Christ and the Five Cups of Seder

“Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.‘”          ― Exodus 6.6−7

In the passage above the Lord God explained to Moses of what he was about to do for the Hebrews, to redeem them from bondage. In this dialog God uses four expressions to describe his redemptive actions:

1. “I will bring you out…”
2. “I will deliver you…”
3. “I will redeem you…”
4. “I will take you to be my people…”

The Jewish tradition instituted over the Seder is to drink a cup of wine for each of these expressions. First, they recite the Kiddush over the first cup, read the Exodus account from the Haggadah over the second cup, recite the Grace after Meals over the third cup and sing psalms and hymns over the fourth cup. While there are numerous explanations as to the significance of the various steps of the redemption, but when we consider the atoning work by Christ on the cross, we can see their ultimate significance in regards to our salvation:

1. Salvation from harsh labor — we no longer have to work to achieve our own salvation by meeting its demand, for it is impossible for any of us to do so in the first place.
2. Salvation from servitude — we are no longer slaves to “Egypt,” a symbol for all that is worldly, i.e., sin and our selfish desires; instead we have been freed from its consequences and conquer over the flesh.
3. Salvation from enemy — we are no longer under the threat from our enemy since he has been defeated by the blood of the Lamb just like the Egyptian army was decimated by the raging Red Sea.
4. Becoming a nation — we who are followers of Christ are part of God’s family, his children and inheritance.

However, there is actually a fifth expression in the dialogue between the Lord and Moses, “‘I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the LORD’” (Exo 6.8). The fifth cup (also referred to as Cup of Elijah) is left untouched for a very simple reason: the Jews are waiting for the arrival of Elijah to announce the arrival of the Messiah for their redemption and enter into their permanent land that God first promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Now, fast forward to Jesus’s Last Supper with his disciples. They most likely observed their Passover meal in similar manner. At the end of the Passover feast, Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper. Interestingly he ends their meal by telling them, “I tell you I will not drink again of this fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom” (Mat 26.29). Here Jesus made it clear that he will return one day to redeem his people once and for all, and return with them to his Father’s kingdom. That is the day of his Second Coming which will be the day when we will finally drink from the fifth cup of wine.

And it will be a day of great celebration for we are finally home!

The Boy Always Comes Back for His Girl

This past Sunday I watched a movie with my girls, a love story. Hey, that’s what happens when there are only girls in the house… I think even the TV remote control is female since it seems that’s all the shows we watch! Anyway, it was a typical Hollywood story of boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy finds girl after growing up, boy loses girl again to another boy, other boy turns bad and mistreats the girl, the boy comes to help the girl, boy had to escape from the bad boy but promises the girl that he will come back for her, and finally the boy gets girl and they live happily ever after. I think I just described every single chick-flick ever came out of movie studios.

At one key moment of the movie, the young man had to flee for his own safety to regroup so he could later rescue the girl. Before he disappeared into the jungle he whispered to the girl, “I will come back for you.” The girl held on to that promise as if her life depended on it. She pressed onward, even when faced with danger in the company of bad men she walked with confidence, because she knows he will come back for her. Indeed, he did come back for her in the most dramatic rescue while disposing his enemies.

At the end of the cinematic climax I looked at my daughters and said, “The boy ALWAYS comes back for the girl he loves!” Then I proceeded to explain to them the lesson I taught on Palm Sunday, looking at ancient Jewish wedding custom and seeing it under the light of Christ and the Church.

Unlike our modern day custom, the ancient Jews practiced the Shiddukhin, or arranged marriages. The choice of the betrothed bride was the father’s prerogative (Ephesians 1:4). Both the son and daughter trusted their fathers to do what was best for them. Once agreed upon, finalized with a written contract, the couple entered into the Eyrusin, the Betrothal. Legally they were considered as husband and wife, having all rights as married couple with the exception of the physical intimacy, which was reserved for the wedding night.

The eyrusin period, also called the Kiddushim or Sanctification, lasted for one year. Under the huppah (wedding canopy) the couple exchanged items of value, such as rings and drinks from a cup of wine as sign of seal the betrothal vows. This should give a richer meaning to Matthew 26:29 the next time you read it. At this point, the groom and the bride were legally married, having full rights as husband and wife, with the exception of physical intimacy. Should the groom find displeasure in the bride, he must obtain a certificate of divorce. This option was only available to the groom, and not the bride.

During this time both the groom and the bride were to prepare themselves for the day of marriage. The groom’s responsibility was to make an addition to his father’s house, rooms where he can start a family (John 14:2). The bride’s responsibility was to sew and decorate her wedding garments with the finest and whitest linen she can buy and decorate them with the finest embroidery and jewels (Ephesians 5:25-27; Revelation 19:7-9). Before the groom leaves his bride for the one-year period he would give to her a matan, or the bridal gift (Luke 24:49; John 14:25-27; Ephesians 1:13-14). Its purpose was a pledge of his love for her. It served as a reminder during their year of separation of his love for her, he is thinking about her, and that he promised he will return to receive her into his father’s house one day (Acts 1:11).

When the time came the father gave his blessing (Matthew 24:36-37) and the groom and his groomsmen went to get the bride. As they went, one of the groomsmen would go ahead of the wedding party, blow the trumpet, and shout to declare, “Behold, the bridegroom comes!” (Matthew 25:1-13; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18). The bridegroom indeed came back for his bride and took her to his father’s house. Then the marriage feast begins, with food, music, dancing, and celebrating for seven glorious days.

As we celebrate Easter this Sunday, let us remember that Christ rose on this day to go to prepare for us a place in His Father’s house. He made a promise to His bride, the Church He will come back one day to receive her where they will spend eternally. He has not forgotten her or forsaken her. Remember, in God’s eyes the Church belongs to Christ. Only the Bridegroom can divorce the wife but God has promised that He will never do that in Hosea 2:19-20, “I will betroth you to Me forever; Yes, I will betroth you to Me in righteousness and in justice, In lovingkindness and in compassion, and I will betroth you to Me in faithfulness. Then you will know the LORD.”

So, when you are down and depressed by circumstances of life and the pressures of this world, wondering if Christ will ever return just remember the words of Peter in 2 Peter 3:9, “The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.” Keep looking up towards the sky, you might just see Him!

Yes, one thing is for sure… the “boy” ALWAYS comes back for the “girl” He loves!