I Will Deliver You: The Story of Your Exodus

Last week, I invited you to step inside a Jewish home and take your place at a Passover table. I told you about the four cups of wine lifted during that meal—each one anchored to a promise spoken by God in Exodus chapter 6:

I will bring you out.
I will deliver you.
I will redeem you.
I will take you as My people.

Those promises were first spoken to Israel as God prepared to lead them out of the bondage of Egypt. But because the meal Jesus shared with His disciples on the night before the cross was a Passover celebration, we began to see something deeper. What we now call Communion was born at this table. It was during this meal that Jesus held up wine and bread and declared: this is my body, and this is my blood which was given for you. That means the story of our salvation is woven into this ancient meal.

This week, we lift the second cup—the Cup of Deliverance—connected to God’s promise: I will deliver you.

And it is here that the atmosphere of the meal shifts.

The Story of the Exodus

During this portion of the celebration, the father of the household retells the story of the Exodus. But he does not simply start telling the story on his own. Tradition requires that the youngest person at the table ask four questions:

Why is this night different from all other nights?
Why do we eat only unleavened bread?
Why do we eat bitter herbs?
Why do we dip our food and recline at the table while we eat?

These four questions serve as prompts that allow the father to tell the story of the exodus. Each question draws the family's attention to the elements on the table before them. The meal itself becomes a living illustration of the story. The unleavened bread reminds the family of the haste with which their ancestors fled Egypt. The bitter herbs speak of the sting of slavery. Reclining at the table becomes a declaration: we are no longer slaves — we are free.

And at some point in life, every Jewish person has been that youngest voice asking those questions. In that moment, the story becomes personal, not merely remembered. It is received and passed on from one generation to the next.

Why does this matter so much?

Why is it so important that these questions are asked and answered?

There is a practical reason.

A Story of Connection

Retelling the story of the Exodus creates a connection between each person and the ongoing narrative of their people. 

The Exodus was not merely a historical event—it was the defining act of God that shaped Israel’s identity. If that child asking those questions forgot that story, they would eventually forget who they were.

So when a grandfather who once asked those questions as a child now answers them for his grandchildren, the story moves across the table and across time. In that moment, the child begins to understand that they are part of something much larger than their own single lifetime.

But telling the story each year is more than preserving family history.

It is also an act of faith.

A Story of Encouragement

Retelling the Exodus brings each child face-to-face with the God of Israel. 

Not necessarily in the sense of immediate personal conversion, but in the sense of recognition. When the father recounts how God brought Israel out of bondage with a mighty hand, he is declaring that their freedom was not self-achieved. It was given to them by God. There is no history of Israel without the involvement of Israel’s God.

And that leads us to a question closer to home.

Your Exodus Story

Have you ever considered the importance of telling the story of your own exodus?

We often call it our “testimony.”

For Israel, the Exodus was their defining story of deliverance. It was the moment God stepped into their bondage and brought them out.

But the Christian also has an Exodus.

Your exodus does not involve Pharaoh or parted seas, but it involves something just as real. You were a slave to sin. Each believer has been brought out of that bondage—out of guilt, out of spiritual darkness. And the account of how God did that is your testimony.

When a Christian shares their testimony, it serves purposes very similar to those of the Exodus story retold at the Passover table.

First, it creates connection.

When a believer shares his testimony, he is reminded that his salvation is part of something far larger than himself. More than two thousand years ago, Christ gave His life for the sins of the world. That work of redemption did not end at the cross—it continues. And the moment you surrendered to Christ, you were woven into that grand narrative. God is accomplishing something in this world, and every believer is connected to that unfolding plan.

Second, it creates encouragement.

There is strength in remembering where you once were and what God has done. Sharing your testimony reminds you that your freedom was not self-achieved—it was given to you by God. So your story strengthens your faith. It highlights God’s grace. Gratitude rises naturally from your heart when you recall that you did not rescue yourself; He rescued you.

But there is yet another purpose.

Your Story is an Invitation

The third purpose of telling your personal exodus is to create an invitation.

The Exodus story at Passover defined Israel’s identity as a people. It declared who they were and what God had done for them. But it was not an invitation to change one’s lineage; it was a remembrance of a shared heritage.

Your testimony, however, does something more.

When you tell how Christ brought you out, you are not only declaring what God has done—you are inviting others into that same deliverance. Your past, your present, and your transformed future become a living invitation. A person cannot rewrite their ancestry to become part of Israel’s history. But they can surrender their heart and become part of Christ’s redemption story for humanity.

Through your exodus story, you are saying, “The God who brought me out can bring you out too.” Your testimony is more than a memory of an experience. It is an open doorway for others.

And perhaps that is why the second cup matters so much.

When the Cup of Deliverance is lifted at the Passover table, it is a reminder that God enters bondage and brings people out. It is a declaration that deliverance is part of His nature.

For Israel, that deliverance came through the Exodus.

For us, it came through the cross.

But in both cases, the story must be told. The next time you have the chance to share your testimony with someone, lift your cup. Remember what God has done and tell them about your exodus. 

Somewhere, someone is waiting to hear that the God who brought people out of bondage still does.