Exodus 12:25-2825And it shall come to pass, when ye be come to the land which the Lord will give you, according as he hath promised, that ye shall keep this service. 26And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this service? 27That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the Lord's passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed the head and worshipped. 28And the children of Israel went away, and did as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they. (Exodus 12:25‑28)
“AND IT shall come to pass, when ye be come to the land which the LORD will give you, according as He hath promised, that ye shall keep this service. And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this service? that ye shall say, it is the sacrifice of the LORD’S passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when He smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses.” 10:25-27.
The memory of their deliverance from judgment by the blood of the passover lamb was to be kept alive by Israel throughout their generations. “Ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons Forever.” When the children, as they witnessed the annual feast, would inquire: “What mean ye by this service?” the parents were to answer plainly.
This responsibility, entrusted to the children of Israel long ago, should exercise the heart of every parent who loves the Lord in our day. Dear father and mother, do your children see in you faithful obedience to God’s Word? Have you faithfully and prayerfully brought before these dear children His truth, and committed them to His care in prayer that they too will take hold of salvation? Have you faithfully read the Scriptures yourselves so that when your children ask, “What mean ye by this service?” you can give them a plain answer from that holy Word, and teach them out of it?
The Lord knew how quickly the Israelites would forget what He had done for them, and He knew too how quickly we would forget the Lord’s sufferings and death for us, so He has given us this precious remembrance feast—the Lord’s supper. Like the disciples of old we can meet to break bread on the first day of each week. The loaf placed on the table tells of the body of the Lord Jesus given in death for us, while the cup speaks of His precious blood shed for the remission of our sins.
When the people heard the words of Moses they bowed their heads and worshiped. How happy it is to see their response to the goodness and mercy of the Lord. Yet we shall soon see with sorrow how they quickly forgot Him, and rebelled, and fell into ways so dishonoring to Him, bringing down His discipline and judgment upon themselves. And we too who have been blessed far above and beyond Israel, who have been brought to a far higher ground of truth than they, must bow in shame at the frequent failures in our walk, and the lack of obedience to the truth that should be our mainstay and joy.
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom resist steadfast in the faith.” 1 Peter 5:8,98Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: 9Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. (1 Peter 5:8‑9). One scarcely needs to comment on the moral and spiritual darkness of the day in which we live. May every Christian parent have a true desire, and seek grace as well, to bring up their children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. We will do well to have the same spirit as Ezra, who, in view of enemies along the way, turned to God in prayer: “to seek of Him a right way for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance.” Ezra could rejoice to see his prayer answered, for we read: “so we fasted and besought our God for this: and He was intreated of us.” Ezra 8:21,2321Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river of Ahava, that we might afflict ourselves before our God, to seek of him a right way for us, and for our little ones, and for all our substance. (Ezra 8:21)
23So we fasted and besought our God for this: and he was entreated of us. (Ezra 8:23).
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