Did you ever wonder how the people of Biblical days leavened their bread?
Recently, I learned they would moisten flour then allow it to get sour and develop bubbles over the course of a couple of days by letting it sit out. To achieve the same flavor faster they would take a lump from the day before and add it to the fresh bread to bake.
So, essentially, they took 'bad stuff,' added it to flour, and made bread. Thus, giving it a sour flavor. Ah, sour dough bread. Without this 'bad stuff' the bread was a sweet tasting bread.
Lois Tverberg points out in the book, Listening to the Language of the Bible, that Paul and other believers of the day understood how this leavening process worked. That's why Paul used it as an example of how sin changes us. (1 Corinthians 5)
Anyway, when Jesus held up the bread and said 'this is my body,' it was Passover. The Jews only eat unleavened bread at Passover. The sweet tasting stuff. The bread without the fermenting, sour-tasting lump added in.
In other words, he held up the clean bread that didn't have a representation of sin in it. When he spoke, he was saying not only is he the clean, flawless lamb but also the sweet-tasting, leaven-free grain. Which by the way fit in to the requirement for sacrifices and offerings . . . no leaven was allowed in grain offerings made at the temple.
The sacrifice of Jesus on the cross covered our sins. But it can also be seen as an offering . . . a gift to our Heavenly Father. (Leviticus 2)
I never thought about the sin part of unleavened bread. I only considered the fact that they didn't have time for the yeast to rise. Thanks for the new look at Bread. :-)
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