Examining WMSCOG's Passover of the New Covenant

What is the Passover?

Today we are going to dive into the long awaited subject of the Passover. If you prefer to watch the 3 part video explanation please click here. If you prefer the short form (8 min) click here.

I have researched this subject probably for close to 50 hours to get my findings. I will do my best to simplify everything and not bore you with all the details. But please stick with me as I believe it will be worth it in the end.

Specifically speaking, we are talking about the WMSCOG version of Passover which is called the New Covenant Passover.

We are going to cover what is the teaching in regards to the New Covenant Passover, regulations and its importance. Also we will tackle the historical controversy surrounding it and what does the bible say about the New Covenant Passover. Let's dive into it.

What is the teaching of the WMSCOG in regards to the New Covenant Passover? Honestly, just like the book of life, it is a very powerful fear tactic. Let me explain in a story format.

Let’s say you are studying at a local community college. You go to the library for some quiet study time, open your books and begin to dive into your study material with your headphones in. After about 10 minutes or so, you feel a slight tap on your shoulder.

You look up expecting your professor or some sort of campus staff, but it’s 2 people you haven't seen before. You can’t tell if they are students or not because something about them just seems out of place and you have never seen them in classes. 

You ask them “What's up?”.

 They begin to talk about a club on campus called Elohim Bible Study Club and ask if you are part of any clubs right now.

You say no, because you are too busy focusing on your studies, you know the very thing you are paying to be there for. The duo says that the club they have on campus is a non-denominational bible study club and that they only teach the bible.

You think that sounds good, and let down your guard a little bit.  Then they begin to ask your personal questions about what you're studying, are from around here, how old are you, are you Christian and many more.

You are kind of put off by this at first, after all you are trying to study and they are interrupting you, but your Mom raised you to be polite so you indulge and answer their prodding questions.

Then they ask if you are religious or go to church? You remember the time your grandma took you to church at Easter mass a few times and after doing some internal auditing you come to the conclusion that you are a Christian or at least think you are. 

After relaying the information that you are a Christian, the personal questions from the intruding duo begin again. What church did you go to? Do you know the bible? Do you believe the bible? How well do you know the bible?

You start to slightly panic because you don’t know what to say because you haven’t thought about these questions, hardly ever in your life thus beginning another internal audit which after a few milliseconds of thought, you say I know the bible a little bit I guess, hoping that will suffice and put an end to the prodding.

Immediately upon saying that you notice how there is a slight shift in the intruding duo’s demeanor, they seem different now. Did you say something wrong? No my friend, you have said everything right.

The duo then proceeds to say that they are studying about Passover. To your horror they ask another question, have you ever heard of the Passover that can protect you from disasters?

You are thinking to yourself, Oh great now they are asking me specific questions of what the bible contains now. Then your third and probably final interal audit happens, after a few seconds of reflection you come to the conclusion that you have no idea what they are talking about. So you say, no I have not.

After saying that you notice yet another shift in demeanor of the duo, they are getting closer to you and in a way more relaxed. They ask to sit down next to you, insisting it will only take a moment and it is very important.

Remembering your mother raised you to be tolerant of people's beliefs and show respect to all, you tell them that is fine. They sit down next to you at the table and begin to open the bible and show you.

Ex 12:5-14.

They begin to explain how God protected the Israelites in the Old Testament only after they kept the Passover. Since God commanded it, it's probably important right? Also the bible says it is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, that means even us as Christians should keep it too right? Let’s see.

Matthew 26:17-19

Here we see Jesus instructed His disciples to go and make preparations for them to eat the Passover. So Jesus who is God is telling His disciples how to prepare for the Passover. Then what is the Passover exactly?

Matthew 26:26-28

Here we see Jesus said the bread and wine is the Passover. Now obviously this isn’t the Old Covenant Passover that is being kept, but it is the New Covenant Passover that Jesus instituted before His death. The bread and wine is also Jesus' flesh and blood. 

John 6:53-54

Here we clearly see that Jesus said His flesh and blood is eternal life, then those who don’t keep the New Covenant Passover will never have life according to the words of Jesus. But what must we do first to keep the Passover? We must be baptized and have our feet washed.

John 13:4-10

Here we see Jesus said unless I wash your feet you have no part with me. Then if we want to have part with God it means we must wash our feet, we cannot keep the Passover without the feet washing. Also Jesus said those who have had a bath need only wash their feet. Meaning those who have been baptized must only wash their feet.

Then we as Christians who want eternal life should keep that Passover of the New Covenant right? It means we should get baptized and keep the Passover with feet washing beforehand. Then why does God want you to have eternal life? Is it to live on earth, no of course not it is to live forever together with God in heaven right?

Revelation 21:4

In order for us to live forever in Heaven we must have Jesus flesh and blood. The flesh and blood is only given through the Passover. Then have you kept the Passover? 

Now the conversation finally turns back to you after about an hour or so of them going on and on about the bread and wine. You think to yourself, well I went to Easter a few times with my grandma, so you confidently say “yes I did have the bread and wine at Easter with my grandma, so yes I think I’m good.”

The duo gives each other a look and then proceeds to turn to Leviticus 23 to explain that unless you do the Passover on the specific date of the first month 14th day on twilight that the bread and wine you ate with your grandma is actually meaningless.

They further explain that it only becomes Jesus flesh and blood on that specific date and at that specific time. 

You are still confused as to why the time and date are necessary since you're not Jewish, because you never thought that Christians were supposed to be Jews.

But then the duo proceeds to show you another reason why the church you went to is completely wrong by insisting the Passover is also the seal of God that was restored by the second coming of Christ, but they say that is another study for another time.

At this point you have no idea what that means but you are super interested in that topic, that is something you have never heard before. 

The duo says next time for sure, but that it is more important to receive the Passover as the bible prophesies about the Third World War and that it is coming and it could be any day.  You think to yourself “well that got dark and scary fast.”

They show Revelation 7:1-4

The proceed to explain “See winds represent war, where is the wind coming from all corners of the world, meaning word war, but this is the final war that destroys everything.

This the Third World War, then in order for you to be protected from this World War, you must keep the seal of God, the Passover.” Then again the duo asks “Have you kept the Passover?” you reply “Well I guess not then considering what you told me.” 

Immediately after saying that you can tell that the duo seems satisfied with that answer, because up to this point every answer you gave was met with push back until this one. 

Now you are a bit worried as it seems like there is this impending doom coming right toward you, I mean World War Three sounds horrendously awful and now you know according to these strangers you are not protected since you haven’t kept Passover.

It appears that this duo came at the perfect time to make sure you correct your theology around the bread and wine and make sure you are protected from the Passover. God works in mysterious ways you think to yourself.

The duo then proceeds to tell you that the Passover was actually abolished in 325 ad. And that their was no truth of salvation on earth for a time, but that it was we restored by someone.

You ask for more details and they say next time we will study about it. The duo asks when you are free next and if they can have your number.

You usually don’t give out your number, but hey, it is better than dying in World War Three you think. 

So you give them your number and they make an appointment with you next week at the campus. Strangely enough you never hear about the so-called bible study club on campus which was the original conversation starter for a long, long time.

The end.

Now I’m sure you as members or leaders and even ex members can probably guess what happens after right? But essentially this is the type of scenario many college campus students face all the time from the WMSCOG.

They are all about going in disguise on campus and sharing their truth about Passover and scaring people into following them. They will deny it, but that's ok. 

Anyways this is basically the teaching of Passover and it shows you how the WMSCOG use it to scare monger people into their bible studies and eventually joining their church.

The reason I know this is because a lot of the time I was the one doing the very thing I just described, so if there is a WMSCOG member or leader reading this, don’t worry. It is myself that I am throwing under the bus on this one.

Now I know the WMSCOG leader or member reading this will probably say “well we don’t do that, that is just what you did and doesn’t reflect WMSCOG”. To that I say “Ok”.

I think it is important to note that the WMSCOG is not the first church to keep the Passover bread and wine or fear monger people into keeping it.

For instance the WorldWide Church of God (Formally Radio Church of God founded in 1934) kept the Passover on the first month 14th day in the evening with the feet washing ceremony. Herbert Armstrong, the founder of the WorldWide Church of God restored the Passover ceremony before Ahnsahnghong did.

Now I know the WMSCOG is going to say “well Armstrong followed the sunset reckoning so it is not valid.” Well, Passover happens at night so regardless of if you follow sunrise or sunset reckoning you are going to keep Passover at night, so it doesn’t matter and is not a good counter. 

The WMSCOG will then probably say “well the bible says that the Passover must come from the east not the west.” Ok, what bible verse or Passage says that or even hints at that?

Now I know you are probably thinking of the Seal of God or God’s coming from the East subjects. Fair point, I will make some articles about that later.

But still show me where the bible says that the Passover is going to be destroyed, not only that but it is going to be destroyed and then restored again, not only that but show me where the bible says the Passover is going to be destroyed and then restored in the east but not the west. I would love to see those passages of scripture.

Even if the Passover is supposed to come from the East and it is indeed Ahnsahnghong who restores it and that the restoration was the secret sign of the second coming Christ.

Then why would God allow an American in the west to restore it first if it is not part of the plan? Sounds like God is trying to make things harder for no reason. If Ahnsahnghong is God and he was the only one that knew the hidden secret of salvation, why would he allow an American in the West to restore Passover first? Unless maybe of course WMSCOG's understanding of God's plan is wrong.

I know some WMSCOG members and leaders will say “well even if Armstrong did restore the ceremony of Passover, it is meaningless because he doesn't believe in the true God.”

How do you know he doesn’t believe in the true God? How do you know that you believe in the true God? Isn't it through the Passover you come to know true God and false Gods are destroyed?

Then by WMSCOG standards it means Armstrong knows who the true God as all other Gods are destroyed. So it means Armstrong does know the true God right since he kept the Passover? Or is the Passover not the way to recognize true God and destroy false God's? You can't have both right?

Also restoring the act of believing in God is not the premise of the WMSCOG’s restoration is it? No one ever abolished the belief in God. The point of the restoration is to restore the Passover and that way you can know the true God, correct?

I was never told the restoration was to restore the belief in God itself and that the belief in God is the sign of Christ. So that insistence is nothing more than a cop out. You can't proclaim Passover is the only way to know true God and destroy false God’s.

Then when you find out Armstrong restored Passover before Ahnsahnghong you claim Armstrong doesn't know the true God. Is the Passover the way to know the true God or not? If it is then you also must accept that Armstrong restored it first and that Armstrong knows the true God.

Which makes the WMSCOG restoration claim nonsense. Unless you admit that the Passover does not actually lead you to know true God and doesn't destroy false God’s and if that is the case why bother keeping it?

Anyways enough about that, let's look into the scriptures.

Now it is time for us to look into the bible and take a look at these arguments and see if what the WMSCOG teaches is true. If it is true then it does require obedience, if it is not true, it will still require obedience but just to the bible instead of the WMSCOG. That is how the bible works isn’t it?

Lets see Exodus 12:1-14

“The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, “This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year. Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man is to take a lamb[a] for his family, one for each household. If any household is too small for a whole lamb, they must share one with their nearest neighbor, having taken into account the number of people there are. You are to determine the amount of lamb needed in accordance with what each person will eat. The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect, and you may take them from the sheep or the goats. Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month, when all the members of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight. Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs. That same night they are to eat the meat roasted over the fire, along with bitter herbs, and bread made without yeast. Do not eat the meat raw or boiled in water, but roast it over a fire—with the head, legs and internal organs. Do not leave any of it till morning; if some is left till morning, you must burn it. 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.

 “On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn of both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord. The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are, and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.

 “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.”

So here we can clearly see the regulation of the Passover. They are to take a young lamb without blemish or defect, must be a year old and they are to separate them from the other sheep from the 1st month 10th day until the 1st month 14th day.

Then at that time they are to slaughter them at twilight. Here this twilight in Hebrew is “ereb ereb”. The meaning of “ereb” is to decline. Then what does “ereb ereb” imply? It means between the evenings. Then what does in between the evenings mean?

Well on a Hebrew day there are two evenings. There is an evening during the day and evening of the night. Let me explain, the day begins at sunrise or around 6 am or hour 0.

The evening of the day is at 6th hour or high noon. Why? Because the 6th hour is the time when the sun is at the highest point in the sky, after the 6th hour the son begins to decline. Then when the sun starts to set, usually around the 12th hour, it is finally evening.

So to put it simply, the first evening is the 6th hour and the second evening is the 12th hour. Then what is between the two evenings? It is the 9th hour. This means that the Passover lambs were slaughtered between the evenings or 9th hour. 

Now I know what you are thinking.

Why not just say 12pm, 3pm and 6pm etc? Well I hesitate to do that because the ancient Jews calculated time based on the position of the sun. It is totally different from our timekeeping.

Today we have a strict 60 minute block of times regardless of the year and phases of the sun. That is not how it worked back then. Since the Jews kept track of their hours by the sun it means their hours were longer or shorter depending on the time of year.

For instance sometimes their hours were only 45 minutes in winter and in the summer their hours could be more than 75 minutes long. 

Meaning their evening or sunset could be as early as 5 or 6 in winter and as later as 9 or 10 in the summertime.

But for simplicity I will reference the 9th hour as 3pm going forward and 12th hour as 6pm, even though there are many variables and they aren’t always the same.

Now I know the WMSCOG leaders are going to scream about the bible saying 3pm or 9th hour when Jesus passed away. Again I never said they weren't they same, I said they aren’t always the same, it depends on the time of year.

Anyways, this between the evenings or 3pm is used for both Exodus 12:6 and Leviticus 23:5. Now I am not saying that the Passover was being eaten at 3pm, just that the lambs were slaughtered at 3pm.

How do we know this? Well in the regulation God gave you are to first slaughter the lamb which takes time. Then cook the lamb to eat it, prepare bitter herbs and make unleavened bread. Essentially you are making a feast for your family, if you have ever done that before it takes hours.

Now imagine if you have to butcher the animal as well as prepare it. So depending on how big your family is, determines how long you will take. 

Now here is the interesting thing. The only regulation God gave was eat it that night and leave none till morning. That's all. Not everyone started or ended their Passover at the same time.

The main point here is that the WMSCOG teaches that the twilight when the lambs were slaughtered in Ex 12:6 and Lev 23:5 means sunset, that is why they eat their bread and wine at around 8pm or sunset.

If you look at the Hebrew the “twilight” is “ereb ereb” or between the evenings aka 9th hour. 

Then God says eat it that night, leave nothing till morning. He also said eat the first Passover in haste because they were leaving Egypt, but that is the only time he said eat it in haste. 

The regulation of the Passover is eat it that night, don't leave anything till morning. There is no set time for keeping the actual eating of the meal. God never says you must eat or begin to eat at this time. God simply says eat it that night. Don’t leave any of it till morning.

Now the WMSCOG insists that the twilight reference here in Exodus 12:6 and Leviticus 23:5 is the same time they keep their bread and wine ceremony aka New Covenant Passover.

Do you see the discrepancy here? The WMSCOG keeps Passover at around 7:30 pm, but the bible says the Passover begins and the lamb is slaughtered at 3pm or “between the evenings”.

Not only that but God gives no indication of when the lamb is supposed to be eaten, just that you should eat it that night and leave none till morning.

This too contradicts the WMSCOG who teaches you must eat the Passover at 7:30pm or sunset, it must be eaten before midnight. That is not the regulation you see in the Old Testament.

So if the WMSCOG is basing their regulations off the Old Testament Passover, we are already off to a shaky start. But let's examine further.

Here we see that God refers to Passover itself as a lasting ordinance. Then what is “lasting ordinance”. Well the Hebrew word in verse 17 is “owlam” or “everlasting” and in verse 24 it says “forever” or “ad owlam” which has the same meaning.

I know right now if there is any WMSCOG leader or current member reading this they are probably going to pause on this and say “look he said everlasting, cased closed”. Eh, not so fast.

This is where it gets interesting. Now this word can mean literally forever or long duration, antiquity or futurity. In the context of Exodus 12 and Leviticus 23 it is referring to the Mosaic Laws.

Basically if you are Jew you are to keep the Passover until God’s appointed time of ceasing. So the word forever or everlasting here doesn’t literally mean forever. Now, I know what you are thinking “Really, how does forever not really mean forever? Isn’t that convenient.”

 Let me explain. Let’s say you're driving in a car with your friend and he says “this car trip is taking forever”, does this literally mean you have been or will be driving forever?

No, of course not. Your drive will end when you get to your destination. It is the same with the old covenant. God put the laws and regulation in effect until the New Covenant into effect through Jesus' blood on the cross.

Even the WMSCOG teaches that the Old Covenant has ceased and is null and void and that the New Covenant was commenced through Jesus' death. But let's not get too far ahead of ourselves.

Let's consider the WMSCOG stance here, they say that this means the Passover is something to be kept forever, for the generations to come. Which is their justification for keeping it even now.

 If you are going to insist that in Exodus 12:17, 24 the Old Covenant Passover is indeed forever, as in forever forever, then it means you should sacrifice a Lamb still to this day.

Because according to Exodus 12 the regulation is a Lamb not just bread and wine. Then it means the lamb should be offered forever or “owlam”. Which means the burden of proof is on you. Where in the bible does it say the New Covenant Passover bread and wine that the WMSCOG practices is to be kept forever?

Then you might say oh well the Passover was just simply changed into bread and wine of the New Covenant instead of the lamb but it is still the Passover.

Ok fine, then you have to admit that the regulations and rules regarding the Passover in Exodus and Leviticus are not binding anymore then correct?

Meaning you have to admit that the “forever” in Exodus 12 doesn’t actually literally mean forever. You can’t have both. The “forever” or “owlam” in regards to the Old Covenant and its regulations, means it has expiration date which God hints at in Jeremiah 31:31.

You can’t insist on the “forever” in regards to the Passover of the Old Covenant in the Torah to justify why we need to keep it now, but then say that it was changed and we do it a different way now to prove the New Covenant. It doesn't make any sense.

Pick one. Either the Old Covenant lasts forever or only until the New Covenant takes effect.

Another point I would like to make is that this promise was given to who? Israel, then the generations to come must also refer to the Jews that were to be born right?

Meaning if you are gentile, the rules and regulations would not apply to you if you were living at that time. If you are gentile you are not part of the generations to come.

But if you are going to insist that the “lasting ordinance” in the old testament applies to everyone now and not just the Israelites. Then I have some questions for you. 

Numbers 10 tells us that it is a lasting ordinance to blow the trumpet whenever the community is to move.

Numbers 15 tells us that the food offering is a forever statute.

Numbers 19 tells us that the regulation regarding the water of cleansing is to be a lasting ordinance for both Jews and foreigners. 

Numbers 35 tells us the regulations regarding the City of Refuge are to be in force throughout generations.

Leviticus 3 tells us that we can’t eat fat and that it is a statute forever.

And the list goes on and on and on.

Then this would mean that if lasting ordinance does indeed mean forever just like the Passover. Why does the WMSCOG not insist then that we should keep the above listed verse as we just described. You can’t just pick and choose when it comes to putting a yoke on people. You either prescribe the whole law, or none of it.

So already we see the insistence of the Passover starting to crumble. Let’s briefly recap. First we saw the twilight when Passover begins aka the time of slaughter for the lamb is not sunset that the WMSCOG mistakenly teaches but it is actually 3pm.

There is no specified time which God gave to eat the Passover, just eat it that night leave none till morning. Lasting ordinance means the Old Covenant is in effect only until Jesus comes to establish the New Covenant. The generations to come refers to the Jews not the gentiles.

Now there are three big questions that we might have at this point.

Is the Passover important then?

What is the New Covenant?

What is the bread and wine Jesus gave then?

Let's answer them one by one now.

The first question: Is the Passover important?

Yes.

Why?

Well of course Jesus is our Passover lamb, but why is He our Passover lamb? Do you remember reading in the Green Book about the feasts where Ahnsahnghong talks about Jesus being crucified on Unleavened Bread?

Now I know you as WMSCOG leader or members reading this are probably thinking “yeah that was amazing, how could he know that, who could know such things”.

Keep that in mind as we dive into some stuff. For context we are going to look at the book of John when Jesus was arrested. I know WMSCOG leaders are probably shaking their heads right now knowing what is coming.

They love to completely discount John and tell their members “what do the other gospels say though” or “what does father say in his book?!" I am foreshadowing a little bit here, you will see what I am talking about in a minute.

John 18:28

Then the Jewish leaders took Jesus from Caiaphas to the palace of the Roman governor. By now it was early morning, and to avoid ceremonial uncleanness they did not enter the palace, because they wanted to be able to eat the Passover. So Pilate came out to them and asked, “What charges are you bringing against this man?”

Now let's see.

John 18:37-38

“You are a king, then!” said Pilate.

Jesus answered, “You say that I am a king. In fact, the reason I was born and came into the world is to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me.”

“What is truth?” retorted Pilate. With this he went out again to the Jews gathered there and said, “I find no basis for a charge against him. But it is your custom for me to release to you one prisoner at the time of the Passover. Do you want me to release ‘the king of the Jews’?”

Also lets see John 19:13-14

When Pilate heard this, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judge’s seat at a place known as the Stone Pavement (which in Aramaic is Gabbatha). It was the day of Preparation of the Passover; it was about noon.\

Here we can clearly see that according to John, Jesus was crucified on the Passover. That is why He is our Passover lamb. Do you want more evidence? It might have clicked in your brain already but do you remember when the lambs were slaughtered on the Passover? “Between the evenings”, 9th hour or 3pm. Then when did Jesus die on the cross?

Matthew 27:46

 From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land. About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).

When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.”

 Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. The rest said, “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”

And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

Here the bible says Jesus died around 3pm or 9th hour which is between the evenings. Meaning Jesus was not only crucified on the day of Passover but died at the same time the lambs were slaughtered. That is why Jesus is the fulfillment of the Passover Lamb.

I don’t know about you but that is amazing! 

Now I know the WMSCOG leaders are quick to bust out their Green Book and quote what Ahnsahnghong wrote (even though they know 3 chapters were completely removed) saying “Father said Jesus died on Unleavened Bread so that's it”.

If you read the chapter Ahnsahnghong conveniently leaves out any reference to John’s gospel but cites the other gospels to prove his point. Have you ever thought about why Ahnsahnghong doesn’t make reference to John when he writes about the death of Jesus?

Open your Green Books to Chapter 32 in your severely altered and redacted 1000th edition. That was a joke, don’t sue me, I know there isn't a 1000 edition…yet. Anyway the chapter's title is The Passover and the Last Supper. It is going to be a long read but bear with me.

Ahnsahnghong writes and I quote.

“Some insist that it was not on the Passover that Jesus celebrated the Last Supper, but on the day before the Passover - the 13th day of the first month in the evening. But in the three Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, Jesus clearly said to His disciples, “Prepare the Passover” or “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you” (Lk 22:7-8, 13-14; Mt 26:17; Mk 14:12). Who can deny the words spoken by Jesus Himself.

Some also insist that it was on the Passover that Jesus was hung on the cross, saying that He must be crucified on the day when the Passover lamb was to be sacrificed because He was the Passover lamb. Such an interpratation shows they know neither the feasts related to Jesus' redemption nor the prophecies fulfilled by Jesus, who is the reality of the sacrifices. The atonement offering was to be sacrificed on the tenth day of the seventh month of the sacred year (Heb 13:11-12; Lev 16:27-34)

Since Jesus became the atonement offering too, He should have been sacrificed on the cross even on the Day of Atonement, the tenth day of the seventh month, shouldn’t He? Actually, Jesus became all the sacrifices of the feasts; He became the regular burnt offering (Ex 29:38-39), the lamb offered on the Sabbath day (Nu 28:9-10) the Passover lamb (1 Co 5:7-8) and the atonement offering.

For the fulfillment of prophecy, Jesus must be sacrificed on the fifteenth day of the first month of the sacred year. The Passover was the greatest festival of the Jews, so they didn’t hand criminals over to be crucified on the Passover. In apostolic days, when the Apostle Peter was kept in prison, the Passover came and they waited until it was over (Acts 12:1-4). But the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the fifteenth day of the first month of the sacred year, was the day on which the Israelites left Egypt (Nu 33:3) and the Egyptians buried all their firstborn (Nu 33:4). So it was customary for the Jews to crucify criminals on this day.

Jesus redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us sinners - by being hung on the cross.

Gal 3:13

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.”

If we carefully study various verses in the Bible, we come to know that Jesus was crucified on the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the day after the Passover. Therefore, it was on the fourteenth day of the first month at twilight when the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed that Jesus ate the Last Supper - Passover” - *end of quote.*

Now a couple things I would like to draw attention to. Ahnsahnghong says that “some insist that it was on the Passover that Jesus was hung on the cross”. I wonder who the “some people” are?

Maybe like the apostle John who was actually there and told us Jesus was crucified on Passover? If you are not sure, read John 18 and 19 again. I find it interesting that Ahnsahnghong never addresses or mentions John's account of the crucifixion being on Passover.

The most likely reason is it would contradict his theology of Jesus being crucified on Unleavened Bread.

But honestly I understand why Ahnsahnghong doesn’t mention John at all. Because if you read Matthew, Mark, Luke and John you are going to have a heck of a time harmonizing everything. Let me explain.

According to Matthew, Mark and Luke, Jesus and the disciples ate the Passover on the first day of Unleavened Bread in the evening. Then Jesus was taken away that night, the next day aka first month 15th day Jesus was crucified. So it makes sense why at first glance Ahnsahnghong says the Jesus was crucified on Unleavened Bread.

But according to the account of John. If you read John 13, Jesus ate the Passover and washed His disciples feet and gave closing remarks and prayer. Then was captured later that night, crucified the next day which according to John is the Passover or 1st month 14 day.

Making Jesus crucified on the Passover at the same time of the Passover sacrifice at 9th hour or 3pm. This means the feast of Unleavened Bread or 1st month 15th day would be the day after Jesus' crucifixion. 

Now this apparent contradiction in the synoptic gospels and John’s gospel chronology is nothing new. In fact it has left scholars and theologians scratching their heads for centuries. 

If Ahnsahnghong was indeed the second coming of Jesus, why does he not even attempt to harmonize Matthew, Mark, Luke and John in his writings? If he is indeed the Root of David, this would be the perfect opportunity clear up these apparent contradictions and really prove that he is indeed the very Christ that was crucified 2000 years ago.

But he avoids John completely like the plague when talking about the crucifixion because it destroys the narrative Jesus was crucified on Unleavened Bread.

Another point on this. Ahnsahnghong insists that Jesus was crucified on Unleavened Bread, not only that but it was customary for Jews to crucify criminals on Unleavened Bread.

He also said that Jews would never crucify criminals on the Passover. Then analyze this for a minute.

Leviticus 23:5

“The LORD’s Passover begins at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month.

On the fifteenth day of that month the LORD’s Festival of Unleavened Bread begins; for seven days you must eat bread made without yeast.

On the first day hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work.”

According to the regulation regarding the Feasts. The 1st month 14th day is not identified as a rest day or Sabbath.

However the first month 15th day which is regarded as the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread beginning the 7 day feast IS regarded as Sabbath rest.

Meaning on the 1st month 14th day you could work and do normal things, in fact it was known as the day of preparation. But the following day, the Feast of Unleavened Bread or 1st month 15th day is a Sabbath rest.

Then if the Ahnsahnghong is right about Jesus being crucified on Unleavened Bread, it would mean that Jesus would have been beaten, flogged and crucified on a day where God said do no regular work, it is a sabbath rest. Then did that happen?

Lets see.

John 19:31

Now it was the day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the Jewish leaders did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down.

Here it says special Sabbath or a high day. In this context this special Sabbath is actually referring to Unleavened Bread. But that is another subject for another time. The point here is that the Jewish leaders didn’t want bodies left on the cross during the Sabbath. 

Now if the Jews didn’t even want bodies left on the cross during a Sabbath, do you really think that they would crucify criminals on a Sabbath? If Ahnsahnghong is correct about Jesus being crucified on Unleavened Bread, the day is considered to be a Sabbath (Lev 23:5) and it is forbidden to work that day, this means the Jews would be breaking the feast regulation in order to crucify Jesus.

I have found no biblical evidence that the Jews had a custom of desecrating the feast regulation to crucify criminals.

Ahnsahnghong clearly said that if you study the verses that he mentions, you will find that Jesus was crucified on Unleavened Bread, the only verses he lists is Numbers 33:3-4 that state the Jews left Egypt and that the Egyptians buried their dead on Unleavened Bread, how is that proof of Jesus being crucified on Unleavened Bread?

Also he fails to list any verses saying or hinting at Jesus being crucified on Unleavened Bread, so make of that what you will I guess.

He also states that it was the custom of the Jews to crucify criminals on that day without a single shred of historical or biblical evidence to prove his case.

Then I would like to ask you, the viewer, who are you going to believe the eyewitness account of John or Ahnsahnghong? You can’t have both. If you discount John’s testimony about Jesus being crucified on Passover then you must discount John's testimony of everything else.

Which means you can’t insist on John 6:53-54 where the WMSCOG teaches Jesus flesh and blood are essential for eternal life. You can’t insist then in John 13 where the WMSCOG says we need to wash our feet before eating the Passover.

Because these teachings are not found in the other gospels. So if you are going to discount or ignore John then these teachings go out with him.

You can’t pick and choose. You can’t add or take away.

Now I know what you are thinking. “Does the bible contradict itself then” or “do the feasts contradict themselves”.

I wouldn’t say that, I would rather say our understanding of the bible or the feasts contradicts the bible. The hardest part about this whole debacle is that the chronology of ALL the gospels is correct if you look at the events that took place regarding Jesus alone, without adding the time frame or holy days.

Let me explain. I am just going to say the order of events without listing the verses. When you have time I would read Matthew 26-28, Luke 22-24, Mark 14-16 and John 13-19 for the full context.

All the 4 gospels agree on the following exact order of events.

1. Jesus had a meal with his disciples in the evening.

2. Jesus was betrayed by Judas.

3. Peter’s denial

4. Jesus was taken before the Jewish leaders.

5. Jesus was taken before Pilot

6. Jesus was crucified at 9am

7. Jesus died 3pm

8. Jesus body placed in the tomb before a Sabbath comes.

   
   

All the Gospels including John are in accordance with this order of events without deviating. Then how is this possible? How can all the gospel agree to the order of events but say the order of events are taking place on different days.

This is the frustrating part.

So where is the problem then? The problem arises when you start putting the holy days of when things happened. For instance, let's say the starting point of events is the meal Jesus ate with His disciples.

Then let's examine all the gospels, what do we see?

Matthew, Mark and Luke place the starting point of events on the 1st month 14th day. Jesus ate the Passover meal with his disciples in the evening. Judas betrays Jesus. He is taken away later that night. Jesus is before Pilate the next morning, which places Jesus' crucifixion on the 1st month 15th day. Then He dies that same afternoon at 3pm, or 9th hour. The body is placed in the tomb before sunset before the Sabbath or High Day comes.

John’s gospel places the starting point on the first month 13th day. Jesus eats a meal with His disciples (John doesn’t call it the Passover meal, just the evening meal) 1st month 13th day. Judas betrays Jesus. Jesus is taken away later that same night. Jesus is before Pilate the next morning which places Jesus’ crucifixion on the first month 14th day. Jesus dies that same afternoon at 3pm or 9th hour (between the evenings) just like the Paschal Lamb. The body is placed in the tomb before sunset before the Sabbath or High Day which is then 1st month 15th day.

This is a big deal. It appears the events themselves are perfectly in order, however when comparing the days these events happened, it is off by a day.

Then which one is accurate? This is the question for the ages.

We can’t discount any of the gospels. If we do that we either have to remove John or we have to remove Matthew, Mark and Luke.

Now that we know the basic outline of the problems. Let’s examine some important problems with each of the Synoptic Gospels and John’s gospels. Then let's see if we can sync them together harmoniously.

The problem with Matthew, Mark and Luke is that the evening meal being eaten is indeed the Passover lamb on the first month 14th day. It means that the Passover lamb was already slaughtered earlier that day.

Then it means Jesus would not have fulfilled the Passover lamb sacrifice since He was crucified almost a full 24 hours later from the time the lambs were sacrificed.

The second problem we run into is that Jesus would have been crucified the next day on 1st month 15th day which as we have seen is a Sabbath, the Jews would not have done such a thing on the Sabbath and there is no proof they ever have.

This means since the Jews would not have worked or had criminals crucified on the 1st month 15th day or first day of Unleavened Bread, it begs the question what day Jesus was crucified then, obviously it happened.

But the gospel of Mathew, Mark and Luke do not explicitly mention what day it was that Jesus was crucified, it is only implied based on circumstantial evidence.

Then the problem with John’s gospel is that if the evening meal in John chapter 13 referenced is Passover meal or first month 14th day, like the other gospels indicate and even reference this same meal taking place, then how do we reconcile John’s implications in chapters 18-19 that the Passover had not happened yet?

Also the day after Jesus' crucifixion would be 1st month 15th day, which is a Sabbath rest, which not only John references this Sabbath being the day after the crucifixion but the other gospels too reference the day after Jesus' crucifixion being a Sabbath or High Day as well.

How can we make sense of this and harmonize the gospels? 

The gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke seem to testify that Jesus ate the Passover evening meal and was crucified the day after the Passover lamb was slaughtered.

But John says Jesus ate the evening meal with His disciples, without a mention of it being Passover, then later John said Jesus was crucified on the Passover, the exact time the lambs were slaughtered.

Then how do we resolve this? That is a question Biblicists and theologians have been wrestling with for a long time. The short answer is there is no for sure answer biblically speaking unfortunately.

But don’t worry all hope is not lost. 

According to my research, here are some ideas of how to bridge the gap and make some sense of things.

I will reference some work by Harold Hoehner, “Chronological Aspects of the Life of Christ.” Link will be in the description.

Horner suggests there is a view that the Jews observed the Passover over two successive days. Hoehner explains that the Pharisees celebrated Passover initially (Nisan 13/14), while the Sadducees observed it at the conventional time (Nisan 14/15).

Jesus participated in the Passover feast on Thursday night according to the Pharisaic calendar, which aligns with the Synoptic Gospels, but John, focusing on Jesus’ adversaries, followed the Sadducean calendar in his account.

Given the vast number of people needing to be fed, it would have been nearly impossible for the priests to offer enough sacrifices in a single day. Josephus estimated that around a quarter million lambs were sacrificed during Passover, though modern historians consider this an exaggeration.

Nonetheless, it’s believed that between 150,000 and 500,000 people were in Jerusalem for Passover. Spreading the sacrifices over two days would have aided the priests significantly.

Hoehner notes that Galileans traditionally sacrificed their lambs on Nisan 13, and their Feast of Unleavened Bread spanned eight days, whereas Judeans celebrated it starting on Nisan 14.

Furthermore, Hoehner suggests that Galileans/Pharisees might have used a different time reckoning method, sunrise-to-sunrise, as opposed to the Judeans/Sadducees sunset-to-sunset system.

The corporate sacrifice of a burnt offering for the nation was done at 3 pm on Passover, according to the Judean calendar. This means that when the priest was slaying the Paschal lamb, Jesus was at that very moment yelling “tetelestai” from the Cross! John must have been calling attention to this fact by focusing on the Sadducean calendar.

I will post a link in the description that provides evidence for the two calendars view.

For the sake of time I just did a brief rundown of this view.

Now what do we know about Jesus and His apostles? They were Galilean, which would mean they were likely under the influence of the Pharisees.

Which would mean that their custom was to celebrate the Passover on the 1st month 13th day. This is how it is synchronized. Now that we know this, let's try and put the events from all the gospels together and see if we can harmonize them.

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John both mention Jesus and the disciples eating a meal the night before Jesus' crucifixion. Considering what we know about the calendar of the Pharisees, this puts the evening meal mentioned in all four Gospels first month 13th day. So far so good.

They also mention Judas then betrays Him. Jesus is then bound and goes before Annas and then before Caiaphas. Then they all mention after that Jesus is brought to Pilate early that morning which would then be 1st month 14th day.

They all mention Jesus is crucified at 9am, darkness comes at noon, Jesus dies at around 3pm or 9th hour between the evenings, at the same time the priests in the temple were slaughtering the paschal lambs on the 1st month 14th day.

They all mention Jesus is put in the tomb before sunset, before a sabbath that is approaching in this case the sabbath that was approaching was 1st month 15th day, which is one of the seven annual feast sabbaths. 

Ladies and gentlemen, we have harmonization.

There is no continuity issue in regards to sequence of events. What we had was calendar issues. Remember earlier how I said it appears that Matthew, Mark and Luke are a day off from John’s gospel.

Well now that we know that there are two calendars, meaning two Passovers a day apart. We fix that calendar issue.

In short, the Passover meal account that was written from the pharisaic view point of Matthew, Mark and Luke would not have been considered a Passover meal according to the Sadducees or John’s account.

That is the situation here.

You are probably thinking, “why should I believe some dude on the internet?”

Honestly, you don’t have to believe me, do your own research. My problem with what the WMSCOG teaches you is it has a bunch of holes in it that they don’t even bother to plug.

They simply teach the Synoptic Gospels and draw conclusions, totally disregarding John’s gospel and avoid it like the plague. You can’t do that. If the WMSCOG has the Root of David, and is the original true church and in fact has the sole truth and Mother is God.

Why have they never tried to figure out these discrepancies? Why have they never tried to teach you how to harmonize the gospel accounts of the crucifixion?

They just ignore contexts and scripture that doesn’t align with what they are trying to feed you. If you are the truth then you should have revealed it first, not some dude on the internet.

If the WMSCOG is going to insist on their truth about the crucifixion then they have to prove it is the correct view with evidence. But they don’t. They just ignore scripture and context but claim to be the truth. That is not ok. 

Here is my proposition for the current members or leaders reading this. I know you have a countermeasure for people telling you the WMSCOG teachings are wrong.

For example if you are teaching someone the Passover and they are saying that you are mistaken and that Passover is wrong you will probably say or think something like “If you are telling me that I am wrong, show me what is the right way then. You can’t just say I am wrong while having no alternative and having no evidence. Burden of proof is on you.” 

So let me ask you now and turn the tables. Do you think my 2 different Passovers being kept theory that we just discussed, is wrong? Think carefully because if you are telling me that I am wrong, show me what is the right way. You can’t just say I am wrong while having no alternative and having no evidence to back it up. Burden of proof is on you now. 

If I am wrong what is the alternative? I am the only one that has shown you what is wrong with your insistence and provided an alternative that actually has evidence. I bypassed your own counter.

Then again I ask you, what is your alternative to the chronology of the gospels not syncing while also strictly enforcing your 1st month 14th day instance? I would love to know. If you are a leader reading this, explain to your congregation how to rectify the chronology issues with evidence. 

If you as a member or leader agree with my premise about there being two different Passovers being kept then it means you have to acknowledge that the meal or last supper in Matthew, Mark Luke and John took place on the 1st month 13th day. Which completely destroys the whole foundation of the WMSCOG, everything comes crashing down.

They want you to believe their version of Passover and how it is the way you are saved while ignoring so much context. So far we have studied that their insistences have so many holes in them and are not valid. If you still think they are valid then please send me evidence proving as such.

Now I know what you're probably thinking at this point. What about the feasts, the law of Moses, the law of Christ and others. Don't worry, I have articles prepared for those subjects but lets stay on this for now. 

I would like to point out an insistence of the WMSCOG that was brought to my attention and I would like to address it before we get into the study. I wasn’t originally going to add this so please indulge me for a few minutes.

Do you remember the website “thetrueWMSCOG”? It was basically a blog for countermeasures, most likely the brainchild of the Internet Mission team. Well they have an article about Herbret Armstrong. Have you guys ever read it? Well let me read to you why the WMSCOG says that Armstrong does not fulfill it. First it reads and I quote.

One of the many prophecies about Christ’s second coming may be found in the book of Hebrews and it states as follows:

 Hebrews 9:28 — “…so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.”

As stated in the prophecy above, Second Coming Christ will appear to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. This means that whoever brings salvation, He is Second Coming Christ.

Then, we must know the definition of salvation according to the Bible?

 Luke 1:77 — “…to give his people the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins,”

 According to the Bible, salvation is receiving the forgiveness of sins. We understand that only God can give us salvation, since it is only God who can forgive our sins (Mark 2:7). This means that God left us a sign to recognize Him at His second coming. That sign is to bring the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of sins!

Did you guys get that? The sign of God is not the Passover itself, the sign is to bring the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of sins.

Forget the whole first month 14th day deal, whoever brings us the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of sins, that is Second Coming Christ. Isn’t that the whole premise for Christianity?

Then if you continue to read the article it makes the point of still insisting on the Passover bread and wine. See how the goal post shifts? First its knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of sins, but obviously I would hope Christian churches know and teach that.

But then they say actually the only way to have that knowledge is through the New Covenant Passover. So what is the restoration? The Passover or the knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of sin? Anyways the article continues.

“We cannot say that Armstrong restored the Passover, because Armstrong did not teach the Passover for the same reasons that Jesus did. Jesus taught that the Passover gives forgiveness of sins and eternal life. Armstrong only taught the Passover as a law, since he read it in the book of Leviticus, and not explaining the meaning of celebrating the Passover.

Other theologians of the world, know that the Passover is kept once a year, and that the bread and wine represent Jesus’ flesh and blood. However, it was only Christ Ahnsahnghong who taught and emphasized to us the importance of the Passover, to receive God’s promise of eternal life and forgiveness of sins. That is why it is only Christ Ahnsahnghong who restored the Passover, the way of salvation, and thus He fulfills the prophecy of Hebrews 9:28.”

So they admit that the Law regarding Passover was brought by Armstrong first. Not only that but they admit that Theologians know the Passover is kept once a year and that the bread and wine is Jesus' flesh and blood. So this means not only Armstrong but apparently many Theologians know the secret of the Passover too? How does this help their case here? 

The article says that because Armstrong didn’t explain the meaning of celebrating the Passover it doesn’t count? Are you serious? Could you define the criteria of “meaning of celebrating the Passover”? Also please provide evidence for how Armstrong’s meaning is different from Ahnsahnghong’s meaning and how one is more right than the other biblically? 

Last time I checked the restoration was about the Passover bread and wine being celebrated on the 1st month 14th day in the evening, not restoring the meaning of the celebration.

People have understood the meaning of the Passover celebration since the time of the ancient Jews and ancient Christian churches, it has not been lost. If you think it has been lost, please provide evidence in the comments showing the abolishment of the meaning of the celebration of the Passover, what was the year and who did it?

The article goes on to say that Christ Ahnsahngong is the ONLY one who taught the importance of the bread and wine to receive God’s promise of eternal life and forgiveness of sins.

Again the whole premise of the restoration of the bread and wine was that it must be done on the 1st month 14th day in the evening. When did the premise of the restoration change from date and time to merely restoring the importance of the bread and wine and how it gives eternal life and forgiveness of sins.

So are they implying that you will not find a single church prior to Ahnsahnghong that doesn’t teach that you need Jesus' flesh and blood for eternal life? Again I say, are you serious? Do they not know that the Catholics since the 4th Latern Council in 1215AD have taught transubstantiation which means you need to eat Jesus flesh and blood for eternal life and forgiveness of sins?

So which one is it? Is the restoration keeping the bread and wine on the Passover 1st month 14th day in the evening or is the restoration explaining that the bread and wine is eternal life and forgiveness of sin?

You might say both. Fair enough. I will have a link in the description for Armstrong’s early teachings on Passover, in fact I will share a video sermon of his where he literally says Passover grants forgiveness of sins and eternal life. Give it a watch if you have the time. 

Before I get off this point. The article also states that Armstrong doesn’t fulfill any prophecies of the Bible and points out WMSCOG prophecies like Fig Tree and Seal of God.

I would argue the correct statement is that Armstrong doesn’t fulfill any WMSCOG prophecies that they think are in the bible but I digress. I already debunked the fig tree and will do an article on the seal of God and coming from the east later.

But one more thing on Armstrong before we continue the Passover subject. Could we hypothetically fit Armstrong in the same prophecy of Ahnsahnghong, yes, yes we can. Let me explain.

If you follow the WMSCOG 7 Churches prophecy. The Church of Laodicea is the Seventh Day Adventist Church right? But what appears in the Church of Laodicea, well according to Revelation 3:20 Jesus comes and eats with people.

The WMSCOG claims the root of David Ahnsahnghong appears with the bread and wine in the SDA church that this is the fulfillment of the prophecy. Keep that in mind ok.

Let's look into the Church of Philadelphia. The WMSCOG teaches that the Church of Philadelphia is the time frame of 1834-1844. Basically the William Miller movement of the Second Advent of Christ.

Well I would like to give you a brief history of where Herbet Armstrong came from. First you had William Miller who started the Millerite Movement. After the failed second advent in 1844 came out a line of Sabbatarian Adventists. From those Adventists you get the SDA Chruch in 1863 but you also have the Church of God Seventh Day which was started earlier by Gilbert Cranmer in 1858 that rejected Ellen G White's teachings.

Herbert Armstrong was baptized in the Church of God Seventh Day in 1927 and was ordained a minister in 1931. Armstrong then went on to start Radio Church of God in 1934 which was renamed Worldwide Church of God on January 5, 1968. They also teach that Armstrong is the root of David by the way.

Now I know what you are thinking “what does this history have to do with anything? Why is this relevant?”. Good question.

Well it matters because Armstrong and Ahnsahnghong are cut from the same cloth and in a way Armstrong fits the bill more so. I have a drawing on the screen that you can look at as I explain my point.

Ahnsahnghong came from the SDA Church which came from the Millerite Movement right? Well Armstrong also has the same origins. Remember the prophetic fulfillment of God allowing the establishment of the Sabbath Day in 1844 by the SDA Church?

Well 1844 was not the establishment of the SDA Church was it? Ellen G White the founder was only 17 years old in 1844. Anyways from 1844 you had a line of Seventh Day Adventists. From those Adventists you actually see the Church of God Seventh Day comes first in 1858 which is 5 years before the establishment of the SDA Church in 1863 by Ellen G White when she was 36.

Which means the Church of God Seventh Day is actually the first Church to restore the partial Sabbath Day. Which would mean they are the real fulfillment of the Church of Laodicea if we are following the 7 Churches Prophecy since they technically restored Sabbath Day first. 

If that is the case as evidence suggests then it would make sense that Armstrong restores the Passover since he comes from the Church of God Seventh Day, the real fulfillment of the Sabbath being restored aka Church of Laodicea. Meaning the Sabbath is restored in the West and the Passover is restored in the West. Makes a lot more sense.

By the way the Seven Churches Prophecy has nothing to do with the east or the west so Church of God Seventh Day fits the bill for the Church of Laodicea and Armstrong fits the prophecy of the restoration of Passover since he comes from the Church of Loudicea after its establishment.

Meaning Armstrong could fufill Revelation 3:20, by restoring Passover. Not that Armstrong claimed to be Jesus but that he restored the Passover or the meal that lets you participate in Jesus' last supper meal.

I find it odd that the WMSCOG doesn’t give Armstrong any credit even though he fulfills the prophecy of the Seven Churches. They don’t even say he partially fulfilled it but will give the SDA credit for restoring partial Sabbath Day even though the Church of God Seventh Day came before the SDA Church. But that is the logic we have to deal with here.

The article then continues 

Please understand that we confidently believe Christ Ahnsahnghong is the second coming of Christ because of the fulfillment of Bible prophecy and His restoration of the Passover is one of many signs to recognize He is God. As I will explain below, when we take a look at more and more prophecies about the second coming of Christ, it becomes clearer that Armstrong has nothing to do with Christ. The prophecies about Second Coming Christ are all fulfilled by Christ Ahnsahnghong.

See how the author moves the goal post again? His restoration of Passover is one of the many signs? Passover is the only sign! Without the Passover everything crumbles and falls apart. Show me a prophecy of Ahnsahnghong that when you remove the Passover it still remains standing that he is Christ or God? Fig tree, seal of God, King David, Melchizedek and many more are held up by the Passover. 

But that is how they move the goal post isn’t it. They say we are the first and only church that keeps Passover bread and wine with the feet washing 1st month 14th day in the evening, then you look into history and say “No your not”.

Then they say well even if they keep the Passover bread and wine on the first month 14th day with the feet washing in the evening they don’t have the knowledge of salvation with the forgiveness of sin, you look into history and say “No that’s not true either, Catholics and many other churches teach the bread and wine are for the forgiveness of sins and eternal life, especially Armstrong's Worldwide Church of God”.

Then they say well even if they keep the Passover on the first month 14th day in the evening with feet washing and know that it is for the forgiveness of sin and eternal life, there are so many other prophecies that prove Ahnsahnghong is Christ.

You see what I mean? The goal post keeps getting pushed, and pushed and pushed. When will you let go? When will you come back to your senses and realize that reality, history, facts and the bible do not match your claims. 

To be clear, I don’t believe the 7 Churches prophecy has anything to do with William Miller, SDA Church, COG7 or Ahnsahnghong at all. I am simply using the teaching and the logic that follows, but trying to make actually history and facts fit into it.

Anyways if you don’t get it then that is totally fine. Let’s go back to the bible as that is what really truly matters.

Now about the second question, what is the New Covenant?

Lets see Jeremiah 31:31-34

“The days are coming,” declares the Lord,

    “when I will make a new covenant

with the people of Israel

    and with the people of Judah.

It will not be like the covenant

    I made with their ancestors

when I took them by the hand

    to lead them out of Egypt,

because they broke my covenant,

    though I was a husband to[a] them,[b]”

declares the Lord.

“This is the covenant I will make with the people of Israel

    after that time,” declares the Lord.

“I will put my law in their minds

    and write it on their hearts.

I will be their God,

    and they will be my people.

No longer will they teach their neighbor,

    or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’

because they will all know me,

    from the least of them to the greatest,”

declares the Lord.

“For I will forgive their wickedness

    and will remember their sins no more.”

Here God prophesied through Jeremiah that He will make a New Covenant with the house of Israel. God said it will NOT be like the Old Covenant. Then what is the New Covenant?

Let’s see through the words of Paul

Hebrews 7:22-27

Because of this oath, Jesus has become the guarantor of a better covenant.

 Now there have been many of those priests, since death prevented them from continuing in office;  but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely[c] those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. 

Here Jesus is the guarantor of a better covenant. Jesus is able to completely save those who come to God through him. Do you see any mention of bread and wine here? Also Jesus does not need to sacrifice Himself everyday or every year for the sins of the people.

But sacrificed for all sins once when He offered Himself.

Then WMSCOG loves to say we need to keep the Passover bread and wine every year for the forgiveness of sins. Does that sound like what is described here? No, Jesus paid for our sins once and for all.

He does not need to offer himself every day or every year, He already paid for it once and for all. In order for the Passover to forgive your sins, Jesus would need to be sacrificed every year since it is His death that pays for them right?

That is the exact opposite of what the bible says here. Is it the bread and wine that forgives sin or Jesus' death? Of course it is Jesus' death. 

Let’s see.

Hebrews 8:6-7

“But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.

For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another. But God found fault with the people and said.”

Paul then quotes Jeremiah 31, but let's skip to verse 13.

Verse 13. 

“By calling this covenant “new,” he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and outdated will soon disappear.”

Let's move on now to Hebrews 9:9-14

 “This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper. They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings—external regulations applying until the time of the new order.  But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here, he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. 

He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!”

Here we see that the old covenant was only a matter of food and drink and external regulations applying until the New Covenant. Then is the New Covenant a matter of eating and drinking or external regulations?

No, instead of food and drink and external regulations of the Old Covenant, Jesus gave us something better, His blood which fulfilled the blood of all the sacrifices, allows us to offer ourselves to God and cleanses our consciences.

Then if the New Covenant is the Passover bread and wine which is something you eat and drink, it contradicts Paul's words. Paul said that the old covenant was only a matter of food and drink and external regulations applying until the New Covenant was established.

Then if the old covenant is based on food, drink and external regulations how is the New Covenant considered “new” if it too is about food, drink and external regulations. It doesn’t make sense, and it is not biblical. 

Also did you see the mandatory bread and wine regulation here when Paul talks about the New Covenant? I didn’t either.

Let's keep reading. 

Hebrews 9:15

“For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.”

Lets focus on a few points here. The bible tells us that Christ died as a ransom to set us free from the sins committed under the first covenant. The Old covenant like Paul just said earlier is a matter of food and drink and external regulations.

Here is my argument. It is a sin to not eat the Passover in the old covenant right? Of course, but Paul says that Jesus set us free from the sins committed under the first covenant, that is the sin of not eating the Passover. 

But WMSCOG teaches that is still a sin to not eat the Passover bread and drink the wine just like in the Old Covenant it is a sin to not eat the Passover meal, then my question would be if the Old and New Covenant are both about eating or drinking, and if in both the Old and New Covenant it is a sin to not eat the Passover, what sins did Jesus free us from then?

Did God replace the old covenant based on food and drink and external regulations with the new covenant that is also based on food and drink and external regulations?

Again why would that be considered a New Covenant then? Also what are we free from exactly if the laws and regulations are the same? Also where is the regulation of bread and wine and why was it not mentioned here when Paul talks about the New Covenant?

Let's continue Hebrews 10:1-18

“The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. Otherwise, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins.  But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins.  It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

 Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said:

“Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,    but a body you prepared for me;

with burnt offerings and sin offerings    you were not pleased.

Then I said, ‘Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll—    I have come to do your will, my God.’”[a]

 First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them”—though they were offered in accordance with the law. Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

 Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.  But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool.  For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

 The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says:

“This is the covenant I will make with them    after that time, says the Lord.I will put my laws in their hearts,    and I will write them on their minds.”[b] Then he adds:

“Their sins and lawless acts    I will remember no more.”[c]

And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.”

In the first part of the chapter we just saw that the law itself is only the shadow and is not the reality. But the logic of the WMSCOG is that the old law is a shadow of a new law. Only the new law is different but the same in some ways. But Paul says that the law itself is not the reality.

Also Paul said that the old law and its regulations done every year can never make you perfect, in fact it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take aways sins. If the blood of bulls and goats doesn’t forgive sin, do you really think bread and wine can forgive your sin? No. 

Then for arguments sake let's say Passover bread and wine is the reality of the new law or new covenant Paul is speaking about. If that is the case then according to Paul's words then you would only need to keep Passover once and you will be cleansed from your sin once and for all, that’s it, not year after year.

But WMSCOG says the Passover is to be kept year after year for the forgiveness of sins, to be cleansed each year after year. Then can this new Passover be the reality? The bible literally says that “Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins.”

The fact that the WMSCOG Passover needs to be kept year after year shows that it doesn’t forgive your sins. Because if it did forgive your sins you just need to keep it once and be cleansed for all. If you don’t think so then let me ask you a question.

What sins of yours did last year's Passover forgive compared to this year's Passover? If last year's Passover did indeed forgive your sins, then why do you need to keep this year's Passover? If this year's Passover will forgive your sins then was last year's Passover meaningless then? Does the Passover only contain the promise of forgiveness for one year? If that is the case, where is the regulation for that? 

The bible says that “by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” It also says “And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.”

We can see clearly that we are made holy through the sacrifice of Christ. Do you see anywhere where wine makes us holy or that wine forgives our sins? I know the WMSCOG is going to say well it's God’s word that forgives our sins when we keep the Passover.

Fair enough, show me the verse that literally says wine forgives our sins then. I'll wait. To drive it even further the bible says when the new covenant is established sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary. This is contradictory to all the rules and regulations or “sacrifices” of the Feasts that the WMSCOG insists are for the forgiveness of sins.

So to summarize thus far. Christ set us free through the New Covenant from all the sins committed under the old covenant. Christ forgave all of our sins through His blood shed on the cross and we are justified freely. If the food, drink and external regulations could take away our sins, then Christ died for nothing.

The WMSCOG teaches that all their feasts and regulations take away sin. But if bread and wine can forgive sin then you would only need to keep it once for all and be cleansed once and for all.

Now I know that WMSCOG leaders will say “well Jesus died to put the New Covenant Passover into effect” and “that Christ is the mediator of a whole new round of feasts and regulations”. Then I have a question.

Can you show me a verse in the bible that says “Passover of the New Covenant” or can you show me “New Covenant Passover” or “Feasts of the New Covenant” in the bible anywhere? It actually doesn’t exist. It is made up. You know what is in the bible? Eucharist. Let me explain.

If you look into the Greek word for “thanksgiving” (meaning the cup of thanksgiving) you see the word eucharistia. That is why the early Church uses the word Eucharist in their writings because it is actually in the bible in the original greek.

This is important because the WMSCOG claims that the New Covenant Passover is biblical and that churches that call it the Eucharist are not biblical. But you will not find the term New Covenant Passover in the bible, you will find the word Eucharist in the bible. So then who is biblical? Keep this in mind as we continue. Anyways back to the new covenant.

If you read the Book of Hebrews or throughout the New Testament actually, the only thing described is the blood of Christ. Not the wine of some new Passover. If I am wrong, again show me where the New Covenant is a new version of Passover with the bread and wine regulation.

Now you are probably thinking “it is in Luke 22”. Let's go there then.

Luke 22:7-9, 14-20

Then came the day of Unleavened Bread on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.”

When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”

After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

Now I was told and have told others. “Jesus didn’t keep the old covenant Passover and instituted the New Covenant Passover here”. However Jesus is clearly eating the Passover meal, as in Lamb, bitter herbs with unleavened bread etc. Now I have been told several times in my life of faith, especially when I bring things up that contradict the WMSCOG, the following counter. 

It is something like this and I quote “well Jesus sent His disciples to prepare for the Passover and Jesus wanted them to prepare bread and wine instead of the normal Passover, should Peter and John have refused Jesus request? No, they just listened and prepared the things Jesus wanted.” End quote.

I am sure some of you reading this may have heard a similar thing. The WMSCOG uses this when they get caught doing something contrary to what the bible says. They imply the disciples would not have initially prepared the bread and wine if they were going to prepare the original Passover and that Jesus instructed them to only prepare bread and wine while the Jews were preparing the Lamb.

Basically it is an insistence that Jesus told His disciples to break the rules and tradition on the Passover. Which somehow gives the WMSCOG license to contradict the bible.

Then is the insistence accurate? Let’s see. What did they eat on the Passover meal? They ate lamb, bitter herbs, unleavened bread and wine. Well lets see shall we.

Numbers 28:1-7

In verses 1-6 we see the regulation of the daily burnt offering. But let’s read verse 7.

“The accompanying drink offering is to be a quarter of a hin of fermented drink with each lamb. Pour out the drink offering to the Lord at the sanctuary.”

Now let's read about the Passover in verses 16-25

 “‘On the fourteenth day of the first month the Lord’s Passover is to be held. On the fifteenth day of this month there is to be a festival; for seven days eat bread made without yeast. On the first day hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work. Present to the Lord a food offering consisting of a burnt offering of two young bulls, one ram and seven male lambs a year old, all without defect. With each bull offer a grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with oil; with the ram, two-tenths; and with each of the seven lambs, one-tenth. Include one male goat as a sin offering to make atonement for you. Offer these in addition to the regular morning burnt offering. In this way present the food offering every day for seven days as an aroma pleasing to the Lord; it is to be offered in addition to the regular burnt offering and its drink offering. On the seventh day, hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work.”

Here the regulation is not just lamb but it could also be bulls, rams or lambs. We also see that they should eat unleavened bread with the meat, not only that but it says they should offer the Passover sacrifice in addition to the regular morning burnt offering. What is part of the morning offering? The drink offering is fermented drink aka wine.

Which means that the Passover encompasses meat, unleavened bread and wine. Which means that Jesus sent the disciples to go make preparations for the Passover of the Old Covenant, which would have included bread and wine according to the Mosaic Law. 

The WMSCOG insistence that the disciples preparing bread and wine on Passover would be considered unprecedented or new is biblically wrong. Unleavened bread and wine is part of the Passover regulation of the Old Covenant.  

I know what you are probably wondering. If bulls, rams and lambs are offered, how is Jesus the Passover Lamb? The easiest answer is that the bible says so, if you are not sure, read the book of John, Hebrews and Revelation. Also this isn’t new, Exodus 12:5 says the Passover meal could be goat or lamb.

Then why does the WMSCOG call the Passover bread and wine the New Covenant? Their reasoning is that Jesus and the disciples celebrated the New Covenant Passover using bread and wine instead of the traditionally Jewish way. They even teach that Jesus did NOT keep the Old Covenant Passover during the last supper but instead established the New Covenant Passover through using bread and wine. 

We just saw that part of the Old Covenant regulation regarding Passover is bread and wine. Then if the Old Covenant requires bread and wine and the WMSCOG the New Covenant is the bread and wine, how is it new? The WMSCOG premise of the New Covenant Passover falls apart because the bread and wine was already established in the Old Covenant.

Meaning there is nothing new about bread and wine being used in Passover. WMSCOG is wrong. Jesus gave the bread and wine showing that He was the fulfillment of the Passover Lamb while He was literally keeping the Old Covenant Passover.

Again bread and wine is part of the Old Covenant regulation. Therefore the premise New Covenant Passover Bread and Wine that the WMSCOG teaches and enforces is nonsense.

But let's just say the New Covenant is the Passover bread and wine. According to the bible the New Covenant is Eternal and Everlasting. But according to WMSCOG the New Covenant Passover was abolished and destroyed. Then how can something be destroyed or abolished and be eternal and everlasting at the same time. It doesn’t make any sense.

If Jesus did indeed establish the bread and wine of the New Covenant Passover as the WMSCOG claims and it is indeed the everlasting covenant and that Ahnsahnghong restored the New Covenant Passover which is the everlasting covenant then I have a question.

Please take some time to look at the drawing while I ask the following questions. Show me the verse or passage where God said He is going to establish the Everlasting Covenant twice. Or show me the verse or passage where it is prophesied that the Everlasting Covenant is established, then it is destroyed and then the New Covenant is established a second time because the WMSCOG is implying that this is the case.

Which the bible never says. Jesus establishes the New Covenant and it lasts forever and will never be destroyed.

Anyways back to Luke 22.

Now we know for sure that Jesus and his Apostles were keeping the Old Covenant Passover. Evidence suggests the meal that was being eaten was what we just read in the Old Testament.

Something I find interesting in Luke.

Luke 22:14-16

“When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”

Here we see Jesus said the hour came and He was eagerly desiring to eat this Passover. Then why? The WMSCOG says that this Passover that Jesus was keeping was their New Covenant Passover bread and wine ceremony and that the reason Jesus was eager to eat it was because He is instituting the New Covenant.

But we already know that Jesus was keeping the Old Covenant Passover here with His disciples. If you don’t think so then please tell me in the comments what the meal was that they were eating on the Passover that wasn’t the Passover meal. Why then was Jesus eager? He said “For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.” Then what does this mean? Lets see some more verses for context.

Matthew 26:26-28

Then he took a cup, and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the[b] covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink from this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.”

Mark 14:24-25

 “This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many,” he said to them. “Truly I tell you, I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.”

Now what can we gather from these verses we just read. Jesus says that He will not eat the Passover again until when? Until He eats it with His disciples in God’s kingdom. Now I know WMSCOG has a countermeasure for what is the “Kingdom of God” and how it means God in the flesh which we will go over later but let's stick to analyzing the Passover.

But if you read the context of the verses it is talking about Jesus and disciples eating in the kingdom of God.

The reason Jesus is eager is because it is the last feast He kept with His desciples and it is foreshadowing the feast He will have with them in heaven.

Let's analyze Luke 22 further.

Luke 22:17-20

“After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.”

In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.”

Here we see something rather interesting. They were eating the Passover, then Jesus took the wine and gave thanks and gave it to his disciples twice. That's right, Jesus gave the wine twice. Once in verse 17 and again in verse 20. Then why don’t you have the wine twice in the WMSCOG? They only give it once? Then is it the same or different? It is different. 

If you are a WMSCOG member or leader. I know you have tell people that you are the original Church and that you do things exactly as Jesus did and you keep the Passover exactly how Jesus and the apostles kept it.

How do you explain the meal happening during that time and also do you insist people drink the wine twice? If you are the true church and do it exactly how Jesus did it, you would actually have kept the Passover meal and then given the wine twice along with the bread.

Do you do that? No, so you actually don’t keep the Passover exactly how Jesus and the Apostles did, do you? But you insist on people keeping your version of Passover which is not biblical as we have seen nor did Jesus keep it your way. Your premise falls apart again.

Now what about the feet washing before the Passover? The WMSCOG teaches that you cannot eat the Passover without washing your feet. Surely the WMSCOG is right about that. Well let's pause on Luke for a minute and go to John.

Well, let's see.

John 13:2-5

“The evening meal was in progress, and the devil had already prompted Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, to betray Jesus. Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.”

Here we see Jesus got up from the meal that was already in progress. How is a meal in progress, you have already started eating. So they had a meal prepared and after they had already started eating, Jesus got up from the meal and then started to wash His disciples feet.

But wait, how could they have eaten the Passover meal before having their feet wash? According to WMSCOG standards it appears even Jesus and the apostles don’t do it right.

Now I actually did bring this up to my church leader and ask him to explain this discrepancy. He literally told me “Well we don’t know what meal this is referring to.” I find that very interesting because I was told by the WMSCOG that this was the Passover. 

If this meal is not the Passover why on earth do you reference it on the Passover? That defeats the whole purpose does it not? But let's check and see if this is indeed the Passover shall we?

John 13:21-30

“After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, “Very truly I tell you, one of you is going to betray me.”

His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant. One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him. Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said, “Ask him which one he means.”

Leaning back against Jesus, he asked him, “Lord, who is it?”

 Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him.

So Jesus told him, “What you are about to do, do quickly.” But no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the festival, or to give something to the poor. As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night.”

What night did Judas betray Jesus, of course it is the last supper. If you are still not sure, read 1 Corinthians 11:23 and Matthew 26:20-25. Are you tired of the lies yet? I sure am. 

So as we have just read Jesus washed his disciples feet after the Passover meal was already being eaten. Again the premise of the WMSCOG teaching that unless you wash your feet before the Passover you can not partake falls flat and is not biblical. Unless you want to believe Jesus is wrong. Then you are reading the wrong blog post.

Now I know what you are thinking. You as a WMSCOG member or leader are probably on your last line of defense and are holding on to dear life at this point to John 6:53-54.

Then let's talk about it. The WMSCOG insists that this is saying that Jesus' flesh and blood aka the WMSCOG version of Passover is what Jesus is teaching right here.

If you read John 6:28-63 the whole premise is believing in Jesus and that is what gives you eternal life. Now I know what you're screaming in your head “Jesus said UNLESS you eat”. I hear you, now let's examine. 

Now are you as a WMSCOG member implying that we need to literally eat Jesus' physical flesh and blood? Of course you are not, you are not a cannibal.

Then what is Jesus flesh and blood here phyiscal or spiritual? You would say, spiritual right? Bingo you just said it is spiritual right? In the context of John it is spiritual not a physical ceremony. Let me explain.

When is John 6 taking place? It is taking place approximately 1 year before Jesus' death. Now where else in the bible does it say Jesus flesh and blood is eternal life? Actually John is the only place you will find these types of words. The gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke do not have this teaching.

So John is the only one that mentions the flesh and blood of Christ = eternal life. Then I will have to ask, why does John never mention the bread and wine anywhere in the whole gospel of John then?

If John is indeed implying that the flesh and blood of Christ is the bread and wine and that the bread and wine are the way to eternal life, you would think he would have written about the bread and wine in great detail.

I find it extremely odd then that John doesn’t mention bread and wine anywhere in his gospel, even on the evening meal before Jesus death John is silent on the bread and wine aspect. John is more concerned about the spiritual aspects here, not the physical ordinances.

Also look at John 6:63

 Here Jesus says “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit[e] and life.”

The words in John chapter 6 are what according to Jesus? Spirit and life. No reference to bread and wine here at all. John never mentions bread and wine. But don’t take my word for it.

Since the WMSCOG loves historical books on Christianity, or at least the tiny parts of history that seem to fit the narrative. I would also like to refer to some Pre-Nicene authors (pre-nicene obviously meaning before the council of Nicea) to get a better idea in regard to what was happening in the churches regarding the bread and wine ceremony.

Let’s look at Paedagogus (The Tutor) published in 198 AD. But let’s understand who Clement of Alexandria is.

Clement of Alexandria was born approximately 155 AD and was converted to Christianity by Pantaenus who was a Herbew convert to Christianity from Palestine. Pataenus was the head of the catechetical school of Alexandria, so Pataenus was a big deal in the early church. Later Clement of Alexandria replaced Pataenus as head of the school. Also Celement would later escape the persecution of Roman Emperor Septimus Severus and would die in Asia Minor about 215 AD. But before he died he would raise up Origen of Alexandria who is a very big name in early Church History.

Anyways we are going to look at one of Clements writings dated 198 AD called Paedagogus (The Tutor) book 1 chapter six. 

Clement writes and I quote.

“Elsewhere the Lord, in the Gospel according to John, brought this out by symbols, when He said: Eat my flesh, and drink my blood; John 6:34 describing distinctly by metaphor the drinkable properties of faith and the promise, by means of which the Church, like a human being consisting of many members, is refreshed and grows, is welded together and compacted of both — of faith, which is the body, and of hope, which is the soul; as also the Lord of flesh and blood. For in reality the blood of faith is hope, in which faith is held as by a vital principle. And when hope expires, it is as if blood flowed forth; and the vitality of faith is destroyed. If, then, some would oppose, saying that by milk is meant the first lessons — as it were, the first food — and that by meat is meant those spiritual cognitions to which they attain by raising themselves to knowledge, let them understand that, in saying that meat is solid food, and the flesh and blood of Jesus, they are brought by their own vainglorious wisdom to the true simplicity.”

Clement continues with

“Eat my flesh, He says, and drink my blood. John 6:53-54 Such is the suitable food which the Lord ministers, and He offers His flesh and pours forth His blood, and nothing is wanting for the children's growth. O amazing mystery! We are enjoined to cast off the old and carnal corruption, as also the old nutriment, receiving in exchange another new regimen, that of Christ, receiving Him if we can, to hide Him within; and that, enshrining the Saviour in our souls, we may correct the affections of our flesh.

But you are not inclined to understand it thus, but perchance more generally. Hear it also in the following way. The flesh figuratively represents to us the Holy Spirit; for the flesh was created by Him. The blood points out to us the Word, for as rich blood the Word has been infused into life; and the union of both is the Lord, the food of the babes — the Lord who is Spirit and Word. The food — that is, the Lord Jesus — that is, the Word of God, the Spirit made flesh, the heavenly flesh sanctified. End quote.

So it appears that not only John but Clement of Alexandria think that the flesh and blood of Jesus in John chapter 6 is metaphorical. We see a sort of dual meaning principle with flesh and blood.

Not everywhere you see Jesus flesh and blood does it automatically mean bread and wine. Because again, John never mentions bread and wine in his entire gospel. Based on John 6 Jesus flesh and blood are more of a spiritual principle. You can see this same metaphorical meaning mirrored in 1 Cor 10:4.

Then we see another meaning of Jesus' flesh and blood in synoptic Gospels where the bread and wine are indeed symbolic of Jesus' blood. Again it is that dual meaning principle. Kind of like how the WMSCOG likes to use cloud as reference to flesh, but they also say that doesn't mean wherever there is cloud in the bible it is flesh, sometimes it can just mean cloud.

It is the same with Jesus' flesh and blood. Sometimes it is a spiritual meaning that is foreshadowing Jesus' sacrifice on the cross and that those who believe in the son will have eternal life and other times it does indeed refer to the bread and wine depending on context. Again you don’t have to believe me, I highly encourage you to look into these things and make sense of it yourselves.

Since we are looking into history.

We are going to focus our attention on the Passover controversies now. But Let me lay out some historical ground work here. Do you remember Polycarp, the WMSCOG’s knight in shining armor? Stay tuned for part 2.