On April 13ththe 15th day of the first month in the sacred calendarthe day after the Passover, all the members of the Church of God throughout the world celebrated the Feast of the Unleavened Bread in remembrance of Christs sacrifice on the cross.

ⓒ 2006 WATV

The Feast of the Unleavened Bread is a feast to commemorate the suffering that the Israelites experienced from the time of Exodus after keeping the Passover until they crossed the Red Sea. In the Old Testament times, people commemorated the suffering of their forefathers by eating unleavened bread [bread without yeast] and bitter herbs.

In the New Testament times, Jesus fulfilled the prophecy of the Feast of the Unleavened Bread by suffering on the cross from 9 am to 3 pm on the day after the Passover and dying for our sins. All the members of the Church of God participate in the suffering of Christ by fasting from the Passover midnight to 3 pm at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, just as it is written: The time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast (Mk 2:20).

Mother offered a prayer of thanks to Father who had endured the suffering of the cross to forgive our sins leading to death. She also prayed that we would understand Fathers sacrifice, repent of our sins and save many souls with love and sacrifice, preaching the gospel to the whole world and practicing brotherly love into action.

Chief Pastor Joo-Cheol Kim reminded us that Christ suffered for our sins committed in heaven, and said, We should also endure pain and suffering to save souls and delightfully follow the sacrificial path of Father and Mother, carrying our own crosses. He also emphasized that Christ and the apostles who followed Him focused their minds and hearts on sacrifice, saying, We are here today through the sacrifice of Christ. When we sacrifice ourselves according to the example of Christ, we can accomplish the world mission.

The people of Zion kept the Feast of the Unleavened Bread holy by fasting, and they were determined to repay Father and Mother for sacrificing Themselves for our sins, by completing the mission of preaching the good news of salvation to the whole world.