Note 3 at Lk. 22:16: The passover meal commemorated the Jews' deliverance from slavery in Egypt (Ex. 13:3-10). It also had a much deeper spiritual application that, as Jesus explains here, would be fulfilled through His death. The Jewish nation as a whole had missed any future prophetic meaning of the passover.

On the night of the original passover, the Lord passed through the land of Egypt and judged the land by slaying all the firstborn of men and beasts (Ex. 11:5). The Jews had to slay a spotless lamb (Ex. 12:5) and take its blood and apply it to the door posts of their homes (Ex. 12:7). They were commanded to remain indoors or under the covering of this blood (Ex. 12:22) until the morning.

When the Lord passed through the land at midnight (Ex. 12:29) to execute His judgment, He passed over the homes that had applied the lamb's blood to their doors and no one was hurt (Ex. 12:13). This is a perfect picture of the redemption that Jesus has provided for us.

Everyone deserves judgment because of their sins (Rom. 3:23; 6:23). However, Jesus provided Himself as a spotless, sacrificial lamb for us (Jn. 1:29,36) so that if we will apply His blood to our lives by confessing Him as Lord (Rom. 10:9), God will pass over us at the judgment day.

Jesus was sacrificed on the 14th day of the first month of the Jewish year -- the exact day and time that the passover lambs were being slain (Jn. 18:28). Truly, "Christ our passover is sacrificed for us" (1 Cor. 5:7).

This is why the Christian church as a whole does not celebrate the Jewish feast of Passover but has replaced it with the Lord's Supper or Communion which Jesus instituted during the last part of this Passover meal (Mt. 26:26-29; Mk. 14:22-25; Lk. 22:19-20).