E19 Exodus 12 – The Transcendence of Remembrance

Why does God place such an emphasis on remembrance? God even establishes remembrance as a form of worship.

Before the Lord led the Israelites out of Egypt, He gave them instructions to remember. God placed a higher priority in remembering the deliverance than on the deliverance itself. He even gave more instructions and commands on the remembrance itself rather than the deliverance.

The repeated words on this passage are: commemorate, celebrate, observe.

Commemorate. To commemorate means to remember together, Passover was not for individuals it was for the community. Nothing sticks to memory banks like communal experiences. To God is important that we celebrate faith as a group than as an individual (its better for us, too!).

Celebrate. Do you find it interesting that God has to command us to celebrate? You would think that would come naturally to us. But, we have been commanded by God to: enjoy and delight ourselves in our faith. To God is important that we celebrate in the things He wants us to do. Make no mistake, Passover was a feast!

Observe. Our man-made holidays usually celebrate past events [Independence Day, Memorial Day, etc.] We don't have any holidays about the future! But you know God is doing more than pointing at the past. I love the transcendence of the Scriptures; the Israelites were not just being thought to observe the past, they were being prepared for the future! In preparing the lambs for Passover they were being prepared for the Lamb of God (John 1:29, Rev 15:3). By observing the past, we can see the future!

At Passover Jesus brought both fulfillment and promise. After during the Passover meal Jesus instituted another standing ordinance for us, the Lord's Supper. In breaking the bread, we remember and experience his broken body. In drinking the cup we celebrate the new covenant in His blood. In the whole experience we are not just observing and remembering his death, but more importantly we are proclaiming his future return!

Its important to note that once again, the command to remember the cross came before the deliverance itself. Jesus commands us all to: "Remember Me."