How Easter points to Christ

All humans were born in Adam (Romans 5:12-21). That means we are all born slaves to sin and are born under the judgment of death. We are children of Adam, with whom we share his sin and his destiny.

But God, in His grace, has promised to create a new humanity, free from sin and death. He chose Israel as His firstborn—the first people who would be part of this new humanity. Israel was a prototype of God's new humanity. In Exodus 4:22-23, God tells Pharaoh that he must free Israel because he is His firstborn. If Pharaoh refused, then he would give him an equivalent retribution—the death of every firstborn son of Egypt.

The problem was that the Israelites were also part of humanity in Adam. They were God's firstborn, but they were also enslaved by sin and deserving of death like the rest of humanity. So, to be freed, they first had to die to their humanity in Adam. Only then could they be reborn into God's new humanity.

This is what happened at Easter, albeit symbolically. Their firstborn must die—but a lamb dies in their place. The lamb suffers the death they deserved. His death is symbolically represented in the lamb. As a result, Israel is liberated. They die to the old humanity and are reborn as the firstborn of the new humanity. They are freed because they have died (symbolically in the death of the lamb). This death has freed them from all the obligations of their old life.

“ If Easter was a symbol, the reality is Christ. ”
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This is why the consecration of the firstborn becomes so important: The LORD spoke to Moses and said to him: “Consecrate to me the firstborn of every womb. All the firstborn Israelites and all the first males of their animals are mine” (Exodus 13:1-2).

Israel died at the Passover, so they no longer belonged to Adam, but now belonged to God. This belonging was symbolically marked with the firstborn of every Israelite male, whether human or animal. What is true about the human family (the firstborn son, who was Israel, belonged to God) is reflected in the family of each Israelite (the firstborn of each animal belonged to God). So each child was to be dedicated to (or redeemed by) God.

But Easter is only symbolic. The Israelites were freed from slavery, but only from the slavery of Egypt, not the slavery of sin. And they were saved from death, but only from death on Passover night, not from eternal death. The death of the lamb brought life, but not forever. As a result, although Israel belonged to God, they continued to live as children of Adam. In other words, they continued to live as slaves to sin. The redemption of the firstborn was a reminder of what God had done, namely, that He freed His people from slavery. But the fact that it had to be repeated with each new generation is also a reminder of what God would do to completely and naturally free His people from the bondage of sin and death.

If Easter was a symbol, the reality is Christ. He is our Passover Lamb, who died in our place. He is the fulfillment of the promise made at Passover. Christ is the firstborn among the dead (Colossians 1:18). He is the Son of Adam who died and was resurrected as the firstborn of the new humanity. All who are in Christ through faith have died in Christ to the slavery of sin and the condemnation of death. And so we have been resurrected to a new life in Christ. The book of Exodus establishes the pattern of redemption through sacrifice, which is fulfilled in Christ.

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This article was adapted from a portion of the book Exodus for You , published by Poiema Publications . You can download a free sample by visiting this link .
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