It would not have been enough.
Over the Christmas holidays, my two oldest daughters, Sara Maria and Grace, each went to conferences. Grace to Urbana. And Sara Maria to Passion.
As much as possible, I joined in by web stream through the wonders of modern technology.
And while I loved Francis Chan, and David Platt, and John Piper, I was riveted by Beth Moore.
Now, I am a Beth Moore fan, but I'm not a Beth Moore groupie. However, I loved the message she brought to the 60,000+ young people gathered in Atlanta.
I loved the message because of the content, but also because of one of my favorite Finley Family Traditions.
In this message, Beth presents the Passover. She uses the elements of the Passover Feast - the cups, the matzoh, the bitter herbs, the haroset ... to show how Jesus met every hope expressed in the Passover with his crucifixion and resurrection.
As I listened, I thought about Sara Maria listening. I could imagine her nodding along and saying "YES!" because she has experienced the Passover in our family year after year after year.
I also thought about the thousands of young people who were getting this for the very first time. And later when I talked with Sara Maria she told me that this talk opened up many conversations. Because she had learned the significance and the symbolism of the Passover through years of repetition, she was able to come alongside others as they tried to absorb the deep truths.
And so I listened and loved the truths of what Beth shared. And I prayed for the young people as they listened.
But when Beth got to 28:11, I was riveted. She got to the "Dayenu," which means "It would have been enough."
LEADER: If the Lord had merely rescued us, but had not punished the Egyptians...
ALL: It would have been enough!
LEADER: If He had only destroyed their gods, but had not parted the Red Sea...
ALL: It would have been enough!
LEADER: If He had only destroyed our enemies, but had not fed us His food in the desert ...
ALL: It would have been enough!
LEADER: If He had only led us through the desert, but had not given us his holy day of rest ...
ALL: It would have been enough!
LEADER: If He had only given us His Words and Commandments, but not a Promised Land forever ...
ALL: It would have been enough!
All of this freedom, and rescue, and manna, and rest, and words ... would not have been enough.
And even more,
If Jesus had been born of a virgin ... it would not have been enough.
If He had healed the sick and raised the dead ... it would not have been enough.
If He had been scorned, and mocked, spit upon, and bruised ... it would not have been enough.
What would possibly be enough?
The Passover answers this question.
This year, our family will gather, as we always do one night during "Holy Week." We'll huddle up around our coffee table set with candles, and fancy plates, and fancy glasses. We'll pass the bitter herbs, and salt water, and haroset. We'll look for the matzoh, and answer the questions, and repeat "Dayenu," knowing that it all points to Jesus. Because Jesus was the Passover Lamb who came to take away the sins of the world. Jesus was, and is, and always will be ... enough.
If you'd like to begin this tradition with your family, here's a link to our Simple Christian Passover Celebration. And if you'd like to join in with 60,000 young people and hear Beth's talk, here's a link.
Jesus is enough, for your life and mine. If you have questions or a thought to share about the Passover, please email me, cynthiafin@gmail.com or leave a comment. I'd love to hear from you!