Why do we stop eating yeast?

The month of the tender sprigs, in Hebrew haaviv – האביב – was appointed to be the first month of the year for the sons of Israel. This is the month of redemption. In this month the people of Israel were delivered from Pharaoh's slavery and from forced labour in Egypt, and in that month, Israel will be redeemed again. To commemorate this historic deliverance and to proclaim the future final deliverance, the Eternal established the Feast of Passover, in Hebrew Pesach – פסח (stress on the e).

Immediately after Passover comes a celebration called the Feast of Unleavened Bread, in Hebrew chag hamatsot – חג המצות. During this feast it is strictly forbidden to hold, have and eat any leavened product from cereals.

The whole celebration of Pesach and also Chag Hamatsot are full of symbols that speak about the first and the second redemption. Therefore, leaven has a very important symbolic message. The one who trespasses the prohibition of eating leaven during that week of celebration will lose his or her right of belonging to the chosen people that will reign upon the world to come; both foreigner or native of the land of Israel.

Then, what is the message behind the prohibition to eat leaven?

In the Scriptures, leaven is a symbol of the evil inclination, sin, dispute, pride and false teaching. So when the sons and daughters of Israel and all those grafted from among the nations clean our homes before Pesach searching for and eliminating all trace of leaven and leavening agents, we are proclaiming that we don't want to have anything to do with such things in our lives. Deliverance from spiritual leaven is a very important part of the last redemption that will take place when Yeshua returns in glory. Then we will be free from the yetser hara, sin, forever. But before this happens, we have the obligation of cleaning not only our homes before Pesach, but also our own lives. What we learn from the obligation of having nothing to do with leaven for one week a year is that we have to be careful to let the Eternal clean us from all sin, quarrel, pride and false teachings all days of our lives.

If we eat something leavened during the seven days of Chag Hamatsot we will lose the spiritual connection between our souls and the chosen people, unless there is true repentance. The same way, if we eat from sin, that is, if we feed our lives from what sin produces, we will be left out from eternal life prepared for all those who are in Messiah Yeshua.

Don't take the rules of the feast of unleavened bread lightly. Likewise, don't take sin lightly. Fight it. Cry out to heaven to be freed of anything the Eternal considers leaven in your soul. Don't give up. Continue to struggle with the desire to get everything out and you will partake in the resurrection when the Blessed and Sanctified Heavenly High Priest who takes away sin from the world comes.

May the Eternal prosper you in the cleansing,

Ketriel