Daily Devotions
Where Restoration Begins
Reading for April 29th: 2 Kings 23-25
Then the king commanded all the people saying, "Celebrate the Passover to the Lord your God as it is written in this book of the covenant."
2 Kings 23:21
Where does restoration begin?
In the three great restorations in the Old Testament (Hezekiah, Josiah, and the return to the land after exile) we see a common practice: the Passover was remembered!
What was the significance of the Passover? How did it encourage true restoration? The Passover was a reminder of what God had done in saving Israel from bondage in Egypt. Thus, the Passover was critical in reestablishing their identity. They were the people of God. They owed Him all their heart, soul, strength, and mind. The Passover was a powerful reminder of that to God's people.
In the New Testament, Christ is called our Passover (1 Cor 5:7). He was slain as a lamb without blemish and without spot (1 Pet 1:18-19) so that we might be set free from our bondage to sin (Rom 6:12-23). As often as we eat the unleavened bread and the fruit of the vine, we remember what our Lord and Savior did for us redeeming us from our slavery (1 Cor 11:23-26).
It is this memory that brings about restoration. We owe the Lord everything (2 Cor 5:14-15; Gal 2:20). The reason why we don't give diligence to our spiritual growth is because we've forgotten that we were cleansed from our old sins (2 Pet 1:9). That's why we must constantly come back to the cross and bow down at His pierced feet in reverence and with deep gratitude in our hearts (Heb 12:28).
Father, help us to daily remember your Son. May it provoke in us a desire to more fully love and serve you.
