Topic: A Day To Remember [Saturday January 28, 2017]
Text: Exodus 23:14-19
Key Verse: “Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:)” (Exodus 23:15).
Many nations of the world have special days of national holidays when they remember and mark events that are of great importance to their history and development as a nation. For some, it is a day of national independence, rebirth or a day they commemorate a national disaster that brought a change upon them as a nation.
For the nation of Israel, the case is the same. In our text, God gave them specific instructions as to the significant days they were to mark all through their generations. One of such days that was very significant to their existence as a nation, was the day of their miraculous deliverance from over four hundred years of bondage and captivity in Egypt. The feast of Passover was to commemorate the night of their deliverance when God had to kill the first born of the Egyptians, beginning from that of Pharaoh himself in order to break and humiliate the hard-hearted and obstinate king and bring him to agree to let the Israelites go.
It is important to note that the feast was not meant to be a carnal, sensual ceremony, as was the case with the ceremonies of the pagan gentile nations that surrounded them. Rather, it was to be a solemn assembly in which they were to look back in gratitude for their mighty deliverance, remind themselves of their uniqueness as a nation and rededicate their lives to God. There are different kinds of feasts and ceremonies that are held by many assemblies and Christians today. A good look at many of them shows that they do not have any scriptural basis or spiritual importance.
It is usually a way to copy and compete with the world to satisfy their carnal and sensual cravings. Even the one commanded in the New Testament, which is the Lord’s Supper, has lost its significance in many assemblies. Apart from the fact that wrong emblems are used, the manner and attitude in which it is conducted is a dishonour to the Lord. Christians, like the nation of Israel, are called to be different from all the other people around us. We are not expected to be part of their vain ceremonies and observances. If there is a day that should stand out in our lives and that is worth remembering, it should be the day we were saved and redeemed from the slave market of sin.
Thought for the day: Nothing to be celebrated and remembered more than the day of salvation.
Bible Reading in one Year: Romans 4-6
DCLM Daily Manna was written by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi; is the founder and General Superintendent of the Deeper Life Bible Church situated at KM 42 on the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Nigeria.
