The Value of Remebering

Scripture Reading: Deuteronomy 16

              It can be both encouraging and helpful to look back and remember who you were before you became a Christian. The Bible describes that time in your life as “lost,” “in sin,” “under condemnation,” and “dead.” To remind yourself of that former condition and then to reflect on what it means to be saved is a good practice.

              The Jewish feasts had this element of remembrance built-in. Whether it was the act of building booths to live in temporarily or eating the “bread of affliction,” there were rituals assigned that were designed to remind them of where they were and how God saved them. One of the outcomes of these practices was that the people would be “joyful altogether” (16:15).

              The Apostle Paul often recounted his former life as a persecutor and blasphemer. He did this, not to revel in his past or even dwell regretfully on it, but to remember and magnify the grace of Christ that rescued him from that past.

              Too often tales of past sin from the lips of Christians sound a lot like fond memories or boastfulness. It comes across as an attempt to show who was the worst sinner. If our past must be told, it ought to be told to point us to the Cross of Christ. It ought to magnify Him. Our song should be a joyful rendition of Amazing Grace, not amazing sin. We should smile, not at our life before Christ, but at His mercy that saved us out of that life.