A special meal was inaugurated on the night before the nation of Israel would be freed from Egyptian slavery. It was a meal about a sacrificial lamb that would atone for their sins. It was to be eaten in a certain way and commemorated on a certain day of the year– it was Passover. Even though there were a lot of “rules” about eating this special meal, it served as a perpetual reminder of something to come. Basically, this meal represented HOPE.
The Passover was a high point in a typical Jewish family, and it served as an opportunity to explain how the God of Heaven, the Creator of the universe, saved His people who were in distress.
Exodus 12:24-27, “Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance for you and your descendants. When you enter the land that the Lord will give you as He promised, observe this ceremony. And when your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ then tell them, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when He struck down the Egyptians.’”
In time the Jews neglected this celebration, and by doing so, the story of Israel’s deliverance was virtually forgotten. They knew of God, but their lifestyle proved that they didn’t really know God. For instance, in the New Testament we read of a dispute between the religious leaders and Jesus over His identity and therefore His purpose. It's in this scene where the Pharisees reject Jesus' statement: (John 8:12) “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”
In John 8:19 they ask, “Where is your father?” To which Jesus replies, “You do not know me or my Father, if you knew me, you would know my Father also.”
All the festivals and ceremonies God that instituted at the beginning were intended to help later generations to recognize God’s power and therefore have hope.
1 Peter 1:10-12 describes how the prophets searched the Scriptures to find the hope of salvation, but it wasn’t going to be revealed until Jesus life, death, burial, and resurrection.
In the Hebrew, the words used for HOPE are Yakhal (to wait for) and Qavah (tension/ a tight cord). Both words are used periodically throughout Scriptures illustrating waiting on God and the tension that comes with waiting.
We need hope to stay faithful. Proverbs 13:12 says, “Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.” So, hope and faith fit well together, and we know from Hebrews 11:6 that “without faith it is impossible to please God, because whoever comes to him for salvation must believe that he is indeed God, the one able to save from sins, and that he righteously rewards those who sincerely seek him.”
God has left many nuggets of hope packed away in Scriptures that help us maintain hope, build our faith, or even begin having faith. The more we know the Scriptures, the better the story is seen and our opportunities to share our faith are more obvious.
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