Jesus and the disciples came to Jerusalem to celebrate the Jewish holiday of Passover.

Passover celebrates a special time in the Old Testament.  The Israelites were slaves in Egypt, but God arranged it so Moses, a Jew who grew up in the Pharoah's household as his son, would be able to lead them to freedom.  Moses asked the pharoah to let the Israelites go, but even when God sent plagues of grasshoppers, made the river Nile run red, and other shows of His will, the Pharoah said no.

Finally, God decided to send the worst plague of all.  He told Moses to have the people prepare a feast for midnight, because it would be their last meal as slaves in Egypt.  The doorpost of each Israelite's home was to be painted with the blood of a lamb.

At midnight, God sent an Angel to visit all the houses without the lamb's blood on their doorposts and take the life of the firstborn son.  The Angel even visited the Pharoah's great palace and took the life of the prince!

As God had told them, the great midnight feast was the last meal the Israelites ate as slaves.  The next day, with Moses as their leader, the Israelites began their long and arduous journey to their "Promised Land" of Israel.

When you hear about Jesus as the "Lamb of God,"  it helps to know that it is a reference to the Jewish celebration of Passover.  God forgives our sins because of "the blood of the Lamb' on the cross  just like God saved the Israelites from the Angel of Death because of the blood of the lamb on their doorposts.  Moses led his people out of the darkness in Egypt to the bright light of the Promised Land, and Jesus brings us out of darkness and sin to the bright light of salvation and eternal life!