- PASSOVER SEDER FOR SEVENTH DAY
This is the seventh and final day of the Week of Unleavened Bread when we remember our transit out of the bondage and oppression of the enemy, which was from Egypt for our ancestors at the time that Yahweh God made a passage through the Red Sea for them to escape out of Pharaoh's control and the Egyptian army which had pursued them to take them captive once again.
He performed a miracle for our ancestors to pass from bondage to freedom on the other side out of Egypt and rolled the waters back over Pharaoh and his army when they followed behind us into the sea. What a mighty God we serve!
Y'shua the Messiah as the Passover Lamb obtained a similar deliverance for us spiritually from the god of this world of which Pharaoh is a type, delivering us from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God.
THE SHOFAR
- BLOW SHOFAR 3 times
Leader: You have commanded us to keep this Passover as a Moed, an appointed time to meet with You to remember our salvation and our deliverance from the powers of darkness in this world and to confirm the covenant once again with You that we made when we accepted Y'shua as our sacrificial lamb to atone for our sins. We thank You for Your truth and that You have brought us to this day of remembrance. Amen
We enthrone Him as King of kings and Lord of lords here tonight, Who will one day return and bring us complete deliverance and salvation! Hallelujah!
LIGHTING OF THE CANDLES
- three candles are used
Y'shua said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12)Just as Y'shua as the light of the world, was born into the world by a woman, so the woman is given the honor of lighting the candles to set apart this evening to Yahweh our God. Let us pray together and invite the presence of Y'shua into our celebration.
Blessed are you Yahweh our God, King of the universe who has set us apart by His word, and in whose Name we light the festival lights. We welcome You into our gathering tonight. (Light the candles)
We set this evening apart for you. Let your light shine upon us!
AARONIC BLESSING
- Numbers 6:23-25
We enthrone Him as King of kings and Lord of lords here tonight, Who will one day return and bring us complete deliverance and salvation! Halleluyah!
LIGHTING OF THE CANDLES
- three candles are used
Y'shua said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12)Just as Y'shua as the light of the world, was born into the world by a woman, so the woman is given the honor of lighting the candles to set apart this evening to Yahweh our God. Let us pray together and invite the presence of Y'shua into our celebration.
Blessed are you Yahweh our God, King of the universe who has set us apart by His word, and in whose Name we light the festival lights. We welcome You into our gathering tonight. (Light the candles)
We set this evening apart for you. Let your light shine upon us!
AARONIC BLESSING
- Exodus 6:23-25
THE REMOVAL OF LEAVEN
- Exodus 12:15; 13: 7
Yahweh God commanded us to keep this feast by removing all yeast from our dwellings for this week and eating unleavened bread for seven days which we have done as a symbol of eating the unleavened bread of the Word, which is our life. Y'shua said, “Man shall not live by bread alone but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4: 4), and so, we have obeyed His command to clean out the old leaven of “Egypt” and live according to the impartation of life that He has given to us. (Matthew 15:18; 1 Corinthians 5:7)
So in keeping this night, we honor Him "who loved us and has freed us from our sins by his blood” and “has delivered us from the power of darkness and has conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love” (Revelation 1:5-6; Colossians 1:13)
THE SYMBOLIC CUPS OF PASSOVER
- Exodus 6: 6-7
The four cups we drink tonight represent the overview of our complete salvation, from our initial call to come to repentance to the final consummation of our betrothal to Him at the marriage supper of the Lamb. They are taken from Exodus 6: 6-7
His promise was -
- He would bring us out - He separated & brought us out from the world and the dominion of Satan
- He would deliver us - He delivered us from the enemy and the power of sin in our lives
- He will redeem us - He paid the ransom price and purchased us with His blood giving us new life
- He will take us - He will come and take us to Himself, completing our redemption - body, soul and spirit.
CUP 1 THE CUP OF SANCTIFICATION
- "I will bring you out"
This is the cup of Sanctification which represents us being called out of this world - Yahweh redeemed and delivered Israel from the world and its influence and brought them unto Himself so that they could serve Him and be a holy people, set-apart to Him.
With this cup we set this night aside, as different than all other nights and sanctify and dedicate it to Yahweh our Eternal God.
Blessed are You, Yahweh our eternal God, who has chosen us and given us Your commandments and appointed times to bring forth the fruit of the Vine and has sanctified us by your Word that we might abide in you forever. (John 14:1-5) Let us all drink the cup of sanctification with joy and give praise to God - We drink the first cup!
CEREMONIAL HAND-WASHING
- (Bowl of water with towel) Psalm 24: 3-5
Now we all symbolically wash our hands in preparation for eating the Passover elements. Please pass the bowl around the table. Leader prays Blessed art Thou, Yahweh, our eternal God, Who has sanctified us by Your Word and by the blood of Y'shua, the Lamb of God, and has commanded us concerning the washing of hands. (ceremonial cleansing)
DESIGNATING OUR ALLEGIANCE
- - Symbol of life
This is a traditional Appetiser partaken of at feasts and is used now to symbolise that we are partakers of His life. This feast is intended to impart new life to us by renewing our covenant vows with Y'shua.
We take a green plant (parsley) and we dip it into vinegar (or salt water) and eat. The plant is symbolic of the hyssop which the Hebrews used to place the lamb's blood on their doorposts for their deliverance from the angel of death. The salt water is symbolic of the tears of suffering under bondage in “Egypt” when we were the slaves of sin in the world.
The custom of serving karpas dates back to Jerusalem of the first and second centuries, when it was common to begin a formal meal or a feast by passing around vegetables as hors d'oeuvres. The vegetable was dipped into salt water before eating.
THE FOUR QUESTIONS
- - The Significance of the Passover
Yahweh said, "In the future, your children will ask you, 'What does all this mean?' Then you will tell them, 'With mighty power Yahweh brought us out of Egypt from our slavery." Exodus 13:14 NLT
So we remember again the reason for this week of commemoration - Why is this meal different to all other meals? and What is the meaning of the bitter herbs, the unleavened bread and of the Lamb? (Hold up each of the emblems as explaining)
The Significance of this Night - This night we remember the passage through the Red Sea as a symbol of our passage from death to life enacted in the waters of baptism when we were translated from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of God.
Bitter herbs - We eat bitter herbs to remind us of the bitter slavery our ancestors experienced when they were oppressed by the Egyptian taskmasters. We also experienced the bitterness of slavery and bondage to Satan in his dominion over us before we accepted Y'shua into our life. Bitter herbs are also a cleansing agent and as we eat the bitter herbs we are reminded that the consequences of the bondage to sin are bitter and we need to be cleansed from its evil influence by His Word.
The Unleavened Bread - We eat unleavened bread as a token of removing the leaven from our lives - everything of our old nature so that we will be uncontaminated by the influence of this world and worship Him in sincerity and truth. (1 Corinthians 5: 8)
The Lamb - God commanded Israel to take a lamb without spot or blemish. Y'shua was the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29) He was the sacrificial Lamb which atoned for our sins and procured our salvation. He was the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world to redeem the fallen creation in Adam back to Yahweh God.
Y'shua, as the last Adam, rose triumphant over the power of the enemy to become the Firstfruits of a new order and has raised us up with Him in the spiritual realms to rule and reign with Him in the world to come.
THE PASSOVER STORY
To establish the kingdom of God, Yahweh called Abraham out of the land of Babylon to the land of Ca'anan where he with Isaac and Jacob, partakers of the same promise, lived as strangers and pilgrims in this world. Through Joseph, the family was taken to Egypt and they grew to become a large nation. Many years later, a Pharaoh arose in Egypt who did not know Joseph and he oppressed the children of Israel, forcing them into cruel slavery.
From out of the burning bush, Yahweh called Moses to lead the Exodus of His people out of Egypt into the promised land of Israel. Pharaoh did not want to let the people go and there were many plagues visited upon the Egyptians to force him to do so.
Finally, after ten great plagues of God's judgment, Pharaoh did let them go, though he changed his mind many times. It was only after the last plague with the death of the firstborn of the sons of Egypt, that deliverance came. The angel of death passed over the houses which had the sign of the blood of the sacrificial lamb upon them, but the sons of Egypt were destroyed.
Though Pharaoh let the people go, he sent his armies to try to recapture them and Israel was trapped in the desert. Yahweh God performed a miracle for them by opening up a path through the midst of the Red Sea so that they could pass through. Pharaoh's men followed, and they were drowned when the waters returned back to their original place and Israel was free on the other side.
It was Yahweh Himself, who achieved the final redemption for us from sin and death. It was God Himself through Y'shua, the Lamb of God, who obtained our deliverance from the bondage of the enemy in our lives that we might serve Him.
CUP 2 THE CUP OF DELIVERANCE
- "I will free you" Representing the ten plagues
At this time in the Seder meal we recount the ten plagues that came upon Egypt which is a demonstration of the plagues which will be poured out of the cup of Yahweh's wrath upon this world.
(The leader takes his cup and as he recites each plague he drops a drop of wine out of it: - saying) “These are the ten plagues which the Most Holy, brought upon the house of Egypt. Blood, frogs, lice, swarms of insects, cattle disease, boil, hail, locusts, darkness, slaying of the first born!”
As Yahweh judged the powers of darkness that kept His people in bondage in Egypt, so He will execute a similar judgment on the god of this world and the kingdom of darkness when He returns to set up His kingdom upon earth. The initial work of redemption on the Stake will be brought to completion and the whole creation will be delivered from its bondage into corruption.
Y'shua went to the execution stake to set us free from the judgments which were due to come upon us, for our sin. Let us remember what it cost Him to obtain our freedom in taking God's wrath upon Himself. This cup represents the bowl of God's wrath which Y'shua took upon Himself for us which will be poured out on all those who do not accept His salvation. Let us remember the agony Y'shua went through that night to deliver us from the judgment to come.
This cup reminds us that we unable able to save ourselves from wrath and judgment “Therefore it is our duty to thank, praise, pay tribute, glorify, exalt, honour, bless, extol, and acclaim Him who performed all these miracles for our fathers and for us. He brought us forth from slavery to freedom, from grief to joy, from mourning to festivity, from darkness to great light, and from servitude to redemption. Let us, therefore, recite a new song before Him! Hallelujah!”
(Set Cup down, again and read responsively (as done by the temple choir during Passover, the Great Hallel - Psalm 136)
PSALMS OF THANKSGIVING
- Read Psalm 136
TRADITIONAL SONG DAYEINU (It would have been enough) The Israelites said if God had only delivered them from Egypt, It would have been enough. That is, it would have been sufficient. Leader “We Would Have Been Satisfied - all recite)
(repeat) Had He only brought us out of Egypt, it would have been enough! (repeat) Had He only given us the Sabbath, it would have been enough! (repeat) Had He only given us the Torah, it would have been enough! (repeat) Had He only given us Y'shua, it would have been enough! (Take the second cup to drink the remainder in the cup)
Let us praise Yahweh together for His great salvation and drink the second cup - the Cup of Deliverance!
All: "Blessed are you, Yahweh our God, King of the universe, who makes the fruit of the vine”. (Drink the second cup)
THE BREAKING OF BREAD
- Token of the covenant
(Two pieces of unleavened Bread are used to symbolise the two mighty acts of redemption. In this part of the Seder, one portion is left whole on the table and the other is taken and broken into two pieces, one larger than the other. The large piece is wrapped in a cloth until later)
These two pieces of Unleavened bread represent the two acts of redemption which Yahweh has ordained for His people.
The first was accomplished in the exodus from Egypt. The second piece is used as a representation of the redemption through the Messiah and this second piece is broken in two because it is enacted in two parts, His first and His second coming.
In His Second Coming, He will return as the One represented by the larger broken portion of bread which has been called the Afikomen – 'the Coming One'. (Wrap and put aside Afikomen to be eaten after the meal before the third cup)
This speaks of His return in glory to conquer His enemies and take His beloved bride to Himself. Tonight we particularly look forward to this second work of redemption when He will return and we will receive the promised inheritance of immortality to live with Him forever. The best portion is yet to come!
MATZAH & BITTER HERBS
The Unleavened Bread Leader: Let all of say together: Blessed are you, Yahweh our God, King of the universe, Who has given us the Bread of Life and commanded us to live by every word which proceeds out of the mouth of God. (Leader breaks and passes the plate of the one and a half pieces to be distributed around the table)
The Bitter Herbs The leader picks up the horseradish or bitter greens and prays
Blessed art Thou, Lord God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us in Your commandments and has commanded us to eat the bitter herbs. "With unleavened bread and bitter herbs, they shall eat the Passover sacrifice."
Leader lifts the sweet apple mixture and shows it to everyone
The Charoset, the sweet apple mixture, has the same color as the bricks the Israelites made for Pharaoh. It reminds us that because of the hope we have in Y'shua the most bitter experiences and suffering can be turned into something sweet. Let us now eat what is called the "Hillel Sandwich" named after one of the famous rabbis in the time of Y'shua. You break one piece of unleavened bread and dip it in the bitter herbs. Then you break another piece and dip it into the sweet apple mixture. Combine both pieces into a "sandwich" and eat it. [Leader illustrates it for everyone.]
THE FESTIVAL MEAL
- - "It is Yahweh's Passover" Numbers 28:17
"So this day shall be to you a memorial; and you shall keep it as a feast to Yahweh." Let us celebrate the goodness of God's salvation in the Passover and enjoy this meal.
GRACE AFTER THE MEAL
Let us give thanks to Yahweh for the festive meal we have enjoyed. May the name of Yahweh be blessed from this time forth and forever. We praise You, our Abba, from whose abundance we have partaken. We praise You, O Yahweh our God, our Saviour and our King who gives bread to all flesh, for Your lovingkindness endures forever. (The Afikomen is brought out from its cover to be eaten)
EATING THE AFIKOMEN
The hiding and recovery of the Afikomen is a symbolic type of the death and resurrection of Y'shua where the bread of affliction is wrapped in grave clothes as it were, to come forth at the end of the feast as the resurrected body of the Messiah.
Y'shua took the bread to establish the new covenant, saying, “Take eat, this is My Body” (Mark 14:22)
(Take the Afikomen and pass it around the table) This represents the resurrection life of Y'shua which He has imparted to us. Y'shua said, “Do this in remembrance of Me” (1 Corinthians 11:24). We eat the Afikomen.
We thank you Father for sending Y'shua to die for our sins and become the Bread of Life to us through the Eternal Spirit. Amen
CUP 3 THE CUP OF REDEMPTION
- "I will redeem you" Representing His shed blood for our sins
This is the third cup of the Seder which symbolizes the blood of the Passover lamb. "'This is the blood of the covenant that Yahweh has made with you in accordance with all these words.' - Exodus 24:8 "Likewise, (Y'shua) also took the cup after supper, saying "This cup is the new covenant in My Blood, which is shed for you." Luke 22:20 NKJV
This is the Cup of Redemption. It was this cup, that Y'shua identified as the new covenant in His blood.
Paul said, " For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes." (1 Cor 11:26)
Leader: Let us all stand and take the cup like Y'shua did and thank Him for the new covenant in His blood! (Matthew 1:21)
Just as the blood of the lamb brought salvation in Egypt, so it is only the atoning blood of Messiah that can provide salvation for us.
But Paul said, “Let a man examine himself” and so let him eat the bread and drink this cup, for, “whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of Yahweh, unworthily [or, in an unworthy manner -- that is, in a wrong spirit and attitude, not truly surrendered to God and following Y'shua the Messiah, but in a rebellious spirit, or holding resentments and grudges against others], shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord." Y'shua died for our sins, forgiving us of all our iniquities and we must also forgive those who have wronged us or sinned against us. (Matt.6:l4-l5; l8:2l-35).
Leader should ask God's blessing on this part of the service, that He would bless and guide everyone to partake of the Passover worthily, and make it a blessing to all present, and thank God for the precious blood of His Passover Lamb who gave His all for us, that we might have eternal life. (allow time for personal meditation)
Blessing We praise You, our Father, our King, our Sovereign God, through Y'shua the Messiah, for Your great salvation in blessing us with every spiritual blessing in the Heavenly realms because we belong to Your dear Son. We thank you that you loved us and chose us in Messiah to be holy and without fault in His eyes before the foundation of the world. We thank You for Your unchanging plan to adopt us into Your family through Y'shua the Messiah by purchasing us and redeeming us from the hand of the enemy. For this we give praise, glory and honour to You our glorious God." Ephesians 1:3-10; 13,14 NLT
THE OFFERING
- Ministering to the Saints in Jerusalem - This is called the "Hagigah," a voluntary peace offering.
("Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: may they prosper who love you" - Psalm 122)
CUP 4 THE CUP OF GLORIFICATION
- "I will take you as My own"
- He brought us out of the world as a called out people (1st cup).
- He rescued us from bondage to sin (second cup)
- He redeemed us with outstretched arms on the Cross (third cup).
- This is the Fourth Cup..... "I will take you as My people (called out ones) and I will be your God."
This final cup which symbolises the glorious reign of the Messiah in the kingdom of God for which we wait and celebrate this night, when He returns as King of Kings and Lord of Lords to take us as His beloved Bride. Therefore this is also the Cup of Hope in our joyous expectation of the restoration of all things. Y'shua said, "In My Father's house are many mansions, If it were not so I would have told you, I go to prepare a place for you, And if I go and prepare a place for you I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am there you may be also" John 14:2,3
"As the Father has loved Me, I also have loved you, abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love. This is My commandment that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends." John 15: 9,13
It is the unfinished part of the covenant that He prepare a place for us to be with Him forever which shall be fulfilled when He returns. Then at the marriage supper we shall drink that fourth cup with Him, the Cup of Praise. “And we shall be His People ..... and He shall be our God”. (Rev.20:3)
While this cup is that of our final redemption when the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdom of God, it is also the "cup of judgment" for the rebellious and disobedient who do not obey the message of His salvation (Rev.11:15-18; Matt.24:30-31)
We drink this fourth cup with the affirmation “Maranatha”, the old Aramaic word meaning 'O Lord, come' (I Cor. 16:22) as did the early church. The Jewish people today do it with their messianic hope "NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM!" Let's say it together and drink the cup. - Maranatha!
HALLEL -- PSALMS OF PRAISE
The final part of the Seder is the reciting/singing of the second half of the Hallel psalms, which is Psalms 115 - 118, or parts thereof. This is the traditional ending of the Passover Seder.
We will bless Yahweh from this time and forever, Halleluyah! (Psalm 115:18) Give thanks to God for He is good, for His kindness endures forever. (Psalm 118:1) (other songs or hymns may be sung)
A fearsome testing time called the 'Hour of Temptation' is coming upon the world, when everything that can be shaken will be shaken. (Hebrews 12:26-27)
“And behold I am coming quickly, and my reward is with me, to give to every one according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last. And the Spirit and the bride say "Come" And let him who hears say "Come, and let him who thirsts come. Whoever desires, let him take the water of life freely. He who testifies to these things says "Surely I am coming quickly."
Amen, Even so, come, Y'shua our Lord! Blessed be Your holy name forever and ever, Amen.
The grace of our Lord, Y'shua the Messiah be with you all. Amen. (Rev. 21:9-11; 22:12-13; 17; 20-21)
Give one another a holy kiss!