"This is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations" (Exodus 3:15).
There are a number of references in Scripture that indicate what God desires to be memorialized or remembered.
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His name: In the above text God reminds Moses that His name is never to be forgotten. David understood this as well, quoting Exodus 3:15 in Psalms 135:13 and 102:12.
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The Exodus: "This day shall be unto you for a memorial" (Exodus 12:14). The physical deliverance of the children of Israel from Egypt is still celebrated during Passover.
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The Tribes of Israel: "And thou shalt take two onyx stones, and grave on them the names of the children of Israel: . . . And thou shalt put the two stones upon the shoulders of the ephod for stones of memorial . . . and Aaron shall bear their names before the Lord" (Exodus 28:9,12). God will never forget His own.
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Christ's burial: "|Mary of Bethany| having an alabaster box of very precious ointment, and poured it on His |Jesus| head" (Matthew 26:7). For this sacrificial act Mary received the commendation, "Wheresoever this gospel shall be preached in the whole world, there shall also this, that this woman hath done, be told for a memorial of her" (v.13).
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Prayer and alms-giving: Cornelius, was "A devout man, and one that feared God . . . gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway" (Acts 10:2). The messenger of the Lord appeared to him and said, "Thy prayers and thine alms are come up for a memorial before God" (v.4). It is a humbling thought to realize that God memorializes those who inwardly pray and outwardly serve.
It is said of Jacob that "the Lord is his memorial" (Hosea 12:5). For the believer every day should be a memorial day. For the unbeliever, "their memorial is perished with them" (Psalm 9:6). NPS
