DO YOU REMEMBER?

Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark

The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Observe the month of Abib and celebrate the Passover of the Lord your God, because in the month of Abib he brought you out of Egypt by night. Sacrifice as the Passover to the Lord your God an animal from your flock or herd at the place the Lord will choose as a dwelling for his Name. Do not eat it with bread made with yeast, but for seven days eat unleavened bread, the bread of affliction, because you left Egypt in haste—so that all the days of your life you may remember the time of your departure from Egypt. Let no yeast be found in your possession in all your land for seven days. Do not let any of the meat you sacrifice on the evening of the first day remain until morning.

You must not sacrifice the Passover in any town the Lord your God gives you except in the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name. There you must sacrifice the Passover in the evening, when the sun goes down, on the anniversary of your departure from Egypt. Roast it and eat it at the place the Lord your God will choose. Then in the morning return to your tents. For six days eat unleavened bread and on the seventh day hold an assembly to the Lord your God and do no work. Deuteronomy 16:1-8

This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Chapter 16 of Deuteronomy opens with words on the Passover. As we have seen elsewhere in this book, Moses is taking earlier instruction and is passing it onto Israel as they are about to enter the Promised Land. You might wonder why Moses has to go into such a lengthy discourse of reminders but keep in mind that this is a new generation of Israelites, ones who didn’t experience the deliverance from Egypt and the Passover. They weren’t at Mount Sinai either or involved in the first exodus to the Promised Land where their ancestors had spoiled their opportunity to enter…an opportunity that was now available to their children. So it was necessary for Moses to continue to remind this generation of Israelites about what God expected from them.

Central to the celebration of Passover was the matter of remembrance…remembrance of the oppression and affliction that Israel had suffered at the hands of Pharoah and Egypt …remembrance of how God delivered them from that affliction and oppression, rescuing them and valuing them as His chosen people while fulfilling the covenant He made long before with Abraham.

Israel was to “Observe the month of Abib and celebrate the Passover of the Lord…because in the month of Abib he brought (them) out of Egypt by night. They weren’t to “sacrifice the Passover in any town the Lord your God (gave them) except in the place he (chose) as a dwelling for his Name. Once there, Israel was to “sacrifice the Passover in the evening, when the sun goes down, on the anniversary of (their) departure from Egypt.”

As the Passover tradition continued, we saw the matter of remembrance surface again…this time with Jesus. For the scriptures tell us that the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?" He replied, "Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, 'The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.' " So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover.” (Matthew 26:17-19) During this special Passover meal, better known today as the Last Supper or Lord’s Supper, Jesus said the following to His disciples…and in turn to us today:

“When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God."

After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, "Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."

And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me."

In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.” Luke 22:14-20

The slain blood of the lamb brushed on the doorframes of Israel at Passover led to Israel being spared from the death penalty that fell on Egypt’s first born. Now the blood of God’s first born, Jesus, would spare all mankind from the death penalty of sin and offer the opportunity of deliverance into eternal life…if anyone only believe in Him as their Savior. In other words, the blood of Jesus to the disciple brings us into our own personal passovers…passing over death and into life forever with the One who made it all possible.

Today, communion is still celebrated in churches everywhere. Bread is broke and the cup is drank from all in remembrance of Jesus and the sacrifice He paid for us all. Through the sacrament, we continue to stay rooted in our Savior and the blessed gospel message of Him. But is communion the only time we should remember? How else can we ensure that we always keep Jesus and his redeeming life and sacrifice at the forefront of our hearts and minds?

First, we need to read the gospels daily. It doesn’t matter if it’s Matthew, Mark, Luke or John. We need to read daily from any or all of them. For it’s within these books that we get to know Jesus and how He lived. And the only way we can possibly know how to live like Him…the goal of being a Christian…is to know Him and know about Him. In the gospels, we will see Jesus deal with nearly every situation or circumstance we will go through in life…and we will learn just how to deal with those situations and circumstances when they occur. And the more we get to know about Him and the more we get to know of Him, then the more we will be in relationship with Him. Because Jesus isn’t dead by any means. Friends, we serve a living Savior! And He longs to have a personal relationship with us. This leads to my second way we can remember Jesus daily: prayer.

Prayer was central to Jesus and His life. He invested a lot of time in service to His people but He also took time out to spend in personal communication with His Father…our Father who art in heaven. As Christians, Jesus awaits our prayers today…and yearns for a personal relationship with each and every person He died to save. Through prayer and conversation with our Savior, we have the opportunity to thank Him for all He has done for us…and that’s the least we can do given how He suffered and died. Our daily conversations with Jesus serve to show our gratitude for Him and show Him that we will always remember.

Question: How do you remember your Savior? Have you spoken with Him today? He is waiting.

In Christ,

Mark

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