 8 You will only look with your eyes and see the recompense of the wicked. 9 Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place— the Most High, who is my refuge—
10 no evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plague come near your tent.”

Jesus said in John 8:31-32 ESV “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples,32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

Receiving healing and walking out deliverance requires the same thing: faith in God and a willingness to move forward and change. The wilderness was necessary for the children of Israel because they had come out of Egypt, but God had to get Egypt out of them. An entire generation died in the wilderness because of unbelief and disobedience. Joshua had to circumcise the next generation when they were in their twenties and thirties because their parents had not circumcised them on the eighth day.

Egypt means limitation. The next generation had to break the limitations in order to move forward and possess the promise. The same is true for us. We must break the limitations of fear and doubt in order to receive what God has for us.

Counting the omer after Passover is our journey from limitations to liberty. The wilderness allowed the Israelites to begin changing their thinking. God provided for them in amazing ways during the wilderness years, but the manna ceased when they crossed into the promise (Jos. 1:10-12).

In this Passover season, we need to allow the Holy Spirit to say, this is over, and now you’re moving to something new. It’s easy for us to hang onto things, but when we quit moving forward, that’s when spiritual death begins to set in. We’ve probably all heard stories of churches that stagnated and revivals that ended due to strife and people not wanting change. Passover is our opportunity to declare change is here! The past is gone, and I’m moving forward!

When you go to the Seder table tomorrow, expect the miracle of deliverance, redemption, and protection to come into your life. When you say, “next year in Jerusalem,” put your mind on the coming of Messiah. Go through the counting of the omer, asking the Holy Spirit to pull things out of you and give you revelation and insight through the Scriptures. This is a season of change, and you can change! None of us have to stay bound by the words of man; we are set free by the Word of God! Now is the time of freedom; will you receive it?