A Pizza Run to Gino’s

Series on Old Testament Festivals and Sacred Days – Festival of Unleavened Bread
(Click on the link below to read the verses.)
Exodus 12:14–20; John 6:25-51 

[Many of the festivals and sacred days from the Old Testament don’t seem to be relevant for us today. They may have been significant for the Jews at the time, but not now. In this series, we’re going to take a closer look at the festivals and sacred days to learn what the significance was for the people of Israel at the time. And to learn what the significance is for us today.]

  

Flatbread pizzas have become very popular. Many eclectic restaurants will offer a flatbread pizza as an appetizer, or sometimes as an entrée. When I was in high school, we didn’t have flatbread pizzas. Instead, my friends and I went to Pizza Sams where they had the best thin crust pizza around.

 

During my college years, I discovered deep dish pizza. Unfortunately, the best deep dish pizza was Gino’s in downtown Chicago. Despite this, my friends and I made at least one pizza run from Lansing to Gino’s – a four-hour drive one way, but worth every minute of it.

 

Israel also had a flatbread. It was an important part of celebrating their freedom from slavery in Egypt. For 400 years they had been slaves when finally, the Lord was going to set them free. However, it was under the most terrible circumstances.

 

The Lord sent a plague upon Egypt where every firstborn male, both human and animal, would die. Israel was given grace by the Lord if they put the blood of a sacrificial lamb over their doorpost. By doing so, the Lord would Passover their house.

 

In addition, they were to eat a special meal that included unleavened bread – a flatbread if you will. These ceremonies of Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread were to be celebrated from that day forward. It was to remind them of how the Lord had miraculously delivered them from slavery.

 

¹⁷ “Celebrate the Festival of Unleavened Bread, because it was on this very day that I brought your divisions out of Egypt. Celebrate this day as a lasting ordinance for the generations to come.                      NIV

 

But why unleavened bread? One reason is that it was known as the “bread of haste”. Since there was no yeast, it didn’t require time to rise. And because the Israelites fled Egypt so quickly, unleavened bread was perfect for making a fast escape.

 

Secondly, unleavened bread was known as the “bread of affliction”. Therefore, it was a physical reminder of the hardship, suffering, and bitterness of Israel’s bondage under Pharaoh.

 

In the New Testament, a different reason is given for using unleavened bread. Jesus warned his disciples about “the yeast of the Pharisees”. Paul wrote to the Corinthian church to “get rid of the old yeast”. In fact, yeast was normally used as a metaphor for a small, hidden sin that spreads and affects others.

 

However, Jesus turned everything upside down. After he fed the five thousand, the crowds tracked him down. They asked him for a sign and reminded him how God provided manna for their ancestors in the wilderness during the Exodus.

 

When Jesus told them the true bread from heaven would give them life, the crowds asked Jesus to give it to them.

 

³⁵ Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.  ⁴⁹ Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. ⁵⁰ But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. ⁵¹ I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”                   NIV    John 6

 

Jesus didn’t differentiate between leavened or unleavened bread. But he declared that he was “the bread of life”. Therefore, my conclusion is that his bread is worth far more than a pizza run to Gino’s.

 

Copyright 2026 Joseph B Williams

Feel free to share this blog with others.

www.lifelinebasketball.blogspot.com

 

 

Remember and Celebrate

Series on Old Testament Festivals and Sacred Days – Passover
(Click on the link below to read the verses.)
Exodus 12:1-16; Mark 14:22-26 

[Many of the festivals and sacred days from the Old Testament don’t seem to be relevant for us today. They may have been significant for the Jews at the time, but not now. In this series, we’re going to take a closer look at the festivals and sacred days to learn what the significance was for the people of Israel at the time. And to learn what the significance is for us today.]

  

Since 2009, my wife and I have celebrated our anniversary at J. Gilberts. It’s an upscale, wood-fired steak restaurant. I don’t remember how we decided to go there unless it had something to do with the email that I got offering “$25 off your entrée with the purchase of a second entrée”.

 

Every year we order the same thing. It’s a three-course meal with a soup or salad, entrée and dessert. I love the lobster bisque; the steaks are always grilled perfectly; and the crème Brule is delightfully decadent. We even get to take the second one home. It has become an annual tradition to celebrate our marriage.

 

Israel had served as slaves to the Pharaohs of Egypt for 400 years when God called Moses to lead his people to the Promised Land. But when Moses asked Pharaoh if they could go into the wilderness, he said no. In fact, he kept saying no even when the Lord sent nine plagues upon the people of Egypt.

 

Finally, the Lord sent a plague on the firstborn. With this plague, every firstborn son – from Pharaoh to slaves to cattle – would die! The Lord told Moses that this would compel Pharaoh to let his people go. But there was one more detail.

 

The Lord would spare the Israelites if they followed his instructions. They were to sacrifice a male lamb and then spread the blood on the top and both sides of their doorframe. Later that night, the Lord would go through Egypt striking down the Egyptian’s firstborn sons… but not Israel’s.

 

Here are the Lord’s instructions for the meal.

 

⁸ That same night they are to eat the meat roasted over the fire, along with bitter herbs, and bread made without yeast. ¹¹ This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste; it is the Lord’s Passover.          NIV    Exodus 12

 

Moses gathered the elders together and told them that when they entered the Promised Land, they were to continue to observe the Passover ceremony and pass it down from generation to generation. They were to remember and celebrate the Lord’s faithfulness, his mercy and his grace.

 

¹⁴ “This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord—a lasting ordinance.                        NIV    Exodus 12

 

Approximately 1450 years later, a rising star rabbi and his motley crew of disciples, entered Jerusalem with great Messianic fanfare, to celebrate the Passover. But that night Jesus shared his Last Supper with them.

 

²² While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take it; this is my body.” ²³ Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and they all drank from it. ²⁴ “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them.                                 NIV             Mark 14

 

The Passover that the Israelites observed in Egypt was a foreshadowing of Jesus. They had sacrificed a lamb whose blood had spared their lives so that they could be delivered from the slavery of Egypt. Jesus, the Lamb of God, sacrificed his life so that his blood would spare our lives and that we could be delivered from sin.

 

That, my friend, is worth celebrating.

 

Copyright 2026 Joseph B Williams

Feel free to share this blog with others.

www.lifelinebasketball.blogspot.com

 

I Quit!

A Series on Lent
The stories of Passion Week – the disciples
 (Click on the link below to read the verses.)
Luke 22:7-38 

[Lent is a 40-day season of personal reflection with the purpose to prepare your heart to celebrate the Lord’s Resurrection at Easter. In this series on Lent, we will be looking into the stories of Passion Week. How the people who were directly involved were impacted and how that applies to us today.]

  

After three years of college at Michigan Tech… I quit! Not just transfer but quit! Even though my parents had paid for my schooling, I unilaterally made the decision without consulting them.

 

They had made every sacrifice for me to get an education. Looking back on it, I can only imagine how they felt when I told them my decision. Angry, hurt, frustrated, confused, fearful, concerned. They may have even felt like they failed as parents.

 

Luke 22 tells the story of the Last Supper. It was the Thursday of Passover week and the disciples’ gathered together to celebrate. Passover dates back to when Moses was about to lead the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt into the Promised Land.

 

To avoid the impending curse of the death of every first born, each Hebrew household sacrificed a lamb and smeared the blood of the lamb over their doorpost. By doing this, the curse would “pass over” their family.

 

You can picture Jesus and his disciples as they reclined at the table for Passover. Because of the excitement about everything that had recently happened, the conversation may have become quite animated.

 

After all, Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead; He entered Jerusalem like a conquering king; He cleared the temple and faced down the religious leaders. Therefore, just like when Moses had freed the Israelites, the disciples likely assumed that the time had arrived when Jesus would take power.

 

Instead, Jesus said that one of them was going to betray him. Following this, they argued amongst themselves about who was the greatest. Finally, when Simon vowed that he would follow Jesus to prison or even death, Jesus told Simon that he would deny him three times before the next morning.

 

In the Gospel of Matthew version of the Last Supper, Jesus quoted this prophecy from Zechariah to his disciples.

 

³¹ “This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written:

“‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’                 NIV

 

Like my parents, Jesus may have had the same feelings about his disciples. He had invested in them for three years. They had lived together twenty-four, seven. He had personally picked them, taught them and given them every possible advantage to succeed. Yet they failed because they quit!

 

It’s easy to judge the disciples for deserting Jesus in his hour of need. But before you do, ask yourself this. Have you ever doubted Jesus and not trusted him? Have you ever decided to go your own way? Have you ever disappointed him? Have you ever quit on him?

 

The Good News is that the story didn’t end with the Last Supper. Like the blood of the sacrificial lamb in Egypt that saved the Hebrews, Jesus is our sacrificial lamb. 

The difference is that he was raised from the dead and invites us to sit at the table with him. He is knocking at the door of our heart, waiting for us to open it and let him in.

 

²⁰ “Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.                                                                                  Revelation 3             NLT

 

Copyright 2024 Joseph B Williams

www.lifelinebasketball.blogspot.com

 

Christmas Karaoke

A series on the story of redemption
The story of Moses: Part II
(Click on the link below to read the verses.)
Exodus 12:1-30 

[Everybody has a story. Even God has one. His is a story about love and redemption and faithfulness. In this series we are going to take a closer look at God’s story through the lives of the people that He touched. How their story became His story of redemption. And how your story is also a part of it.]

  

Twenty years ago, after our Christmas Eve service, we decided to drive around and look at the Christmas lights. Afterwards, we were hungry, but because it was Christmas Eve the only restaurants that were open were Chinese.

 

We finally found a place called Lee Garden. It was a family style restaurant nestled in a small strip mall on a side street. The food was good and reasonably priced. Plus, they played Christmas karaoke music!

 

Ever since then, when we’re home for Christmas Eve, we’ve eaten at a Chinese restaurant. It’s become a Christmas family tradition, minus the karaoke music.

 

Israel has a tradition that was started when Moses led them out of slavery in Egypt. It also included a meal. Truthfully though, it has a much deeper meaning than a spur of the moment family tradition.

 

Following his call at the burning bush, Moses returned to Egypt to tell Pharaoh to let the Hebrews go into the wilderness to worship the Lord. Of course, Pharaoh said no. In fact, despite devastating plagues that the Lord sent on Egypt, he said no ten times. Finally, he relinquished when the plague was for every first-born son to die.

 

Except the Israelites were saved from this heart-breaking loss when the Lord gave them instructions for the first Passover. They were to smear the blood of a goat or lamb on the top and sides of the doorpost of their house.

 

^{12 "}On that night I will pass through the land of Egypt and strike down every firstborn son and firstborn male animal in the land of Egypt. I will execute judgment against all the gods of Egypt, for I am the Lord! ¹³ But the blood on your doorposts will serve as a sign, marking the houses where you are staying. When I see the blood, I will pass over you. This plague of death will not touch you when I strike the land of Egypt."      NLT

 

The Lord instructed Moses to have Israel continue the Passover permanently, making it a tradition. The Passover is how Israel remembers the Lord delivering them out of slavery and into the Promised Land.

           

Traditions can be born out of many circumstances. For us, our Christmas Eve tradition was the result of being hungry. For the Israelites, it was the fulfillment of a generational covenant.

 

Now… fast forward to the first century when Jesus returned to Jerusalem for Passover. Like the blood of a lamb smeared over the doorpost during the first Passover, the blood of the Lamb of God was shed to save us from death. Not the death of a plague, but the death that results from our own sinful nature.

 

²⁹ The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!          NIV   John 1

 

God’s plan of redemption continues today.

 

^{13b "}When I see the blood, I will pass over you."     NLT

 

Copyright 2023 Joseph B Williams

www.lifelinebasketball.blogspot.com

 

 

 

 

Everybody Loves a Parade

A Series on Lent
 (Click on the link below to read the verses.)
John 12:12-19 

[Lent is a 40-day season of personal reflection through prayer, fasting and giving in order to prepare your heart to celebrate the Lord’s Resurrection at Easter. We will be following Jesus as he enters Jerusalem for Passover, and the ensuing events that led up to his trial, crucifixion and resurrection.]

 

Last October, my wife and I went to Disney World with my daughter, son-in law and grandkids. One of the many special activities that we attended was “Mickey’s Not-so-Scary Halloween Party” held in the Magic Kingdom. It was packed.

 

During the party there was a magical parade called “Mickey’s Boo to You Halloween Parade”. There were so many people lining the streets that it was difficult to see all the characters. After all, everybody loves a parade.

 

Jesus had a parade given in his honor. After three years of trying to stay under the radar, he embraced a public declaration of being the Messiah. He did it by fulfilling this prophecy in Zechariah.

 

⁹ Rejoice, O people of Zion!
    Shout in triumph, O people of Jerusalem!
Look, your king is coming to you.
    He is righteous and victorious,
yet he is humble, riding on a donkey—
    riding on a donkey’s colt.           Zechariah 9:9 NLT

 

The six chapters preceding John 12, highlighted the escalating conflict between Jesus and the religious leaders. There was division, dispute and unbelief about who Jesus was. As the conflict crescendo reached its peak, Jesus called his friend Lazarus from the tomb, raising him from the dead. Word spread like wildfire.

 

This happened just before Passover when large crowds of pilgrims traveled to Jerusalem. Jews had celebrated Passover for centuries as a way to remember God’s salvation for his chosen people when Moses led them out of slavery from Egypt to the Promised Land.

 

The atmosphere was charged with electricity; with the anticipation of a king leading Israel from under the rule of Rome. The crowds laid their palm branches and cloaks on the road for Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Expectations were out of sight!

 

As Jesus road the colt they shouted…

 

^13b “Praise God!
Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hail to the King of Israel!”            NLT

 

Indeed, everybody loves a parade. Even Jesus didn’t avoid it. But did he enjoy it? He knew that it was his time. He knew that death was waiting for him. Yet he still trusted and obeyed his loving Father. Why?

 

^2-3 Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it.

Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God.

When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!                        Hebrews 12 MSG

 

Copyright 2023 Joseph B Williams

 

 

 

Surprise!!!

A Series on the Milestones in Jesus’ Life

Luke 22:1-5; Luke 22:14-23; Luke 22:24-26

(Use the link below to read the verses.)

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%2022%3A1-5%3B%2014-23%3B%2024-26&version=NIV;NLT

 

Life is full of surprises. Just recently, my wife gave me multiple surprises for my birthday. First, she posted on her Facebook page that it was my birthday, and how great it would be if everybody bombarded me with emails. I heard from a high school class mate, another friend who I haven’t seen in thirty years; and at least a dozen other family and friends.

 

Then, as if that wasn’t enough, she surprised me that night at a church meeting by showing up with cake and ice cream for everybody. Surprise!

 

Sometimes a milestone is reaching a certain age. Sometimes it’s just a matter of finally reaching a destination. Jesus had set his sights on the Passover at Jerusalem for quite some time; and he finally reached that milestone. But there were surprises in store.

 

First, was Judas’ betrayal for greed. He had been stealing from the treasury for a while and for whatever reason, he decided that he was done with following Jesus. Maybe he believed Jesus was worth more to him dead than alive.

 

The second surprise was the disciple’s desire for power. There are several occasions when we read that the disciples came to Jesus and asked who would sit at his right and his left. This time they asked about which was considered to be the greatest.

 

Finally, Jesus had two surprises for his disciples out of his love for them and his Heavenly Father. One was his revelation about the new covenant of his body and blood to be sacrificed for them. The other was revealing that one of them would betray him. They all denied it of course, including Judas.

 

I believe that God still works through surprises. That way we can’t take credit for it; whatever “it” is.

 

Do you think He has a surprise in store for you? If so, how will you respond? Will it be like Judas? The disciples? Or Jesus?

 

 

 

Surprise!

 

 

 

A Christmas Tradition

1 Corinthians 11:17-32

 

In 1983, the movie “A Christmas Story” was released. Today it has become somewhat of a classic as it is shown on Christmas Eve for twenty-four consecutive hours on cable TV. In the movie, the Christmas dinner is consumed by some neighborhood dogs. As a result, the family goes to a Chinese restaurant where the restaurant staff humorously sings, “Deck the Halls”.

 

Quite a few years ago, following our churches Christmas Eve service, my family and I were hungry. After driving around for a while (no smart phones then), we discovered that the only restaurant that was open was Chinese. So, ever since then, we have eaten out at a Chinese restaurant on Christmas Eve. A tradition was born.

 

There are many traditions within the Christian church. In today’s passage, Paul addresses the abuse of one of those – the Lord’s Supper. Apparently the church at Corinth was following the tradition, but it had become divisive. Those believers who were better off, ate and drank well. While those who were poor, ate little.

 

Human nature tends to do this – turn something good into something bad. Human nature also tends to lose sight of the purpose of traditions. A tradition can easily become a ritual that at best, is without significance, and at worst, without impact on our lives. Consider the Lord’s Supper.

 

Because of Pharaoh’s hard heart, God was about to inflict a plague that would kill all of the first born of Egypt. In order to protect His chosen people, the blood of a pure sacrificial lamb would be spread over their doors. Then the plague would “pass over” that household. Imagine being one of those protected families as they ate their Passover meal, and heard the screams of their neighbors.

 

Fast forward to the Last Supper. Jesus is sitting at the table with his disciples. They have shared the Passover meal together. He then shares the bread and wine instructing them to remember him by repeating this in the future. Some of the same elements of the first Passover meal were present, only this time Jesus was the pure lamb that was to be sacrificed. His blood would protect them.

 

Today, remembering the Lord’s Supper tends to be very sterile. We pass the plate and partake of a small wafer or piece of bread, and drink grape juice while we sit in our pew thinking about the pot roast in the oven. There are no agonizing screams from our neighbors. There is no impending crucifixion. There is no shed blood.

 

It can be easy for the Lord’s Supper to become a tradition without impact. But Paul is calling us, through his letter to the Corinthians, to be introspective – to look inside ourselves; to evaluate our lives; to objectively observe not only our behavior, but our attitudes and motivations; and finally, to recognize that it was because of our sin that Jesus’ blood was shed. His blood saves us from ourselves not from a plague.

 

Going to a Chinese restaurant on Christmas Eve may eventually lose its significance as a family tradition. But prayerfully, remembering why Jesus went to the cross and what he did there for me, won’t.