Jesus shares the Lord's Supper with his disciples.
14 When the time came, Jesus and the apostles sat down together at the table.
15 Jesus said, “I have been very eager to eat this Passover meal with you before my suffering begins. 16 For I tell you now that I won’t eat this meal again until its meaning is fulfilled in the Kingdom of God.”
17 Then he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. Then he said, “Take this and share it among yourselves. 18 For I will not drink wine again until the Kingdom of God has come.”
19 He took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this to remember me.”
20 After supper he took another cup of wine and said, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood, which is poured out as a sacrifice for you.
Jesus gave his disciples very detailed instructions on where the Passover meal would be served, the instructions remind us of the instructions that he gave the disciples when he sent them to get the donkey that he would ride into Jerusalem. (Compare Luke 22:9-12 with Luke 19:30-34) The details of these two passages help to remind us that God is in control of everything, Jesus' crucifixion didn't catch either of them by surprise. The disciples found that all of the details were just as Jesus had said, even the man carrying the water pot, which would be a strange sight to see a man doing "woman's work."
It is now Thursday of Passion Week, the day that the Feast of Unleavened Bread, it is the day that the Passover Lambs are prepared and this evening the Passover meal would begin at sundown.
Jesus institutes a new memorial meal. The first one was Passover, a memorial of the deliverance of God's chosen people from Egypt, this new memorial meal that we call The Lord's Supper is in anticipation of the permanent deliverance that would take place very soon. (Exodus 12:1-20)
The unleavened bread of the Passover would now represent Jesus body that was broken on the cross. Each time we break the bread, may we always remember how broken his body was, each time we drink the juice, may we remember that we was covered with blood from the whip that tore his flesh.
Broken For Me
Hebrews 10:10-13 For God’s will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time.The broken bread and the juice serve as a reminder of the new relationship between God and man that was started as a result of Jesus sacrifice for all of our sins, a sacrifice that was good for all time, it would never have to be made again.
Under the old covenant, the priest stands and ministers before the altar day after day, offering the same sacrifices again and again, which can never take away sins. But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God’s right hand.
I need to be careful when I take part in the Lord's supper that I take time to realize the gruesome treatment that he endured for me.
Thank you Lord for your Son that made the ultimate sacrifice for me.
