Ps. 137:1-9, God Remembers (4)

What should we remember, or forget, and why?

·       Deut. 9:7: We need to remember who we are/were without Christ.  Israel needed to remember this so that they would understand their weakness.

·       Dt. 24:9: They also needed to remember God’s chastening, and so do we.  Here, God had brought leprosy upon Miriam because of her pride.

·       Eph. 2:11-12: Paul says, “remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh … without Christ … having no hope.”  This is part of our “testimony.” When we remember this, we are more appreciative of what Christ has done.  If we forget, we are more liable to take Christ for granted.

·       Dt. 5:15: In like manner, Israel was to remember the bondage of Egypt.  One reason was so they would be compassionate toward others.  But more, so they would be thankful for God’s deliverance.

·       Dt. 32:7-9: The whole purpose of the Song of Moses (Dt. 32) was to be a reminder of God’s prediction of what Israel would do.  In this passage, they were to remember God’s past graces and care (cf. also Ezek. 16:22).

·       Ps. 137:1-9; 77:3-6: We should remember the heights of the good days as an encouragement in praying for today’s problems.

·       Rev. 2:5; Heb. 10:32-35: Here we are to remember the spiritual heights of former days so as to encourage present endurance, and to promote repentance and courage.

·       Ex. 13:3; 1 Cor. 11:24-25:  The Passover was a reenactment of what Israel did on the very night God delivered them from bondage.  So we also are to remember the sacrifice of our Lord and the meaning of His shed blood as we regularly gather at the Lord’s Table.  The point is remembrance!  Never forget what it is that God has done for you.  Never forget what gives us a deep relationship with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

So, remember the past.  Certainly, as we consider the whole counsel of God, we realize that we do not live in the past.  Thoughts of the past have value for living today.  Lest we struggle with this, we are also taught in Scripture to forget the past.

·       Zech. 13:2: Under the New Covenant God wipes away the memory of yesterdays idols, so as to remove the temptation.

·       Isa. 43:18f: Here God says, “do not remember the former things, nor consider the things of old.”  The reason? So we can live in the “new thing” He is doing.

·       Ezek. 23:27: As we grow in Christ, the memory of past sins and bondage lose their grip and their intensity. 

·       Ps. 45:10: These words to the “Bride of Messiah/Christ,” to forget your father’s house, is a call to no longer trust in the things of the former life.  Through our trials, Christ will lead us to His abundant life.