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Someone has said that a sacred ritual is a drama in which we are both the audience and the participant; that the purpose is to activate parts of our minds that are not activated by everyday activities. In Exodus Chapter 12, as God was about to deliver Israel from Egyptian slavery, He told Moses to institute the ritual of the Passover. Its purpose would be to recall and relive how God spared the people when the death angel killed the firstborn sons of Egypt. God promised to pass over Israelite families if they brushed the blood of a lamb or goat on the doorposts of their houses. God said, “When I see the blood I will pass over you.” In years to come, as they recalled that event, they were to thank God for His mercy and recommit themselves to obey Him. By doing this with their children, they would transmit the knowledge of God from one generation to the next. When Jesus Christ appeared, He became the Passover Lamb for all humanity. God now shields from wrath all who place their faith in God’s Son. For Christians, the Lord’s Table is the ritual our Lord gave us to recall His atoning sacrifice for us. As we partake of the Communion emblems, we thank God for giving us His Son, we submit our lives to Him, and recommit to serve Him until that day when Christ returns.
