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generally considered a "Jewish" holiday, it actually has much more symbolism and meaning when considered from a Christian point of view. The original day is a day of remembrance of the flight of the Israelites from Egypt. To escape the final plague, they had to kill a lamb and put its blood on the doors to their homes. The lamb was the sacrifice in place of the firstborn son that would die otherwise.

John 1:29 says, "The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world." Christ himself was the perfect sacrificial lamb, who died as a sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. Instead of the normal meal of a sacrificed lamb on the normal night of Passover, the disciples celebrated Passover with him the night before that, using the symbols of the bread and wine. There would be no more need for physical lambs, because the next day, on Passover itself, Christ became the lamb.

While the resurrection after three days was the sign of Jonah, the important part was the death. The Jews do not commemorate when the Israelites entered the Promised Land, but when they fled from the bondage of Egypt. Similarly, the resurrection is not what is important to remember, but the death of Christ, when the penalty for sin was paid. Easter is a poor substitute for the Passover, the Holy Day given in the Bible.

For more information:
"The Passover: Why Did Jesus Christ Have to Die?"
(http://www.ucg.org/bookl ets/HD/havetodie.htm)

Learn more about this author, Reiko Yukawa.
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