Our calendar has two “holidays” a few weeks apart that can go unnoticed as to importance and impact.

The first, as we recently celebrated, is Memorial Day when we remember all those who have passed on and especially those who gave their lives or vitality to preserve our freedom and way of life. The second holiday is Independence Day, or the 4th of July, when we will celebrate our freedom and independence from tyranny.

We celebrate what we remember and we remember what we celebrate, so it is vital that we take the time to remember and take the liberty to celebrate.

Remembering and celebrating are not new. Almighty God delivered His people Israel from Egyptian slavery and brought them to the Promised Land.

An important step in the deliverance of Israel was the devastating plagues that God visited on Egypt. The final plague was the death of the firstborn. Every firstborn in Egypt was to die on that dreadful night. The only ones spared were those who sacrificed a lamb and applied the blood on the doorposts of their houses. The blood caused the death angel to “pass over” their house. God told His people to celebrate this “Passover” and remember His mighty act of deliverance.

The key part to Passover was the lamb and the blood applied. Orthodox Jewish people observe Passover to this day.

That original deliverance and the Passover were but a picture of the ultimate plan God had for all of us. The blood of that sacrificial lamb did not have the power to cleanse the conscience and restore the soul and spirit of mankind. Passover was an annual observance that pointed to things to come.

God’s bigger plan is to deliver all people from sin and death, and to restore them to a right relationship with Him. The lamb God provided for this ultimate sacrifice was His own Son, Jesus Christ.

God gave His Son, Jesus Christ, to suffer and die on a cross to pay for all the sin of all people for all time.

Jesus was not left in death; God gloriously raised Him from the dead.

Any person who will believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and puts their trust in the finished work of Christ on the cross will be “saved” and become a child of God.

The apostle Paul gave instruction to all followers of Christ to celebrate and remember what Christ did on the cross. In the New Testament book of 1 Corinthians, chapter 11, verses 23-26, Paul speaks of the body and the blood of Jesus Christ freely given for all.

Freedom and liberty should be celebrated nationally and personally. Many died to preserve our national freedom. One, Jesus Christ, died to give us eternal life and absolute freedom in our soul regardless of our circumstance.

During this special season of the year, remember and celebrate, but never forget the cost!

 

Dan Puckett works with road team operations at Life Action Ministries in Buchanan, Michigan.