Passover Preparation - Day 4 - Separation of Plates

Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ, our Passover, is sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (1 Corinthians 5:6-8)

     An orthodox Jewish home will have at least four sets of plates. One set is for meat dishes; a second for dairy dishes, not to be mixed with meat. The third and fourth set are also for meat and dairy (always kept separate) to be used only on Passover, for they must be kept free of any leavening agents. This separation maintains cleanness in dietary restrictions.
     This process of separation is something we often miss. The Bible tells us not to mix wool and linen. We are told not to plant two kinds of seed in one vineyard. Why? In the case of the seeds, it is because they will cross-pollinate; in the case of life, it is because God desires we live holy lives, not getting mixed up with evil. The evil will cross pollinate the fruit of our relationship with God.
     Paul speaks of this separation of the pure from the pure in 1 Corinthians. While our lives are to influence the world by the holiness of God in us, we are to make sure the world does not have a negative influence in our lives. Sometimes we allow the world to cross pollinate the fruit of our relationship with our creator; in our language, dress, customs, worship, and relationships with other people.
     To follow the good and avoid the bad is not as easy as it would seem at times. We are told not to covet and we are told not to lust because something inside us (perhaps Satan) draws us to things that are not best for us (which seems pleasing to the eye, good to the taste, and something which will make us wise), just as products with sugar and other unhealthy ingredients attract us to desire the unhealthy.
     We have all seen evil, and perhaps experienced some. Once experienced, it is hard to rid our hearts of spiritually unhealthy habits. Consider the theme of Exodus: Moses had a hard time getting the Hebrews out of Egypt … and once he did succeed, he found it was even harder to purge life in Egypt (including its idols, foods, and lifestlye) from the minds and hearts the Hebrews.
     In your preparation for Passover, consider, what things do you need to rid from your life or avoid? It is time to remove the chametz (or yeast) in order to make sure our focus is purely and wholly on God.