We begin the Seder with the lighting of the candles, to usher in the holiday. The beauty of light is that even the smallest point of radiance can dispel the darkness. The eldest woman of the house traditionally lights the candles no later than 18 minutes before sundown on the eve of the holiday, in this case Passover. After kindling the candles, she waves her hands over the flames three times as a welcome and then covers her eyes with her hands (to represent Moses covering his face for he could not see the glory of God.) saying:

Holiday: Bar-uch A-tah Ado-nai, E-lo-hei-nu Me-lekh Ha-olam, Ash-er Kid-sha-nu B'mitz-vo-tov, V'tzi-va-nu Le-had-lik Nar Shel Yom-tov.

Sabbath: Bar-uch A-tah Ado-nai, E-lo-hei-nu Me-lekh Ha-olam, Ash-er Kid-sha-nu B'mitz-vo-tov, V'tzi-va-nu Le-had-lik Nar Shel Sha-bbath ve-shel.

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments, and commanded us to kindle the light (of the holy Shabbath) of the holiday

Reader: As we look upon the candles may we remember The Lord is the creator of Light, and Jesus is the Light of the world.

Reader: Blessed are you Lord, who calls us out of darkness into his redeeming Light! Amen.

Let us open our Seder with a blessing that recognizes Jesus as the source of all light and truth for our lives, since He is the Passover Lamb of God.

Baruch A-tah Ado-nai, E-lo-hei-nu Me-lekh Ha-olam, A-sher Kid-sha-nu B'mitz-vo-tav, V'tzi-va-nu Le-hiy-ot Ohr Le-goy-im, Ve-na-tan-la-nu, Et Yeshua Ma-schiach-nu Seh Ha-Pe-sach.

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has sanctified us with His commandments, and commanded us to be a light to the nations and Who gave us Jesus our Messiah the Passover Lamb.

Four cups of wine (or juice) are drunk during the Seder, remembering four promises of God given to moses (Exod 6:6-7).

I will bring you out (Cup of Sanctification)
I will free you (Cup of deliverance)
I will redeem you (Cup of redemption)
I will take you as my own people (Cup of Restoration)

In Jewish observance a fifth cup, called the Cup of Elijah, is an extra cup of wine displayed to welcome the prophet of hope who would announce the Messiah's coming. While left empty or untouched in Jewish observance, in the Messianic Seder it serves as the Cup of the Lord's Supper.

To make Kiddush is to declare a moment holy. “Here I am, ready to perform the mitzvah of the first cup of wine and to dedicate this whole evening ‘to telling the story of miracles and wonders that were performed for our ancestors in Egypt on the night of the 15th of the month of Nisan’ more than 3,200 years ago. This is what the Torah commands us: ‘Remember the day of your Exodus from Egypt’ “ (Ex. 13:3; Maimonides, Chametz 7:1).

We say this to get ready for the seder, to set a Cavanah, or intention as a sort of mindfulness exercise. ​

We are about to drink our first cup of wine which will symbolize gratitude for life.                                       

Let us raise our cups to signify our gratitude for life, and for the joy of knowing inner growth, which gives human life its meaning. And with raised cups, we say together:

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הַגָּפֶן

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, borei p’ree hagafen.

We praise God, Ruler of Everything, who creates the fruit of the vine.

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם,
שֶׁהֶחֱיָנוּ וְקִיְּמָנוּ וְהִגִּיעָנוּ לַזְּמַן הַזֶּה

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam,
she-hechiyanu v’key’manu v’higiyanu lazman hazeh.

We praise God, Ruler of Everything,
who has kept us alive, raised us up, and brought us to this happy moment.

We now drink the first glass of wine!

We will wash our hands twice during our seder: now, with no blessing, to get us ready for the rituals to come; and then again later, we’ll wash again with a blessing, preparing us for the meal.

Too often during our daily lives we don’t stop and take the moment to prepare for whatever it is we’re about to do. Let's pause as we wash our hands to consider what we hope to get out of our evening together. 

Passover combines the celebration of an event from Jewish memory with a recognition of the cycles of nature. As we remember the liberation from Egypt, we also recognize the stirrings of spring and rebirth happening in the world around us. The symbols on our table bring together elements of both kinds of celebration.

We now take a vegetable, in this case parsely, to represent our joy at the dawning of spring after our long, cold winter. Whatever symbol of spring and sustenance we’re using, we now dip it into salt water, a symbol of the tears our ancestors shed as slaves. Before we eat it, we recite a short blessing:

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הָאֲדָמָה Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, borei p’ree ha-adama. We praise God, Ruler of Everything, who creates the fruits of the earth.

We look forward to spring and the reawakening of flowers and greenery. They haven’t been lost, just buried beneath the snow, getting ready for reappearance just when we most needed them.

We all have aspects of ourselves that sometimes get buried under the stresses of our busy lives. What has this winter taught us? What elements of our own lives do we hope to revive this spring?

There are three matzah stacked on the seder table, placed in a special bag (matzahtasch) or wrapped in cloth. We hold up the matzah for all to see and to ensure they are unbroken. We say this blessing before we break the middle piece of matzah:

Ha-lach-ma Anya-di a-kha-lu Av-ha-ta-na Be-ara De-mitz-ra-yim

This is the bread of brokenness which our fathers ate in the land of Egypt.

The larger piece of the broken matzah, called the Afikoman, is wrapped in a piece of linen to be hidden. The seder cannot end without finding this "lost Afikomen".

The three Matzah are said to represent Abraham, Issac and Jacob. The middle matzah (Isaac) is broken to recall how he was offered as a sacrifice in obedience to the will of his father. This is also a clear picture of how Jesus gave himself to be sacrificed. In Hebrew the middle of something is it's heart. When we break the middle matzah we recall the broken heart of God for His people and recall the broken body of Jesus on the cross.

According to the Torah, we cannot partake of the meal until we have retold the story of our redemption, to our children. To help start the story a child (traditionally the youngest) asks the "Four Questions" about this special evening:

Mah Nish-ta-nah Ha_lai-lah Ha-zeh Mik-ol Ha_lei-lot?

How is this night different from all other nights?

Consider this opening question as the central message, in regards to the purpose of our Passover Seder.

She-be-khol Ha-lei-lot A-nu Okh-lin Cha-metz U-metz-ah Ha-lai-lah Ha-zeh Ku-lo Matz-ah?

Why is it that on all other nights during the year we eat either bread or matzah, but on this night we eat only matzah?

She-be-khol Ha-lei-lot A-nu Okh-lin She-ar Ye-ra-kkot Ha-lai-lah Ha-zeh Ma-ror?

Why is it that on all other nights we eat all kinds of herbs, but on this night we eat only bitter herbs?

She-be-khol Ha-lei-lot Ein A-nu Mat-bi-lin A-fi-lu Pa-am E-chat Ha-lai-lah Ha-zeh She-tei Fe-a-mim?

Why is it that on all other nights we do not dip our herbs even once, but on this night we dip them twice?

She-be-khol Ha-lei-lot A-nu Okh-lin Bein Yosh-vin U-vein Mi-su-bin Ha-lai-lah Ha-zeh Ku-la-nu Me-su-bin?

Why is it that on all other nights we eat sitting, but on this night we eat in a reclining position?

So why is this night different from all other nights? On this night we are celebrating the most important time in Jewish history, when we went forth from slavery to freedom through the great power of the Lord our God. We'll start retelling that story after we answer the four questions:

1. Why do we eat the matzah? For two reasons: first, to remember the bread of affliction we had to eat when we were slaves, and second, to remember how our ancestors left Egypt in such a hurry they did not have time to let their bread rise.

2. Why do we eat the bitter herbs? We eat them to remind ourselves of the bitterness of being enslaved in Egypt.

3. Why do we dip our herbs twice? We use the salt water to remind us of the tears we cried as slaves, and also to remember how God split the waters of the sea to let us cross over. We dip the maror in the charoset to remember how the bitterness of our slavery was made sweet by our freedom.

4. Why do we recline at the table? We recline as a symbol of our freedom, for when we were slaves we could never recline in comfort.

The Torah speaks of four kinds of sons. One is wise; and one is defiant; one is simple-minded, and one doesn't know what to ask.

Once upon a time, during a famine our ancestor Jacob and his family fled to Egypt where food was plentiful. His son Joseph had risen to high position in Pharaoh’s court, and our people were well-respected and well-regarded, secure in the power structure of the time.

Generations passed and our people remained in Egypt. In time, a new Pharaoh ascended to the throne. He found our difference threatening, and ordered our people enslaved. In fear of rebellion, Pharaoh decreed that all Hebrew baby boys be killed. Two midwives named Shifrah and Puah defied his orders.  Through their courage, a boy survived; midrash tells us he was radiant with light. Fearing for his safety, his family placed him in a basket and he floated down the Nile. He was found, and adopted, by Pharaoh’s daughter, who named him Moses because she drew him forth from the water.  Thanks to Moses' sister Miriam, Pharaoh's daughter hired their mother, Yocheved, as his wet-nurse. Thus he survived to adulthood, and was raised as Prince of Egypt.

Although a child of privilege, as he grew he became aware of the slaves who worked in the brickyards of his father. When he saw an overseer mistreat a slave, Moses struck the overseer and killed him. Fearing retribution, he set out across the Sinai alone. God spoke to him from a burning bush, which though it flamed was not consumed. The Voice called him to lead the Hebrew people to freedom. Moses argued with God, pleading inadequacy, but God disagreed. Sometimes our responsibilities choose us.

Moses returned to Egypt and went to Pharaoh to argue the injustice of slavery. He gave Pharaoh a mandate which resounds through history: Let my people go. Pharaoh refused, and Moses warned him that Mighty God would strike the Egyptian people. These threats were not idle; ten terrible plagues were unleashed upon the Egyptians. Only when his nation lay in ruins did Pharaoh agree to our liberation.

Fearful that Pharaoh would change his mind, our people fled, not waiting for their bread dough to rise.  Our people did not leave Egypt alone; a “mixed multitude” went with them. From this we learn that liberation is not for us alone, but for all the nations of the earth. Even Pharaoh’s daughter came with us.

Pharaoh’s army followed us to the Sea of Reeds. We plunged into the waters. Only when we had gone as far as we could did the waters part for us. We mourn, even now, that Pharaoh’s army drowned: our liberation is bittersweet because people died in our pursuit. To this day we relive our liberation, that we may not become complacent, that we may always rejoice in our freedom.

God brought 10 plaques to the Eqyptian people to show His ultimate power and authority over everything:

Nile river waters turned to Blood

Frogs swarmed through the city

Lice throughout the land

Swarm of insects

Pestilence of the livestock

Boils

Firey hail fell from the sky

Locusts

God blocked out the sun causes 24 hr darkness

After the ninth plaque, God gave Moses instructions regarding the sacrificial rite of Passover for He knew the final plague, Killing of all first born males, would make Pharaoh release the Israelites.

Exod 12:8 "They shall eat the flesh that same night; they shall eat it roasted over the fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs... (11b) and you shall eat it hurriedly: it is a passover offering to the Lord. For that night I will go through the land of Egypt and strike down every first-born in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and I will mete out punishments to the gods of Egypt, I the Lord. And the blood on the houses where you are staying shall be a sign for you : when I see the blood I will pass over you, so that no plague will destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt."

Sacrificial blood has always been used for the cleansing of sins, because "the life is in the blood". (Lev 17:11 ) We first see this principle back in the garden of Eden. After Adam and Eve disobeyed God and incurred a sinful nature. God clothed them with the skins of a sacrificed animal, it's hide was used to cover their shame/sin. This was the original image of Passover - the "Lamb slain from the foundation of the world" who would offer himself up so that we would be clothed in His righteousness.

God had warned Pharaoh from the very beginning about the danger he was facing: "Thus says the Lord: Israel is My first-born son. I have said to you, 'Let My son go, that he may worship Me,' yet you refuse to let him go. Now, I will slay your first-born son." Exod 4:22-23

The plagues and our subsequent redemption from Egypt are but one example of the care God has shown for us in our history. Had God but done any one of these kindnesses, it would have been enough – dayeinu.

We are now finally ready to drink the "Cup of Deliverance." This cup recalls God's second promise made to our ancestors: "I will deliver you from slavery." Let us then give thanks to the Lord our god for saving the Israelites from Egypt and for delivering us from our own personal sin. Of all the blessings we will recite tonight, one of the most important is to thank God for the salvation given to us in His Son Jesus. Let us lift our hearts to God in thanks.

As we now transition to the celebratory meal, we once again wash our hands to prepare ourselves. 

After you have poured the water over your hands, recite this short blessing.

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו, וְצִוָּנוּ עַל נְטִילַת יָדָֽיִם

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu al n’tilat yadayim.

We praise God, Ruler of Everything, who made us holy through obligations, commanding us to wash our hands.

בְָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, הַמּוֹצִיא לֶֽחֶם מִן הָאָֽרֶץ:

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, hamotzi lechem min ha-aretz.

We praise God, Ruler of Everything, who brings bread from the land.

בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתַָיו וְצִוָּֽנוּ עַל אֲכִילַת מַצָּה:

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu al achilat matzah.

We praise God, Ruler of Everything, who made us holy through obligations, commanding us to eat matzah.

Break off a piece from each of the top and middle matzos for yourself and for each of those sitting at your table. Pass them around.

What we're doing is covering both our bases, ensuring that we experience both the poverty and humility that matzah represents (the broken matzah) and the freedom and healing it brings (the whole matzah).

Tradition says that this root is to remind us of the time of our slavery. We force ourselves to taste pain so that we may more readily value pleasure.

 Scholars inform us that bitter herbs were eaten at the Spring festival in ancient times. The sharpness of the taste awakened the senses and made the people feel at one with nature's revival. Thus, maror is the stimulus of life, reminding us that struggle is better than the complacent acceptance of injustice.

Let us all now say the blessing over the Maror:

ברוּךְ אַתָּה יְיַָ אֱלֹהֵֽינוּ מֶֽלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, אֲשֶׁר קִדְּשָֽׁנוּ בְּמִצְוֹתָיו וְצִוָּֽנוּ עַל אֲכִילַת מרוֹר:

Baruch Atah Adonai, Eloheinu Melech ha-olam, asher kid’shanu b’mitzvotav v’tzivanu al achilat maror.

We praise God, Ruler of Everything, who made us holy through obligations, commanding us to eat bitter herbs.

LEADER:

God gave the Israelites these instructions for the Passover meal:

ALL:

They are to celebrate it on the fourteenth day of the second month at twilight. They are to eat the lamb, together with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.

LEADER:

So basically, God told them to make a lamb sandwich with the lamb, the bitter herbs, and the Matzah!

Let us Eat the Matzah again with the Maror or you can put lamb on it too, if you want to try it.

Charoset:

During the Passover now, we make a sandwich of bitter herbs and Charoset, which is a sweet mixture of apples, honey, and walnuts. using the bottom and middle Matzahs.

The Charoset symbolizes God's mercy and deliverance to his people. So While the Israelites were bitterly treated, as the Maror reminds us, God remembered his Covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He heard their cries, and began to design a plan for their deliverance. Which is symbolized by the Charoset.

Let us now eat and remember the grace, mercy and love that God has for each of us, because he sent Yeshua, our Messiah, to be our Passover Lamb, we too, like the Israelites, released from the bondage of slavery, can be saved from the bondage of Satan's authority, the Earth Curse system, and sin.

Let us now make a small Maror + Charoset sandwich with the remaining Matzahs.

We are now ready to answer the very important "fifth question" of the Seder: "When do we eat?!" 

This concludes the first part of the Seder, we will eat dinner and continue after the meal is completed. There is a custom to eat the beitzah (egg) dipped in salt water at the start of the Passover meal. Before we eat dinner we will recite the Passover blessing:

Ba-rukh At-tah Ado-nai, Elo-hei-nu Me-lekh Ha'olam, asher Kide-sha-nu Be-mitz-votav Vetzi-va-nu Al Ach-ilat Pe-sach.

Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who sanctified us with His commandments, and commanded us to eat the Pesach.

I hope you have enjoyed your meal, but in able to finish the Seder we must eat the Afikomen. Tzafun means "hidden" and refers to the half of the matzah that was broken earlier and hidden away. [The Afikomen is traditionally sought out by the children. The person who finds it is given a reward.] The matzah is broken into small pieces so that everyone may partake of it. The Matzah that we break, is it not sharing in the body of Messiah?

We now prepare ourselves to eat matzah that Jesus identified with His sacrificial body that was broken for us. Let us be silent for a moment, reflecting and remembering what the Lord Messiah has done for us; Jesus told us that He was the Bread of Life, the nourishment of our life and sustenance. "I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh." John 6:51

Matt 26:26 "As they were eating, Jesus took the matzah and after saying a blessing, He broke it and giving it to the disciples He said: 'Take, eat. This means my body.'"

Now we will offer thanks to the Lord our God for the meal we have shared together. After we have eaten and are satisfied we must always remember it is God who provides all things:

Barukh Attah Adonai, Eloheinu Melekh Ha'olam, Hazan Et Ha'olam Kulo Betuvo, Be'chen Be'chesed, uvrachamin. Hu Noten Lechem Lekhol Basar, Ki Le-olam Chasdo. Uv'tuvo Ha'gadol Tamid Lo Cha'ser Lanu, Ve'al Yechsar Lanu Mazon Le'olam Va'ed, Be'avur Shemo Ha'gadol. Ki Hu El Zan Um'farnes Lakol, Umetiv Lakol, U'mekhim Mazon Lekhol Beriyotav Asher Bara. Barukh Atah Adonai, Hazan Et Ha'kol. Amen.

Blessed are you, Lord our God, master of the universe, Who nourishes the whole world in goodness, with grace, kindness and compassion. He gives bread to all flesh, for His love endures forever. And through His great goodness we have never lacked, nor will we lack food forever, for the sake of His great Name. For He is God, who nourishes and sustains all and does good to all and prepares food for all His creatures which He created. Blessed are You, Lord, who nourished all. Amen.

Now is the time to partake of the Third Cup, the Cup of Redemption. This cup recalls God's promise to redeem Israel; "I will redeem you with an outstretched arm..." The Mishnah says the wine in this cup recalls the blood of the lamb that was applied to the doorposts in Egypt, causing the plague of death to pass over the Israelites homes. Similarly it was this cup that Jesus associated with the blood he would shed on the cross, causing death to "pass over" those trusting in him.

Let us again be silent for a moment... This Cup of redemption represents God's new covenant and the very blood of Jesus that was shed for the forgiveness of our sins on the cross. Drink the third cup.

Matt 26:27-28 "Also, he took a cup and having given thanks, he gave it to them, saying; 'Drink out of it, all of you; for this is my blood of the covenant which is to be poured out in behalf of many for forgiveness of sins.'"

1 Cor. 11:26 "For as often as you eat this loaf and drink this cup, you keep proclaiming the death of the Lord, until he arrives."

We've reached the end of our seder and behalf of Davidson Hillel, we want to say thank you all for attending. It's a night full of laughter, songs, wine, telling the story of ancestors, and good food. We always end the seder by saying,

לְשָׁנָה הַבָּאָה בִּירוּשָׁלָֽיִם

L’shana haba-ah biy’rushalayim

NEXT YEAR IN JERUSALEM!

Some interpret it quite literally as hopefully they will be in Jerusalem next Passover or more metaphorically, that there are always things to hope for.