Moses said to the people, “This is a day to remember forever—the day you left Egypt, the place of your slavery. Today the Lord has brought you out by the power of his mighty hand. (Remember, eat no food containing yeast.) – Ex. 13:3.
Reading through the book of Deuteronomy, you’ll find Moses stating the same directive time after time.
Why did Moses repeatedly instructed the Israelites to remember?
Because we have the tendency to forget. When we get comfortable, when everything is going well and we’ve prospered, we can easily drift into the land of forgetfulness. This is why God established several appointed times both weekly and yearly so that we draw near to Him in humility. He established the Sabbath to be observed on a weekly basis and various feasts to be celebrated throughout the year so that we reorient our focus on Him in a spirit of gratitude.
When God has blessed us with beautiful houses we did not build, vineyards and olive trees we did not plant, and have plenty to eat and be merry, God warns us, “watch yourself so that you do not forget Adonai, who brought you out from the land of Egypt, from the house of slavery.” (Deut. 6:10-12)
We all have our own “house of slavery” God brought us out of. Whether from a pit of despair, sickness, an addiction, a detrimental lifestyle, a broken marriage, or even death itself, it is good to take time to remember His work in our lives.
In my case, God delivered me from suicide attacks, migraines that lasted seventeen years, discouragement that I could not shake off, and financial loss that shook the core of my identity, among other things.
As immigrants, my husband and I have shared with our daughters our story of how we came to America.
We’ve recounted how we came with nothing and had nothing. I came to this country wearing two dresses and a pair of shoes. God has blessed both our families. Our parents were so courageous to take such high risks and uproot us from a war-stricken country to bring us to a land where we could have a chance of a better future. Truly, we live in houses we did not build, and enjoy the prosperity of “vineyards” and “olive trees” we did not plant.
God wants us to always remember His deliverance in our lives.
In the first three chapters of Deuteronomy, Moses recounts their trajectory while they were in the wilderness. As a father of this new nation, he continually urged the people to always remember the mighty works of the Lord. “Remember that the Lord rescued you from the iron-smelting furnace of Egypt in order to make you his very own people and his special possession, which is what you are today.” (Deut. 4:20). In the following chapters 5, 6, 8 and so on he continued to instruct them to never forget how God miraculously saved them from the hand of the Egyptians.
My daughters and I never tire of hearing my husband’s story of how God rescued him from his own “iron-smelting furnace of Egypt” too. We’ve heard it many times whether in an intimate conversation with guests at our dinner table or in his teachings at a class or from the pulpit. Each time he shares his story of salvation, all ears listening feel the passion and strong emotions in his words. Those with sensitive hearts can’t help but end up with teary eyes.
Consider celebrating Passover Seder in your home this year. (Follow this easy guide)
We’ve decided to keep Passover (and other Biblical feasts) as part of our family traditions to pass on to our grandchildren.
All the Biblical Feasts serve as pictorial reminders of God’s covenants and promises with His people. They are moments to draw near to God out of love, not out of legalistic obligation; a time to reorient ourselves with God.
We were once foreigners, “excluded from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Messiah Yeshua, [we] who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of the Messiah.” (Eph. 2:12-13). Because of Jesus, we are partakers of all God’s blessings.
As you take the time to remember our Lor’ds sacrifice for our sins, let us also rejoice knowing that because of His death and resurrection we have eternal life. One day we will celebrate Passover with the Passover Lamb himself, and what a day of rejoicing that will be!
