Easter Meditation: Day 4

Exodus 12:1-14

Throughout my years of college I made a habit of rereading books and stories that my parents had read to me when I was a child. Surprisingly I discovered that most of the stories contained vastly new meanings for me when I read them for myself the second time. I remember weeping when Aslan put the challenge to Lucy in the book Prince Caspian, "Even if no one else follows me, I still want you to come." Only upon experiencing a heart broken over a decision could I understand the weight of Aslan's request. When I read Wind in the Willows I sat up in bed and pondered for some time when Mole tells Rat of how terrifying awe can feel like. God is an even better story teller than these men who so perfectly crafted emotion and experience into words. God tells true stories that are not fully comprehended in the first sitting. They can be received by both children and adults and contain profound meaning for both. He does not just tell stories with words, but with all sorts of things like the rings of a tree or the perfect cradle in which our planet sits in the middle of a dangerous universe of twirling planets and hurtling objects. In the Passover we hear a story that is meant to be passed on from generation to generation, telling a story of God's faithfulness. The Passover did not just have meaning for the present, but also for the future. The Old Testament is impossible to understand (and many do not understand because of this) if it is not understood in this way. Hebrews 11:39-40 helps us understand this. After telling the story of faith through the life of several incredible individuals (the kind that make you think, "I could never be that cool!") it says this: "All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us." On Wednesday the community group that meets at my house celebrated the Passover together. Seeing it both in its original meaning and in its fulfillment. I am attaching a picture that we took replicating Leonardo Da Vinci's portrait The Last Supper (only we were wearing flannel, as you can see!). Do you understand that you are a part of the story?