Spiritual Alzheimer's - Part 3

It’s my claim that Christianity should be understood as a religion of remembrance, but not just remembrance for remembrance sake. Our remembrance is always for the sake of the future. This is a huge theme in the Old Testament and the New.

In the Old Testament there is a repeated refrain that goes something like this: "Remember, I am the God that brought you up out of Egypt". When God gives his people (Israel) ethical imperatives he very frequently makes the foundation of their obedience remembering what God did in their past. In essence he is saying, "As you (Israel) press into the future, I am calling you to live by faith. Remembering what did in your past should fuel this faith in me."

Here are some examples from the book of Deuteronomy:

7:18 ...you shall not be afraid of them but you shall remember what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt,

• As you move into the future, starting now, don’t fear! Remember what I did!

15:12 “If your brother, a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, is sold to you, he shall serve you six years, and in the seventh year you shall let him go free from you. And when you let him go free from you, you shall not let him go empty-handed. You shall furnish him liberally out of your flock, out of your threshing floor, and out of your winepress. As the Lord your God has blessed you, you shall give to him. You shall remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God redeemed you; therefore I command you this today.

• Don’t forget that you used to be a slave. As you move into the future, starting now with your slaves, treat them well!

24:18 - 17 “You shall not pervert the justice due to the sojourner or to the fatherless, or take a widow's garment in pledge, but you shall remember that you were a slave in Egypt and the Lord your God redeemed you from there; therefore I command you to do this.

• If you remembered that you were once weak and defenseless too, how could you abuse those currently around you who are weak and defenseless? The foundation of your care for the weak and defenseless is the fact that you know what that’s like. Remember!

We could go on and on with many more examples like this from the book of Deuteronomy alone.
All these commands for obedient, joy-filled living are rooted in the fact that they are to remember what God did! So the point is that we see all through the OT, God commanding his people to remember for the sake of faith-filled obedience in present and future.

Let the looking back propel you into the future with faith.


Parts 1 and 2 can be found here.