Do you ever wonder about the time after you have left this earth and it is up to the next generation to pass on your family traditions?
I do that often. Always I am hoping that we have set the stage and given the right examples for our grown children and grandchildren to follow. Time will tell the story.
Here are some of the things that I hope they remember the most:
That, as a family of believers, we never forgot to remember the Passover. We kept it faithfully every year, abiding by the scripture verses found in Numbers 9:1-5:
The LORD spoke to Moses in the Desert of Sinai in the first month of the second year after they came out of Egypt. He said,“Have the Israelites celebrate the Passover at the appointed time.
Celebrate it at the appointed time, at twilight on the fourteenth day of this month, in accordance with all its rules and regulations.” So Moses told the Israelites to celebrate the Passover, and they did so in the Desert of Sinai at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month. The Israelites did everything just as the LORD commanded Moses.
- That the four cups of the Passover symbolize Sanctification, Deliverance, Redemption and Praise. Each one of these cups are symbolic of some type of freedom. God wants us to be a free people.
- That Jesus is always at the table with us, during every meal, during every remembrance, during all that we do in all of our days.
- That after this feast of remembrance, Jesus died a cruel death on the cross to save us from ourselves. He became our Passover. Jesus is The Lamb of God.
- That the slaves of Egypt suffered, but their pain was only the beginning of suffering. Jesus suffered more at the crucifixion. As the slaves were freed from bondage and slavery; so Jesus freed our spirits from the bondage and slavery of sin.
- The washing of one’s hands and/or the washing of one’s feet both symbolize that we must always remember to remove the daily grime from our lives. Though Jesus has saved us from our sins, once and for all and always, we still need to confess our sins to Him as they come up. We should be keeping ourselves clean and spotless from the ways of the world and holy before God. It is good to keep short accounts so that God’s books on us are always up-to-date and clean from our mistakes and worldliness.
- The salt water that we dip the parsley into reminds us of the tears of our ancestors as they were slaves in Egypt. The parsley reminds us of the hyssop which applied the Lamb’s blood to the door frames of the homes of the Israelites. The same salt water that speaks of slavery and tears, also speaks of God’s redemption as it is also symbolic of the salt water of the Red Sea that the Israelites crossed on dry land. God always has to part the waters so that we can pass through anything to safety and freedom.
- I hope that our family always remembers that they were permitted to ask questions and to wonder about why and how we do things that we do. It is hoped that they will always know in their hearts that this night is special and different from all other nights because of the things that God did for His people.
- May they always remember why we eat the unleavened bread for the next seven days after the Passover. Yes, the people had to leave Egypt quickly, so they made bread without yeast; but it also means that our time on earth is short. We must be taking in the sinless love of Jesus every day that we live on this earth. The unleavened bread got the children of Egypt out of slavery. Jesus redeemed us from sin. Both brought life instead of death and joy instead of tears.
- Maybe they will remember why the herbs we eat were bitter. Because slavery was hard. So is life on this earth. God never said the journey would always be easy. He only promised to be with us all of the way.
- I hope that the children will think about how we enjoyed sharing special meals around our family table. Just being in fellowship, listening to music in the background, thinking of the deliciousness of our food and enjoying our blessings as a family who loves one another. I also hope that they always remember to thank God for the food and the moments shared. So many blessings have been poured out over so many years.
- May everyone know and remember always that Passover is just the beginning of the sacred year. We begin with remembering Jesus, we are blessed in the process. We go out giving praise and thanksgiving for our salvation and redemption and hopes for a new and exciting year full of the adventures that God will send our way. Three days later; on the day of Early Firstfruits we will be expecting to celebrate The Resurrection of Christ. On the first day of Unleavened bread (tomorrow) we will offer our annual offerings up to The Lord. This is something that we bring from our hearts and the best and first of the fruits of our hands each year. It should be something that we have prayed about and received confirmation from God to be useful in the year to come and the promotion of God’s Kingdom on this earth.
Will they always remember all of this? I’m not sure it is humanly possible, but I do believe that God will make it possible. He will remind them in just the moments that they need to know. I am trusting in that fact.
We serve an awesome God. His ways are so far above ours and so wondrous and magnificent that mere words cannot begin to describe them. I am grateful to God for each and every memory He has blessed our family with during the Holy Days of each and every quickly passing year.