![]() It is fitting that Christ instituted the Lord’s Supper on Passover. He died so we might be forgiven and set free to serve Him. Like Israel, we, too, can forget the deliverance, redemption, and salvation Jesus bought for us with His blood. King Josiah prioritized Passover, wanting to reconnect the wayward with the Way Maker who brought his forefathers through the Red Sea on dry ground. ![]() As Passover vanished, the priority to worship the Lord was replaced with idol worship, a dilapidated Temple, and impending judgment. For nearly 400 years, between the time of the prophet Samuel to King Josiah, they neglected to celebrate their God-given freedom properly. Unfortunately, it didn’t take long for the Israelites to minimize Passover’s significance. Passover night is when Israel was set apart and set free to serve Him in the sight of all nations. Throughout the Old Testament, the Lord is remembered as the God who liberated His people from Egypt. It is to forget God’s holy laws and commandments. To forget Passover is to deny God the honor and glory He deserves. Before the Israelites entered the Promised Land, Moses warned them, “Beware, lest you forget the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage” (Dt. God commanded that Passover be an annual event because He did not want His people to forget the mighty hand that delivered them from slavery. Within 24 hours, they forget 70 percent and within a week, the percentage can reach as high as 90 percent. Research on the problem of forgetting has revealed that within one hour, people forget an average of 50 percent of the information given to them. He knows we’re forgetful, absentminded, and easily distracted creatures. The Passover story has been retold for more than 3,000 years for one reason: God commanded the Israelites to celebrate it annually (12:14). Wine is poured four times to remember God’s sanctifying power (Ex. Bitter herbs (horseradish) and charoset (sweet apple-walnut relish) are fused into a small sandwich to represent both the bitterness of bondage and sweetness of freedom. Parsley, a symbol of the hyssop used to smear blood on the doorposts, is dipped in salt water and eaten to savor the tears shed by the Jewish forefathers as slaves. Matzoh (unleavened bread) represents the haste in which the Israelites fled Egypt. And a celebration is what it is-a celebration of God’s faithfulness to liberate His people according to His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.Īt the Seder table, interesting foods are consciously consumed for one simple but significant reason: to remember. I’m being facetious, but I’m not far off from a typical Passover celebration. The evening consists of reading the Passover story, eating, sipping wine, reading, sipping, eating, reading, sipping, and eating again. At sundown on March 27, Jewish families the world over will gather in homes as they have for thousands of years to instill in future generations the Passover Seder traditions.
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