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Three Passover Symbols With Powerful Lessons

Jesus taught His disciples to observe the Passover every year with three symbols that have deep meaning for every Christian.

Two of them are used by a host of churches around the world, though often missing the full depth of spiritual meaning, while the third is widely misunderstood, if it’s honored at all.

In this video, we’ll use Scripture to explain all three symbols and their meaning.

And we’ll start with the bread.

Christian Passover Symbol #1: Bread

When the Passover had come, Jesus told His disciples, “With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer…” (Luke 22:15).

Then He introduced the new symbol of the bread. We read in verse 19: 

And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:19).

And in 1 Corinthians 11, Paul records:

“For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me” (1 Corinthians 11:23–24).

Following Jesus’ example and instruction, Christians are to once per year keep the Passover on the night of Abib 14, as prescribed in Leviticus 23.

Now, there are two primary aspects of the bread’s symbolism. One is brought out in chapter 10 of 1 Corinthians. It says:

The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we, though many, are one bread and one body; for we all partake of that one bread (1 Corinthians 10:16–17).

This first aspect is that when His followers take the unleavened bread with others of like mind in His Church, it points to the oneness of a united spiritual body together—the body of Jesus Christ, the Church of God.

This is important because it means that God works through His Church and His ministry, and the body of followers who work in that structure. In other words, there can be no “rogue” Christians, and His Church is unified as one people, of one mind.

The other important aspect of the bread’s meaning is found in Isaiah 53.

Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows…. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities… and by His stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:4–5).

And Peter put it this way, “who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed” (1 Peter 2:24).

He endured the whippings and beatings in His own flesh and took on the physical penalties that come from sinning in this life. And it is through His physical stripes that we have access to the healing of our diseases, sicknesses, and other ailments—if we claim this promise.

James said:

“Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven” (James 5:14-15).

His broken body, pictured by the bread, is intimately associated with healing. 

So the broken bread of the Passover is rich with meaning.

And so is the next symbol of the Christian Passover—the wine.

Christian Passover Symbol #2: Wine

We’ll read from Matthew’s account of Jesus’ last Passover.

Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins” (Matthew 26:27–28).

1 John 1:7 says:

The blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

And Romans 3:23–25 says:

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption (or, the clearing of debt) that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation (or, a means of forgiveness) by His blood… because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed.

So drinking the wine on the evening of the annual Passover observance, as part of the memorial of Christ’s sacrifice, shows our need for—and acceptance of—His blood to cover our sins, reminding us of the commitment we’ve made to live a new life of surrendered obedience.

So we see the wine pictures the blood of Jesus Christ, by which comes the forgiveness of our sins.

Next, we’ll see the third symbol has to do with a Christian’s attitude when he or she takes the Passover, but first we must hear these two passages to help paint a more complete picture regarding the bread and wine together.

The first is in John 6, where Jesus says:

“Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him” (John 6:53–56).

Many didn’t understand He was speaking spiritually. They thought He was speaking literally, and because of this, many of His disciples stopped following Him at this time (John 6:60–66). So, it’s critical for us to understand He is speaking of spiritual concepts here.

Now the other verse is Galatians 2:20. It says:

I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by [the] faith [of] the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

In other words, by taking the bread and wine annually on the night of the Passover, we’re reminded of Jesus’ sacrifice for our forgiveness, but also that we are crucified with Him, so that the life we live going forward is truly His and not our own.

The bread and wine have been used by many churches over the centuries, though often improperly and without the full depth of spiritual meaning.

Christian Passover Symbol #3: Foot Washing

But the last symbol we’ll discuss is even more widely misunderstood, if it’s performed at all.

In fact, it was actually the first element He instituted that evening with His disciples, and that is the foot washing.

It’s only recorded in John’s account. He wrote:

[Jesus] rose from supper and laid aside His garments, took a towel and girded Himself. After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel… (John 13:4–5).

Now, during Jesus’ time, it was common for servants to wash the feet of those they served. It was the lowly job of a servant.

So when He came to Peter, Peter said:

“Lord, are You washing my feet?” (John 13:6).

“You shall never wash my feet!” (John 13:8).

Jesus was His Lord and Master, not His servant. So Jesus told him:

“If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me” (John 13:8).

So, Peter said:

“Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!” (John 13:9).

So when He had washed their feet, He then told His disciples:

“If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you. Most assuredly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master; nor is he who is sent greater than he who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them” (John 13:4-17).

It was through His example and explicitly telling them to follow that example, that foot washing became a part of the Passover observance to be kept once a year.

But why did He do this? And why did He tell them to wash one another’s feet?

For Jesus Christ—the One they called their Teacher and the Son of God—to kneel down and wash their feet as a lowly servant would, was a notable and unforgettable act of profound humility and service.

Paul encouraged Christians to have this same humility when he said:

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God (Philippians 2:5–6).

In other words, he didn’t find equality with God something he needed to cling onto or hold onto desperately.

But made Himself of no reputation… (Philippians 2:7).

In other words, He emptied Himself of His divine prerogatives.

… taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men (Philippians 2:7).

In other words, He did not just become a man. He was an average man of the time and, in fact, even like a servant.

And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross (Philippians 2:8).

So the Creator of the universe, who had lived for all Eternity beforehand, humbled Himself to act as a servant to His students by washing their feet the night before He served the whole world by the ultimate act of humility and love in giving His life.

And when it comes to Passover, this lesson of humility is vitally important.

Consider Paul’s comments in 1 Corinthians 11:27–30.

Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep.

Christians: “Do This in Remembrance of Me”

The Christian Passover and its symbols have profound and deep meaning for every Christian and is not something to be taken lightly. And because we must not take it unworthily, it is only for those who have repented of their sins, committed their life to God through baptism into His Church, and received His Holy Spirit.

So Jesus taught His followers to observe the Passover as a memorial once a year with the three symbols He introduced the night before His crucifixion.

Now to get a helpful overview of all God’s annual observances, watch this next video, God’s Holy Days in the Bible.