I Will Bring You Out: Insights from the Passover Meal
Most Christians have heard the word Passover. But my guess is that very few have ever seen a Passover Seder. (If you just said, “A what?” then I’m talking about you.)
A Passover Seder is the traditional Jewish meal held each year to remember and retell the story of the Exodus — the night when God brought the children of Israel out of slavery from Egypt. It is not merely a dinner. It is a carefully ordered ceremony designed to help each generation remember what God did.
Its Biblical Origins
The roots of the Seder go back to Exodus 12. On the night before their deliverance, the Israelites were instructed to eat a specific meal: a roasted lamb, unleavened bread, and bitter herbs. God instructed them to eat hurriedly because they were preparing to leave Egypt immediately. That meal was the last meal Israel ate in captivity.
It was a simple meal, but it was rich in symbolic meaning.
And over the centuries, the Passover meal developed into a structured ceremony held in Jewish homes each year. The word Seder means “order.” And the meal followed a specific order. Prayers were recited. Questions were asked and answered. The Exodus story was told. Songs were sung.
The story of Israel’s deliverance was passed down from generation to generation through a meal that became a living classroom.
Four Cups of Wine
The Seder order is structured around four cups of wine served throughout the meal. Each cup corresponds to a promise God made to Israel concerning their deliverance from Egypt — promises recorded in Exodus 6:6–7:
“I will free you… I will rescue you… I will redeem you… I will claim you as my own people…”
The promises are simple and direct:
I will bring you out.
I will free you.
I will redeem you.
I will take you as my own people.
Why the Passover Seder Matters to Christians
Now you are probably wondering why I’m talking about a Jewish meal. This ancient tradition not only preserved Jewish history, but also served as the setting in which Jesus established what we now call Communion!
Jesus’ famous Last Supper, recorded in Scripture, was a Passover meal. It was during that meal that He took the unleavened bread and the cup of wine and gave them new meaning. “This bread is my body . . . this cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you” (Luke 22:20).
The Lord’s Supper flows out of the Passover. And that means that Communion is not disconnected from the Exodus story — it’s a continuation and fulfillment of it. The redemption from Egypt becomes a pattern — a shadow — of the redemption accomplished at the cross.
We look at the symbols of the Passover meal and see the story of another exodus — God freeing people from the slavery of sin.
The First Cup: The Cup of Sanctification
The meaning of those four cups of wine becomes incredibly deep and fascinating when we view them through the lens of the finished work of Jesus. Let me explain.
The first cup of wine is known as the Cup of Sanctification. It represents the promise from Exodus 6:6, “I will bring you out.”
This cup accomplishes two things.
First, it is the way the father of the household indicates that this night is holy and special. It is sacred. It points out why the Passover meal is different from other family meals.
Second, it is a way of announcing that all the special preparations necessary for the meal have been properly carried out. Everything has been done according to the correct order. The lamb is ready. The bread is prepared. The elements are in place. The ceremony may now begin.
When the father lifts that cup, the family knows everything is ready.
In the Exodus narrative, the Cup of Sanctification is a reminder that God initiated Israel’s deliverance. It was all intentional. It was a holy process. It was not an accident.
The Cup of Sanctification and Our Redemption
When we look at that first cup of wine through the lens of the work of Christ, we catch an insight that makes my soul sing.
Everything about our salvation was intentional from the beginning of time, and the plan was holy, sacred, and special!
When Jesus died on the cross, God was not improvising. Calvary was not an emergency brake that God suddenly had to throw because humanity was off track. Scripture tells us Christ was “the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.” The cross was always the plan.
The Father had already set the table, so to speak. Everything would unfold just as God had intended. The betrayal. The kangaroo court procedure. The brutal torture followed by execution. Every part of the story was completely intentional.
Listen to how the disciples understood God’s sovereign control during the crucifixion events.
“In fact, this has happened here in this very city! For Herod Antipas, Pontius Pilate the governor, the Gentiles, and the people of Israel were all united against Jesus, your holy servant, whom you anointed. But everything they did was determined beforehand according to your will. (Acts 4:27–28, NLT)
The cross was not accidental. It was ordered.
And yet there is another layer.
The Cup of Sanctification and Your Redemption
God’s intentionality is not only for the worldwide plan of salvation — it is personal. More specifically, it is personal to you.
The same God who ordered the Exodus and managed the human details that brought about the events at the cross is the God who orders the details that draw a single human heart to Himself.
In other words, when God decided to save you, He intentionally used every circumstance, every wound, even every one of your rebellious actions — and still He brought you to His side.
“I will bring you out” is not merely a historical promise. It is your promise. And mine, too. It reminds us that God doesn’t casually save anyone. You and I are saved because God, in His mercy, set His intention toward us long before we ever set our intention toward Him.
What a statement about God’s incredible love for you! If you ever feel discouraged or disappointed in your struggle to live as a Christian, remember this: your salvation was not an accident. It was the result of a holy, intentional pursuit.
