Lord, inspire us to read your Scriptures and to meditate upon them day and night. We beg you to give us real understanding of what we need, that we in turn may put its precepts into practice. Yet, we know that understanding and good intentions are worthless, unless rooted in your graceful love. So we ask that the words of Scripture may also be not just signs on a page, but channels of grace into our hearts. Amen.

Genesis 1

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

The Bible always assumes, and never argues, God`s existence. Although everything else had a beginning, God has always been.
The word «God» renders the common Hebrew noun Elohim. It is plural but the verb is singular, nominal usage in the Old Testament when reference is to the one true God. This use of the plural expresses intensification rather than number and has been called the plural of majesty, or of potentiality.
God is the perfect and all-powerful Spirit or Being that is worshipped especially by believers as the One Who created and rules the universe. Throughout the pages of the Bible, the character of God pours forth. Starting with the beginning of creation and ending with John`s prophetic vision concerning the end times and the ultimate defeat of Satan, God reveals Himself. His personality is as wide, varied and complex as history itself. Ultimately, He lowered Himself to become a man made manifest through the person of Jesus Christ. The complete personality of God cannot be encapsulated in a sound bite and it cannot be captured in a book; however, three traits or characteristics universally associated with God are omniscience, omnipotence and omnipresence.
There are different interpretations of the notions «the heavens» and «the earth»:
1. the atmosphere and the ground
2. our planet and the cosmos
3. the spiritual (non-molecular) and the molecular world
4. all things, everything

The earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep and God’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.

Why was God`s Spirit hovering over the dark waters of the earth like an eagle that hovers over its young when they are learning to fly? To preserve that which had been created up to this point and to prepare it for the further activity of God. The Holy Spirit was just as much a participant in the creation as the other two persons of the Godhead. This verse celebrates the Spirit`s role in that process. He was active in creation, and his creative power continues today.

God said, «Let there be light,» and there was light.

Merely by issuing His royal decree, God brought all things into being.
God`s first creative word called forth light in the midst of the primeval darkness.
What could be that light? Could it be the electromagnetic spectrum? The electromagnetic spectrum is the range of all possible frequencies of electromagnetic radiation. The electromagnetic spectrum extends from below the low frequencies used for modern radio communication to gamma radiation at the short-wavelength (high-frequency) end, thereby covering wavelengths from thousands of kilometers down to a fraction of the size of an atom. The limit for long wavelengths is the size of the universe itself, while it is thought that the short wavelength limit is in the vicinity of the Planck length (1.6 x 10 _-35 meters).
One of the difficulties found in the first chapter of Genesis is the mention of light-apparently before the creation of the sun. On the first day we are told that God created light. The sun, it seems, was not created until the fourth day. How could such a thing be? How could there have been day and night without the sun? Were plants and vegetation (created on the third day) done so without the existence of the sun? There are a number of different possible ways to explain how there could have been light before the sun. They include the following:
1. Some Bible students believe the sun was begun on the first day but not completed until the fourth. The idea behind this view is that God's creation was a process. The problem with this view is that there is no evidence to indicate that this is what happened. In the Genesis account there is no indication of a process of creation that overlapped the days.
2. It has been suggested that the sun was created the first day but did not appear until the fourth.
3. There are many who believe that God created another light source before He created the sun on the fourth day. This was some sort of cosmic light that is different from the light given by the sun, moon, and stars. It was a special creation of God.
4. Even modern science has theorized that light can come from empty space such as black holes. One of the effects of black holes is that they emit light.
5. There is one other possible solution to this problem-the Bible doesn't say there was light before the sun. It is quite possible that when the author of Genesis 1:1 said «In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth» the phrase «heaven and earth» included the sun. The Bible consistently uses the phrase, heaven and earth, to refer to the universe or cosmos. Thus it is not necessary to assume the sun was not part of the heaven and the earth created on the first day.
6. We must also note that the Bible says there will be light without the sun in the future New Jerusalem. Since there will be no need for the sun as a light source in the future, it is certainly possible that there was no need for the sun as a light source in the beginning.

God saw the light, and saw that it was good. God divided the light from the darkness.

Everything God created is very good. The creation, as fashioned and odered by God, had no lingering traces of disorder and no dark and threatening forces arrayed against God or people. Even darkness and the deep were given benevolent functions in a world fashioned to bless and sustain life.

What does it mean when God separated light from darkness? This is one of the possible explanations: It wasn't God's intention that everything should be dark or everything should be light. Instead light and darkness must both coexist and therefore the two must be separated and designated to its own domain. The creation of light did not extinguish all darkness in all places, but rather that there were places for both light and darkness, just as day does not annihilate all night.

God called the light «day», and the darkness he called «night». There was evening and there was morning, the first day.

This verse is evidence of that God has his divine language. Consequently, God is an intelligent Being but neither the universe itself nor just someone`s idea.
In the ancient Near East, for a king to name people or things was an act of claiming dominion over them. In this creation account, God named the great cosmic realities of day, night, sky, land and seas. He left to human beings the naming of the creatures they were given dominion over.
Some say that the creation days were 24-hour days, other that they were indefinite periodes or even millenniums.

God said, «Let there be an expanse in the middle of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.»

God made the expanse, and divided the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so.

The term «firmament» has been one of the greatest puzzles concerning the Creation account, mostly because of its Hebrew definition. Most people interpret this to mean just the expanse of the sky (the atmosphere) or outer space, or both (which it is), but the full meaning goes «dome» or «vault» in some modern Bibles. It is rendered as «firmament» in the KJV. The problem that puzzles people is the implication in the Hebrew language of the firmament being a firm, fixed structure. Creationists have interpreted the «waters above the firmament» as a theoretical «water canopy» which once surrounded the Earth but no longer exists. They cite this as their source for the waters of Noah`s flood.

God called the expanse «sky». There was evening and there was morning, a second day.

One of the most common theories among young earth creationists is that the original earth possessed a water canopy consisting of vapor or ice that surrounded the earth above the troposphere and potentially up through the stratosphere. The canopy is used to explain the long lifespans of pre-flood humanity, along with the source of all the water required to explain a global flood. Isaac Vail (1840 –1912) first proposed the canopy theory in 1874. He believed a canopy formed millions of years ago as the earth evolved from a molten state. Here is the scientific rebuttal of vapor canopy: «Air can hold, at most, 55 grams of water vapor per cubic meter. In contrast, liquid water is at a density of 1,000,000 grams per cubic meter. The ratio of the two numbers is 1:18,000. Therefore, a flood of 1 mile thickness (which would cover only 1/5 of Mount Everest), would require 18,000 miles of canopy. Besides the problem of gravity (which would bring the whole thing down), such a thick layer of water vapor would completely block any light from the Sun from reaching the earth.»

God said, «Let the waters under the sky be gathered together to one place, and let the dry land appear;» and it was so.

God called the dry land «earth», and the gathering together of the waters he called «seas». God saw that it was good.

God said, «Let the earth yield grass, herbs yielding seeds, and fruit trees bearing fruit after their kind, with their seeds in it, on the earth» and it was so.

The earth yielded grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, with their seeds in it, after their kind; and God saw that it was good.

There was evening and there was morning, a third day.

God said, «Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs to mark seasons, days, and years; and let them be for lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth;» and it was so.

God made the two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night. He also made the stars.

The words «sun» and «moon» seem to be avoided deliberately here, since both were used as proper names for the pagan deities associated with these heavenly bodies. They are light-givers to be appreciated, not powers to be feared, because the one true God made them. Since the emphasis is on the greater light and lesser light, the stars seem to be mentioned almost as an afterthought. But the psalm 136:9 indicates that the stars help the moon «govern the night». The great Creator-King assigns subordinate regulating roles to certain of His creatures.

God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light to the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness. God saw that it was good.

There was evening and there was morning, a fourth day.

God said, «Let the waters abound with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the sky.»

God created the large sea creatures and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed, after their kind, and every winged bird after its kind. God saw that it was good.

God blessed them, saying, «Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.»

There was evening and there was morning, a fifth day.

God said, «Let the earth produce living creatures after their kind, livestock, creeping things, and animals of the earth after their kind» and it was so.

God made the animals of the earth after their kind, and the livestock after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind. God saw that it was good.

God said, «Let’s make man in our image, after our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the sky, and over the livestock, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.»

God created man in his own image. In God’s image he created him; male and female he created them.

God blessed them. God said to them, «Be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth, and subdue it. Have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the sky, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.»

God said, «Behold, I have given you every herb yielding seed, which is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree, which bears fruit yielding seed. It will be your food. 30 To every animal of the earth, and to every bird of the sky, and to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I have given every green herb for food;» and it was so.

God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. There was evening and there was morning, a sixth day.

Passover

Exodus 12:21-28

Then Moses called all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go and select lambs for yourselves according to your clans, and kill the Passover lamb. Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning. For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you. You shall observe this rite as a statute for you and for your sons forever. And when you come to the land that the Lord will give you, as He has promised, you shall keep this service.

Leviticus 23:4-8

“These are the appointed feasts of the Lord, the holy convocations, which you shall proclaim at the time appointed for them. In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight, is the Lord`s Passover. And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the Lord; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall not do any ordinary work. But you shall present a food offering to the Lord for seven days. On the seventh day is a holy convocation; you shall not do any ordinary work.”

1 Corinthians 5:7

Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.

Matthew 26:26-28

Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” And He took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

Numbers 9:14 9

And if a stranger sojourns among you and would keep the Passover to the Lord, according to the statute of the Passover and according to its rule, so shall he do. You shall have one statute, both for the sojourner and for the native.”

Mark 14:12-25

And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, his disciples said to him, “Where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?” And He sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him, and wherever he enters, say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says, Where is my guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ And he will show you a large upper room furnished and ready; there prepare for us.” And the disciples set out and went to the city and found it just as He had told them, and they prepared the Passover.

1 Corinthians 5:8 4

Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Exodus 12:8

They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it.

Exodus 12:15-20

Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven out of your houses, for if anyone eats what is leavened, from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. On the first day you shall hold a holy assembly, and on the seventh day a holy assembly. No work shall be done on those days. But what everyone needs to eat, that alone may be prepared by you. And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this day, throughout your generations, as a statute forever. In the first month, from the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. For seven days no leaven is to be found in your houses. If anyone eats what is leavened, that person will be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a sojourner or a native of the land.

Luke 22:15

And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.

Ezra 6:20

For the priests and the Levites had purified themselves together; all of them were clean. So they slaughtered the Passover lamb for all the returned exiles, for their fellow priests, and for themselves.

Exodus 13:3

Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the Lord brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten.

Exodus 12:11-13

In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the Lord`s Passover. For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord. The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt.

Numbers 9:13

But if anyone who is clean and is not on a journey fails to keep the Passover, that person shall be cut off from his people because he did not bring the Lord`s offering at its appointed time; that man shall bear his sin.

John 13:1-2

Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon`s son, to betray Him.

Matthew 26:17-20

Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Where will you have us prepare for you to eat the Passover?” He said, “Go into the city to a certain man and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, My time is at hand. I will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.’” And the disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and they prepared the Passover. When it was evening, he reclined at table with the twelve.

Joshua 5:10

While the people of Israel were encamped at Gilgal, they kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month in the evening on the plains of Jericho.

Exodus 12:48

If a stranger shall sojourn with you and would keep the Passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised. Then he may come near and keep it; he shall be as a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person shall eat of it.

Acts 12:4

And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people.

John 19:31

Since it was the day of Preparation, and so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken and that they might be taken away.

John 2:23

Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that He was doing.

John 1:29

The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

Luke 2:41-50

Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up according to custom. And when the feast was ended, as they were returning, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents did not know it, but supposing him to be in the group they went a day`s journey, but then they began to search for him among their relatives and acquaintances, and when they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, searching for him.

Ezekiel 45:21-24

“In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, you shall celebrate the Feast of the Passover, and for seven days unleavened bread shall be eaten. On that day the prince shall provide for himself and all the people of the land a young bull for a sin offering. And on the seven days of the festival he shall provide as a burnt offering to the Lord seven young bulls and seven rams without blemish, on each of the seven days; and a male goat daily for a sin offering. And he shall provide as a grain offering an ephah for each bull, an ephah for each ram, and a hin of oil to each ephah.

John 19:42

So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there.

Numbers 28:17

And on the fifteenth day of this month is a feast. Seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten.

Numbers 9:2-5

“Let the people of Israel keep the Passover at its appointed time. On the fourteenth day of this month, at twilight, you shall keep it at its appointed time; according to all its statutes and all its rules you shall keep it.” So Moses told the people of Israel that they should keep the Passover. And they kept the Passover in the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, at twilight, in the wilderness of Sinai; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so the people of Israel did.

1 Corinthians 11:20

When you come together, it is not the Lord`s supper that you eat.

Luke 22:20

And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.

2 Chronicles 30:1

Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and wrote letters also to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the house of the Lord at Jerusalem to keep the Passover to the Lord, the God of Israel.

Leviticus 23:1-44

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, These are the appointed feasts of the Lord that you shall proclaim as holy convocations; they are my appointed feasts. “Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, a holy convocation. You shall do no work. It is a Sabbath to the Lord in all your dwelling places. “These are the appointed feasts of the Lord, the holy convocations, which you shall proclaim at the time appointed for them. In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at twilight, is the Lord`s Passover.

Luke 22:7

Then came the day of Unleavened Bread, on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed.

Ezra 6:19

On the fourteenth day of the first month, the returned exiles kept the Passover.

2 Chronicles 35:3-11

And he said to the Levites who taught all Israel and who were holy to the Lord, “Put the holy ark in the house that Solomon the son of David, king of Israel, built. You need not carry it on your shoulders. Now serve the Lord your God and his people Israel. Prepare yourselves according to your fathers` houses by your divisions, as prescribed in the writing of David king of Israel and the document of Solomon his son. And stand in the Holy Place according to the groupings of the fathers` houses of your brothers the lay people, and according to the division of the Levites by fathers` household. And slaughter the Passover lamb, and consecrate yourselves, and prepare for your brothers, to do according to the word of the Lord by Moses.” Then Josiah contributed to the lay people, as Passover offerings for all who were present, lambs and young goats from the flock to the number of 30,000, and 3,000 bulls; these were from the king`s possessions.

2 Chronicles 35:1

Josiah kept a Passover to the Lord in Jerusalem. And they slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the first month.

Numbers 9:11

In the second month on the fourteenth day at twilight they shall keep it. They shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.

Mark 14:12

And on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they sacrificed the Passover lamb, his disciples said to him, “Where will you have us go and prepare for you to eat the Passover?”

Matthew 26:1-75

When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.” Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him. But they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.” ...

2 Chronicles 30:2-4

For the king and his princes and all the assembly in Jerusalem had taken counsel to keep the Passover in the second month — for they could not keep it at that time because the priests had not consecrated themselves in sufficient number, nor had the people assembled in Jerusalem — and the plan seemed right to the king and all the assembly.

Exodus 34:18

“You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the time appointed in the month Abib, for in the month Abib you came out from Egypt.

1 Corinthians 5:7-8

Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Psalm 81:3

Blow the trumpet at the new moon, at the full moon, on our feast day.

2 Chronicles 30:17

For there were many in the assembly who had not consecrated themselves. Therefore the Levites had to slaughter the Passover lamb for everyone who was not clean, to consecrate it to the Lord.

2 Kings 23:23

But in the eighteenth year of King Josiah this Passover was kept to the Lord in Jerusalem.

Joshua 5:11

And the day after the Passover, on that very day, they ate of the produce of the land, unleavened cakes and parched grain.

Exodus 13:6

Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the Lord.

Exodus 12:49

There shall be one law for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you.”

Exodus 6:6-8

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. 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.’”

Colossians 2:16-17

Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.

John 19:26

When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!”

Mark 15:6

Now at the feast he used to release for them one prisoner for whom they asked.

Matthew 27:15

Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to release for the crowd any one prisoner whom they wanted.

Matthew 26:2

“You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.”

Hosea 6:6

For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

Exodus 23:15-18

You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. As I commanded you, you shall eat unleavened bread for seven days at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt. None shall appear before me empty-handed. You shall keep the Feast of Harvest, of the firstfruits of your labor, of what you sow in the field. You shall keep the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather in from the field the fruit of your labor. Three times in the year shall all your males appear before the Lord God. “You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with anything leavened, or let the fat of my feast remain until the morning.

Mark 14:2

For they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar from the people.”

Mark 14:1

It was now two days before the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to arrest him by stealth and kill him,

Mark 11:1-11

Now when they drew near to Jerusalem, to Bethphage and Bethany, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples and said to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately as you enter it you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever sat. Untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ say, ‘The Lord has need of it and will send it back here immediately.’” And they went away and found a colt tied at a door outside in the street, and they untied it. And some of those standing there said to them, “What are you doing, untying the colt?” ...

1 Peter 2:9

But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

Acts 12:3

And when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread.

Hosea 4:6

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

Psalm 104:14-15

You cause the grass to grow for the livestock and plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food from the earth and wine to gladden the heart of man, oil to make his face shine and bread to strengthen man`s heart.

Numbers 9:1-14

And the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, “Let the people of Israel keep the Passover at its appointed time. On the fourteenth day of this month, at twilight, you shall keep it at its appointed time; according to all its statutes and all its rules you shall keep it.” So Moses told the people of Israel that they should keep the Passover. And they kept the Passover in the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, at twilight, in the wilderness of Sinai; according to all that the Lord commanded Moses, so the people of Israel did. ...

Leviticus 23:6

And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the Lord; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread.

Exodus 12:10

And you shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn.

Acts 12:1-4

About that time Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church. He killed James the brother of John with the sword, and when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during the days of Unleavened Bread. And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people.

John 12:12-13

The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!”

2 Chronicles 35:18

No Passover like it had been kept in Israel since the days of Samuel the prophet. None of the kings of Israel had kept such a Passover as was kept by Josiah, and the priests and the Levites, and all Judah and Israel who were present, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

2 Chronicles 7:8

At that time Solomon held the feast for seven days, and all Israel with him, a very great assembly, from Lebo-hamath to the Brook of Egypt.

2 Samuel 22:31

This God — his way is perfect; the word of the Lord proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.

Exodus 12:1-51

The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, “This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers` houses, a lamb for a household. And if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his nearest neighbor shall take according to the number of persons; according to what each can eat you shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, ...

Ephesians 1:6

To the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.

John 3:16

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Psalm 23:1-6

A Psalm of David. The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name`s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

Hebrews 9:11-12

But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.

John 2:1-10

On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples. When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

A few questions for ice breaking

1. Where are you from? Where do you live?

2. Why and where did you learn English?

3. Why do you learn the Bible?

4. Tell us something of the church you attend.

5. What is your profession (or your future profession)?

6. What is your hobby? What are your hobbies?

7. Tell us something about you family, please.

My Jesus! My Savior!

My Jesus, my Saviour,
Lord there is none like you.
All of my days, I want to praise,
The wonders of your mighty love.

My comfort, my shelter,
Power of refuge and strength.
Let every breath, all that I am,
Never cease to worship you.

CHORUS
Shout to the Lord all the Earth, let us sing,
Power and majesty, praise to the King.
Mountains bow down and the seas will roar,
At the sound of your Name.
I'll sing for Joy at the works of your hands.
Forever I'll love you, forever I'll stand.
Nothing compares to the promise,
I have in You.

There is none like You!

There is none like You,
No one else can touch my heart like You do,
I can search for all eternity Lord
And find, there is none like You.

There is none like You.
No one else can touch my heart like You do,
I can search for all eternity Lord
And find, there is none like You.

Your mercy flows like a river so wide,
And healing comes from Your hand.
Suffering children are safe in Your arms,
There is none like You.

There is none like You, 
There is none like You, Lord,
There is none like You.

I can search for all eternity Lord,
There is none like You.
I can search for all eternity Lord,
There is none, there is none,
There is none Lord,
There is none like You.

Our joint prayer

O Lord, Lord, King of the heavens, and Ruler of the whole creation, Holy among the holy, sole Governor, Almighty, give ear to us who have gathered together in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to worship You.

O Lord, You abide forever, Whose eyes are exalted, and whose chambers are in the air; whose throne is inestimable; whose glory may not be comprehended; before whom the army of angels stand with trembling, Whose Word is sure, and sayings constant; Whose ordinance is strong, and commandment fearful; Whose look dries up the depths, and Whose indignation makes the mountains to melt away, and Whose truth bears witness: hear, o Lord, the prayers of Your servants, and give ear to the petition of Your handiwork; attend to our words, please. O look not upon the sins of your people.

To You we do lift up our eyes, You Who sit in the heavens. O God of the fathers, and Lord of mercy, Who made all things by Your Word; and by Your wisdom You formed man, that he should have dominion over the creatures that were made by You, and rule the world in holiness and righteousness, and execute judgement in uprightness of soul; give us wisdom. Don’t reject us from among your servants, because we are Your servants.

God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, give us a Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of You; having the eyes of our hearts enlightened, that we may know what is the hope of Your calling, and what are the riches of the glory of Your inheritance in the saints, and what is the exceeding greatness of Your power toward us who believe, according to that working of the strength of Your might which You worked in Christ, when You raised him from the dead, and made him to sit at Your right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule, and authority, and power, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in that which is to come. You put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things for the assembly, which is His Body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

For this cause, we bow our knees to You, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from Whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that You would grant us, according to the riches of Your glory, that we may be strengthened with power through Your Spirit in the inward man; that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith; to the end that we, being rooted and grounded in love, may be strengthened to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and height and depth, and to know Christ’s love which surpasses knowledge, that we may be filled with all the fullness of God.

And this we pray, that our love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and all discernment; so that we may approve the things that are excellent; that we may be sincere and without offense to the day of Christ; being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

We ask You, our Heavenly Father, to fill us with the knowledge of Your will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, that we may walk worthily of the Lord, to please You in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of You, God; strengthened with all power, according to the might of Your glory, for all endurance and perseverance with joy. We thank You, our Almighty Father, Who made us fit to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light; Who delivered us out of the power of darkness, and translated us into the Kingdom of the Son of Your love; in Whom we have our redemption, the forgiveness of our sins; Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, in the heavens and on the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things have been created through Him, and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things are held together. Our Lord Jesus Christ is the Head of the Body, the assembly, Who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things He might have the preeminence. For all the fullness was pleased to dwell in Him; and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on the earth, or things in the heavens, having made peace through the Blood of His cross.

Now to You, our God, Who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to You be the glory in our assembly and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen.

Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. Let your Kingdom come. Let your will be done, as in heaven, so on earth. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors. Bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For yours is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen